Hewlett Packard Jornada 420 Palm-Size PC

List Price: $399.99

Features:

• Beautiful 256-color CSTN screen
• Supports CompactFlash modem, pager, memory cards
• Windows CE OS and Pocket Outlook
• 8-MB RAM
• What's in the box: HP Jornada 420 and stylus, HP Jornada battery, AC adapter, DC cable, Power cable, Sync cable, Cradle, Quick Start Card, Software, Documentation pack

Accessories:

Targus PA870U Universal Wireless Keyboard

Customer Reviews:

Much better than Palm [Posted on 1999-09-26]
This Windows CE device was what I needed after being tethered to a Palm Pro for over a year. I couldn't do much with the Palm, other than read mail and take notes. Now, it looks and feels like I'm taking my desktop with me. I bought a 32MB CF card with it, and I'm happy with it.

The only thing to improve would be the sound. That little speaker doesn't put out enough volume, however, through earphones it sounds good.

DARNED GOOD DEAL [Posted on 2002-05-27]
WHEN I RECIEVED THE JORNADA, I WAS QUITE AMAZED AT IT'S CONDITION. IT WAS NEARLY PERFECT AS ADVERTISED, EVEN THE BOX. ONLY INSIGNIFICANT COSMETIC BLEMISH ON THE CLEAR COVER, BUT I THINK THAT'S TO BE EXPECTED SINCE IT'S A USED ITEM. OTHERWISE, THE DISPLAY HAS GOOD COLOR RESOLUTION. SINCE I'M NOT AT ALL FAMILIAR WITH WINDOWS CE, I'M HAVING SOME PROBLEMS, BUT I'M SURE THAT I'LL OVERCOME THEM. ALL IN ALL, IT WAS A VERY PLEASANT TRANSACTION WITH ONLY ONE EXCEPTION. I'D HOPED THE ITEM TO BE SHIPPED VIA UPS. IT WAS SHIPPED USING PRIORITY MAIL, BY U.S. POSTAL SERVICE, & I HAD TO TAKE A COUPLE HOURS OFF WORK & GO TO THE POST OFFICE TO SIGN FOR THE ITEM. BUT, SINCE IT WAS SUCH A GOOD DEAL, THAT WAS A VERY SMALL INCONVENIENCE THAT I CAN LIVE WITH. I WOULDN'T HESITATE MAKING ANOTHER PURCHASE THROUGH AMAZON.COM.........

Great Machine [Posted on 2003-05-31]
You can also own one second-hand now at an EXTREMELY reasonable price. I've had mine for about six months now and it works great! I love it's mp3 feature, love the color screen, the battery life and the durability.
If I could have two wishes though, I wish it was a USB device. Transferring larger mp3 files from my pc just takes way too long over a serial connection. I had to buy a compact flash card reader to circumvent the problem.
I also found I have a real dislike for Windows CE. You have this beautiful color screen and it's just too cramped up with windows. Palm's OS really seems to flow better. I had heard that Window's new 'Pocket PC' OS had solved a lot of these problems, but I've yet to use it.
All in all though, it's an awesome buy for the price!

Where is the MP3 player? [Posted on 2004-02-02]
I bought this thinking it would be my do-it-all device. Voice recorder, address book, calendar/to do list, and mp3 player. It does it all except the MP3 player part. A reviewer said he loved the MP3 player capability. -NOT- If you load MP3 files into it, there is no player to play them. At least Win CE can not find anything to use to play them. Is the player an add on? If so, where can I get it.
Larry

My first and, so far, only PDA [Posted on 2006-10-12]
Yeah, it's big. Yeah it's clunky. But I've had this PDA now for about 5 years, and it's never failed me. Not once. I originally bought it because I thought it was cool (at the time). Didn't use it that much except to keep a few addresses and phone numbers in. Mostly it stayed on a shelf collecting dust. I recently moved, stuck it in a box, and there it sat for another 2 or so years. Finally unpacked it a week ago, plugged it in, charged it up, and it runs as good as it did the first day out of the box. I've long since lost the sync cable and associated software so I can't upload anything to it, but it serves my purpose quite well. Storing contact info, to do lists, appointments, random musings, etc. The Jot handwriting recognition software works very well too.
I've spent the last week researching newer Palm OS, and Windows OS PDA's, weighing the pro's and con's of each and came to one conclusion. HP built a heckuva unit with the Jornada 420. I'll probably stick with it for a long time despite it's clunkiness, volatile memory, and short battery life.

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