WHAT'S HOT
You mean my iPAQ 1945 can go wireless now? Finally,
God answers prayer! For dual-slotted devices, having an SD based wireless
solution frees up CompactFlash slots for large storage mediums like
the IBM Microdrive. In effect, you could now have a highly portable,
wireless, high storage solution.
SETUP
Setup was cake. SanDisk included a CD with the
necessary drivers for both Pocket PC 2002 and Pocket PC 2003. All you
need is a soft reset and you're good to go.
PRODUCT FEATURES
First things first. The SanDisk card is
tiny. You really can't tell until you see it. It's as thin
as a normal Secure Digital card with just about twice the length.
The SD Card will stick out slightly from the device you insert it in. Not to worry, it doesn't stick out anymore than a CompactFlash based wireless solution would.
The SanDisk card next to the HP iPAQ 1945 Pocket PC, just itching to get online.
The green LED indicator light on the face of the card will blink when it cannot connect to an access point, and go steady when connected.
 |
 |
Once
the card is in, Windows acknowledges the connection |
The
tray icon program leaves some handy options right at your fingertips
|
As you can see, the SanDisk card hardly takes away from the HP's slim casing.
 |
 |
The
SanDisk utility shows specific link quality and strength, including
some other neat features like an IP renew and Ping tool. |
If
you wish, you can remove the taskbar icon so it no longer shows
(this does not hinder connectivity whatsoever). |
HELP
SUPPORT
There was very little support and/or documentation
included with this product. Most support issues can be addressed through
the manufacturer's
website.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
To use the SanDisk card, you must have a Pocket PC 2002 or Windows Mobile
2003 (Pocket PC) Device configured with an SDIO slot. I tested it with
both an HP iPAQ 1945 and 2215 and it worked beautifully.
BUGS AND WISHES
As
near as I can tell, my only complaint is about the card compromising
system speed. On both my iPAQ 1945 and 2215, menus and buttons took
significantly longer to load when the wireless card was inserted and
connected. In addition, writing in Transcriber had an unwelcome added
delay.
In addition, when I opted to have the tray icon removed, it kept reappearing after a soft reset and re-insertion of the card. It's only been frustrating so far.
PURCHASING
Amazon.com
has them in stock and ready to ship now. Among other e-tailors, eCost.com
has them in stock as well.
PROS
Wireless on devices with only a SD slot
Frees up CompactFlash slot for storage (on some devices)
Integrates well with Windows Mobile 2003 Connection Manager
- Relatively low power consumption (2.7-3.6 v)
CONS
Tray icon refuses to permanently disappear
Unit speed and performance drops when WiFi is turned on
OVERALL
IMPRESSION
Overall, this is a really great wireless solution
for Pocket PCs. It has wirelessly enabled my otherwise wired HP iPAQ
1945 and for that, I owe SanDisk my thanks. Hopefully they can fix the
speed issues in some sort of software update... I'll be waiting.
