8. Test Procedure, Continued

With a brightness value of 59 cd/m 2, the 3.8" TFT display is easy to read in an average lit room. The H2210 provides less margin in daylight than the H5450, which is twice as bright.

H2210 shows its mettle in this practical test, which involves synchronizing 1600 address book contacts via USB. Doubling the PXA255 CPU's bus speed to 200MHz contributes considerably to its performance. The faster internal bus means that the CPU can communicate faster with the memory, so speeding up the synchronization of the data.

Summary

HP's iPAQ H2210/H2215 is impressive on all counts: it is light, manageable, well equipped and very powerful. This is thanks in no small measure to the combination of Intel's new, more power-efficient PXA255/400MHz processor and Microsoft's new PDA operating system, Windows Mobile 2003.

While the battery life is shorter than the 3000 series, the 2000 series is more efficient in its use of power, which compensates to some extent for the reduction in battery capacity. With its dual expansion slot (CF and SD card), HP's new product also offers good, user-friendly expansion options.

All told, the iPAQ H2210/H2215 does more than just meet the needs of business applications, and is indeed worth digging in your pockets as a replacement for the iPAQ 3000.