Windows Phone Thoughts: The New iPAQ Mobile Messenger: hw6915 - A Tough Package To Beat

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Wednesday, September 20, 2006

The New iPAQ Mobile Messenger: hw6915 - A Tough Package To Beat

Posted by Jon Westfall in "HARDWARE" @ 10:00 AM


Wonderful Wireless
Just a few years ago, finding Bluetooth AND WiFi in the same device was unheard of (heck, ask Treo 700w users now if you doubt me...). Now it's the norm for higher-end Pocket PCs. Likewise, today finding WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPS in the same device is nearly unheard of, especially in the United States. When HP initially announced the hw6500 series last year, I was surprised that WiFi was cut in the interest of GPS (word at the time was that the technology simply wasn't inexpensive enough to let the two co-exist in the same device at a reasonable price). Having friends & family who drive a lot, I saw that GPS could be more valuable to them than WiFi, but that WiFi has a higher intrinsic satisfaction to it. After all, when sitting in the coffee house surfing the web wirelessly, one does not usually ponder if GPS would have been more or less valuable to them in guiding them to the coffee house. However, at our core we always want more for less (or the same) and HP decided to deliver that in the hw6900, adding all three wireless radios.

In looking at the new Communications Manager in the hw6915, one first notices that there is no option to turn on or off GPS, and there are no configuration options for it either. If you're unfamiliar with built-in GPS solutions, they basically switch on and off automatically depending on if an application is requesting GPS data. After loading Pharos Ostia onto my hw6915, I found it had no problem detecting and starting the native GPS, all without any real user intervention. Back to GPS in a moment, but first let's explore the manager.


Figure 16: The Communications Manager interface, with separate tabs for each radio sans GPS.


Figure 17: The phone tab, giving links to common areas of phone configuration.


Figure 18: WiFi options.


Figure 19: Bluetooth options. The hw6915 series utilizes the Broadcom stack instead of the Microsoft Bluetooth stack.

As I said, GPS doesn't have its own tab and for good reason - there really is nothing to configure! There is a "Quick GPS Connection" item under settings that downloads a GPS connection file to the device over the network. This file provides information to the GPS radio about what satellites should be in the area. Since it's dynamic information, it does "expire" and can be set to automatically re-download as needed.

Overall use of GPS was very encouraging. The receiver, aided by its connection file, was able to acquire a lock quickly. I found that simply holding the iPAQ in my car and glancing at the screen (then placing it on the seat next to me) worked fine, however a dedicated mount would be best if traveling in unknown areas. Use of common sense is a big requirement when having built-in GPS as opposed to traditional GPS systems or Bluetooth GPS because of the ease-of-use factor. Previously, setting up my GPS took at least a minute (put receiver on dash, turn receiver on, turn on Bluetooth on device, start software, initiate connection, etc..) and generally was reserved for traveling (when I most likely had my dashboard mount installed) and special occasions. With the hw6915's built-in GPS, turning it on casually is easy, and before you know it you're driving through traffic staring at the device in your hand rather than the cars on the road! That being said, the option to use GPS all the time, even when in familiar "turf" is extremely exciting - I can find alternate routes easily, explore without worrying about where I'll end up, and find PoI's (Points of Interest) easily as I require no special GPS setup "ritual".

The other wireless radios provide the same experience you'd expect from them. WiFi seems to find my router super quickly (a good thing) and connects without a hitch. Funk Software's Odyssey client is listed as an included item, however it isn't in ROM, so if you need to connect to WiFi networks that require specific authentication schemes, you'll have to install it from the included CD. Bluetooth, implemented with the Broadcom stack, works as expected, and does include support for Bluetooth headphones (as well as the option to route all audio traffic to a standard Bluetooth headset or hands-free device - this doesn't provide great sound compared to the A2DP profile, but is nice in specific situations such as listening to GPS directions through your headset while driving with others). The Bluetooth headphone profile appears to be free of the performance lags that have plagued A2DP integration in other devices.

Oh, and we can't forget to mention that the device is quad-band and supports EDGE for data speeds as well as traditional GPRS. In my testing, I was able to pull around 130 KB/s on the EDGE network, similar to the speed I pull on my EDGE-enabled K-JAM. EDGE speeds (and GPRS speeds) are dependent on your area, so your mileage may vary. Overall I was very impressed with the radios inside the hw6915, obviously I would have wanted greater support for up-and-coming 3G technologies, but heck - the thing has four different wireless radios - how picky can I get?

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