One of the most talked about PDAs of the day. This silver beauty sold for more than twice it's retail price when it was first introduced. But what made the Compaq iPaq H3650 so "popular."

Some would say that it's small size (the iPaq was the smallest device available, only 0.62 inches thick), others would argue the speed (touting the fastest CPU, an Intel StrongArm processor running at 206MHz), some would say it was the LCD screen (the iPaq LCD screen has the best viewability indoors and out), and others would say it's overall appearance.
I chose it over the other devices because I have had the others. I had owned the Casio Cassiopeia E-100, and the HP Jornada 430se. Yes, these two devices were an older generation, but both manufacturers did not change the style with the introduction of the Microsoft Windows CE 3.0 operating system (aka the PocketPC OS). Doing many comparisons, and research for over 5 months, the iPaq was decided on.

It finally arrived in August of last year (2000). At that time, the expansion packs were still not available. There was not any software (or at least that many) titles for the Intel StrongARM processor, either. But, the popularity of the iPaq caused a sudden surge of ARM-based software.

Not long after the first batch of iPaqs arrives, problems were discovered. This ranged from the most reported problem, which was dust/lint under the screen (it would glow when the backlight was on - very distracting), to the main power/battery on/off switch cover not staying closed. Other problems included: stylus would no longer lock into place, the power button would physically fall into the iPaq, the speaker would "pop." The list was endless. Eventually, my unit succumbed to many of this problems, eventually leading to a replacement by Compaq in December of 2000. This new generation of iPaqs had supposedly been corrected of those issues. However, the ROM upgrade to 1.77 did that one in. The unit operated, but the "Picture Viewer" application (built into the ROM) would no longer function correctly.

This resulted in a long and arduous return/receive/return/receive situation with Compaq. The whole month of May, and a portion of June was spent sending and receiving my iPaq. I think the iPaq gathered more frequent flyer miles than Bill Gates has in stock value. After the sixth exchange, Compaq sent me a new unit. This unit still did not have the Picture Viewer application working correctly. However, I was leaving to Europe for about a month, and did not want to hassle with this process again. I would like to add that the Compaq technical support is very quick in responding. It may take a while to get through on the phone lines, but after that, within a week, your unit would return. Compaq than "discontinued" the H3650 model, and introduced the H3635 (same unit, but the package came with a CompactFlash Jacket, and a few extra items), and the H3670 (a 64MB base unit). There is also an H3135 unit (16MB base, monochrome screen).

In the end, the Compaq has still been my favorite PDA. It's sleek styling, light-weight (without any expansion packs), and high-readability LCD screen make the Compaq iPaq a great product. Yes, it has it's downsides: the expansion packs add unnecessary weight (other PDAs include the CompactFlash or PCMCIA slot), not as many colors as other PDAs. But in the end, the iPaq has not left. It's almost been one year since I purchased it (August 25, 2000), and this would make it one of my longest lasting electronic items I've had (besides my main computer, and cell phone).

I can't give the Compaq iPaq a rating, as this is more of a story than a review. But, I would recommend it to anyone looking for a PDA. Many friends have purchased iPaqs based on my recommendations, and they have not been let down.

Compaq iPaq is a registered trademark of Compaq. Other titles and names featured in this article are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.