HP H4150 Pocket PC (HP (Hewlett-Packard)-FA174A)

HP IPaq Pocket PC H4150

June 7, 2004

Show More Show Less

0 Comments | 0 Topics | Print Only This Review

• Reviewed by: imperium999

  Strengths: Small. Fast. Dual Wireless. Good build quality. Great screen. Has yet to be topped by any other unit, including HP's new line of PPCs.

  Weaknesses: None really. Cradle is a little tricky. Only QVGA resolution. No camera. (these are not really weaknesses).

  Overall: I bought this PPC a few months ago to replace my absurdly large Sony NX73V, which ran the Palm OS. It is my seventh PDA. I always preferred the Pocket PC operating system because it was more powerful and robust. However, more powerful and robust means it eats battery power much faster than Palm OS PDAs. I left the Pocket PC world in favor of Palms because of the battery life of my old iPAQ. This is the very first Pocket PC I've owned that I didn't have to worry about charging every night. I can leave it on standby, and with around 10 minutes of usage a day (average), I only have to charge it about once a week. The wireless works flawlessly with my home WiFi network (which is 802.11g). I never have to wait for the processor to catch up. I can see how other reviewers have trouble with the cradle, but these people are probably used to other cradles that you can just 'drop' or 'slide' in the unit. This one you have to carefully place in the cradle, which is a little unnerving when you're in a hurry. I find it to be no big deal. People have also complained about a 'yellowish' hue on the display when you tilt it up and down. I really had to look to see it, and I never would have noticed it had I not already known it was an issue. I find this to be no big deal either. The display on this screen is only Quarter VGA (QVGA), and there are a few units out there with full VGA screens at this point, but it's not an issue for me, especially since you're going to pay upwards of $250 more for that feature alone (in Oct. 2004). There's no camera like on more recent units, but frankly most users are on the fence as to whether they want one or not. Many corporate environments have banned phones and PDAs with cameras, so lots of us users don't want that 'feature' anyway. With an excellent form factor, this is the most 'pocketable' Pocket PC you can get. In conclusion, this is the best PDA I've ever owned and is currently the best bang-for-the-buck Pocket PC on the market. I wholeheartedly recommend this unit. You will not be dissapointed!

• Reviewed by: dutchmaster

  Strengths: petite, good screen, intuitive OS.

  Weaknesses: a little pricy

  Overall: The setup was easy & painless, including loading ActiveSync onto the desktop. The display is a joy to view and though I am still learning about its capabilities, I see where it will be indispensable in a short period of time. It is small enough to easily fit in a coat pocket so it can go everywhere with me. I am very pleased so far.

• Reviewed by: pmalay

  Strengths: Wireless capabilities. Hi-Fi and Bluetooth I love them.

  Weaknesses: Location of IrDA is very incovenient. Docking to the cradle is tricky.

  Overall: Got this toy couple of weeks ago. My first Windows PDA. Been a fan of Palm OS. But didn't find anything in the Palm world matching the capabilities of HP 4150. I tried Sony TH-55 and after realizing it doesn't support Bluetooth, I got rid of it. Overall its a great first experience. Docking to the cradle could have been simpler. You have to slide it at an exact angle and the docking station has very low fault tolerance for this. Activesync setup process can be gruesome if you want to sync it with more than one computers or sync it in more than one ways. I would truly love to get my hands on 6315 though....

• Reviewed by: private

  Strengths: Built-in wireless, very quick opening files + programs, tiny.

  Weaknesses: Cradle design!

  Overall: I've owned my H4150 for about a week now. I was using a HP Jornada before this...still love HP PDA's. Nothing to complain about as far as performance, features and reliability are concerned. Setup is quick and easy. Only downside to this PDA is its cradle...must be carefull inserting unit into cradle (does not insert easilly) and I'm afraid to brake something everytime!!!

• Reviewed by: dindia

  Strengths: thinnest, lightest pda with all the features, quick processor, reasonable price, windows based (mine doesnt freeze like the others, but then again i dont use it as a laptop like they probably are)

  Weaknesses: Screen colour looks off compared to the 2200 series, not a big deal but its something

  Overall: I've owned this pda a few months now and havn't had major issues with it. Wifi is great, bluetooth same, easy to setup and get connected, HP did a really solid job with the 4150. Great investment!