David Shapshak
Products: HEWLETTPACKARD 620LX and COMPAQ C- SERIES 2010c palmtop computers Requirements: Windows 95, CD-ROM
I’ve avoided owning a palmtop for several years because the few advantages they offered (a contacts book and a diary) were not much of a trade-off for a keyboard too small to type on. Stylus-based interfaces were also problematic for entering lots of text.
I’ve been converted: I’ve learned to live without touch-typing in exchange for the functionality of these tiny devices.
The stalwart of the genre, the Psion, and the hot new stylus-only PalmPilot are both being challenged for their market share by a new range of devices running Microsoft’s Windows Consumer Electronics (CE) operating system.
Designed specifically for the palmtop platform, CE is a scaled-down version of Windows 95. As CE has become a contender in the market, a variety of computer manufacturers have developed products for it.
Compaq and Hewlett Packard (HP) have just released two very nifty machines: the HP 620LX and the Compaq 2010c. Both are superb little devices, just more than the length and width of my hand and weighing only a few hundred grams, yet they are fully functioning little computers.
For those familiar with Windows 95 or 98, CE is like visiting an old friend: part of CE’s saleability is that it differs only slightly from its “mother” operating system. The stylus functions as a mouse – you tap it on the touch screen and depress the ALT key for the usual right-hand button mouse options, and tapping the program tag on the task bar minimises it.
Both palmtops come pre-installed with pocket versions of Microsoft’s ubiquitous Office suite of programs, while the variety of third-party programs is seemingly endless. One of the most useful is a handwriting recognition programme that is about as fast as typing on the keyboard.
CE lets you allocate how much memory you use for programs and data storage, and never really has to shut down, so the machine is active immediately. It powers itself down after an adjustable amount of time, usually a few minutes.
With Windows CE becoming a player as an operating system, the choice between machines is becoming more and more a matter of hardware preference. More often than not, this comes down to budget.
The Compaq and HP are fairly evenly tied in quality and price. The former is just more than R500 more expensive and has four megabytes more RAM and an internal 33,6kps modem. Compaq makes a monochrome screen version that costs R3 900, including VAT. The HP, which has 16 megabytes of RAM, has a superior colour screen, but it is slightly heavier.
Both are swift in launching programs, and it’s hard to discern which is faster when running a variety of operations and programs. They also have rechargeable batteries and back-up batteries.
The HP is a solid, square-shaped device, with square buttons, whereas the Compaq has a more rounded lid and corners. If anything, the slightly larger space between the smaller, rounded Compaq’s keys makes it a bit easier to type on. Both have a stylus which clips into a discreet slot – in line with the market, the HP has a gadgety pop-out stylus with a silver button. Very James Bond.
While both machines have quick access buttons to launch the Pocket Office programs, the HP has dedicated buttons along the top of the keyboard and further buttons on the side of the screen for things like battery power and volume. The Compaq’s keys have dual functions and are labelled above the numbers. You depress the function key to launch the alternative functions. The Compaq also has an option to set things like the brightness of the backlit screen.
Both have voice recorders that can be operated off the machine’s desktop or with external buttons when it’s off and the screen is closed.
One of the advantages of CE’s desktop services, although it took me a few problematic attempts to get it installed, was its quick synchronisation with my personal computer. This can be done with infra-red ports, a serial cable directly to the palmtop or two zippy cradles – all of which both devices come with. The Compaq has a larger stylus for use when the palmtop is docked. Each machine also has a PC card slot – for either a modem card, a network card or a stiffy drive – and a flash memory clip to store extra data.
But the most problematic aspect, as I discovered to my dismay, was dialling up to the Internet. Configuring both machines was easy enough, but the numerous attempts of the modems to “shake hands” before I eventually got online took me back to the early clumsy days of Winsock for Windows 3.1 and the ever problematic first release of Windows 95.
Both machines struggled to find my Internet service provider’s servers, despite the ease of installing the TCP/IP and other settings, and needed some tweaking and fiddling to get online – both with the modem and through the machine. Browsing is a bit slower than with a desktop, but Pocket Internet Explorer handled graphics well enough, albeit it slowly.
For a normal user, and not a typing-conscious journalist, these devices are a necessary gadget for the digital cowboy. Apart from the keyboards – which take some getting used to, and forced me to look down at the keys and type with two fingers, slowing me down considerably – they are loaded with all the features of a desktop computer and both can be tucked into a back pocket.
My typing problems were solved by a friend, who remarked on my complaints about the keyboard: “That’s because you’re not a good two-finger typist.”