fwarren94551's Full Review: Hewlett Packard iPAQ h2215 Pocket PC
This is a great little PDA. It's kind of thick for what it is but the battery (which is what breaks down on these for the most part) is easily replaceable and this thing has construction quality that makes it look as good as the best Palm devices. You no longer have to compromise on price or features to get into a Windows PocketPC, which you did in the past.
I find Microsoft's software questionable. It is clearly an effort to emulate the Palm Software and on this basis, it fails miserably. But when connected to a Windows PC it gets an "Okay" rating. The learning curve for any Microsoft software is pretty steep as nothing Microsoft does is at all intuitive; but you can get used to it. If you LOVE Windows, you'll really like the software but if you are fond of Palms, look elsewhere. This is the best advice I can give on this. You're the one who has to use it and if you prefer PCs to Apples, and really like MS Software, then this is one of your best values in the PDA world.
Palms now have a somewhat higher screen resolution but to be right honest I have not seen with the newest Palms any USABILITY increase over the screen on the 2215. The 2215 is bright enough, detailed enough and sensitive enough.
One thing Microsoft did right (if I'm going to bawl them out for their obtuse interface, they also deserve credit for what they did well). If you have not used ANY PDA before, then what is the difference between a Palm and one of these HP Units? The Palm is best used with a handwriting recognition system known as "Grafitti." I know this system and it works darned well, and is fast. But unusual characters in Grafitti are a royal pain to remember and enter, and you have to constantly change screens on the built-in keyboard. Microsoft didn't do anything like Grafitti and their keyboard shows that they did this particular feature right. The PocketPC was designed on later hardware, and intended from Day One for a 240x320 screen with better resolution. As a result they have a MUCH better built-in screen keyboard than any Palm to date. Infrequently-used characters (@ and whatnot) show up easily without having to change "keyboards" by just tapping the shift key.
There are some other unexpected goodies in the MS software. When you decide to make a new note, the first character of a sentence is automatically capitalized. I'll get to my complaints with their software in a bit, but this is one of those things that, if you've used a Palm, you ask "Why didn't I get that with THIS?" It's a very nice touch. There are little helpful features scattered all around the software, things like auto-completion based on a dictionary of common words (which can save a lot of tapping) and so on.
But the software is uneven. I installed some software I wanted to get rid of, so I got rid of it by hitting the little X and tried to delete it. No luck. I went into File Explorer. No luck. After a long time I finally figured out what was going on. The thing uses cooperative multitasking and just suspends an application, as on the Palm. But unlike the Palm, you have to "stop" and "kill" the program before you can delete it. How do you do this? What is a "sharing violation" on a PocketPC? There is NO documentation and there are NO clues.
I finally discovered that if you went into Settings>Memory and hit the System tab there was another tab to stop all running programs. To say that this is not an intuitive way to do it is the understatement of the year. It's things like this that make the MS Software inferior to the Palm software. Four screen taps just to be able to get a program so you can delete it is a bit much - and you haven't got it deleted with over 6 screen taps. On the Palm this is a two-tap operation. Things like this are a real annoyance and, to judge from history, they will never be fixed. Every device has its software quirks and the PocketPC has a few of these.
Overall, you'll find the device friendly and reasonably quick once you get what you want on it. I strongly recommend getting rid of the cheap nylon slipcase that comes with the 2215 and getting the HP aluminum case; it protects the device better. Better to beat up a replaceable $35 case than your $400 handheld. If you use a PDA a lot, as I do, you'll leave your left hand pocket free for it and beyond bumping it into things you'll likely never kill even the first hard case you buy.
Usefulness is quite high for this device. It has all the things you really need, a number of which are aftermarket extras on the Palm device.
At present the Palm T5 and Ipaq 2215 are about the same price. How do you choose between them?
If you use an Apple, get a Palm. If you only use PC's, the best way is to try them both out at CompUSA and get one there (they give a good price). The Palm has a little bit higher resolution which is better for photos, and the Palm remains faster to use for notes and so on IF you are willing to invest the time to learn their handwriting recognition system. If you only use PCs and really like them, the 2215 might be a better device for you.
One caveat. The PocketPC will ONLY synch email with just ONE computer. The Palm will let you do it with multiple computers. The MS software does this for reasons that escape me. It's email system is inferior to the Palms, so you might want to think about whether you want to use it to reply to email with or with multiple computers.
Beyond this, Palms and PocketPCs are roughly equivalent devices at this time. They both do the same basic functions, in the same basic way, with one offering a little more than the other in some areas. The Palm is better for digital photos due to higher resolution but when it comes to inputting email addresses on the fly, or web site addresses, the 2215 is more convenient due to its superior keyboard features. I prefer Grafitti for text notes but, then again, I already know it.
Keep in mind while shopping that what you see if what you get. Look at the included applications and be realistic about what you want to use the device for. Neither the Palm nor the 2215 is perfect for me; I find that I like some features more on one device, and like other features better on the other. So spend some time shopping and knowing what you want to use it for.
At this point I'm comfortable with both and believe the 2215 is a very fine machine. If you like how it works and the included applications it will serve you very well.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 3800 Recommended for: Business Executives - Powerful and Professional
A sleek Pocket PC with the optimal combination of features, performance, and expandability Compact Flash and Secure Digital slots for flexibility and ...More at Amazon Marketplace
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