Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Product, but could be yet better
Review: I got an iPAQ about 3 weeks ago. So far I'm very impressed with it, and starting to replace the 2" thick "Brain book" I was carrying with me. The unit's capabilites are very impressive -- I use it for - Schedule planner (synch with home and work) - Read email, including Word and Excel attachments - Address/ contacts data - Notes (including free hand simple drawings) - Business applications (mainly spreadsheet) - MP3 player - Personal pictures (JPGs) although this is a small screen - Ebook reader using Project Gutenberg text files. I have not owned a PDA before, and was not impressed by friends' Palms since they appeared to be just electronic address and calendars. This is *quite* a bit more... Good Points - - Excellent screen -- very bright and colorful (although other people have reported dust under the screen, I have not found any) - Word and Excel. In my professional life I live on these. I have several self written Excel spreadsheet on the iPAQ which aid me greatly in daily working enviroments. And it's really impressive to see a client's reaction when I pull out the iPAQ and do a company valuation or financial model spreadsheet on my PDA. These are "Pocket" versions of Word and Excel, so they don't have the full features of the desktop versions, but for something I can put in my shirt pocket and take with me, they are quite functional. - Ezpandability. I picked up the Compact Flash sleeve and now have a machine with essentially 100 MB RAM, using a 64 MB CF card. Using a spare card I can swap out 64 MB of data at a time -- mp3s for music or data for work. This has replaced me carrying a 100 MB zip disk around. - Power. I've run test MPEG video clips on this in full color and sound. 200 MHz is more than my last generation desktop's processor power. - Excellent handwriting recognition without needing to learn a new language. Still not as easy as just writing and took me a day to get used to, but for taking meeting notes etc it is very good. - Versatility. Excel, word, email, mp3, games, ebooks, voice recorder, jpg viewer -- I'm very impressed to get this in one device. Some of the wireless connectivity options through the expansion sleeves (CF or PCMIA wireless modem and through the installed Internet Explorer) look very impressive, although I have not tried them yet. Could be Improved -- Most of these are quibbles or personal preference... - Connectivity. I use the provided USB cradle at home and aserial cable at work. I had to buy the serial cable for the workmachine (no USB port) and I think Compaq should have provided it.Autosynch works pretty well, but I have had some duplicate meetingsshow up on my schedule. Part of that I think, it that I am learningto use it, and switching between Outlook at home and MS Exchange atwork. Other people have reported connectivity problems that I havenot encountered. - Battery. The unit has an internal wired inbattery which is rechargable from either the cradle or an externalpower adapter. I would have preferred a replaceable (and rechargable)battery just in case. I get from 4-6 hours of standard usage out ofthe battery now. - Software availability. There are severalhundreds of programs availabe and more being added each week -- but Iwould like to see more available including standard business products.In particular, I am *VERY* surprized there isn't a pocket version ofPowerpoint -- although I understand one is near release. -Earphone volume is loud with earbuds, so I run it at near minimumvolume. - Case or cover for the iPAQ. Compaq provides a smallsimple case, and aftermarket vendors have others available. I'm usinga surplus HP65 calculator case which works very well. I would havepreferred a snazzy case from Compaq to show off the machine -- butthat is my personal preference. All in all, I am *very* impressedwith this machine. There are things that could be better, but overallit is very good. People who have seen this being used by myself droolover it...
Rating: 
Summary: Good product but still not as easy or intuitive
Review: If you like great color and graphics as well as built in MP3 capabilities, then this is the right hand-held product for you. However, if you like things simple, get a Palm. While I love this product, it is not as easy to use as a Palm (I have a Visor). The visor is a bit easier to use. The only problem is that unless I get external modules, the Visor does not match (not even close) to the capabilities of the base model of the iPAQ. The problem with the Win CE operating system (or whatever they call it these days) is that it is based on MS Windows and it is a bit awkward to access some of the functions or programs. I will continue to use my Visor for business and the iPAQ for "fun." I also wish that Compaq had gone with the AA or AAA batteries instead of a proprietary option because I have a AA/AAA recharger at home. The battery life of the iPAQ does not make extended use very good...especially for strenuous use...e.g. playing MP3's.
Rating:
Summary: An actual Review
Review: The Ipaq is a great pocket pc overall. The Good and the bad Bad- With small amount of memory you can sometimes have a problem of certain programs not functioning properly. Since the pocket pc manages its memory automatically you cant always use your on board memory to its full advantage. The foul part on Compaq is that you must buy accessories for example the carring case you get with it is a sleeve which is tight as hell to pull your pocket pc which means you need to buy accessories and since there is no slot to stick a memory card in you have to buy a new sleeve that allows you to put a memory card in then you got to get the card seperately which all together can run you over another 100 or more which as we know will be more. Which is funny cause you can get a real pc for the price of this. I guess buy now your wondering what the good is: Well if your the type like me that has a lot of appointments on a daily basis and keeps forgetting those important meetings than this is definately for you. Its great because you have many programs that interact with your pc like word and excel plus once linked to your pc you can connect through the net download and whatever which is cool. The programs that you can load are amazing like you can turn your pocket pc from a calculator to a voice command gaming system to even a remote control for any tv stero or vcr or dvd player doesnt matter. I have found it very useful in my newly busy life and a great benefit for reminders. Battery last pretty long even with the color screen I mean if you plan on using it the whole day and plan on doing serious programs on it better bring your charger. Later
Rating:
Summary: So was it worth the wait?
Review: The Ipaq finally hit the shelves in Hong Kong last week, and after 6 months waiting I was quite happy to pay the inflated price the local vendors wanted. I also tooled up with a USB cable and the PC Card sleeve. So was it worth it? I've owned a Psion 5, a Palm V and a Nino. The Nino was a complete waste of time (too slow, too little memory). The Psion's synchronisation with Windows was appalling, so that fell by the wayside. The Palm V has been a great PDA, and I feel guilty when I hear its beeps of dispair from the closet... However, the Ipaq *was* worth the wait. For sheer richness of media (I'm listening to excellent quality MP3 on it now) it beats the Palm hands down, but then you pay for it. Battery life seems pretty good, although you need to be sure to recharge to avoid data loss (unlike the Palm). And the Windows integration is excellent - the USB cable was unnecessary, I sync with Windows 2000 via infra-red. It feels sturdy, is beautifully engineered, and clearly beats every other PocketPC hands down: bettering this will require other manufacturers to integrate Bluetooth or some similarly compelling selling point. I only have a few criticisms of the product: - The heavy PC Card sleeve is a little too easy to slip off - A little more documentation would have been nice - It runs Windows, which has already managed to total my Inbox during a fouled synchronisation. The Palm *never* did that to me. And was it worth abandoning my Palm V for this? I think so. I need to carry around a lot of documentation, and the Palm just can't present it this well, regardless of which third-party application you use. Palm will continue to attract people who only want PDA functionality: but for those that want a little more, the Ipaq really is the standard to beat.
Rating:
Summary: Compaq Hits A Home Run
Review: I just purchased the new Ipaq from Compaq. I am upgrading fromthe first generation color Windows CE operation system. I have a Sharp Mobilon (with Windows CE 2.0). The battery lasts about 30 minutes on this bulky handheld device. I needed a newer Power PC that had a longer battery life. Compaq rates the Ipaq as having the longest battery life in this genre (at 8 to 10 hours...guess I'll have to see); I just bought mine tonight. The device was remarkably easy to set up. I already had Active Sync 3.0 installed on my laptop. I just plugged the USB connector cradle in and away I went. I syncronized internet news instantly with Avant Go. The screen is bright and engaging and the device is so easy to use its scary. I quickly typed all my contact into Outlook 2000 and I synched them all into my Ipaq. I highly recommend this device. It's more svelt than the palm and twice as good looking. It comes with a cradle and a housing, as well as an adequate carrying pouch to protect the screen. I bought the 3 year warranty from Staples and it was only $59. The entire unit out the door was under $600. Randy,
Rating:
Summary: Close to perfect
Review: I had an Ipaq 3150 before this unit. That unit was a replacement for my Palm IIIXE. Each time I have changed my Handheld, it has been a step up. Now, going to the 3650 has been a giant step forward. The color screen is great. It is well lit, easy to read. The programs that come with the unit halp me keep myself organized at home or on the road. I already used Microsoft Outlook to organize everything while at my desk. The Activesync software that comes with the Ipaq automatically found all my appointment, calendars, and contacts and put them into my Ipaq for me. Sure, it only has 32mb of storage. But I have hundreds of contacts, 40-60 eamails per day, and I subscribe to Avantgo for offline web broiwsing and I never get near the maximum. If I want to store some music files, I just add a 64mb Compact Flash card and I have plenty of space. That 64mb card can store about 2 and a half albums when compressed into WMA format. I use my Ipaq on planes as a music player similar to an MP3 player (Can't call it an MP3 player if I use WMA files, can I?) All I do is hook up my headphones, turn on the media player (Included with PocketPC software), and put the player in my breast pocket. The only thing I would like to see is longer battery life. I regularly travel and after 8-10 hours of continuous use, I have to recharge it. One accessory I would recommend....I picked up a USB Sync cable that also recharges the battery from your USB port. It's great when on the road...one cable both charges and syncs up the Ipaq...
Rating:
Summary: iPAQ or Jornada or Cassiopeia?
Review: You have heard by now that a new class of handhelds - the PocketPCs - have hit the market and selling like hotcakes. You have probably even decided that you would rather go with a PocketPC than a Palm because you use Windows at work and home and feel happy with MSWord, Excel, Powerpoint, Outlook and the whole kit-n-kaboodle. What you cannot decide is which one of these to buy - they all rate so high! Well, for good reason. Faster processors and simpler WindowsCE system are making these eminently powerful and useful. Price: Cassiopeia E-115 and Jornada 548 are both ~ $600 (if you go for the 16 M RAM, the price drops, but I don't recommend it). iPAQs are cheaper at ~ $500. Processors: Cassiopeia (MIPS) and Jornada (SH3) processors are about the same speed (131 MHz) but Cassiopeia is a 64 bit processor. iPAQ has a StrongArm processor running at 206 MHz and noticeably faster. Expandability: Cassiopeia comes with a Type II Compact Flash slot. This means you can put any compact flash cards out there, including the snazzy 1 inch IBM-microdrives that store upto 340 MB of data. Jornada comes with a Type I slot which means it cannot accomodate type II cards or the IBM-drive. iPAQ needs to add an expansion "jacket" to allow any cards. It is an innovative design that allows the main unit to be smaller - but you have to carry more components if you want to lug around more data or music. Display: Only Cassiopeia has a true 16 bit display (65000 colors). iPAQ and Jornada are both 12 bit (1000 colors). Can you make out the difference - mostly not, unless you are looking at photographs. Size: Cassiopeia is bulky and comes in at 9 oz. It does not have a hard top - so it needs to be carried in a soft case that comes along. Jornada unit is about as bulky as Cassiopeia, but it comes with a hard top so the total package (unit and case) is definitely less bulky. iPAQ wins hands down with a Palm like form factor. Bottom Line: If you need dislay, multimedia capabilities and expandability - buy a Cassiopeia. Looking for a sleeker option with decent built-in expansion options - buy a Jornada. You need speed and sleek - look not farther than an iPAQ (remeber you need a separate jacket at times).
Rating: 
Summary: Love the concept and loved the product
Review: But after several months of owning it, I am noticing some things I don't like. Pro's: Pocket PC operating system is wonderful. It is just like Windows and has everything Windows has to offer in a little tiny version. I am a programmer, and love the ability to connect to databases with this product MP3. What else do I need to say about that?? Wonderful! Document Library: A specially designated place tos tore eBooks was a wonderful idea! Screen: Crisp and clean. Perfect clarity, much better than the Sony's. Con's: Battery Life: Very short. I need to recharge fully every night and do a restore as the battery dies throughout the day. Size: Very bulky. In today's marketplace I find it hard to believe this model cannot be more compact. Warning: This BARELY fits in the Coach mini-office. Lack of accessories: Try to find a hardcase for this model. Yikes! Without it, your iPaq will turn on on its own, draining the battery even more.
Rating:
Summary: Solid device
Review: Very nice machine - I use it everyday. The software out for it is growing. I have owned this machine since Jan '02, and have had no major problems with it. I think it is better than any palm device I have ever used. Cons:
Software - MS still has some glitches... but only once in a while (~1/month) after a sync the machine will 'freeze' and needs to be soft reset (w/no loss of data).
Also be aware of another problem other ppl have encountered with pluging in the ear phone jack to listen to music, then removing them and having no sound on the external speakers. This may have been fixed on the more recent devices. ...
Rating:
Summary: Compaq ipaq - great product!
Review: Overall, a fantastic product. I use it every day for business and personal matters. The handwriting recognition is especially useful. It would be useful if there was a pad which could be used in conjunction with it to enable bigger handwriting which would lead to even greater accuracy - hopefully, someone will develop and sell it. Battery life could be longer, however, I have no doubt that there are plenty of people working on that issue.
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