Aug 14, 2001 05:37 AM
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The Jornada 720 is a marvellous little beast and I have been taken aback as to exactly how good it actually is. It is currently on offer at $999 via the hp.com website and you can get it quite freely in most electronic or computer showrooms at around the 700 quid mark.
When you open it you find it is got a nice sized full colour screen and you operate it by the dinky integral keyboard and/or the clip out stylus pointer, about the same sort of size as the pencils you get with a paper diary. You use the stylus by tapping on or dragging across the integral screen.
In terms of visibility it is quite good and clear, although in strong sunlight it is a bit indistinct unless you have got the brightness control whacked right up. You can have four standard display profiles set up which can be accessed via two clicks with the stylus, so it iss excellent in this respect.
I had the Jornada running on the battery quite comfortably last weekend for about 7 hours in three separate sessions without a problem, though I started to get a bit concerned I was going to run out and I had not got a power lead with me, but this capacity is quite good enough even for the most passionate slave driver.
The Jornada's power comes from a 206 MHz processor and it has got 32 Mb of RAM, which you can determine how you split between program memory and storage.
Regarding software, the Jornada comes equipped with a full range of stuff, using Windows own proprietary Handheld PC 2000 CE compatible operating system. When it was delivered to me it had got Internet Explorer, Yahoo Messenger, My Documents from Windows Explorer, Recycle Bin, HP Dialup, Windows Media Player, Inbox, Calendar, Contacts, Tasks, Pocket Word, Pocket Excel, Pocket Access, Pocket Powerpoint, HP viewer and OmniSolve (a scientific calculator) all installed on the desktop with some other programs hidden away under the Start tab. I have not needed anything else to date apart from the ActiveSync function.
This allows you to connect your Jornada to up to two different PCs and synchronise calendars, files, tasks and contacts between them all. I have got my system set up such that I can synch from home machine to Jornada and then office machine, so I have got the same data on all three machines. Totally amazing and what I have found most useful with this set up. It is a bit fiddly when you first set up the Active Sync facility and I have had a couple of occasions where it has needed to be fixed, but this is an amazing facility.
The Inbox, Calendar, Contacts and Tasks programs are all cut down versions of the Microsoft Outlook 2000 suite and is almost as powerful in the mobile version. As far the Microsoft Office modules, Excel and Word are nearly as good as their big brothers, but capacity constraints make PowerPoint and Access disappointing. You can display Powerpoint presentations from the Jornada but not create them, and Access cannot work with large or complicated databases.
Okay, that is a very brief rundown of the main features of the Jornada, including some comment on how it was for me. Let us now just spend a bit of time going through the ups and downs of the main functions which you are likely to use.
Calendar
This is very much a cut down version of the full Microsoft Outlook program. It has less flexibility around views and when you are in the Day mode, has a nasty habit of blanking out the details of any appointment. There are ways around that and it is only a minor gripe, but it is another irritation. There is little else to complain about, however, and everything else is cool. You can view by day, by week (which gives you two days side by side), month and year and you can also bring up your tasks list.
E-mail
By default, only messages received in the previous 3 days are synchronised from your main PC and no attachments are copied. You can also only sync the e-mail with one other PC rather than the two for everything else, but you can write e-mails offline for sending when you synchronise, assuming that the Contacts section is up to date or you know what the e-mail address is. Now this is a brilliant facility, as long as you keep your contacts section up to date with the e-mail addresses you need. It is a disadvantage not being able to add attachments, but a small price to pay for the luxury of being able to jot together a brief note to someone and then having it sent automatically as soon as you dock when you get into the office.
Contacts
The integrated address book and e-mail listing you get with the Contacts module is a wonderful things, especially when you sync it between machines. I now have a comprehensive and fully up to date address book in the office, on the move and at home. A great boon, if ever there was one. Highlight a contact and click the New message button and you are away with an e-mail, ready to send when you dock - bliss! Shows how sad I am, when something like this gives me a cheap thrill. It is all truly wonderful stuff, however.
Word
The Pocket Word program is extremely good and you only see the difference from the full blown application when you want to do things like Word Count, or you particularly want an obscure font. Most of the normal functions are present and correct, however, including the spell checker. This is great if you''re on the train as you can just whip out your trusty J and get on with your artistic endeavours. I''ve not mentioned this previously, but the Jornada allows you to shut down without closing down applications and when you switch on again, the document you were previously working on is already open waiting for you. This prevents all that lengthy shutting down and powering up hassle you get with desktops and laptops and is particularly pleasing.
Excel
Much as is the case with Word, Pocket Excel is a very strong substitute for the full thing. I use my Jornada to keep a record of my travelling expenses and all I need to do at the month end is print off the finished doc and submit it for authorisation.
Powerpoint
Pocket Powerpoint allows you to download presentations from your desktop PC and run a slide show while you're out and about, meaning you don't need to bother with all that heavy laptop stuff. You have to get a PC card in order to send the presentation to one of the LCD projectors, but this is still a wonderful opportunity.
Access
Similarly to Powerpoint, Pocket Access is sadly lacking and is virtually useless for a database of any real size or flexibility. It''s okay for flat or small databases, but who wants them?
Windows Explorer
Now this is the one. This I do rate extremely highly. Drag any file into the Synchronised Files folder that is installed on both Jornada and your desktop machine when you install Active Sync and the next time you dock they are synchronised between the machines. This is a great boon for me and has meant that I can dispense with all that messing about with floppy disks and I can work on my files wherever I am, at any time and know that as soon as I''m back to base, both machines will be sporting the latest version of every doc in there. Now that''s brilliant!
I cannot speak too highly of the Jornada. It has actually changed the way that I work on a day to day basis and I am still only scratching the surface of this smart little beauty.
