HP iPAQ hx2110 Pocket PC Review
As far as the pocket PCs are concerned, HP is the most dominant one. The hx2000 series of HP has another code name called the Morpheus, which is manufactured by LG instead of the HTC. The series was a good success with an admirable product quality, which seemed to be more typical for HTC rather than LG. This series is followed the successful PDA iPaq h2210. The following review is on the HP iPAQ hx2110 pocket PC which does not break out any new revolutionary ideas, yet, it has included in itself a small, yet astute set of advances that will experience a warm welcome from a majority of the mobile business professionals.
A formal design:
The design of the iPAQ hx2110 Pocket PC PDA is less strict, say, more of curved edges. The colour theme of HP remains to be the same which is a combination of both black and grey. The sides of the phone has rubber insertions. This Pocket PC gives pleasant emotions when alive and on photos. One thing that we take pleasure in admitting is that, HP’s experiments with the designs has proven to be a great success. This new model is having its dimensions slightly bigger than that of the iPaq h2210, which can be noticed only when both the handhelds are placed next to each other. It is having its dimensions as, 119.4×76.6×16.3 mm and weighs 164.4 grams. We feel that it could have been a little more lighter, but when compared to its competitors, this is fine.
Display:
The display is a transflective TFT matrix of size 3.5 inches and a 320×240 pixel resolution. It perfectly renders colors indoors and outdoors, it is good under the direct sunlight. There are 21 backlight levels, the lowest level has the quality comparable with the h2210. That means, it is comfortable to work with in the dark, the backlight does not hurt eyes, as it happens with some PDAs, those minimum backlight level is high. Being one of the best among 3.5″ 320×240 screens, it certainly cannot be compared with the VGA screens of the high end handhelds.
Built quality:
The built quality is quite good, with the plastic being too pleasant to touch. The feel is good and it is good that the sides are rubberized so that the pocket PC does not slide away from your hands. These features that were available in the iPaq h2210 Handheld PDA, but had one serious drawback, the rubber side insertions used to fall off with time, but this issue has been solved with the new model. Only when you try to squeeze it too hard in your hands, you will be able to hear a few creaks with no backlashes, which is negligible. The cover of the battery compartment ha been fixed safely. The rear of the PDA has the battery compartment, a couple of the standard stickers and nothing more.
Buttons and navigation:
When you have a look at the buttons around the main navigational pad, you will tend to get a feel that they were constructed with design in mind and not ergonomics. They consist of two excessively big and two very small buttons. But you will get adjusted to them once you start using it. There is some empty space between the display and the buttons, allocating some room for the relatively loud built-in dynamic and a mic, which records well within short distances, within a meter. Just above the display, you will find two LED indicators, a HP logo and also the power button. The left side of the PDA has a voice recorder button which is also rubberized and tight and so, it does not work on light presses, you will have to make an effort push it down. The bottom of the set has reset button along with a standard connector for the cradle which also doubles as a port for the AC adaptor. The elements of the top end have been located comfortably and they do not mix up. These connectors include a SD/MMC slot (SDIO), a Compact Flash slot, a 3.5 mm headphones jack, an infrared port and a silo. The stylus is of the same fashion as any other one in the latest HP models.
The screen cover:
It does have a screen cover that is fixed at the sides of the PDA and is very easy to remove. Since the cover is translucent, you will be able to see the screen well. The cover does not interfere much even if the headphones are plugged in and so, you can work with your handheld in the usual way. The only blot with the design of the screen cover is that, it tends to hide all the control elements except for the voice recorder button. However, the screen eliminates the need of carrying around the device in a case as the most vulnerable part of the PDA, the display is well protected.
A small comparison:
The Hewlett Packard iPAQ hx2110 pocket pc can be put well in comparison with the other models of HP such as the HP iPAQ hx2750 and HP iPAQ hx2410. The features like the processor, OS, expansion slots, availability of Bluetooth, dimensions, weight and the casing remains to be the same for all the three models. The iPAQ hx2110 has inferior features when compared to the other two in terms of clock speed, absence of a fingerprint reader, ROM, absence of Wi-Fi, battery and also the absence of a cradle with the package. But one thing that you must keep in mind is that, they are way too costlier than the model in our hands. Well, the reason for this is that, the need of a reduction in the manufacturing cost, as there was no need to redesign the casing and make a new press-form at the plant.
Features:
The HP iPAQ hx2110 pocket pc PDA comes with a single built-in adapter Bluetooth with no Wi-Fi. Traditionally for HP this model comes with time-proved Broadcom drivers. All necessary profiles are available, including the voice profile. The Bluetooth functionality works great and all the profiles work smoothly, including the internet access via the phone, data synchronization with PC, exchange of files and contacts and so on. The driver’s version is 1.5.0 Build 2900. There is the support of several simultaneous connections. The BT Phone Manager is a very useful utility as it helps in setting up the internet connection via the phone.
Memory:
The iPAQ hx2110 has 64 MB of RAM on-board and the available RAM is claimed to be 60MB, but however, the startup takes around 12MB, leaving you with only about 47MB of RAM leftover. The iPAQ File Store makes up 22 MB.
Processor:
This pocket PC is powered by the Intel XScale PXA270 312 MHz processor. This processor is not lightning fast by today’s standards, but is enough to get the job done. All the built-in applications work fast enough. Even with multiple applications running, there is very little noticeable lag. Switching from the portrait to landscape mode takes just 1.5 seconds. Though the clock rate is 312 MHz the PXA270 processor keeps up with the previous generation processors featuring 400 MHz. The synchronization speed of the new PDA by HP is high and is just slightly lagging behind the leader. The total speed of the pocket PC, makes it a best among the QVGA PDAs.
The operating system:
HP iPAQ hx2110 makes use of the Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PC Second Edition. Which means, it can make use of the persistent data storage. In most other PDA devices, user data was stored in RAM which requires power to function. This meant that if the unit lost power, for example through a dead battery, these files would be lost. However, Windows Mobile 5.0 can store user files on ROM, so a dead battery does not mean lost data. Let us have a look at the non-standard built-in applications. The HP Mobile Printing utility prints files from the PDA by means of Bluetooth or infrared port. HP Protect Tool protects info and data encoding and gives protection from any unauthorised access. iTask is a task manager to switch among the programs and close them and with the help of this application, you can rotate or switch the screen off. The HP Image Zone is the traditional application by HP to view photos. The iPaq Backup is a functional utility for the data backup, one of the best in its class. It can run backups on the schedule, store the data of the organizer in the iPaq file Store.
Security features:
The second key feature on HP iPAQ hx2110 Pocket PC is the inclusion of security which has long been a flaw in PDAs. With the help of the ‘HP Protect Tools’, you can set a password or PIN to lock the device and encrypt your mail and documents. Thus if your PDA is lost or misplaced, you can at least retain some degree of confidence that your data will not be freely available to all and sundry, at least, not without some effort. The whole process does not take more than a few minutes and soon, your pocket PC will be protected with a PIN.
Audio:
The audio out of the headphones are of great quality and o, they could also be used as an MP3 player.
Battery:
The HP iPAQ hx2110 Pocket PC runs on a removable lithium ion battery having a capacity of 920mAh. Though its performance cannot be said to be as fantastic, you always have an option of buying an extended battery. Under maximum mode, that is, with the highest backlight level, video playback and wireless adaptors on, the battery lasts for around two and a half hours. In the MP3 player mode with the backlight off, the handheld lasts for a good eleven hours. The two extended batteries available are, of 1440 mAh and 2880 mAh.
Package:
The package contents of the HP iPAQ hx2110 pocket pc includes the HP iPAQ hx2110 pocket pc PDA, a charger, a plastic screen cover, 2CDs with software and users manual.
Warranty:
HP offers iPAQ hx2110 Pocket PC one year limited warranty for parts and labour.
Verdict:
The HP iPAQ hx2110 has completely replaced the iPaq h2210 on the market and the latter has already been taken out of production. The price is also very affordable. The major rival to the iPAQ hx2110 is the Dell Axim X50, which has an addition of two slots for extension and Bluetooth but no WiFi. The major shortcoming with the HP iPAQ hx2110 is its short battery life. Besides that, a VGA screen would have been better instead of QVGA. But the screen’s resolution of 640×480 pixels resolution is a great advantage and can be seen only in expensive, top Pocket PCs. Another minus here is a poor standard kit and the set of preinstalled applications.
HP iPAQ hx2110 Pocket PC - Technical Specifications, Features
| Manufacturer | HP |
| Model Name | HP iPAQ hx2110 |
| PDA type | Pocket PC |
| Dimensions (W x D x H) | 3 in x 0.6 in x 4.7 in |
| Weight | 5.8 oz |
| Colour | Grey |
| OS provided | Microsoft Windows Mobile for Pocket PC 2003 Second Edition |
| Installed RAM | 64MB |
| RAM technology | SDRAM |
| Installed ROM | 64MB Flash |
| Processor | Intel 312 MHzXscale |
| Input device type | Stylus, Touch-screen, 5-way navigation button |
| Digital audio standards supported | MP3 |
| Audio input type | Microphone |
| Audio output type | Speaker(s) |
| Voice recording capability | Yes |
| Wireless connectivity | IrDA, Bluetooth |
| Connectivity | 1Headphones, 1USB |
| Connector Provided | Mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm |
| Free expansion slots | 1 SD Memory Card, 1 CompactFlash Card Type II |
| Cable included | 1 x USB cable |
| Battery installed | 1 Lithium ion |
| Package contents | HP iPAQ hx2110 pocket pc PDA, a charger, a plastic screen cover, 2CDs with software and users manual |
| Warranty | 1 year Limited warranty Parts and labour |
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