Wednesday, May 5, 2004
iPAQ 5500 Series Coming To An End?
Posted by Ed Hansberry in "NEWS" @ 12:00 PM
http://www.bargainpda.com/default.asp?newsID=2034
This could be the end of sleeve enabled devices from Compaq/HP.
"According to reports that have reached us, HP representatives and resellets have been telling customers that the iPaq 5550 has been reclassified as "end of life", meaning that it will no longer be manufactured. Coupled with the age of the unit, and the decreasing stock at various retailers, it's not hard to believe that this is accurate. While it's still unknown whether HP intends to make another iPaq model that's compatible with the existing base of expansion sleeves, HP has shown little to no interest in the sleeve system since it took over the iPaq line, making only minimal concessions to the design to follow through on promises made to existing users. I would have to say that the likelyhood of seeing another sleeve-capable iPaq is probably low, so if you're that one diehard who won't give up their Whitney CF sleeve/case, you might want to order soon."
In a way, I am sorry to see this happen, but if you look at device capabilities today versus what they were the original 3600 shipped in 2000, there is very little, if anything, that an iPAQ 2215 can't do that a sleeve enabled device can do. While the article above doesn't specify the 5100 series, I suspect it too is on the block. Actually, I'm not sure if it is still available. This was so much easier when there were three devices, one from each of the big OEMs at the time. :wink:
This could be the end of sleeve enabled devices from Compaq/HP.
"According to reports that have reached us, HP representatives and resellets have been telling customers that the iPaq 5550 has been reclassified as "end of life", meaning that it will no longer be manufactured. Coupled with the age of the unit, and the decreasing stock at various retailers, it's not hard to believe that this is accurate. While it's still unknown whether HP intends to make another iPaq model that's compatible with the existing base of expansion sleeves, HP has shown little to no interest in the sleeve system since it took over the iPaq line, making only minimal concessions to the design to follow through on promises made to existing users. I would have to say that the likelyhood of seeing another sleeve-capable iPaq is probably low, so if you're that one diehard who won't give up their Whitney CF sleeve/case, you might want to order soon."
In a way, I am sorry to see this happen, but if you look at device capabilities today versus what they were the original 3600 shipped in 2000, there is very little, if anything, that an iPAQ 2215 can't do that a sleeve enabled device can do. While the article above doesn't specify the 5100 series, I suspect it too is on the block. Actually, I'm not sure if it is still available. This was so much easier when there were three devices, one from each of the big OEMs at the time. :wink:
