The Compaq iPAQ H3130 Pocket PC is a fine looking unit, identical to its bigger brother the H3630 except for the control buttons, which are matt black rather than chrome effect. The other most noticeable difference is that the H3130 sports a monochrome LCD. The image, which has a 240 x 320 pixel resolution, is extremely crisp, which cannot be said of many colour screens of this size. Holding the on/off button activates the back light, which works well in poorly lit environments.
Following its bigger sibling, an Intel StrongARM SA1110 processor drives the unit along at a respectable 206Mhz. The memory is half that of the colour version at 16Mb, a bit of a shame as 32Mb is common on other Pocket PCs. An expansion slot sits on the bottom for upgrade to the bulky proprietary expansion packs, allowing options such as the addition of Compact Flash or a PC card connector.
The synchronisation cradle allows you to charge the unit as well as synchronise information with your PC. The cable is serial rather than USB. Operating the H3130 has the feel of using the full-blown Windows environment, although a touch screen is used as an interface.
There is a character recognition option for written input, although with a miniature touch keyboard on screen, you can choose to stick with what you know. All the usual programs are bundled, including pocket versions of Word, Excel and Money.
Overall, this is an aesthetically pleasing, easy-to-use Pocket PC. The monochrome screen is excellent and certainly does not make this a lesser unit for its inclusion. The price tag is hefty, especially when compared to the monochrome equivalents from Handspring and Palm, but it's cheaper than the colour version.
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