Saturday, February 28, 2004
AnexTEK Pocket PC Phone SP230 Review
Posted by Jonathon Watkins in "HARDWARE" @ 06:00 PM
Last month, Janak posted about the AnexTek Pocket PC Phone photographed At CES. Now PPCT member Phoenix sends word that this design has surfaced as the HugeBee Pocket PC Phone SP230, on sale for $599 at the web shop of the HugeBee group here, while Ryaninc has pointed us to the review at PocketPCReviews.net.
"A first look at the surprisingly handsome AnexTEK SP230 reveals a top-notch design that makes few compromises to either phone or PDA functions. If you are looking for an all-in-one device this unit might serve you well. It features a Tri-band phone with video transmission, GPRS as well as fairly standard PPC specs but with a generous 64 MB of user-accessible RAM." Hmmm, I'm not so sure that 64Mb is 'generous' these days. :? That amount is standard, expected, a minimum perhaps.
"The core unit is about the size of an iPAQ 2210, but thicker. It also feels heavier but not by much (158 gms vs. 144 but adding the numeric keypad notches it up to 170 gms and adds a few more mms in thickness). What makes the unit larger than the iPAQ is its protruding antenna. It sticks out by about 20 mms but, cleverly, also incorporates a full-size stylus (and comes also with a spare one!). Sometimes it’s the little things that count. The large capacity 1480mAh battery clips on securely and bulges just slightly, aiding the grip on the unit." Ah – so the bulky parts are clever and aid grip. Indeed. That's one of those irregular verbs isn't it? "My unit has clever aiding grips, yours is bulky, his makes house bricks look skinny." :lol:
"This is not a phone with some or most PDA features. It is a fully-featured, albeit basic, PocketPC. It might lack Bluetooth or WiFi capability but it scores really high on that more important form of connectivity: the phone. Of course, it also has infra-red, SDIO, a full and brilliant 3.5” TFT screen with no yellowing. On bluetooth: the software has the BT functionality already built-in so the unit is BT-ready so to speak and can handle BT devices. With a 400 MHz Cotulla XScale engine and 64MB memory the SP230 is no slouch either." Which is nice.
So, check out the review to get the full specs of the unit and view the pictures.
Update: We previously linked to a review linked from HugeBee's website, but have since replaced the link with the original (more balanced) review at PocketPCReviews. The HugeBee version was apparently an unauthorized copy. :|
"A first look at the surprisingly handsome AnexTEK SP230 reveals a top-notch design that makes few compromises to either phone or PDA functions. If you are looking for an all-in-one device this unit might serve you well. It features a Tri-band phone with video transmission, GPRS as well as fairly standard PPC specs but with a generous 64 MB of user-accessible RAM." Hmmm, I'm not so sure that 64Mb is 'generous' these days. :? That amount is standard, expected, a minimum perhaps.
"The core unit is about the size of an iPAQ 2210, but thicker. It also feels heavier but not by much (158 gms vs. 144 but adding the numeric keypad notches it up to 170 gms and adds a few more mms in thickness). What makes the unit larger than the iPAQ is its protruding antenna. It sticks out by about 20 mms but, cleverly, also incorporates a full-size stylus (and comes also with a spare one!). Sometimes it’s the little things that count. The large capacity 1480mAh battery clips on securely and bulges just slightly, aiding the grip on the unit." Ah – so the bulky parts are clever and aid grip. Indeed. That's one of those irregular verbs isn't it? "My unit has clever aiding grips, yours is bulky, his makes house bricks look skinny." :lol:
"This is not a phone with some or most PDA features. It is a fully-featured, albeit basic, PocketPC. It might lack Bluetooth or WiFi capability but it scores really high on that more important form of connectivity: the phone. Of course, it also has infra-red, SDIO, a full and brilliant 3.5” TFT screen with no yellowing. On bluetooth: the software has the BT functionality already built-in so the unit is BT-ready so to speak and can handle BT devices. With a 400 MHz Cotulla XScale engine and 64MB memory the SP230 is no slouch either." Which is nice.
So, check out the review to get the full specs of the unit and view the pictures.
Update: We previously linked to a review linked from HugeBee's website, but have since replaced the link with the original (more balanced) review at PocketPCReviews. The HugeBee version was apparently an unauthorized copy. :|
