HP iPaq Pocket PC H4350

With the H4150 and the H4350, HP has delivered two slim iPaqs with included Wi-Fi. Both have almost identical specs and features, but the latter has a built-in keyboard and ships with a larger, higher-capacity battery for $50 more. But the trade-off is the unit's size, as it's longer than your standard PDA. For some, that won't be a deal breaker--the H4350 is still slim and fairly light. But in an ideal world, HP would develop a slider-style design similar to that of the Sharp Zaurus SL-5600. That said, this is a highly functional handheld. It should especially appeal to a business customer who can afford the $500 price tag and who works on a corporate campus that's well covered with Wi-Fi access points.The H4350 is only a hair thicker than the H4150, but it's about an inch longer (5.4 by 2.9 by 0.6 inches), and it weighs about an ounce more (5.8 ounces). The length isn't a terrible nuisance, though it makes this Pocket PC look a little unusual. There were also moments when it reminded us of a fully loaded scientific calculator circa 1989.

Handspring's Treo 600. The keys are raised and have just enough space between them to prevent mistyping. We also liked how HP put the number keys in a dial-pad configuration and gave them a darker, carbon coloring. They'll come in handy when, theoretically, you'll be able to use the H4350 as a phone using VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) technology--so long as you're in range of a Wi-Fi hot spot. HP says the device supports this feature, but we were unable to test it. Unlike some handhelds, the H4350 doesn't have a scrollwheel, and if we had a small design gripe, it was that the five-way chrome-colored, plastic navigation button is a tad small and slippery. Other minor details worth noting: Unlike the H1940, this model features a standard-size headphone jack, and two (rather than one) LEDs for conveying more-detailed alerts and notifications. Also up top is a slot for Secure Digital (SD) and MultiMediaCard (MMC) media and SDIO add-ons such as a camera accessory. e330 and e335, and its white background has less gray. The display also did well outside; reading text in bright sunlight was no problem. Battery life was excellent, owing to the unit's large, high-capacity 1,560mAh battery (the H4150 has a 1,000mAh battery)--clearly, a major reason to pick this model over its keyboard-free sibling. With both wireless modes disengaged, we were able to play a looping WMV video file in full-screen mode at standard (half) brightness for 6 hours, 5 minutes. At that point, the unit quit playing media files but still showed 14 percent battery life. That compares very favorably to the Toshiba e330's 4 hours, 16 minutes or the Dell Axim X5's 6 hours, 22 minutes. Of course, activating the Bluetooth or Wi-Fi transceivers will result in faster battery drain. Hide Review Compare to other handheld devices Compare selected select ViewSonic ViewPad 7x (tablet, Android 3.2, Honeycomb, 8 GB, 7", red) Starting at $349.95 select Acer ICONIA TAB A501 (dark chrome, AT&T) Starting at $479.99 select Apple iPad 2 (32GB, AT&T 3G, white) Starting at $579.99 Editor's rating: 4.0 out of 5 select ViewSonic ViewPad 10pro (tablet, Windows 7 Professional / Android, 32 GB, 10.1", silver) Starting at $685.88 David Carnoy Hunkered down in New York City, Executive Editor David Carnoy covers the gamut of gadgets and writes his Fully Equipped column, which carries the tag line "The electronics you lust for." He's also the author of "Knife Music," a novel that's available at Amazon, bn.com, and as a Kindle, iBooks, or Nook e-book. Follow @DavidCarnoy User Reviews See all user reviews Average User Rating 3.5 stars out of 74 user reviews Rating Breakdown 5 star: 23 4 star: 32 3 star: 10 2 star: 7 1 star: 2 My Rating 0 stars click stars to rate product Most Helpful User Review 4.0 stars 12 of 13 users found this review helpful "Perfect On the Road for 8-hour-deposition Warrior!" Apr 4, 2005, 12:02 pm By hlaureles Pros Battery life; usable thumb keypad; Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Cons No number lock. Wish IR was on the top, though it works. High-priced, though not compared to the laptop it replaced for me! Summary I love it! As a lawyer tired of lugging my 23-pound laptop and all my other heavy stuff to depositions at various sites, I wanted a pocket PC that would replace my laptop. No more searching for plug-ins; the battery life on this thing is so good that I can ... Expand full review Summary: I love it! As a lawyer tired of lugging my 23-pound laptop and all my other heavy stuff to depositions at various sites, I wanted a pocket PC that would replace my laptop. No more searching for plug-ins; the battery life on this thing is so good that I can type notes during an 8-hour deposition without worrying. I bought an extended life extra battery, and have never even used it, the original battery is so good! The screen is big enough to enjoy NY Times webpage articles and more. It works well with the PalmOne universal wireless keyboard through IR, but the thumb keypad is perfect for internet wandering and entering contacts. I can fit both the PC and keyboard in this tiny little clutch-purse, and you'd never know it holds all my work! The Pocket PC Word converts to WP on my work computer, and not once have I missed my laptop. I can do my billing in Excel, or record it like dictation. Love the design. Get a car charger, and you're good to go! Most Recent User Reviews (Showing 2 of 74 reviews) 1.5 stars "Unreliable and prone to crashing" Jun 21, 2006, 6:25 am By glanier 3.0 stars "Excellent Device, very Poor Battery Life" Jan 30, 2006, 10:47 pm By omodarah Thanks for your submission! Thank you for helping us maintain CNET's great community. Write a Review Quickly sign in with: or Log in or create an account to post a review. You are logged in as . Please submit your review for HP iPaq Pocket PC H4350 1. Rate this product: 0 stars 2. One-line summary: (10 characters minimum) Count: 0 of 55 characters 3. Pros: (10 characters minimum) Count: 0 of 250 characters 4. Cons: (10 characters minimum) Count: 0 of 250 characters 5. Summary: (optional) Count: 0 of 15000 characters Add Your Opinion The posting of advertisements, profanity, or personal attacks is prohibited. Click here to review our site terms of use. Where to Buy This product is not currently available.  Click here for HP's latest offerings Set price alert Specifications See full specs Quick Specs OS provided: Microsoft Pocket PC 2003 RAM: 64 MB - SDRAM Processor: Intel PXA255 400 MHz Sponsored Premier Brands on CNET Samsung Sharp Samsung Blu-ray LG Televisions Where to Buy This product is not currently available.  Click here for HP's latest offerings Set price alert Recently Viewed Products My Lists My Software Updates Promo Log In | Join CNET Follow: Close Like Us / Follow Us CNET on Facebook Follow @cnet