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I’ve enjoyed using my IPAQ hw6925 for a couple of years but a few months ago the hw6925 went for a swim for a brief 2 seconds.  Even though I removed the battery, storage card and SIM card immediately and left it under a hot lamp for 24 hours to dry, the hw6925 has been quirky ever since.  Lately, I’ve been using an IPAQ 910c and thought you might like a comparative review of the two devices. In this article I discuss the hardware similarities and differences between the two devices as well as the pre-installed software differences.  I also summarize the WM6.1 enhancements.

With a sleek new body and running WM6.1, the IPAQ 900 Business Messenger is the true successor to the IPAQ hw6900 Mobile Messenger.  Notable hardware differences between the two IPAQs include:

• The IPAQ 900 is 3G enabled
• The IPAQ 900 has double the amount of System ROM and System RAM as the hw6900
• The IPAQ 900 has a 320 x 240 pixel screen, with a default landscape orientation.  There is no known way to change the orientation to a more standard portrait orientation.
• Even though the IPAQ 900 screen is a larger pixel size than that of the hw6900, the viewable image size of 2.46 inches is noticeably smaller that that of the hw6900 image size of 3.0 inches.  These screenshots are an accurate representation of the viewable screen sizes of the IPAQ 910c and the IPAQ hw6925.

IPAQ 910c	IPAQ hw6925

• The IPAQ 900 includes a 3 Megapixel, auto focus camera with 4X digital zoom compared to the 1.3 Megapixel camera of the hw69×5
• The IPAQ 900 is loaded with hardware navigational buttons to make it easier to access all of its beautiful functionality.
• Using the same mini-USB connector to sync & power the device and for the wired headset means you cannot sync & power the device AND talk on the phone with your wired headset at the same time – there’s only one connector and no easy way to share the connection
• Using a mini-USB connector and a non-standard audio headset is a pain in the neck (I prefer the 2.55 mm headset jack of the hw6900)
• The elimination of IrDA is no great loss to me, but some users will miss it – especially those that enjoyed using their Pocket PC as a channel changer
• The IPAQ 900 supports mini-SDHC cards, even though HP’s specs do not explicitly state this and seem to indicate that SDHC cards are not even supported
• The enormous 1940 maH battery that the IPAQ 900 uses does not necessarily lead to significantly longer battery life. 

Hardware Similarities & Differences

A quick scan of the specifications of these two devices highlights more of the similarities and differences of these two IPAQs:

I have not performed a rigorous review of the GPS capabilities of the IPAQ 910c, but my first impression is that GPS is fairly comparable to that of the hw6925.  The IPAQ 910c includes a now outdated version of Google maps on it and, right out of the box, the device locked on to satellites within a few minutes after placing it within a clear view of the sky.  For GPS, I prefer the larger screen size of the hw6925 – that 1/2 inch difference in size makes a pretty big difference when using GPS.

It is not surprising that the IPAQ 910c takes brighter, clearer and better quality pictures than those taken with the hw6925.  But when the IPAQ 910c is set to 3 megapixels, snapping pictures is much slower than what you’d expect from a dedicated 3 megapixel camera and much slower than the hw6925.

Taken with the IPAQ 910c

Taken with the hw6925

Taken with the IPAQ 910c

Taken with the hw6925

The 910c includes a huge battery, but the battery drain that occurs when 3G is used makes for less than stellar battery performance. In this picture, you can see that the 1940 mAh Li-Polymer battery, shown on top, of the IPAQ 910c is quite a bit larger than the 1200 mAh Lithium-ion battery of the hw6925.

Software

Notable differences in factory installed or included software for both devices include:

Even though the 910c comes with its own Task Management software, I’ve still installed Magic Button to it.  A regular review of the IPAQ 910’s notification queue indicates that Microsoft addressed the issue of duplicate and erroneous notifications that occurred in WM5.0 devices.  I have not seen this problem in WM6.1. 

WM6.1 Enhanced Functionality

WM6.1 offers some enhanced functionality over WM5.0, but 

1. Much of the enhanced functionality is only useful when you are setting up a new device from scratch;
2. Unless you use your IPAQ in a corporate Exchange server environment, many of the WM6.1 enhancements won’t mean much to you since you will never have a chance to use them

In the table below I have summarized WM6.1’s enhanced functionality and provided some software recommendations that add some of this functionality to a WM5.0 device:

Enhanced Functionality	Description	WM5.0 Workaround
Ease of Use
Getting Started Center	Helps you set up email, Bluetooth, etc. on a new phone	See Note1
Mobile Messaging
Threaded Text Messaging	Threads text messages into single conversations	SMS Chat
Exchange Server Auto Discovery		See Notes 1&2
Custom Domain Email Setup		See Note 1
Email Setup Wizard	Includes standard email settings for common email providers (Gmail, AOL, Yahoo)	See Note 1
Direct Push Email for Windows Live Hotmail
HTML Email Support	Email is displayed with colors, photos, and formatting
Fetch Mail	Download entire email, including images & attachments without having to perform a full send/receive
Fetch Mail for POP3/IMAP	Download entire email with no additional intervention
SharePoint & UNC File Share Access	Open links to documents stored on servers or linked in email messages.  Works only if you have a Microsoft Outlook account that synchronizes with a Microsoft Exchange Server (2007 or later) that is set up to allow access to SharePoint document libraries or internal file servers.	See Note 2
Outlook email message flags	Assign, mark complete,and clear flags from email inbox list when viewing a message.  These flags are set on the device and are not synced to or from a computer	nPOPUK
Smart Filter in Messaging	Search for specific message by entering name or subject
Hardware Shortcuts	Pressing & holding keys on the keyboard performs a variety of tasks, as follows:
Information Rights Management	Receive, reply to, forward, and compose IRM protected mail.  Works only with a Microsoft Outlook email account and RMS Server SP1	See Note 2
Contacts, Calendar & Tasks
View Attendee Status	See who has accepted, declined or not yet responded to a meeting invitation
Forward appointments	Forward appointments to add’l meeting attendees
Out-of-Office Assistant	Set an out-of-office status and message
Propose a new meeting	Respond to meeting request by proposing a new meeting time
Schedule Conflict Notification	View conflicting appointments & appointments that are adjacent to meeting requests
Call History by Contact	View past call history, including calls made, received and missed	Agenda Fusion
Internet Explorer Mobile
Zoom Support	Zoom in on a web page to view small text or images	Opera Mobile
Page Overview	View entire web page at one time	Opera Mobile
Productivity
Windows Live	Unifies Windows Live Search, Messenger, Hotmail, and Live Spaces
Windows Mobile Marketplace	Go shopping	Is this important?
Windows Media Player Mobile
Smart Search	Start typing a song or artist name and sort until you find the one you want
Rate Favorites	Rate media files from 1 to 5 stars
Home Screen Integration	Play & pause media files from home page
Pictures & Videos
Sync Pictures
Send to Live Spaces	Tap Start > Programs > Pictures & Video Tap picture Tap Menu > Send to your space (you must have an internet connection)
Utilities
Windows Mobile Update	Allow Microsoft to provide Critical Security Fixes directly to Windows Mobile devices. More Information	Doesn’t seem to do much on the IPAQ 910c
Bluetooth
Phone Book Access Profile	Allows Bluetooth enabled car kits to access phone book information
Auto-pairing of Headset	No codes are required
Connectivity
Internet Sharing	Share phone internet connection with computer via USB or Bluetooth connection	Use Modem Link software
Platform Management	Allows IT professionals to set and control policies in single, familiar environment though Microsoft’s System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008 Service Pack 1

See Microsoft’s comparison of Windows Mobile for a more comprehensive comparison between Windows Mobile 5.0, Windows Mobile 6.0 and Windows Mobile 6.1 for non-touch screen and touch screen devices 

My take on things

Right now, 3G seems to me to be a lot of smoke and mirrors without much substantive improvement in connectivity.   My experience thus far seems to indicate that AT&T’s 3G network is not yet ready for primetime use.  I get my most stable 3G connection at home (where I really don’t need it), yet when I am in the heart of the downtown metropolitan area that is supposedly a hotbed for 3G, my 3G connection is inconsistent and unreliable.  Furthermore 3G is quite an energy hog and I found that the enormous Li-Polymer battery of the IPAQ 910c takes a tremendous hit when 3G is enabled on the device.  If you plan to use 3G much be sure to pack your AC adapter or another battery because you’ll need to recharge the device if you hope to use it all day.  To preserve my battery, I have turned 3G off and don’t miss it much. Unless you plan to heavily surf the internet from your IPAQ 900 or you plan to regularly tether the IPAQ 900 to your computer, you really don’t need 3G connectivity that much.  Fetching email is primarily a passive activity that an EDGE/GPRS connection handles quite well. 

Many of the enhancements of WM6.1 are superficial and don’t provide much added continual functionality for me.  The more significant WM6.1 enhancements revolve around corporate uses and enhanced security.  Since my windows mobile devices are personal devices and I do not sync to an Exchange server, these enhancements are irrelevant to me and so I don’t view the changes in WM6.1 to be significant enough to justify the cost of purchasing a $500+ WM6.1 device.  Of course, your situation and needs may be different than mine and you may have a compelling need for the enhanced security (WPA2) and/or enhanced corporate/Exchange server functionality that WM6.1 provides.

Luckily the third party software that I’ve used on my hw6925 and have installed on the IPAQ 910c work fine and I have not had to purchase any new software.  Most of the software even works well with the non-standard landscape 320×240 pixel size of the IPAQ 910c.  However since the IPAQ 900 uses a mini-USB port for charging and syncing and since the wired headset also plugs into the mini-USB port, none of the accessories I’ve used on the hw6925 (except for my Bluetooth headsets) can be used with the IPAQ 910c, including the ProClip powered mounting system in my car that I paid a premium for and that I love so much.

For GPS, I prefer the hw6925 simply because the screen size is better on my eyes and because I’ve already got the ProClip powered mounting system in my car. I’ll continue to use the hw6925 in my car as my navigational device – at least until the quirks from having dropped it into water become too much for me to handle.

The IPAQ 900 is a solid windows mobile device.  If you are thinking about replacing an old, pre-WM5.0 device, like the hw6500, or purchasing your first converged device, the IPAQ 900 is a worthy candidate for consideration.  I think you will be impressed by the improvements in hardware, software and windows mobile OS functionality.  However, if you are already using a WM5.0 device, like the hw6925, the incremental changes from WM5.0 to WM6.1 probably will not “WOW” you much. 

Post a comment if I’ve missed any other specific comparisons you’d like to see between these devices.

Julie (15 Posts) - Website | Twitter | Facebook

Julie is a moderator on MobilitySite. She is a Microsoft MVP Mobile Devices and also moderates on Microsoft's Windows Mobile forum and is frequent contributor on HP's IPAQ forum. Julie's windows mobile blog is http://pocketprimer.com); and you can follow her on twitter (@ProfJulie)