dma1965
12-31-2002, 11:08 PM
I recently got a hold of an iPaq 5450 and want to point out the items that stick out the most in my experience with it.
The Good:
The screen is to die for. It is so crisp and bright it almost hurts my eyes. If there is one thing about the 5450 that sticks out, this is it.
The biometric scanner security system is implemented in a fantastic manner. It works beautifully, and, so far, has proven to be 100% reliable. The best thing about it is that you can also include a pin, or either a pin or scan, or passphrase and scan, and many other options as well. This is a great feature.
WiFi on this device is better than any other WiFi device I have ever used. I used to hold my Socket WLAN Compact Flash card at the top of the heap, but the built in WiFi in the 5450 is the most powerfull I have seen. I can get an excellent signal in my car in my office parking lot. Nothing else I have used can match it for range, and ease of use.
The Bad:
Well, it is just too friggin expensive.
Some software will just not work on the X-Scale processor that works great on pre-Xscale processors.
The external speaker in just too soft in volume for it to be used as an alarm, even at the highest setting.
I have owned almost every model of iPaq since the 3600 series, which had the absolute best sound quality of any of the iPaq since then (I am referring to stereo headphones). The quality of the sound has gotten progressively worse with every new model line, and the 5450 has the worst I have heard yet. It is too soft to crank good rock tunes at even the highest volume, and the treble sounds almost completely washed out, although the bass is fine. It is like listening to music in the next room with a subwoofer in the room. The bass sounds great, but the drums, rythym guitar, lead guitar, and voices sound like there is a wall between you and the music. I did a side by side with my 3870, and the difference is astounding.
The Ugly:
Now for the reasons why I must return this for a refund. The first reason is the horrible battery life. HP took a giant step backward on this one. Using the lowest standby setting (12 hours) and with the IR port turned off (Start/Settings/Connections/Beam and uncheck the box) I can get about 2 hours of use out of my iPaq before my first battery warning, and about 45 minutes if I use WiFi continuosly. But, this is not my biggest concern. HP has done a major boner with this latest iPaq. I use my iPaq on the road A LOT for about 8 hours per day, and with my 3870 I just carried my CF Expansion Pack Plus, which has a battery in it. The great thing about my 3870 is that it will use the expansion pack battery first, before it starts draining my built in battery. This is absolutely awesome, since the battery on my expansion pack is removable, and it packs quite a bit of punch. On the 5450, it is quite the opposite. It will use the device battery first, and what is even worse is if y! our expansion pack battery is low it will actually pull charge from the handheld to bring it back up. This is absolutely ridiculous, and unacceptable. It seems that they just did not think this through at all. In any event, it is lovely to look at, and lovely to hold, but must go.
The Good:
The screen is to die for. It is so crisp and bright it almost hurts my eyes. If there is one thing about the 5450 that sticks out, this is it.
The biometric scanner security system is implemented in a fantastic manner. It works beautifully, and, so far, has proven to be 100% reliable. The best thing about it is that you can also include a pin, or either a pin or scan, or passphrase and scan, and many other options as well. This is a great feature.
WiFi on this device is better than any other WiFi device I have ever used. I used to hold my Socket WLAN Compact Flash card at the top of the heap, but the built in WiFi in the 5450 is the most powerfull I have seen. I can get an excellent signal in my car in my office parking lot. Nothing else I have used can match it for range, and ease of use.
The Bad:
Well, it is just too friggin expensive.
Some software will just not work on the X-Scale processor that works great on pre-Xscale processors.
The external speaker in just too soft in volume for it to be used as an alarm, even at the highest setting.
I have owned almost every model of iPaq since the 3600 series, which had the absolute best sound quality of any of the iPaq since then (I am referring to stereo headphones). The quality of the sound has gotten progressively worse with every new model line, and the 5450 has the worst I have heard yet. It is too soft to crank good rock tunes at even the highest volume, and the treble sounds almost completely washed out, although the bass is fine. It is like listening to music in the next room with a subwoofer in the room. The bass sounds great, but the drums, rythym guitar, lead guitar, and voices sound like there is a wall between you and the music. I did a side by side with my 3870, and the difference is astounding.
The Ugly:
Now for the reasons why I must return this for a refund. The first reason is the horrible battery life. HP took a giant step backward on this one. Using the lowest standby setting (12 hours) and with the IR port turned off (Start/Settings/Connections/Beam and uncheck the box) I can get about 2 hours of use out of my iPaq before my first battery warning, and about 45 minutes if I use WiFi continuosly. But, this is not my biggest concern. HP has done a major boner with this latest iPaq. I use my iPaq on the road A LOT for about 8 hours per day, and with my 3870 I just carried my CF Expansion Pack Plus, which has a battery in it. The great thing about my 3870 is that it will use the expansion pack battery first, before it starts draining my built in battery. This is absolutely awesome, since the battery on my expansion pack is removable, and it packs quite a bit of punch. On the 5450, it is quite the opposite. It will use the device battery first, and what is even worse is if y! our expansion pack battery is low it will actually pull charge from the handheld to bring it back up. This is absolutely ridiculous, and unacceptable. It seems that they just did not think this through at all. In any event, it is lovely to look at, and lovely to hold, but must go.