Compaq Ipaq H3970

The fastest Pocket PC currently on the market.

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Price: £598

Manufacturer: Compaq

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Verdict

Pros:
Fast.
Well integrated.
A good screen.

Cons:
A little on the heavy side.
Remote control software is fiddly.

Overall:
If you like Pocket PC you'll find this system, notwithstanding its weight, a great device: good looking, fast and flexible.

Nigel Whitfield, Personal Computer World 04 Feb 2003

Compaq's Ipaq H3970, made by Hewlett Packard (HP), is the fastest Pocket PC currently available, packing a 400MHz chip into a unit with 64MB of memory and 20MB of Flash Rom to store crucial files.

The speed makes it one of the fastest Pocket PC systems we've come across.

The H3970 fits into standard Ipaq jackets and comes with one that includes a foldover cover for the screen. We found that this model wobbled in its cradle.

The H3970 has a high-quality screen, one of the best we've seen, and includes Bluetooth as well as infrared. It's very simple to link to your phone, but we couldn't find a way to highlight a number in the contact list and then dial it on the phone.

Bluetooth can be turned on and off separately to conserve power; a blue LED indicates that it's running.

We did encounter a couple of oddities: turning on the Bluetooth radio once popped up a message explaining that there wasn't enough driver memory, requiring a reset.

And the included remote control software has an interface that can be best described as quirky, though once you've got to grips with the rotating icons it works a treat.

Battery life is pretty good; with a GPS jacket helping to drain power, it survived over an hour driving round town, with plenty of juice to spare and with the screen lit up all the time. Also, handwriting recognition seemed much better than on other Pocket PC devices we've tested.

If you need the Pocket PC OS and your budget can stand it, this is a great bit of kit. Weight watchers might not be so keen on it, though.

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