Sunday, July 25, 2004
PDA Buyer's Guide Reviews HP iPAQ rz1715
Posted by Jason Dunn in "ARTICLE" @ 07:00 PM
I'm still waiting for HP's PR department to respond to my request for a review unit, but the incredibly fast people at PDA Buyer's Guide have cranked out a review of the iPAQ rz1715 already!
"They're here! HP's new iPAQs running Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition (WM 2003 SE) will be announced on Monday July 26, 2004. We just happened to get ours a bit early . The rz1715 is HP's new entry-level iPAQ, while the iPAQ 1945 was their previous entry level PDA. The seldom seen iPAQ 1930 was actually HP's most basic model, and the rz1715's features are very similar to that model. This new iPAQ will please those on a budget who are looking for a very compact device and have no need for integrated wireless networking. Unfortunately it lacks two key features that the 1945 had: Bluetooth and a user replaceable battery. For these two reasons, I might choose the 1945 while it's still available from retailers."
I'm not usually the kind of person to judge something before I've had a chance to try it it out, but the rx1715 doesn't seem very compelling to me. Everyone has a different idea of what's attractive (my wife married ME after all! 8O), but to my eyes the design of the rx1715 is grotesque. Perhaps it's more compelling in person, but why did HP abandon the 1900 body design? That was sleek, sexy, and felt great in the hands. Design issues aside, I can see no compelling reason why someone should spend $80 USD more on this device than on the entry-level Dell Axim X30. To each his own, but I simply don't find this product competitive. Am I missing something?
"They're here! HP's new iPAQs running Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition (WM 2003 SE) will be announced on Monday July 26, 2004. We just happened to get ours a bit early . The rz1715 is HP's new entry-level iPAQ, while the iPAQ 1945 was their previous entry level PDA. The seldom seen iPAQ 1930 was actually HP's most basic model, and the rz1715's features are very similar to that model. This new iPAQ will please those on a budget who are looking for a very compact device and have no need for integrated wireless networking. Unfortunately it lacks two key features that the 1945 had: Bluetooth and a user replaceable battery. For these two reasons, I might choose the 1945 while it's still available from retailers."
I'm not usually the kind of person to judge something before I've had a chance to try it it out, but the rx1715 doesn't seem very compelling to me. Everyone has a different idea of what's attractive (my wife married ME after all! 8O), but to my eyes the design of the rx1715 is grotesque. Perhaps it's more compelling in person, but why did HP abandon the 1900 body design? That was sleek, sexy, and felt great in the hands. Design issues aside, I can see no compelling reason why someone should spend $80 USD more on this device than on the entry-level Dell Axim X30. To each his own, but I simply don't find this product competitive. Am I missing something?
