HP IPAQ rx4200 Mobile Media Companion

List Price: $299.00 Discount Price: $369.00

Features:

• Mobile Media Companion
• Integrated WLAN/ 802.11b/g
• Samsung 400 MHz Processor
• 2.8 Inch Transmissive QVGA TFT Display with 64K Colors
• 0.20 Lbs (WxLxH) 2.50" x 4.02" x 0.69"

Accessories:

3-Year Extended Service Plan - Covers Electronic Items $201-$500 - Repair

Customer Reviews:

Entry level iPAQ with almost all the features of its big brothers [Posted on 2007-07-15]
This HP iPAQ is designed to be a cheap, entry level Windows Mobile PDA, but actually does almost everything its more expensive non-cell phone PDAs can do.

SCREEN
This is probably the biggest sticking point. You'll likely only pay $250-300 for the rx4240, but the reason it's cheaper is because its highly compact design only has a 2.8 inch screen. Most "normal" sized PDAs have 3.5 inch screens. The screen is noticeably smaller, but the color and picture is crisp as it still sports a 320 x 240 pixel resolution. So while it is smaller, the screen is still high quality. I recommend drawing rectangular boxes on a piece of paper with 3.5" and 2.8" diagonal lines to get an idea of the size difference. If the larger screen size is important to you, don't buy this unit.

OTHER HARDWARE
The rx4240 has built in 802.11 b/g WiFi that works great with my wireless routers. This iPAQ has a relatively speedy processor inside. It has Bluetooth 2.0, but I do not think it works with Bluetooth stereo headsets for music listening purposes (I haven't tried). The unit also has a headphone jack, USB 2.0 type B jack, and built in voice-recorder. They all work well.

BUTTONS/INTERFACE
The touchscreen's responsiveness works as expected. There's nothing special about the stylus, although it is a bit more difficult to remove compared to my Palm PDAs I've had in the past. You can input with the stylus using a virtual, on-screen touch keyboard (preferred method) or write grafiti-like handwritten letters. The rx4240 has a button on the top to activate the voice-recorder. There are also 4 buttons on the side that can be user-assigned to do anything, like lunch email, or Windows Media Player. Unfortunately, since the unit is so compact, it does not have a directional pad and instead relies on a scroll wheel. The scroll wheel is a little stiff at first, but once you break it in it works well for scrolling through internet pages. The screen also has a removable plastic cover, which gets the job done, but if you're carrying the device with you at all times I'd recommend a case.

SOFTWARE
The rx4240 comes loaded with Windows Mobile 5 OS, Mobile Word, Excel, and Power Point as well as other Microsoft staples like Internet Explorer, Media Player and MSN Messenger. It's easy to sync to your computer and move files back and forth. The Office programs work great, however, I feel that the Internet Explorer is too slow. I would instead demo Opera's web-browser for better results. The email program syncs with Microsoft Outlook easily enough. You can also check hotmail and other web-based emails.

STORAGE
After everything is preloaded, you have about 70-80 MB worth of free program storage space in the unit. There is also an expansion slot for SD cards to load up with programs, music, and video. I find that the unit is great for watching TV on it via my SlingBox Sling Media Slingbox PRO ( SB200-100 ).

PROBLEMS
The screen might be too small for some users, but for me it's fine for light office use, quick internet browsing, email checking, and watching SlingPlayer TV. I do miss having a d-pad, but the scroll wheel is actually more useful for webpages. I also wish that HP would offer a USB thumb-keypad for the device.

Overall, if you're looking for a highly compact non-cell phone, non-GPS PDA for a variety of light to moderate uses, you can't beat the price/performance value of the rx4240. However, for heavy PDA users I'd instead recommend a smartphone with a built in thumb keypad.

A PDA with no additional gadgets that works well [Posted on 2007-07-17]
A previous reviewer mentioned that the IPAQ rx 4200 is an entry level unit with no frills, and so it is. It is ellegant, fast, versatile and capable. If you need a PDA that also serves as a phone, camera, etc., then go with something else. If you are looking for a PDA that serves as an office assistant, with Word, Excel, Powerpoint, and also functions seamlessly as a web browser and for email, music, photo and video media center, plus bluetooth, infrared and wireless, you can't go wrong with this very attractive and correctly priced unit.

HP Ipaq [Posted on 2007-07-18]
The unit takes just a bit to get familiar with but seems to work well.
The 802.11x function is a little lacking in a Holiday Inn but at home on our wireless access point it works nicely.
Overall it is a good product.

Great little PDA [Posted on 2007-07-23]
I upgraded from a Dell Axim X5, which I loved and used everyday for work and play. The RX 4200 has a bright screen even when set to the lowest brightness level. I have a 4 GB SD card installed with lots of software, music, and movies. This arrangement works fine but I find I have to soft reset at least 3 to 4 times a week. Once, it even decided to disregard all the music and movies I had installed. What happened was that I could not get any of the programs, movies, or music installed on the sd card to work. I tried removing the card and reinstalling. That made the changes to the card permanent. I had to format the card and reinstall everything. The next time the pda would not read the card I did a soft reset and everything came back with no problem. I think this may be an issue with the stoarage card I selected and not this pda. Actually I have found it to be quite nice to listen to music and watch movies on. Games are cool too just don't buy anything that needs a D-Pad like driving games. Internet usage works fine with my router at home which is a A & B wifi version. This pda only supports B & G version routers. So don't think you have a problem when you run into a router or hotspot that will not connect. If it can connect this pda will do it very easily. I haven't traveled with this pda but the fact that it uses a mini usb charger may for some folks cut down on the cables to carry on a trip. My Razor charger charges this one with no problem. The scroll wheel works nicely for reading e-books and surfing the web. I opted for the Boxwave silicone case to protect my investment. To use the scroll wheel more easily I had to make the opening for it larger with a pair of scissors. I hope this helps with your buying decision.

Great for Travel [Posted on 2007-08-23]
This is a wonderful travel companion. All the information we need is contained in this mini laptop. We can check email and surf the web comfortably from cafes, hotel rooms, cruise ships - anywhere a wi-fi signal is found. The calendar feature ensures we will not miss important dates. Pictures can be instantly viewed on a clear, wide screen by inserting the camera's card into the unit. We highly recommend this product.

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