TamsPPC - the PocketPC Blog

After unboxing(Part 1 of the HP ipaq rx4240 review) the ipaq, the first thing I noted about the machine is its small size, unusual controls and cool looks.

And indeed, the machine is much smaller than a classic PDA like the Palm TX:

HP’s design house did a great job on the plastic case of the rx4240 - the orange inlays look very nice and add to the cool feel of the handheld. The housing doesn’t squeak when pressed:

The rx4240 is intended for usage in landscape mode. It’s top side contains the record button, the SD card slot, the wireless activity lamp and the reset hole:

The right side panel contains the four hardbuttons and the power button. All buttons provide good tactile feedback, the power button contains a twocolor LED that indicates the charging status.

A small wheel in the top-right corner of the HP ipaq rx4240 acts as replacement for the classic 5way navigator. The wheel is very well done, but it doesn’t provide ‘left’ and ‘right’ buttons. This Google Video shows the scroll wheel in action.

HP put the stylus silo on the left side next to the MiniUSB and 3′5″ headphone jack. The stylus is made of plastic and is a bit shorter than the TX’s stylus - but it can’t fall apart or gather fingerprints…

The back of the ipaq can be removed to reveal the battery compartment(replaceable battery). Removing the battery cover automatically turns the ipaq off - smart move from HP’s.

Overall, the HP ipaq rx4240 is a very well-done machine from a mechanical point of view. The rounded corners make handling the machine easy, and the well-placed buttons do the rest. Gamers may not be completely satisfied because of the lack of a true 5way navigator…but everyone else should be more than happy!

Tune in soon for a comparison of the HP ipaq rx4240’s screen against other handhelds!

When the first VGA PocketPC’s hit the market 2004, they dethroned Palm’s HiRes+(320×480) screen systems from the crown of highest resolution in a PDA. I was impressed by the quality of the displays and the amount of data on-screen when I saw such a handheld a few months ago(HTC Universal)…but nevertheless, our local electronics store didn’t have any VGA PocketPC. Brighthand users currently discuss the lack of VGA PocketPC’s - and indeed, the lack of VGA displays is appalling.

Yes, VGA is cool - but there is one critical flaw with increasing display resolution:

Human eyes are limited when it comes to seeing small objects
Look at the image below:

It shows a more-less 1:2(your screen shows the text about two times as big as the Treo) image of a HiRes(320×320) screen showing text in the smallest font possible. While the text may be somewhat readable on your screen, trust me that a dirty little TFT on a PDA will affect readability adversely:

Now, that VGA PocketPC has text that’s 50% smaller than the already small text above - that goes beyond the vision limit of the average user. Both Microsoft and PalmSource kept their big default fonts when they upgraded their screen resolutions…and did so for a good reason. The average user will not benefit much from VGA, so why force him to pay extra?

To cut a long story short, VGA PocketPC’s rock(I would love one)…for us. But the average user doesn’t benefit much from VGA - and since companies tend to target average users rather than freaks, VGA will probably stay a rare feature for the time to come…