Customer Reviews

HP iPAQ 1935 Pocket PC

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

Let me start by explaining that I have owned an Ipaq3760 for a few years now and decided to "upgrade" to a newer model but also get something smaller to carry around. After my purchase I was told by a HP sales representative that this is really not really an upgrade and now I agree. If this was someone first purchase of an Ipaq or any PDA then they might not have the same complaints that I have.

The positives first, the size is great, this is a shirt pocket PDA and I am very pleased with the reduction in size from the 3760. The screen is bright and very easy to read. There is no wasted space on the front of the system at all. The function and navigation buttons work well. The stylus' size is perfect and fits very nicely into the unit. Finally, I love the removable battery.

Now the problems;

1. There is no docking cradle available for this model yet. You got to be kidding me. How can you release a product like this that targets small businesses and not have something like that ready! This means my Ipaq lies on my desk instead of being in a position that I can quickly glance at my appointment or see what time it is. I was told by HP that the cradle for the other similar model (H1910) will not work.

2. The USB cable used to synchronize my H1935 with my desktop does not charge the unit. This was not true for the older model Ipaqs. Why would you want to remove functionally like that? You have to plug the wall adapter into the USB cable. This is very messy on the desktop.

3. Why does each model have a different charging/communication port? This means all new cables for serial, cellular phone, car charger connections. Again not problem if you don't already have all these items.

4. Why, why, why couldn't HP have installed a normal audio jack?!? They use a smaller jack. Maybe this is for some future standard, but I not aware of one. You have to keep this 2 inch mini-cable with you to plug into headphones or speakers.

5. Last complaint, everyone that I know that has a PDA and wants to "beam" something to another PDA, points the top of their PDA to the top of the other. This new 1935 has the IR port on the side. Is this a new standard? Maybe I need to look other new PDAs to see how their IR ports are positioned. It just seems odd to me.

That's my experience with this new Ipaq. I really do like this new model and I'm going to keep it despite some of the aggravating quirks it has and lack of accessories. I will get use to quirks and wait for the docking cradle. I use my PDA for contacts and keeping track of my appointments, but also use it with my cell phone for e-mail and monitoring the company's network. I was looking for something that is easier to carry around and this works perfect for that.

I've had the chance to try out HP's attempt at a consumer-friendly Pocket PC, and they have a winner. Nearly as small and just as light as a Palm V, HP has packed a top-notch screen and almost all of the functionality you could possibly want into a handsome 4 oz. piece of electronics.

Some thoughts:

* The battery doesn't last as long as Palm's, and you'll probably want to charge it at least every other day, every day if you use it extensively. You can get an extra battery, since the HP's is removable -- a real advantage in the long run, since you won't have to send the unit in for servicing a la the Palm and most other PDA models.

* You want MP3s, you got 'em. Add a 256MB SD card, and you're off and running. The unit does contain an annoying headphone adapter jack, but such are the tradeoffs of small size PDAs (Palm has a similar issue on the similarly priced Tungsten E.) It's not an iPod, but it'll do.

* You can also display small videos and pics, of course, but who really needs/wants to do this on a regular basis? I suppose if you are one of those annoying people who want to show everybody your latest baby photos, this will be just the ticket.

* There is no wireless functionality out of the box. You can add it later, but if you really are looking for Bluetooth/Wi-Fi, you probably want a PDA with those features built in. That'll cost you, of course.

* Is there such a thing as too small? The buttons on this Pocket PC take a bit getting used to compared to the large and in charge buttons on the older, bloated iPaqs of yesteryear.

* Why so chintzy on the warranty? 90 days?! Take it from me, PDAs break. Their screens can crack, units freeze up, buttons stick -- basically, bad stuff happens. Seems like HP is trying to force folks to upgrade to the extended warranty. That is unacceptable support from one of the world's largest companies, and costs this otherwise excellent unit a star. (Palm offers 1 year, and I personally had near-instant turnaround on a Palm Vx repair)...

I recently decided to upgrade from a Jornada 680 HPC (very old version of WinCE) because mine is breaking down and HP no longer supports this old platform (although I love the form factor with keyboard). Anyway, I decided to go for the H1935 but after few days switched to the Toshiba e355. I thought it would be useful to note down a brief comparison to help others who are considering the two. I really liked the iPAQ but the Toshiba has a number of things that are better for me:

HP iPAQ H1935

* Quite a bit smaller and lighter than Toshiba (too small for me)and hence buttons not good for big fingers!
* Has a removable battery so you can keep a spare
* More software on CD (e.g. Adobe)
* Small power cable makes it easy to carry around and usb cradle comes with another "head" so you can charge it at the same time using only one cable.
* No cradle (I like to have my PDA upright on the desk)
* Stylus awkward to extract
* Headphone socket is smaller than usual requiring an adapter(included)
* Only 3 mth warranty

TOSHIBA e355
* Larger and heavier - fits in my hand better
* Comes with cradle which fits it really snuggly so it won't fall out even if held upside down. On the other hand it's heavy for traveling you may want a separate cable.
* Power cable is like a laptop's (bad for domestic but good for international travel as you only need to purchase the power end of the country visiting and it will work)
* No external battery
* Side scroll button is very handy
* Central toggle button much easier to use
* Home button has a feature not in iPAQ which accesses 4 tabs on screen for easy organization of apps. One tab lists running apps so you can easily close down running applications (in Pocket PCs the x only minimizes programs - they are still running in the background taking up memory. Programs tab includes app backup that backs up to SD
* Uses regular headphone socket size
* Faster processor
* 1 year warranty
* Cheaper

After receiving a promotion that vastly increased the scope of my duties, I decided to purchase a handheld to help me keep everything straight. Good decision. As I researched the choices, it became obvious that people are passionate about their handhelds. Reviews of Palm's, Sony's, and others swayed me one way then the other. My advice is read the reviews then go to a store with working devices where you can check them out personally. The Palm's and Sony's bored me but the HP's (Compaq) got me excited.

My final choice was the HP 1935 and I couldn't be happier. It has a brilliant clear color display contained in a small size with all the features I need. There are more full featured devices out there, but only at a much higher price. This one has all that I need and saves me from paying considerably more for features I don't need (Bluetooth, etc.) Some reviewers have knocked this unit for not coming with a cradle or carrying case, but this keeps the initial cost down and allows one to select a "personalized" case rather than be stuck with the one provided. As such, for me this "ommission" is a advantage not a disadvantage.

This unit is designed to meet a price point and it does so beautifully. I thank HP for offering such a wonderfull device at an attractive price. I like it so much that I bought another one for my wife. I highly recommend this unit!

I purchased the 1935 after having used NEC Hpcs, and and older ipaq 3800 series. personally I have no use for the add-on sleeves for the larger ipaqs, and I did want smaller size. I use this device for contacts, callendar, map program (MS pocket streets & trips) bible software and more. Reviews saying there are few accesories and cases have not looked around enough, I found 9 different cases for this model (search under ipaq 1910 to increase results) before settling on a vaja leather case that I love. needs an SD card if you plan on storing large amounts of maps, music etc. If you have never used windows pocket pc OS before, you will find that it is anoying to close or switch between tasks, I recommend downloading a task manager called magic button (free) from www.trancreative.com to make task management work much like regular windows. I love the bright screen, the small size and for a 203mz processor I find it to be very fast, although I do not play games or videos.

Cons: I would have liked a case and cradle and all of the things that other reviewers said, but for the price I can't complain and I prefer to customize those things anyway.

HP has made a high quality PDA in the IPAQ 1935. While, the version I got does not contain Bluetooth, it is more than robust enough to serve a busy professional. I was deciding between the IPAQ 1935 and the Palm Tungsten. The Tungsten was a little shorter but thicker and the IPAQ was longer and thinner. The Palm felt a little sturdier but I went for a lighter thinner PDA. I also considered the Windows OS against the Palm OS and thought Windows was more robust. I have no regrets about my purchase. The IPAQ 1935 has done its job in every way and more.

I sync the MS Outlook on my IPAQ with my MS Outlook desktop completely - inbox, contact info, tasks, notes. It comes in very handy when I'm in meetings and need to see my schedule for the day. The menu navigation on the Pocket PC is very intuitive. If you've ever used any of the recent Windows PC platforms(NT, 2000, ME, XP), you will have no problems. It's just a lighter version. You can customize the navigation buttons on the bottom to point to whatever application you want. There are a ton of free games and software for the Pocket PC platform as well (Must try Pocket GEMS from PDAMill.com! - also download a picture viewer because the default one is kind of ghetto). The headphone jack is non-standard but the IPAQ comes with an adaptor so you can just plug and play your MP3s (IPAQ comes with Windows Media Player) - although at 56 MB of memory (and only half that available) you better pick your favorite 4-5 songs.

The screen is brilliant and bright - with a slight yellow tint when viewed at an angle. In the setting you can set the backlight display time to conserve battery. I'm still taken aback at how bright the screen is compared to Sony Clies and all of Palm;s products.

The expansion slot on top can take up to 1 GB of memory (Secure Digital format) or a Wi-Fi card. I recommend buying at least a 256 MB card immediately so you can store MP3's and pictures. The on-board memory suffices for task lists and contact information but for digital media, it's just not enough.

As far as battery usage goes, I use my IPAQ pretty heavily throughout the day and charge it every night. At the end of the day, I'm at around 30% power - so you may want to invest in an extra battery. With lighter usage, the IPAQ can probably go 2 days before needing a charge.

Also, the IPAQ 1935 doesn't come with a cradle or a case, you have to buy your own - kind of a bummer but for an entry level PDA of this quality - I'll deal with it.

Not a tech head or a geek but need a Pocket PC to organize your life? The iPAQ 1935 will meet all your needs and then some! Five minutes after charging I was inputting data and customizing the unit. I love the alarm and reminder functions-they make it hard to forget things and they have a 5 minute snooze feature! The calendar function can be viewed by day, week, month, or year and is great for long term planning. It is also an MP3 player, and has voice recording. The voice recorder can be set to CD quality sound and appears to have no time limits. Great for keeping those transient thoughts.

Caveats: HP does not include a case, the warranty lasts 90 days, no docking cradle, needs bluetooth to be mobile. You can live without the cradle and bluetooth, only pay for them if you really want them.

A great gift for anyone, even yourself. If you don't want to spend a lot of money but need the convenience of a Pocket PC you won't be disappointed. I find it to be much more convenient than a paper day planner.

This is a really great product. Coming from a diehard Palm OS background, I was hesitant to believe that I'd like this.

Here's what I love about it:
-MP3 player, really fast and takes no processor power
-MPG/AVI movies. Using Windows Movie Maker, you can watch full length movies in landscape mode. The Samsung 203mhz processor does the job.
-Really fast. Obviously not as fast as the PXA255 400mhz but when you compare this to the older generation PXA250 Xscale 400 processor, this 203mhz processor combined with PPC2003 is definitely faster.
-Small. This is smaller than the Sony Clie T-series and almost near Palm Vx size.
-Loud speaker. When you compare to the speaker on other PDA's this one is really loud.
-Price. I bought this at $237-$50(rebate)-$30(amazon credit card)

What's not so good:
- Build quality. It just doesn't meet the same build quality standards as the Sony Clie PDA's like the T-Series, but then again, it doesn't cost as much and is feature-packed.
- Accessories difficult to find.

I bought the HP Ipaq 1935 about 3 weeks ago. Here are some pros and cons to sum up:

PROS:
1) Very very light
2) Very slim
3) Great screen, great resolution
4) East to set up
5) Good included apps (word, email)

CONS:
1) I always have to soft reset to have my Socket SDIO low power modem registered and recognized by the PDA
2) The touchscreen seems very very fragile
3) Apps hang and you have to soft reset or go into the pda's equivalent of Windows' task manager and kill it (I never had this issue with Palm OS)

Overall I have been happy with the PDA, but the need to soft reset often and the need to kill apps still alive in memory are definitely grating on my nerves. I still like it better than Palm OS devices b/c I had a Palm V for 3 years and the interface got a little boring to use. If I had more money I would buy a higher end Ipaq ($350+ range) so that it had more features built in and also would probably be more stable. If you can afford a more expensive Ipaq, go for it.

I have used both Palm and Handspring PDA for eight years. I needed more than the PalmOS has to offer. I found it after carefully reviewing the Pocket PC market. HP has gotten the PDA unit practically perfect! However, the separate cradle, power supply, and USB connector keep me from giving this product 5 stars overall. It works perfect with the Targus Universal Wireless Keyboard too. It Syncs perfect with Windows 2000 and XP.