HP's latest business handheld gets a VGA-resolution screen and other enhancements.HP has a reputation for churning out serious handhelds for business, and with the iPaq hx4700, it looks like the company is at it again. Replacing the H5000 series, including the H5550, the HP iPaq hx4700 displays a new look and an innovative touchpad navigation system. Also on-board are Intel's latest 624MHz XScale processor, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth wireless, and advanced multimedia capabilities. Of course, all this doesn't come cheap; the hx4700 costs a whopping AU$1,199.
Talk about eye candy -- the hx4700's main attraction is its brilliant 4-inch 65,536-colour VGA TFT display that boasts a 640-by-480-pixel resolution. Translation? It produces sharp and crisp images for a better viewing experience.
You can also switch between portrait and landscape mode, thanks to the inclusion of Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition. You get plenty of user-accessible memory (about 135MB), and if that's still not enough, the expansion slot accepts SDIO, MMC and CompactFlash media, so your storage needs are covered. We also like the fact that HP includes a high-capacity user-replaceable battery.
The hx4700 is filled to the brim with goodies, but it comes at a price: bulk and cost. At AU$1,199, this Pocket PC is one of the most expensive handhelds on the market today, beating Toshiba's e800. Then again, with its long list of features, you get what you pay for. Also, at 7.6cm wide by 13.2cm deep by 0.76cm high and 190g, the hx4700 is larger and heavier than your average handheld.
The hx4700 will appeal to the power business user who needs a full-featured handheld. Given the price, it faces tough competition from other VGA handhelds such as the Toshiba's e800. Whether it is worth the cost will largely depend on its results in our hands-on tests, so stay tuned.
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