Rating: 
Summary: Finally, a true 'PC Anywhere'--for your pocket!
Review: I wanted a truly pocket-sized PC, not just a PDA. The pocket PC in general, and the Compaq Ipaq in particular, finally allows me to (almost) take my PC anywhere. The Pocket PC OS (a.k.a. Windows CE 3.0) is not as user-friendly to navigate as the Palm OS, but the exponential increase in computing power over anything running the Palm OS (to date) makes up for any of these shortcomings. Also, the Ipaq's handwriting recognition is far superior to Graffiti. Its 32MB of RAM is very nice, but 64MB (I have heard is in the works) would make this a 5-star device for my uses.Yes, the Ipaq does consume a lot more power than the Palm-based devices, but the power consumption is not as bad as some reviews would indicate. I just took my new toy with me on a short road trip from San Diego to Los Angeles. I loaded a memory card with a full CD of music (MP3 compression at the lowest-possible rate and still retain stereo) and used a set of headphones to listen to some tunes for the drive. After about one-hour of use, the power indicator showed that about 20-25% of the charge was used up. This may be unacceptable for some, but I had plenty of charge left over to use the Ipaq for the remaining two days before returning home. This Pocket PC has almost as much computing power that my state-of-the-art desktop had only four years ago. As it stands now, I still whole-heartedly recommend this little gizmo.
Rating: 
Summary: All that and a bag of chips...
Review: I purchased the iPAQ to replace my old Casio Cassiopeia E-15. The difference between these two devices highlights how Microsoft has stolen the edge.... My E-15 refreshed screens in a painfully slow manner, burned through it's rechargeable battery pack while conducting routine tasks in the same amount of time as my iPAQ (while playing MP3s for hours on end and occasionally connecting to the internet via my CompactFlash modem).... ... ActiveSync 3.1 fixes the majority of interface problems; while my iPAQ is synched, data can be seamlessly transferred back and forth between PC and iPAQ...and they run compatible programs.... Battery life... is much improved...and is less affected by Compactflash accessories than earlier CE devices.... entering text is a breeze and can be done in any light condition since the data entry area is illuminated by the backlight.... And best of all, developers are beginning to see the advantages of the Pocket PC and program to its strengths.... Choosing between the iPAQ and other devices is obviously based on the user's intentions. If you want a machine that is capable of performing 50-80% of a laptop's functions, get a Pocket PC and spend the extra time to learn its ins and outs....
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Product For New Handheld User
Review: I waited a long time to buy a handheld and spent weeks researching the pros and cons of the two I was most seriously considering, the iPAQ and the new Palm m505. When I finally bit the bullet and bought the iPAQ, I initially was apprehensive regarding its price and some of the "glitches" I read about on the Compaq website message boards. Let me tell you, I have had this thing for 6 weeks now and I absolutely love it. Once you have decided between the advantages and disadvantages of Windows Pocket PC OS v. Palm OS, I don't think there is a better Pocket PC out there. Putting aside the superficial factors about how sleek and cool the iPAQ looks, it does so many things and synchronizes so well with Microsoft Outlook, that I think it's the best handheld out there (notwithstanding the price). The calendar, contacts and other organizer features are excellent. The games I have downloaded are pretty good (I am looking for better ones -- clearly Palm has an advantage here). I live in the city and play chess every morning on the subway -- which is a fine distraction when coupled with a CD player on my ears. I am still working on how to get MP3s downloaded to the iPAQ. What really sold me on this product, though, was the excellent quality of the screen -- there are 5 levels of brightness to choose from; and the fact that I wanted color to go with it. I compared this to the Palm m505, and it was no contest. You could barely see the Palm screen in the store. Who cares about 65,000 colors v. 4900 when you can barely see the screen? This is one of the most important features of any handheld, in my opinion. The iPAQ memory is expandable, which will allow me to use it for a long time (barring any accidents). The handwriting recognition is excellent, and is much better than Palm's "graffiti." The negatives I have read about and experienced re: the iPAQ are: (1) the slide-on expansion sleeves. People are complaining because there is no internal expansion slot in the iPAQ. Who cares? The sleeve does not add that much bulk and it's a fair trade-off for the other things you get. That said, the iPAQ is not necessarily something you can carry in a shirt pocket. I have carried it in a jacket pocket however, and it felt comfortable. (2) There isn't as much software out there for PocketPCs as there is for Palm products. I think, though, that due to the popularity of the iPAQ that is changing rapidly. Many of these games are free on Handago.com and Microsoft's PocketPC website. I downloaded a great chess game and a tankzone game that is just like "Battlezone" from the early 80s. I also downloaded "PocketQuake" for free, but need more memory to use it. (3) BATTERY LIFE. This is definitely a negative. I have constantly needed to charge this thing, so I bought a charging adapter for work and home. I take it with me whenever I travel. You can use this for about a day of regular use, then you will need to charge it. I have read that you can keep a Palm on for weeks without charging. Palm has the iPAQ beat hands down in this department, but then again, in my view, the battery drainage is due solely to the advantages I feel the iPAQ has over the Palm. It's a tradeoff. (4) Accessories will cost you. This is a product for people with money to spend on it. While you can get basic everyday usage out of the 32MB that comes with the iPAQ, you will need to buy at least another 64 MB of memory to really get the most out of it. (I haven't yet). Internet connectivity, which I would love to have, is still ridiculously expensive ($59.95/mo. with Omnisky). When this comes down and the connection rate improves (or I win the lottery), this will be a great thing to have. The last thing I want to say is that it is a lot of fun exploring new things to do with the iPAQ. As with all handhelds, this is not a product like a washing machine that comes with clear directions on how to use its every aspect, particularly, downloadable software. The technology is still evolving, and it requires some work to find new things to download and use. I am still working on the MP3 issue, for example. But there is a growing community of users that provides advice on all aspects of the iPAQ on the Compaq website. It is a great feeling when you find something new to do on this product. If you are someone who likes things spelled out 100% and don't want to search for anyting -- do yourself a favor and buy a Palm. Better yet, stick to a notebook. On the other hand, if you like a little adventure and have some money to spend on this fantastic organizer/MP3 player/toy/computer, I don't think you will be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Very expensive, but...
Review: If you are like me then you probably dig through other peoples' reviews so you can make a decision which PDA to buy. If you're interested in a non-techie discussion of the pros and cons of the iPaq 3670 vs the HP Journada 545 (I have both) then you should read on. Basically the only difference between the the 3670 and the 3635/3650 is the amount of RAM so I think my discussion is not misplaced here (I'd love to put it into the 3670 category but Amazon doesn't sell these yet). The biggest two advantages of the iPaq over the Journada 545/548 in my opinion are speed and display legibility in the open. The iPaq is noticably faster than the Journada; basically everything on the iPaq happens instantly, whereas you will often get to see the egg timer on the Journada. I'm only talking about a few milliseconds, but to impatient people who make heavy use of their PDA it's a crucial difference. However, if you can live with this and also don't plan on using your PDA in the open very often then you should save those *lots* of $ and instead get the Journada plus a nice 64 or 128 MB extension card (the Viking 128 works great for me). The Journada has even a few advantages over the iPaq: The little wheel on the left of the Journada makes one hand exploration of your mail a real pleasure and much easier than with the iPaq, and the built-in screen protection as well as the slot for memory cards are something every iPaq user will surely miss. To summarize, both are great products, and you don't go wrong with any of them. If you take my points above into consideration it shouldn't be too hard to pick the right one for you.
Rating:
Summary: Be practical in your life !
Review: If you're just like many people that are getting into tech. appliances for a better life, think of this product. Who needs to surf on a cell phone? Who needs to send faxes with an expensive and heavy laptop? I think this is the best article ever created for a business person on the road, that basically uses Word, Excel, contacts an a fax. Anyway, you finally buy what you want, but think about the portable keyboard, modem, etc... VEEEEEEERY NICE !! P.S.: Only 4 stars because of the battery life.
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Summary: You CAN connect it to a Mac!
Review: I have another review below, which talks about how the iPAQ is an excellent upgrade for Newton diehards. I just wanted to add that the iPAQ can be connected to a Macintosh, using a USB-to-PDA adaptor from Keyspan, which you can get on Amazon, and VirtualPC. I just set it up last night, and it really works! The trick is to set the adaptor as your COM1 port in VirtualPC, and you're away. So if you were not sure about buying an iPAQ because you're a Mac user, worry no more - the two can talk to each other. Plus, there is a company out there that is working on a Mac connection kit for the pocketPC - they're called Information Appliance Associates. It looks like this will be available in 2001.
Rating:
Summary: All the people in the office like iPaq
Review: In our office, we used to use Palm. It worked OK. But when we started to have the first iPaq, everyone fell in love with it. Just in one month, I bought three already. For one pilot project, all Physician will be required to use it as pharmacy precribing device. Another reason to use it for us is we can use it to do slide show after loading jpeg files. Of course, if you want, you can have music in the background. Anyway, it is my impression only and just for your reference. I bought all iPaq from RadioShack ....
Rating:
Summary: Nice unit but needs improvement in the interface
Review: I decided to try the iPAQ 3635 after numerous problems with the Palm Vx and having my different programs overwrite the sync conduits for each other. Active Sync has worked well for me so far. It installs a folder on your desktop and anything you drop into it will be transferred to the pocket pc. This is much easier than Palm's Hotsync method of selecting individual programs and doing a full sync. Windows CE is convenient since you can view .avi, .bmp, and .jpg files with no conversion. I have to admit the Palm's handwriting method of "Graffiti" recognizing what you write works better for me. I didn't see a cheat sheet in my documentation on how to form the letters so the unit recognizes them. It has been trial and error. You can select a virtual keyboard that pops up on the screen and I've found myself using it more and more. Perhaps with instruction on proper character formation writing would be easier. Battery life seems around 12-15 hours without the backlight and 2 or 3 with it on. This is important because the screen looks so good with the backlight on you will find that it's used most the time. The unit is very readable in bright sunlight as other reviews have stated. Pocket Word & Excel are great. Word will actually display screenshots and embedded graphics just as they appear on your PC. They aren't stripped out like on the Palm. There are many PDA's out there that run Windows CE but the iPAQ has a better feel in my hand than others. I would recommend it to almost anyone.
Rating:
Summary: THE Best Pocket PC in the Market
Review: I have read many reviews and have second thought of puchasing this pda because of the price. Let me tell you, this unit is worth every pennies. IPAQ out performs the rest of the pda including the HW Jornada 525. The 206 Mhz intel processer has speed of ligtnen HW wish it had. I had no trouble with the functions of the IPAQ. Setting up the CF modem and Lan card were a snap. Compaq uses Microsoft Windows as their operating system; If you own a PC with Windows, you should have no trouble. Compaq has once again beat its competitors. I also own the Compaq Aero 1550 pocket PC. It is also a great machine for a B & W screen. If you have the bucks, go with the IPAQ 3635. Note: This review is for the IPAQ 3635; however picture shows the IPAQ 3135(non-color).
Rating:
Summary: A great pocket PC.
Review: The Ipaq is in my mind the top of the line PDA. I have found it to be extremely useful and practical. Whether or not you want to use it for work or play, the Ipaq is a good choice. It uses Windows CE, which is easy to use and more like the regular Windows. The planner is also easy to use and very handy. The graphics and colors are the things that are truly phenomenal. It comes pre-loaded with solitaire, but a game which you also must get is ziogolf. This must be acquired from ziosoft.com though. All in all the Ipaq is a great buy.
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