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  #1  
Old 09-22-2003, 05:00 PM
Dave Beauvais
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Default Targus HP1000 Professional Protective Case Reviewed

A few months ago, Targus quietly introduced a hard case for iPAQ Pocket PCs. "Big deal," you say, "there are a lot of hard cases for iPAQs." That's true, of course, but this case has a unique feature: it can hold an h5000 series iPAQ with the extended battery attached! So what's this case like? Is it worth its US$50 price? Read on to find out!


When HP announced that an extended battery would be available for their h5000 series iPAQs, one of the first questions asked was if there was a case that would work with this battery attached. For a long time, the answer to this question was "no." Then, Targus and HP worked together to develop a hard case that would not only hold all sleeve-capable iPAQs all the way back to the 3600 series, but would also accommodate the extended battery of the newest h5000 series iPAQs. The result of their work is the Targus HP1000 Professional Protective Case.

Description and Features
The HP1000 case is constructed of a hard, yet flexible black plastic with a black synthetic leather insert on the front cover which is embossed with the HP logo. The back panel of the case can be removed and replaced with either a smooth solid piece or a panel that includes a belt clip attachment. There is a single slip of paper included with the case which contains usage instructions on one side and warranty information on the other. As a geek, I'm ashamed to admit that I actually had to read the instructions to figure out how I was supposed to swap out the back panel of the case.


Figure 1: The Targus HP1000 case laying open.

There are openings in the top and bottom for easy access to all of the various ports and connectors of all the iPAQs with the exception of the expansion sleeve connector. Since this case is designed for a "naked" iPAQ, there's no need to expose the sleeve connector since no sleeve could attach while using the case. While testing this case, I used my h5455 and a friend's 3955 and found that the headphone jack, sync connector, reset button, stylus, infrared port, microphone, SD slot, and the h5455's antenna nub and fingerprint scanner were all easily accessible. About the only thing I had a problem with was the record button. I found it very difficult to press because of how much the case surrounds it. The 3955's record button was easier to press than the h5455's, but that's true even with no case. Still, if you use the record button frequently, that could be an annoyance to you.


Figure 2: The top end of the case with an h5455 inside. Note the easy access to the stylus, Ir port, and SD slot.


Figure 3: This is the bottom end of the case with an h5455 inside. The headphone jack, sync connector, and reset button are all accessible. You can also see the latch that holds the front flap closed.

The rigid front flap of the case will protect the display against some pretty serious impacts, I suspect. It did not flex much under pressure and is thick enough that bumping into the corner of a desk or table would probably not shatter your LCD. The flap is attached to the body of the case by two thin strips of plastic and can be removed entirely during use, if you wish. The flap latches to the body of the case with a small "lip" on the lower edge. At first, this didn't seem to be as secure as other cases I've used, but it never opened accidentally during use, so it should be just fine for most users.

The sides of the case have raised "bumpers" which I suppose can help prevent damage to the side of the iPAQ which is left exposed as you can see in Figure 4 below. Also in that photo you can see how much thickness the case adds to your iPAQ. The extra room, of course, is to accommodate the extended battery. (Or a few business cards, as the Targus Web site mentions.)


Figure 4: The side of the HP1000 case with an h5455 inside. The sides of the iPAQ are left exposed and you can see how much extra thickness the case adds to the slim iPAQ to accommodate the extended battery.

Turning to the other side, the back of the case can be removed and replaced with a panel which has a belt clip. Both smooth and clip back panels are included with the case. As I mentioned earlier, I had to read the instructions to figure out the correct way to remove and insert the back panels. It was not the easiest thing to do, but once I got the hang of it, I could do it fairly quickly. Fortunately, it's not likely to be a change you make on a daily basis.

A nice feature of the belt clip is that it can rotate and lock into a horizontal or vertical position, which would allow you to rotate the case out of the way of, say, a seatbelt in the car. Unfortunately, that feature is the belt clip's only redeeming quality, as you will see...

Gotchas
That was the good stuff. While this case was fairly well designed overall, the implementation of that design is lacking, and the HP1000 suffers from rather serious problems, in my opinion. First of all, the belt clip. Well, there really is no kind way to say this... I feel the clip is, at best, a useless piece of junk. Calling this a belt clip is an insult to good belt clips everywhere. It's very small and has no "hook" to keep it from slipping off your belt. During regular use, the case -- with my iPAQ in it, mind you -- literally slipped right off my belt four times in one day, usually while sitting down in a chair or getting into the car. That problem alone is the deal-breaker for me. I carry my iPAQ on my belt in a case. It's geeky and perhaps unfashionable, but that's what I do. If I can't trust my Pocket PC's case to stay on my belt, the case is worthless to me.



Figure 5: A couple views of the HP1000's belt clip.

Another serious issue I have with this case is that it is absurdly difficult to get the iPAQ in and out of the case. It did become easier the longer I used the case, but getting the case around the record button on my h5455 was annoyingly difficult. Here are the instructions provided for inserting an iPAQ without an extended battery:
  • Lift the lower latch to open the Front Cover.
  • Insert the iPAQ from the top.
  • Stretch the sleeve open if necessary. (The iPAQ is inserted properly when its top edge fits snugly under the top edge of the case.)
The instructions for use with an extended battery are similar except that you insert the bottom end of the iPAQ first, then stretch the case around the top. I don't use an extended battery, but tried that method, anyway, to see what it was like. I assure you, the words "if necessary" have no place in step number three. It will be necessary to stretch the HP1000 around the iPAQ, and it does take some amount of effort to get everything positioned correctly. To remove the iPAQ, you stretch the case away from the top and pull the iPAQ out top first.

Can it get worse? Yep! You cannot dock your iPAQ in its cradle while it's in the HP1000 case. What that means is that if you charge and sync your iPAQ using the cradle, you'll probably have to deal with inserting your iPAQ into and removing it from this case at least twice per day. With most cases this wouldn't be such a bad thing, but the HP1000 makes a chore out of something as simple as putting your iPAQ in a case. The more I used this case while evaluating it, the more this one issue irritated me. I believe the only way this wouldn't annoy you is if you mostly use a separate sync cable (or wireless) and a separate AC adapter with your iPAQ instead of its cradle.

Where To Buy
This case can be purchased for US$49.95 from Mobile Planet, a Pocket PC Thoughts affiliate.

Specifications
The Targus HP1000 Professional Protective Case measures 5.5" x 1.8" x 3.4" (13.97cm x 4.6cm x 8.6cm) and weighs 0.14 pounds (63.5 grams). The case requires a sleeve-capable iPAQ. As such, it will not work with the h2200 series or the h1900 series. The case is compatible with any other iPAQ from the 3600 series to the newest h5000 series models.

Conclusions
When all is said and done, I believe the HP1000 will not be the ideal case for the majority of iPAQ users due to the quirks of its design. This is really too bad, because on paper it's a fantastic case. I honestly tried to like the HP1000, but felt that some aspects of its design were just too poorly implemented. The weak, insecure belt clip is the biggest fault, in my opinion, and I cannot recommend this case to anyone who carries his or her iPAQ on his or her belt. The only way around this that I can see is to use the flat case back and attach an adhesive UltraClip of some sort.

Download this Review
If you'd like to download this review for reading offline, here it is in RepliGo format (File size: 123 KB). You can view the RepliGo file on your mobile device or Windows desktop using Cerience's RepliGo Viewers. When reading in Flowed View on your mobile device, I suggest a font size of "smaller" or "smallest."

 
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  #2  
Old 09-22-2003, 08:40 PM
ctmagnus
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1.8" thick? 8O That's thicker than the dual PC card expansion pack!

The HP site indicates nothing of this nature, especially wih their single face-on picture of the unit.

Still, anything that protects the screen is very good imo.
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Old 09-22-2003, 08:52 PM
Dave Beauvais
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Yeah it is a bit thick, but I don't consider that to be a problem, exactly. One of the selling points of this case is that it can hold an h5000 series iPAQ with the extended battery attached. If the case was nearly two inches thick and the extended battery didn't fit, that would be a problem.

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Old 09-23-2003, 02:37 AM
robshobs
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I found the case to be a nice fit with extended battery. Feels good in the hand and the cover does protect the screen.

Getting it in and out is a pain. My concern was that the case would stretch out and then not fit well.

Bottom line, $50 is a lot for a piece of plastic. If it had SD holder and CC slots maybe. I returned mine today.
 
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Old 09-23-2003, 04:06 AM
hulksmash
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It looked very promising but with a substandard clip and a tendency to lose its shape there is NO WAY I will be shelling out $50 for this piece of plastic. That clip looks like a 1970's cheap vinyl and generic eyeglass case clip I had when I was a child. :bad-words: :roll:
 
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Old 09-23-2003, 04:31 AM
Brad Adrian
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Not having a decent clip is a deal-breaker for me. I wonder how difficult it would be to epoxy a standard belt clip "bolt" to this case?
 
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Old 09-23-2003, 04:39 AM
Dave Beauvais
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brad Adrian
Not having a decent clip is a deal-breaker for me. I wonder how difficult it would be to epoxy a standard belt clip "bolt" to this case?
In the last sentence of the Conclusion section, I mentioned that perhaps the only way to safely use this case with a belt clip would be to attach an adhesive clip such as those available from The Clip to the flat back panel. The adhesive used by those things is incredibly strong.

--Dave
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Old 10-21-2003, 01:02 AM
ctmagnus
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Having had this case for about a week now, I have a suggestion (aside from the clip idea that Dave mentioned) that hopefully will be taken into consideration by HP/Targus for the next model, if there is one:

Ditch the "lips" on top. Replace them with the standard "clips" that all Compaq/HP expansion packs have. This will make insertion/removal of the iPaq much easier; a model with the "lips" would be appropriate for a Pocket PC that ships with only a sync cable and no cradle.

Otherwise, I pclove: it and was very surprised at how much I like it, given Dave's review. When I ordered it, I thought maybe I could hack it somehow to make it more useful but the only way in which I'd do that now is to replace the clip with a better one. I actually kind of like the lips but they do take considerable getting used to, especially after one has used a case such as a Piel Frama for a while.
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Old 11-17-2003, 05:00 PM
nice_micael
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Makes me almost wanna ditch the sleeves in favour for it .
 
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Old 04-30-2004, 05:08 AM
ctmagnus
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Hmmm... the case worked almost seamlessly on my first 5550, and I was quite proud of it. However, I received a replacemant iPaq under warranty coverage yesterday and guess what? The case barely fits it! :evil: I was fighting for two hours trying to get it on properly, but I eventually got it on with the help of a butterknife. I now see why eustts wanted to sell his.
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