Latest version of ipaq 4155?

[IsLNdbOi]

Hi. Noob here.

Can anyone please tell me what the latest version of PocketPC / Windows Mobile is?

Does the HP ipaq 4155 have it?

If not, is there an update for the 4155 to give it the latest version?

Also, are any of HP's upcoming ipaqs the same form factor as the 4155?


Thanks for any help!!! :)

[Janak Parekh]

Can anyone please tell me what the latest version of PocketPC / Windows Mobile is?
WM2003 Second Edition.

Does the HP ipaq 4155 have it?
Not yet - it has WM2003 (First Edition).

If not, is there an update for the 4155 to give it the latest version?
Not yet. I don't know if HP has confirmed if there will be an upgrade, although one is expected.

Also, are any of HP's upcoming ipaqs the same form factor as the 4155?
I think some are close sizewise, but not necessarily the exact same formfactor. It's hard to tell until the products actually hit the market. You can see a rundown of the rumored iPAQs here (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=28132).

--janak

[IsLNdbOi]

Thanks for the info. Right now, I'm contemplating an ipaq 4155 or CLIE TH55. I've been a long time user of the PalmOS and I may be ready to try out PPC.

[Janak Parekh]

Thanks for the info. Right now, I'm contemplating an ipaq 4155 or CLIE TH55. I've been a long time user of the PalmOS and I may be ready to try out PPC.
The 4155 is certainly a nice device, even with First Edition. :) The CLIE has a higher-res screen, but it is bigger, and is running a (relatively) non-multitasking OS. If there are specific Palm vs. Pocket PC questions you want to ask, feel free to do so; there's a separate forum dedicated to the task.

Good luck on your purchase.

--janak

[IsLNdbOi]

I did get to try the European version of the TH55 (has bluetooth and wifi), but the unit I received had a dead pixel so I returned it for an exchange. By the time they received the dead pixel unit though, they had dropped the product from their inventory. I have contacted all of the online dealers carrying the Euro TH55 (Expansys, CloveUK, Dynamism) and all of them have dropped the model (even though some of those sites still show it) saying that Sony has discontinued its CLIE line everywhere except for Japan. I did get to try using the bluetooth connection with my bluetooth enabled Sony-Ericsson T610 and oh what a joy that was. The TH55 is really a sleek device as well. It's been awhile since I have used a pocket pc and I really don't know what to do. Get the US version of the TH55 (no bluetooth) or get the ipaq 4155 and spend tons more on new accessories.


I do know that if I switched to the 4155 I would miss the hires+ screen, virtual grafitti system and camera of the TH55.

[Janak Parekh]

Get the US version of the TH55 (no bluetooth) or get the ipaq 4155 and spend tons more on new accessories.
I'm afraid I have no trivial answer for you there, and the fact that Sony is giving up on PDAs doesn't help either. ;) If the choice were up to me, I'd pick the 4155 in a moment, but I'm in the opposite situation as you, having accumulated tons of iPAQ accessories and software over the years, and preferring the Pocket PC OS as it stands today.

I don't know if BT Memory Sticks still exist, but that might be a choice for the TH55. It is incredibly convenient having both integrated, and I think the largest complaint about the US release of the TH55 was Sony's shortsightedness in not offering the BT+WiFi version here.

If you haven't held or played with a 4155, you might want to go to a store and do so. :)

--janak

[IsLNdbOi]

Thanks for all of the info. and advice. I think I'll be heading to Fry's sometime this week to try out a 4155 (that is if their demo is working). As for my CLIE accessories, I'll just have to eBay them. I have been drooling over that ThinkOutside bluetooth stowaway and have seen that they only have Symbian and PocketPC drivers.

[Vidge]

I have a T3 (close to the TH55) and a hp4155, which I've had only a week, so take my opinion with a grain of salt :lol: (Of course, the easiest decision is buy BOTH!)

If you are limiting your choices to the TH55 and the hp4155, I guess you have to figure out whether BT is important. If it is, then the hp is the better choice. But you would be giving up the higher screen resolution, which I'm finding to be an important feature. Don't get me wrong - there's a lot to like about the hp4155: it is small, lightweight, has BT & Wifi, a decent screen, and a faster processor than the TH55. But I find myself needing the larger screen real estate of the T3 to do certain things, like spreadsheets. And I must say that I miss landscape mode on the hp. (I briefly owned a Del X30 624 and here's hoping that hp releases WM2003SE for the 4155, although if hp gets the new models out soon, I may just return this and get an new one with WM2003SE.)

HTH

[IsLNdbOi]

That's something that I'm concerned about. If HP is releasing new models very soon, would they still release a WME2003SE for the 4155? Also, none of the new models except the one with a gsm phone built in really impress me and that model with the gsm will cost more than I'm willing to pay for a pda / cell phone.

Oh one more thing. If a WME2003SE update were released for the 4155, would such an update be erased if I ever did a hard reset?

[Janak Parekh]

That's something that I'm concerned about. If HP is releasing new models very soon, would they still release a WME2003SE for the 4155?
The suspicion is if they do, it'd be after the release of existing models, so as not to sap demand for them.

Oh one more thing. If a WME2003SE update were released for the 4155, would such an update be erased if I ever did a hard reset?
No - it would be a semi-permanent ROM update flashed to the device (semi in the sense you could flash the old ROM back if you had backed it up) -- and it would definitely survive hard resets.

--janak

[Pony99CA]

I do know that if I switched to the 4155 I would miss the hires+ screen, virtual grafitti system and camera of the TH55.
You might be able to drop one of those items you'd miss. The Pocket PC OS has Block Recognizer, which I understand is very similar to Graffiti. Because the Pocket PC input panels (SIPs) pop up when requested, I think that makes them "virtual" (as opposed to dedicated), right?

Steve

[Vidge]

FYI - Block Recognizer is very similar to what Palm now refers to as Graffiti 1. G1 is no longer available on any of the current Palm units - they now come with Graffiti2, which is a licensed version of Jot (due to a lawsuit with Xerox over G1 that, at this point, has been decided in Palm's favor). One of the hardest things I've had to overcome in moving back and forth between my T3 and my hp4155 is what handwriting system to use on the hp. I ultimately decided to put G1 on my T3.

IsLndsOi - Steve is right - you won't miss the Virtual Graffiti because all of the handwriting input options on the hp are virtual - they pop up over the bottom of the screen.

[IsLNdbOi]

Well, went to Fry's today to pick up a TH55/U. When I was there though, I noticed that the ipaq 4155 was the same price as the TH55. I guess experiencing the ability to connect to the net with my SE T610 and TH55/E via bluetooth spoiled me 'cause once I saw that the prices were the same for the TH55/U and the 4155, I had a really really hard time deciding which to get. Sure the TH55 has a larger screen, but the screen on the ipaq 4155 was gorgeous as well and it has bluetooth in addition to wifi. I have experience with the PocketPC OS and I'm fine with it. The things that kept holding me back though from getting the 4155 is the fact that I have alot of Palm Software and CLIE accessories. Also, the TH55 is Sony's last and top model, so I know I'll have the best "CLIE". And since HP will be releasing new models soon, I don't know if they'll ever release a Windows Mobile 2003SE update for the 4155.

I have 15 days to return the TH55 just in case I change my mind and decide to go with the 4155. I also got the two years instant replacement plan for only $40 dollars more. I like Fry's because of that. I guess over the next 14 days, I'll have to think really hard whether or not I will exchange the TH55 for the ipaq 4155.

[Janak Parekh]

I guess over the next 14 days, I'll have to think really hard whether or not I will exchange the TH55 for the ipaq 4155.
Well, there's no right answer. :) Of course, we're biased, being Pocket PC Thoughts, but it's most important that you find a solution that works for yourself. Good luck!

--janak

[IsLNdbOi]

Well, another reason for me to stick with the TH55:

http://www.ipaqhq.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7976

I would have gone with the ipaq 4155 if I knew for a fact that HP was gonna release a Windows Mobile 2003SE update for it, but now that I know for sure that HP is not going to release the update for the 4155 coupled with the fact that I do not find any of the upcoming ipaq models very "enticing", I'm definitely sticking with the TH55.

[Andy Whiteford]

Well, another reason for me to stick with the TH55:

http://www.ipaqhq.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7976

I would have gone with the ipaq 4155 if I knew for a fact that HP was gonna release a Windows Mobile 2003SE update for it, but now that I know for sure that HP is not going to release the update for the 4155 coupled with the fact that I do not find any of the upcoming ipaq models very "enticing", I'm definitely sticking with the TH55.


The lack of a SE upgrade if its true is disappointing but the two main benefits of this upgrade are on the fly landscape support and VGA support. The latter is of no use on the h4150 with its QVGA screen and landscape can still be invoked using a third party app and a soft reset even though the OS does not natively support it. Not too convenient but still possible. I personally would not consider the lack of an upgrade as a reason not to buy an h4150.

[Pony99CA]

The lack of a SE upgrade if its true is disappointing but the two main benefits of this upgrade are on the fly landscape support and VGA support. The latter is of no use on the h4150 with its QVGA screen and landscape can still be invoked using a third party app and a soft reset even though the OS does not natively support it. Not too convenient but still possible. I personally would not consider the lack of an upgrade as a reason not to buy an h4150.
Besides the soft reset hassle, there's another issue. Applications running in landscape on a pre-SE system can get truncated. See my review of dotPocket (http://review.svpocketpc.com/dotpocket/dotPocket.html) to see the effects.

I'm hoping that software that supports landscape properly in SE will also work properly using virtual display programs, but I don't know. However, even if they do work, the built-in applications probably won't. I don't see Microsoft releasing EUUs for Windows Mobile 2003 making the applications work in landscape.

Another benefit of SE is the single-column mode in Pocket IE. To me, that's more important than VGA support (especially if I don't have a VGA Pocket PC :-D).

Considering HP generally charges $30 for an OS upgrade, and Nyditot Virtual Display (http://www.nyditot.com) costs $20, which would you rather pay for?

Steve