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Battery Life Screen Processor Type Memory Size I/O Connectors Expandability Smart Card Reader Battery Life Perhaps the single greatest benefit of HPC Pro devices compared to notebooks is their superior battery life, which ranges from seven hours for the Compaq Aero 8000 and the HP Jornada 680 to as much as twelve hours for the Vadem Clio. (Please click here to view more details on our HPC Pro comparison charts.) In most cases, seven hours should be long enough to last a full working day, while twelve should be sufficient for a trans-continental flight. But if you require even more power, you can also order additional extended batteries for the HP Jornada 680 and 820, Compaq Aero 8000, and IBM Workpad z50, lasting up to a whopping 21 hours. As you might expect, all HPC Pro devices (with the sole exception of the Sharp Mobilon models) have rechargeable Lithium Ion batteries. They also come with at least one back-up battery to protect all the data on the device if the main battery fails. Except for the Compaq Aero 8000, which has a proprietary NiMH backup battery, all the others feature at least one CR2032 battery. As you will see from the charts below, batteries are amongst the most expensive accessories for HPC Pro devices, ranging from US$59 for a spare Sharp Mobilon Pro battery to $164.95 for an extended life battery for Compaq Aero 8000. You can purchase these batteries from on-line stores such as MobilePlanet or direct from the manufacturer. Fortunately, CR2032 backup batteries are substantially cheaper and widely available from photographic and computer stores.
*The lowest price found on the Internet; subject to change without notice. Screen One of the single most important factors that will influence your choice of an HPC Pro device will be the size and quality of its screen. If you are going to use the device mainly for email, scheduling, and word processing then a smallish 6.5" display like the one on the HP Jornada 680 will probably suffice. But if you plan on using your device for tasks like creating and editing spreadsheet files in Pocket Excel then a bigger screen would be better. And if you need the device for making presentations then you should also consider the Vadem Clio or Sharp Tripod, which have been specifically designed for this purpose with their SwingTop display. This which allows you to pivot the screen at a variety of different angles. Apart from the HP Jornada 680 and NEC MobilePro 770, screen sizes on HPC Pro devices vary from 8.2" to 10". All the screens are either CSTN or DSTN, and support a range of resolutions from 640x240 on the smaller HP Jornada 680 and NEC MobilePro 770 to 640 x 480 VGA and even 800x600 SVGA on the Compaq Aero 8000 and NEC MobilePro 800. As a general rule, higher resolutions mean better screen quality, so if this is a major concern you should plump for SVGA. Another factor you should consider is the number of colors that are supported by the screen, particularly if you plan to run advanced graphics applications like photo editing on your device. While most HPC Pro screens feature 256 colors, the IBM Workpad z50 and NEC MobilePro support 64K colors for a richer viewing experience. The ability to adjust the brightness of the screen to take account of different indoors and outdoors lighting conditions, and to reduce battery power consumption when necessary, can also be very important. The excellent screen contrast and brightness software controls are one of my favorite features on the HP Jornada 680. One final item you should take into account when considering the screen is whether you require a touch panel that allows you to select, edit and input text using a stylus. For me personally, this is an absolutely must-have feature, but many people prefer to use a touchpad pointer like the ones you find on notebooks instead. The choice is yours! Back to the top Processor Type Although perhaps not quite as critical as on a notebook or desktop PC, the processor (CPU) is still an important factor governing the performance of your HPC Pro device -- though I certainly wouldn't base a buying decision solely on the magic CPU MHz number. HPC Pro devices come with RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computing) processors rather than the CISC (Complex Instruction Set Computing) CPUs that you find in a standard desktop or notebook PCs. By the far most popular processor for HPC devices is the NEC MIPS VR4121 running at 131MHz, while the Hitachi S3 running at 133MHz and the Hitachi S4 running at 128MHz (but supporting 64-bit rather than 32-bit processing) are used in the HP Jornada 680 and Compaq Aero 8000 respectively. The only other CPU being utilized is Intel's 190MHz StrongArm processor, which is integrated in the HP Jornada 820. All these processors deliver the levels of performance you need to run Windows CE applications. Back to the top Memory Size HPC Pro devices feature two types of memory: ROM (Read-Only Memory) and RAM (Random Access Memory). ROM is used to store the Windows CE Operating System and any other applications the manufacturer has decided to "burn in" to the device. As a result, the size of the ROM is irrelevant because you can't erase any applications from it or install any new applications. That's why it's called Read Only Memory. The size of the RAM is a far more critical factor, because it is used both for running your applications and for storing files and any additional software programs you have installed on your device. My own advice is to buy a device with as much RAM as possible -- 16MB at a bare minimum. That way your HPC Pro will deliver better performance and provide the room you need for installing the growing number of third-party applications that are now available -- not to mention graphics and audio files. You should also check to see whether the memory is easily upgradeable on your device just in case you want to add more DRAM or install a new version of Windows CE on it in the future. One final point to take note of is the type of DRAM that is supported on the device. The latest generation of SDRAM (Synchronized DRAM) is the best option because it delivers better performance. To reduce the load on the main memory, you should also check what other storage options are available on the device. For example, you can store applications and large multimedia files on a CompactFlash memory card or on IBM's new high-capacity 340MB Microdrive instead of the main memory on your device. Back to the top I/O Connectors Although you might not think that I/O connectors like a USB or VGA-Out port are a particularly important feature on an HPC Pro device, you'll probably be surprised at how useful you'll find, for example, having the ability to hook your machine up to an LCD projector when you want to make a presentation. Unlike notebooks, HPC Pro devices do not feature a parallel port for connecting to a printer, but they do come with a standard serial port for synchronizing the device with your desktop or notebook PC using a serial cable. The synchronization cables that are shipped with HPC Pros have a nine-pin adapter for hooking up to the serial port on your PC, but if this port is already occupied by a mouse or modem cable you will need to buy an additional 9-pin to 21-pin serial adapter. Fortunately, these are very cheap and can be purchased from most electronics or computer stores. To provide users with additional connectivity options, the Compaq Aero, HP Jornada 820 and IBM Workpad z50 also feature a USB port. This lets you connect to the growing range of USB peripherals that are now available, and is a great way of future-proofing your purchase. A word of caution though: if you do connect a USB peripheral to your device make sure it is running on AC power. Otherwise it will drain your batteries very quickly. Interestingly, as well as a USB port, the Compaq Aero also has a PS/2 port – the only HPC Pro device to feature one. I guess you could use this to add an external mouse -- pretty useful if you don't like navigating your device's screen with a Touchpad pointer. If you intend to make presentations using your HPC Pro device, a VGA-Out port that allows you to connect it to a monitor or LCD projector is a must-have feature. The IBM Workpad z50, the HP Jornada 820, and the NEC MobilePro 770 and 800 all come with a VGA-Out port, while for HP Jornada 680 model you can buy a special adapter for this purpose. Back to the top Expandability To give you the flexibility to expand the functionality of your device, all HPC pros come with PC Card (previously known as PCMCIA) and CompactFlash Card slots. The PC Card slot lets you add peripherals such as a fax/modem, ethernet, or wireless LAN card, and even -- in the case of the Sharp MobilonPro devices -- a digital camera! The CompactFlash slot is becoming an increasingly important and popular feature, mainly because it makes it easy for you to exchange data such as digital image and audio files stored on a CF memory card between your HPC Pro and Palm-size PC, digital camera, and even MP3 player. As an alternative to CF memory cards, you can also insert the new IBM microdrives with capacities of up to 340MB in your CompactFlash slot, and in the future you will be able to add other CF peripherals like GPS cards and digital cameras. Before purchasing an HPC Pro, you should carefully check the location of the PC Card and CompactFlash Card slots on the device, and see how easy it is to install cards into them. The PC Card and CompactFlash Card slot implementation on my HP Jornada 680, for example, is a little bit awkward and takes some getting used to. Just to be on the safe side, you should also check out the PC Card and CF Card compatibility lists posted on the vendor's website prior to purchasing a wireless or fax/modem card. Back to the top Smart Card Reader If securing the integrity of your data on your device is a major concern for you or your company, should definitely take a closer look at the unique embedded Smart Card reader/writer on the Compaq Aero 8000. Through this feature, access to the Aero can be limited to users that have an authorized Smart Card, a password or both -- a great boon if a lot of sensitive data is stored on the device. Compaq also offers optional software that will enable you to encrypt files and e-mails and check digital signatures to ensure files haven't been opened or tampered with. Although still in its early stages, smart card technology is very promising -- significantly enhancing security for customers such as field sales organizations that need to remotely place orders, check inventory and update customer records or field service organizations that reference repair procedures, and check spare parts lists onsite. Back to the top Home |