11-06-2002, 11:30 PM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 29,160
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Hands-on With The Viewsonic V35
I'm still trying to get caught up on the things I saw/learned at the Microsoft Mobius event a few weeks ago, so you'll have to excuse my tardiness. I had a chance to get some hands-on time with the Viewsonic V35, and I was very impressed. Find out why.
When I was at the Microsoft Mobius 2002 conference in early October, we were given a presentation by Viewsonic. They talked about the history of the company quite a bit - I didn't know any of it prior to Mobius, so it was interesting to learn that they started out making keyboards and mice for OEM "white box" computers. My ears really perked up once the discussion turned to Viewsonic's play in the Pocket PC world - the V35.
Viewsonic has released several forms of slates/PDAs in the past like the Viewsonic SuperPDA, some of them running Windows CE, but the V35 is their first Pocket PC. I dearly wish I had more time with the V35, but we only had a few minutes between sessions. Here's my observations and some rather blurry photos (apologies for that!). All photos below link to larger versions.
The first thing I noticed about the V35 was the size and weight - I'm not exaggerating when I say that the engineering sample I was testing felt like it was a mock-up. It weighs practically nothing - 4.2 ounces (119 grams). In comparison, the iPAQ 3650 weighs 6.3 ounces - a full 50% heavier. I've been told the engineering sample is basically final, so I don't expect the weight to change when the final product ships.
In terms of dimensions, it's 4.8" (H) x 3.0" (W) x.4" (D). That's right - only 2/5ths of an inch deep! 8O
The photo above shows the XDA sitting atop the V35 - the XDA isn't a thick PDA by any means, but this photo shows how extremely thin the V35 is.
The V35 on it's own, bottom view.
V35 atop the XDA, side view.
This is one of the most telling pictures of all, and I wish it would have turned out better. It boils down to this: the Viewsonic screen is simply amazing. Compared to my HP 568, the screen on the XDA is stunning - much brighter and crisper-looking. Now look at that photo and look how much brighter the V35 is than my XDA. Amazing! It blows me away that Viewsonic can put such a nice screen in a "budget" device. I didn't have a 3900 series iPAQ to compare it to, but from my memory the screen looked every bit as nice.
Expandability is accomplished through the SD slot - and the Viewsonic said it was a REAL SDIO slot! 
As part of my "Mobius Parting Gifts", I'll be getting a V35 from Viewsonic. I'm really excited about getting my hands on one to put it through it's paces, but even my brief encounter with the device made me believe this is a very nice device that, at $275 after rebates, will radically alter the Pocket PC landscape. You can pre-order one from Amazon.com today (affiliate link).
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11-06-2002, 11:48 PM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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SDIO or not?
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11-06-2002, 11:57 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 28
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Cool. One quick typo tho: you say it is .4" deep and that is 1/4". It's not a quarter inch, it's 2/5"... a little thicker. If only it really was .25" deep 
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11-06-2002, 11:59 PM
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Philosopher
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 541
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Isn't SDIO supposed to be standard in any PPC2K2 device? Or is it not required, and many do it anyway.
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11-07-2002, 12:02 AM
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Philosopher
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 513
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by CR
Cool. One quick typo tho: you say it is .4" deep and that is 1/4". It's not a quarter inch, it's 2/5"... a little thicker. If only it really was .25" deep |
And the pics should say the XDA atop the V35? Not trying to nitpick to be mean, but you know people will point it out later so it's best to correct early on (this post can be deleted then)...
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11-07-2002, 12:10 AM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 29,160
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Corrections made - thanks guys.
It's SDIO baby - ohhhhhhhhhhhh yeah! :rock on dude!:
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11-07-2002, 12:13 AM
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Sage
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 658
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Now I'm gonna wait and see if Viewsonic and Dell will have a price war over who has the "biggest bang for the buck."
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11-07-2002, 12:30 AM
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Magi
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 2,341
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Hey Jason, if you are worried about the quality of the pictures, I know a guy who writes books on digital photography. He's a pretty cool guy I'll bet he will give you some pointers.
0.4 thick eh! Wow! I'll trade you for an amp rack.
Dave
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11-07-2002, 12:53 AM
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Neophyte
Join Date: Oct 2002
Posts: 5
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V35 - Battery Life? and Audio Quality?
Can't wait for the reviews. If it's this thin and has great battery life, it's the one I want! Is the battery replaceable?
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11-07-2002, 12:58 AM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 29,160
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Paragon
Hey Jason, if you are worried about the quality of the pictures, I know a guy who writes books on digital photography. He's a pretty cool guy I'll bet he will give you some pointers.
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Uh, are you talking about me? 8O :lol:
I know how to take pictures :wink: , but it's like a feeding frezy at these events. You have 25+ mobile device webmasters, and they all want to take pictures and get "the scoop". I only had a few seconds to take the pictures, and setting them up properly takes time that I didn't have.
Plus I didn't have my G2 with me - the macro function on my S110 leaves a bit to be desired.  ops:
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