Ever since the advent of the PalmPilot, Microsoft and its cronies have been furiously looking for a way into our hearts (and pockets, and belt clips, and DayPlanners) with a pocket OS of its very own. Its first try, Windows CE, became the laughing stock of the computer industry and did very little to endear road warriors to anything containing the dreaded MS logo; it instead drove 3Com to develop successively better and smaller monochrome Palms.
Seems like someone in Redmond finally got the message. The newest version of CE is a snap to learn and navigate, supports a bewildering array of mobile applications, and brings living color and sound to palm PCs in the form of video and MP3 files. Casio, long the front-runner in Windows portability, steps up to the plate with the feature-packed Cassiopeia E-115. It's loaded with all the bells and whistles that this new OS provides. But does your typical PDA-lover really need all the toys?
Key Features
- Microsoft Pocket PC operating system
- 32MB of internal memory
- Hyper Amorphous Silicon 240 x 320 pixel TFT LCD, 16-bit; 65,536 colors
- 131MHz processor
- Rechargeable lithium-ion battery (eight hours of battery life)
- CompactFlash card slot, 3.3V Type 1/Type II
- IrDA infrared port
- Serial cradle
- Stereo headphone jack, built-in microphone and speaker 5 1/8 x 3 1/4 x 3/4 inches (HWD)
- 9.0 ounces
Software (included in Pocket PC OS)
- Pocket Outlook
- Pocket Internet Explorer
- Pocket Word, Excel, and Money
- Microsoft Reader
- Windows Media Player
CD-ROM Software
- Active Sync 3.1
- Outlook 2000
- Pocket Streets
- Transcriber handwriting recognition software
- AOL Mail
- AudiblePlayer and Audible Manager
- Five-hole demo of ZIOGolf
Features
The E-115, at nine ounces, is about twice as beefy as most PalmPilots, but it contains twice as many features. The TFT color screen is bright in shady outdoor conditions, but it fades in direct sunlight. No flip-top cover or belt pack is provided, although the hard-lined nylon slipcase included with the unit will protect it from most scratches. What's most notable about the E-115 is its wealth of software features, Pocket Office being the most usable of them all. This powerful little suite includes IE5, which is perfect for browsing web pages via a separate 56k CompactFlash wireless modem card, MS Reader (for perusing electronic books), Pocket Excel, and Pocket Word. It even has a portable version of Outlook for all your notes, contacts, and e-mail if you're wired in with a portable modem. For those downtimes between meetings, the Cassiopeia comes stocked with Windows Media Player for listening to MP3 files. You can even play five holes of golf, should you choose to download ZIO Golf from the enclosed software CD-ROM. Most video files can be viewed after being run through the provided translation software that installs on your PC from the included CD-ROM: It's perfect for entertaining your friends with the Superfriends Wazzup video. Want to catch up on a few lines of a book between flights? MS Reader can display all sorts of electronic reading material, and if you get lost when you reach your final destination, Pocket Streets will help you find your way on downloaded maps that are compatible with other Microsoft Streets programs. The features list is long and deep, and it may be a bit overwhelming for the casual user, but for the true traveler the Cassiopeia has it all.
Usability
Although our supplied cradle didn't support USB (just a serial connection), the ActiveSync software installed on our system synchronized all our contacts, notes, calendar entries, and inbox items every time the Cassiopeia was docked - a gigantic improvement over the first CE efforts. Transferring MP3s and photos to the E-115 took a bit longer than we'd liked due to the slower serial connection, but every transfer succeeded without fail via a simple drag-and-drop interface. Jamming to MP3s is easy with the stereo headphone jack or the built-in speaker, and expanding memory for more space involves the simple matter of slapping in another CompactFlash RAM card (available up to 64MB extra from www.casio.com). Looks like Casio's thought of everything with this one: An external camera card (a Flash card with a big cylinder that contains a video camera for portable production) is available to plug in and take snapshots or video, optional modems can be installed for portable surfing or e-mailing, even cassette adapters are available for playing back your stored MP3s in the car... wow. The learning curve on its software is very easy, so anyone with one keen eye and the ability to tap a stylus on a screen can manage data with very little training. We installed all the optional software without a hitch.
Look and Feel
Although a bit chunkier than most PalmPilots, the E-115 is packaged in a trick chrome and gray plastic case that screams stylish and trendy. The unit sits solidly in your hand. The interface is much easier to navigate with the included stylus than with the joystick-like stylus carried over from the last Cassiopeia. If you're already used to tapping out commands on a Palm, it's second nature. Three hotkey buttons on the front of the face provide quick access to the most-used applications, contacts, a calendar, and an onscreen menu, handy for quickly accessing any of the other features. The built-in speaker sounds a bit tinny and distorted at higher volumes, which is to be expected from such a tiny unit - but when you plug in a set of headphones, the device sounds as good as any standalone MP3 player on the market today.
The biggest drawback to the E-115 is its lack of a hard-shell case to cover its delicate screen. While most new Palms come with some sort of a flip-up cover to prevent scratches and cracks, the Cassiopeia is left to fend for itself against the elements. The provided slipcase has some stiffeners sewn in for added protection, but no belt clip: You're stuck toting it by hand or squeezing its girth into an open shirt or jacket pocket.
Performance
Casio has given the E-115 a brilliant screen. In fact it blows away Palm IIIc's pixelated color screen. Take a look at these two screen shots. The shot on the left is from a Palm IIIc, the shot right below it is from a Cassio E-115. You can click on each of the screens to enlarge the picture. Notice how much clearer the E-115 is to the IIIC.
Direct sunlight may make the 65K color TFT screen unreadable. Pictures show up wonderfully crisp and clear with good color saturation all around, and translated movies play back incredibly well. The Cassiopeia churns up data remarkably fast for such a seemingly overburdened PC, taking only a moment to open a lengthy spreadsheet or Word document; even the golf game's performance was on par with most handheld games.
The battery, a lithium-ion pack, good for more than eight hours of steady usage, can be charged while it is docked in the cradle or directly from the wall using the separate jack, but no provision is made for AA alkaline use should you run out of juice. Listening to MP3 music or watching movies repeatedly cuts battery time in half, so use them cautiously.
Value
For the money, the Cassiopeia is quite possibly the best deal of the year. Nowhere else will you find so many features crammed into such a tiny package at such a compelling price point. If you're used to the easy use and versatility of a PalmPilot, but you demand even more versatility, you will find the E-115 a perfect fit. But if you're the casual Palm user who is accustomed to taking an occasional note or saving a random phone number, you may find all these goodies to be somewhat overwhelming. As feature-packed as the Cassiopeia is, the US$599 price tag may be too much to stomach for those on a budget. However, consider this: A separate MP3 player may well run an additional two hundred bucks, and with the Palm IIIc listed at AU$1,418.00, there's nothing to lose by stepping up to the Casio. Splurge on an additional 32MB flash memory card to store all those nifty new applications, get a video camera card, and you have yourself all the trappings of a full-size laptop PC at a fraction of the weight, cost, and hassle. The Cassiopeia E-115 isn't for everyone, but if you choose to use it, you will certainly not be disappointed.
1%
4%
