09-01-2004, 05:00 PM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 29,160
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VGA Goodness Coming Soon? Dell Axim X50 and Asus A730
One of the hotly anticipated features of Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition Pocket PC was the support for VGA resolutions - some three years after the first Palm-based units trumped the QVGA resolution Pocket PCs had mind you - but something we've all been looking forward to. Yet where are the devices? The hx4700 is still "coming soon", but it looks like two other devices may be hot on its heals. Ed at Brighthand dug through the FCC documents and uncovered some hard specifications on the Dell Axim X50:
"More information on the handhelds in the X50 series has been found in the FCC filing. One model will have a 3.7-inch, 640-by-480-pixel (VGA) screen, a 624 MHz Intel XScale processor, and either 128 MB or 64 MB of RAM. A second model will have a 3.5-inch, 240-by-320-pixel (QVGA) screen, a 520 MHz XScale processor, and 64 MB of RAM."
Tom's Hardware took a sneak peek at the forthcoming A730. The A730 will have a 3.7" VGA screen, but it's unfortunate that WiFi will be lacking. All hope is not lost, however, as there's a model coming out that I hadn't heard of yet:
"If you think Asus packed WLAN into this pocket PC, you'd be wrong. The only device that will get this feature is the top-of-the-line model Mypal A730W (11 Mbps according to the 802.11b standard). The A730W will be available starting in October, and its 128 megabytes mean it will have more than double the RAM of the A730. At present, however, Asus is unable to give us an exact price tag for the model."
When are these VGA units coming out? No dates have been announced, but history has shown that when a device gets the FCC approval, it usually comes out fairly soon after, so my hunch is that we'll see these devices before the end of the year, which will make for a great holiday shopping season. Start saving! :wink:
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09-01-2004, 05:15 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,468
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I've had the a730w up on my VGA comparison chart for quite a while...! 
It's also worth pointing out that the Loox 720 is shiping in less than two weeks. It would have been from next Monday - but typhoons in Taiwan (and nearby) led to a halt in production/parts delivery - and thus a week's delay (I assume that this will slow down the hx4700 as well).
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09-01-2004, 07:03 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 92
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Axim 50
That's good news for me and I'll be keeping an eye out for the new Dells. I'm another one of those unhappy HP owners and plan to make good on my promise to move to a different vendow next time around. VGA, WiFi, more memory, reasonably sleek form factor, (probably) competitive price... count me in.
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09-01-2004, 07:34 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 113
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The Axim X50 looks to be my next PDA if the rumored specs turn out to be true. I have been using an X5 for the past 2 years and have been waiting for a VGA device with these specs at a sub-$500 pricepoint. Hopefully its performance with the new Intel 2700G chip will be comparable or even better than that of the X30. The picture posted over at Brighthand make it appear to be the general shape as the upcoming Asus MyPal A730. I wouldn't be surprised if it ends up being very similar in appearance (the Fujitsu Loox v70 in Japan uses an identical form factor as the A730). I'm glad Dell didn't jump on the built-in-camera-bandwagon as the ones tested in other upcoming PPCs seem very poor in quality and add $100+ to the pricetag.
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09-01-2004, 07:50 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,041
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The future looks bright for PDAs :wink:
I have an iPAQ 5550 and while I'm very happy with it, there are a few things I would like to see improved:
* Speed. I can't upgrade unless I see 624MHz +.
* Better video speed.
* Battery uptime. I can't use my device for more than a 3.5 hours. All day would be good.
VGA would be nice, but I'm okay with what I have now. VGA is more luxury for me than anything else. Not really a necessity.
I think my style iPAQ is the better looking of PDAs... I think the ASUS's are pretty darn nice looking and with this ASUS A730W, I may leave HP. HP's new PDAs just suck.
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09-01-2004, 08:41 PM
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Oracle
Join Date: Mar 2005
Posts: 980
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I hope that these new PPCs will speed up the release of the hx4700 
Hurry up hp or you are going to be the last one to hit the market again 
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09-01-2004, 08:46 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 27
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It is interesting that HP's confidentiality releast date for the 4705 is September 27 (so I am told) versus Dells at September 24. Makes me wonder if Dell will actually beat HP to the punch???
Here's to hoping!
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09-02-2004, 07:38 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 14
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Looks like Oct 14th is the actual release date for the Owners manual at FCC - so maybe the Dell X50 official anouncement will be further away in November.
https://gullfoss2.fcc.gov/prod/oet/cf/eas/reports/ViewExhibitReport.cfm?mode=Sum&calledFromFrame=N&RequestTimeout=500&application_id=436164&fcc_id='NM8HC3UL'
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09-03-2004, 05:49 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Apr 2005
Posts: 69
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by stevekc
Looks like Oct 14th is the actual release date for the Owners manual at FCC - so maybe the Dell X50 official anouncement will be further away in November.
https://gullfoss2.fcc.gov/prod/oet/cf/eas/reports/ViewExhibitReport.cfm?mode=Sum&calledFromFrame=N&RequestTimeout=500&application_id=436164&fcc_id='NM8HC3UL'
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Is it required that a device's FCC documentation be public before it's released? Perhaps the 10/14 date is just a safety buffer in case the device gets delayed. Wishful thinking!
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