Going to upgrade my iPaq but 2210?

DavidM

ok I am thinking of upgrading my 3870 - my first choice was the 2210 - it has a CF Slot :D , SD :D and BlueTooth :D - so this is an almost perfect match for my requirements - the only other one that came close is the 4150 - but it doesnt have the CF Slot Sad

But I am a moderately heavy user of TTN (version 3 now) and am put off a little (no more than a little) but the apparent issues (horror stories) of people upgrading to this combo and not getting it to work in a satisfactory fashion

Any advice anyone wants to offer is more than welcome

Thanks In Advance

DavidM

DavidM · Posted: Tue May 18, 2004 8:46 pm Post subject:

Oh and to add -I have a Sandisk SD Card - which appears to work fine in my 3870 - but this appears (from reading threads) to be an issue with the 2210

icsys · Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 12:57 am Post subject:

I have a 2210... it's a great machine.
I dont use it with TomTom however so it works perfectly for me.
You may find that if you purchased one you wont have any problems with it also. The issues with TomTom appear to be luck of the draw.
_________________
Ian.
iPAQ 2210 | Navman 4100 BT Receiver
Navman iCN 635
TomTom GO
Anquet OS mapping

DavidM · Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 9:19 am Post subject:

icsys - thanks for your reply - still a bit put off by the "apparent" issues

Wondering if - given my combo of HaiCom BT Slipper and MMF Card I may be better to go for a 4150 - the reasoning for a 2210 was to have the option of slotting the GPS in via the CF Slot if I wanted to do so

icsys · Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 9:51 am Post subject:

There are probably many more users of TT3 on a 2210 without problems as there are with problems.
What you need to consider is (and it has beeen said before) that people will post when having problems for assistance but not many post when everything is fine.
_________________
Ian.
iPAQ 2210 | Navman 4100 BT Receiver
Navman iCN 635
TomTom GO
Anquet OS mapping

drummer · Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 10:04 am Post subject:

I have had my 2210 and tomtom since February and have only had 2 lockups.

I'm guilty of posting only when if I have a problem, so I thought I'd change that now.

I am extremely happy with the setup. (apart from the address look up in TT3, thank god for the digitools postcode app)

:D

DavidW · Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 1:03 pm Post subject:

Sandisk SD cards can be troublesome on just about any hardware, and are arguably better replaced. You probably won't find problems with them on a 3800 series iPAQ as the 3800 series has a relatively slow SD interface that doesn't make use of the 4 bit SD interface (it only runs in 1 bit mode).

Information is gradually coming out about a new generation of iPAQs that will follow on from the imminent release of Pocket PC 2003 Second Edition - there's some rumours around on various sites, including Brighthand. It looks like the first new machine will be the new flagship iPAQ - a top end machine with a price tag to match (supposedly 600ish MHz processor, 128MB RAM, built in Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, SDIO and a CompactFlash slot, VGA resolution screen) - but there will be new mid range machines later.

I have held off from upgrading my 3970 based setup as the 5550 doesn't offer me that much more - I have Wi-Fi hardware for the 3970, so all I would get is a more compact machine with twice the RAM. However, this new machine (reportedly called the iPAQ hx4700) may well tempt me, after what will be then two years with the 3970, to upgrade.

It's up to you - with technology there is always something new around the corner, and it seems that a new mid range iPAQ is somewhat more distant (it seems that along with the new top end machine, the much rumoured iPAQ with a built in GSM/GPRS phone will also launch fairly soon - quite possibly available in two versions, with or without a camera).

It seems there's a big change coming in the Pocket PC market, with a gradual switch to VGA (400 by 640) screens on the mid and upper range machines from the QVGA that has previously been standard (200 by 320). Until Pocket PC 2003 Second Edition launches soon, there's no OS support for higher resolution screens or landscape mode, even though there are various software hacks and at least one Toshiba with a higher resolution screen (which, without the 2003SE OS has some issues).

If you are interested in a higher resolution machine, as I am, this may be a good time to wait - apparently there's a more mid range iPAQ that's likely to have a VGA screen due later this year.

Of course, though, it's up to you - switching to a 2210 would undoubtedly offer some benefits, and if you want to upgrade now rather than in six months' time, you can't hang around for a new machine. This is a time, though, when it seems near certain there is a move upwards in hardware specifications coming over the next 6-9 months.

It looks like the iPAQs least likely to be replaced imminently are the 4100 and 4300 series - which are apparently selling well and have not been out that long.

David

iancjc · Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 1:03 pm Post subject:

DavidM · Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 1:16 pm Post subject:

Thanks all for your replies ...

David - the same thought had crossed my mind about the possibility of new 'Paqs but I am not sure I can wait that long - TTN 3 is running like a dog on my 3870 - Crying or Very sad

- now I don't know how much of this is due to the PPC itself being an older model, the SD card (and interface from what you have said). Many times the only way to get it all working 100% is to soft reset the machine and only have Checkpoint & TTN3 running. Would be interested to hear your counterpoint between a 2210 series and a 4150 series Confused

Drummer & Iancjc - thanks for your replies - great to hear that there are happy users out there :D

DavidW · Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 5:52 pm Post subject:

It's a difficult decision, isn't it? I'm in a better position than you as my setup works fine with Navigator 3 and GPS Assist 2.1. The combination of the faster SD interface and the XScale processor in the 3900 series as opposed to the 3800 series makes rather a difference, as does my non-Sandisk SD card.

I've also likely got less time to wait than you, as it looks like the new top range iPAQ will launch first.

The basic difference between the 2210 and the 4150 is that the 2210 has a CompactFlash slot and the 4150 built in Wi-Fi. The 4150 is actually the same size as a 1940, so it's a little smaller than the 2210. Unlike the 1940, the 4150 (and the 2210) has a serial port, so you can use a wired GPS or plug-in keyboard.

Here's my go at a quick 1940, 2210 and 4150 comparison in bullet points:

All three have Bluetooth, SDIO, 32MB ROM and 64MB RAM (between about 55 and 57MB of RAM is available to the user depending on which of the three models you choose - note, this is probably a little less memory than on your 3870).
1940 and 4150 are the same size - a little smaller than the 2210.
2210 is the only one with a CompactFlash slot.
4150 is the only one with built in Wi-Fi.
2210 and 4150 have a serial port, 1940 does not.
2210 and 4150 have 400MHz XScale processors, 1940 has a 266MHz Samsung processor.

I think that's correct - hopefully someone will scream if it's wrong.

The question is - can you do without a CompactFlash slot? Many people just use them for a Wi-Fi card anyway, though if you already have (or would like) CompactFlash memory of any sort (flash, or hard disk) or CompactFlash GPS, you need a machine with a CompactFlash slot.

If you can do without a CompactFlash slot, the 4150 may well make a fine choice. Not only does it not currently seem to have the Bluetooth GPS problems with Navigator 3 that the 2210 does (which now seem to be helped by turning off the display of POIs - though that could be another false dawn), but it has Wi-Fi. Once you've tried ActiveSync over Wi-Fi, you won't want to go back to any other method - it's just so much faster and more robust!

I'm currently using a HI-303MMF as a CompactFlash GPS - mine is too old to be compatible with the HI-401 Bluetooth slipper. In any case, the cost of the HI-401 separately is not that far short of something like a Fortuna Clip-On.

However, you have a Bluetooth GPS already. So long as you buy something on which Bluetooth is stable, and you're happy to use Bluetooth in-car, then maybe you can do without a CompactFlash slot.

It's a difficult decision. In your position, I, too, would be very torn. Right now, the market seems to be moving away from CompactFlash slots, but I think we may see a swing back towards them on the new VGA Pocket PCs, as they'll likely be a little larger than some of the very small Pocket PCs we've seen recently like the 1940 and 4150 (such very small units are likely to remain with QVGA screens and won't disappear from the market any time soon).

I'm a power user - I wouldn't be separated from a CompactFlash slot on a machine of mine any time soon. You have to weigh that issue for yourself.

David

DavidM · Posted: Thu May 20, 2004 3:40 pm Post subject:

Based on this - http://www.mobilegadgetnews.com/hp.html - I may just soldier on and wait for the new models to come out

thanatos · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jun 01, 2004 Posts: 10

I was all set on getting the Dixons/PC World deal (£299), but everywhere is sold out and are unable to take 'forward orders' so I went on the hunt for something similar. I was all set on getting the 2210, but I realised its a quite old ipaq (released July 03) and there is bound to be a new replacement soon - and no doubt without a CF slot.

Had a look around and the Tosh e800/805 is a winner :D , BT, vga screen!, PPC2003 SE, CF - all that I wanted. They are cheapish too £340inc.

Have you consider one of these? Question

Regards

Richard

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