PPCzone.net

Socket has released new drivers for most of their products which work on the new Windows mobile 2003 operating system.

You can download them @ http://www.socketcom.com/support/ppc2003.asp
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Microsoft have put together a very useful page which lists the relevant links to the OEM’s which offer upgrades from PocketPC 2002 to Windows Mobile 2003.

Currently HP,Symbol & Toshiba are offering upgrades on certain devices

Take a look at the list here

2003 is half over, which means anything in computing still named 2002 is extremely dated. It’s no surprise, then, that the people at Microsoft have been updating their handheld computer operating system, at least in part to remove 2002 from its product’s name …

Read full story @ http://www.msnbc.com/news/930116.asp?0cv=TB10&cp1=1#BODY
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“The small and sleek iPAQ Pocket PC h2200 series has the optimal combination of features, performance, and expandability that allow individuals and mobile professionals use of their pocket pc seven days a week – at home, at work, and on the go. A broad range of features, Bluetooth(TM), expansion capabilities and multimedia make the iPAQ Pocket PC h2200 series unit essential for you to communicate, access and manage information when you want.”

Specifications are included in the PDF file below.

Source:http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/newsroom/press_kits/2003/ipaq/ds_h2200.pdf
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Below is an excerpt from recent message by Derek Brown who is Director of Marketing Communications in the Mobile Devices Division at Microsoft Corp.

“We put a tremendous amount of work into this release and focused explicitly on building for the future. As any of you who have spent time discussing it with me know, development is a game of finite time and people. In any given release with a deadline you have X number of persons and X days to develop and test. Period. You make cuts, you make hard decisions and you postpone features or improvements to the next version. This is how it works. Over the past 18 months or so, two of our primary goals were to: first, unify as much of the code-base for our software for Pocket PC and Smartphone as possible; and second, get on schedule to ship as much of that code as possible on the most current version of Windows CE.Net.

Accomplishing these two tasks was a huge undertaking, involving not just a lot of code re-work, but also structuring our development team so that most of our efforts would accrue to both form factors. Today, we have a platform optimized for *the future* - both in terms of technology and resources. We’re in this game for the long, long term - forever.

In the latest release, I think there is incredible value in the latest release: For instance, we’ve improved the wireless experience with this release by making it easier to connect to Wi-Fi networks. From a phone perspective, we’ve implemented smart, persistent 2.5G data connections, GSM Suspend/Resume and CDMA Dormant modes. We’ve updated the phone usability features, such as including a Mute button and adding separate phone and device volume controls. There are also enhanced messaging and multi-media features, like the New Pictures application that allows you to manage and view photos.

We’ve also improved functionality for our developers, by improving the performance and stability of the OS through Windows CE.NET and increasing productivity and application quality by integrating the .NET Compact Framework into the OS.

This a great upgrade for existing customers and will power some fantastic new Pocket PCs. In addition we’ve taken a big step forward with the long-term success of our platform. I’m happy with what we’ve done on both counts.”

Benchmarks are being posted on various other sites on the web and speed improvements in the new OS seem significant. I am currently working on getting review devices so stay tuned for more info.
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It seems the first Ipaq 2200 devices have started appearing on the shelves. Quote below from the brighthand thread!!

“For those who cannot wait, ipaq 2215 is currently available at Fry’s Electronics, at least at Sacramento, CA, store as of Jun 16, 2003. There were only a couple left when I went there.”

Take a look @ http://discussion.brighthand.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=81008&perpage=10&pagenumber=1

“More details about Gateway’s forthcoming personal digital assistant and a new server to be released in August were revealed by executives Tuesday in a phone interview at CeBIT America in New York. The Gateway 100X will be Gateway’s first handheld when it is released on Monday with the launch of Microsoft’s Pocket PC 2003 operating system, said Mike Stinson, vice president and general manager of mobile products for Gateway. The company considers its PDA a high-end product that it will sell for between $300 and $350, he said.

The Poway, California, company will include both a Compact Flash and a secure digital slot in the PDA, Stinson said. It will come with 32MB of RAM and 32MB of ROM, he said. Information about how much RAM would be user accessible was not immediately available. Gateway will use a 3.5-inch reflective TFT display on the Gateway 100X, with a screen resolution of 320 pixels by 240 pixels, Stinson said. The PDA will also come with a 400MHz XScale processor from Intel, he said.”

This also confirms PPC 2003 will be released on Monday. The Above device does not sound very exciting specification wise. Any comments?

Source:http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,111239,tk,dn061903X,00.asp

I looks as all of you who own a Dell Axim device are going to be happy as it seems Dell will definitely be offering an upgrade to PocketPc 2003. Below is a quote from a contact of mine in Dell. I have not yet gotten any further information relating to release dates and / or new Axim models.

“The new version of Pocket PC will be available on the Dell Axim X5.”

Seems pretty clear to me.

Discuss in Forum

“The Redmond, Wash.-based software giant will debut Pocket PC 2003–code-named Ozone–on June 23, according to sources close to the company. The operating system is not expected to be a major revision of Pocket PC 2002, but it will include new features such as built-in support for wireless technologies Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. The OS overhaul will occur in the next version of the operating system, code-named Magneto, due out next year. Microsoft representatives declined to comment.

Hewlett-Packard and Gateway are both expected to announce new products using Pocket PC 2003. Gateway, a newcomer to the handheld market, confirmed that it will release a midrange device using the OS on June 23.”

More info @ http://news.com.com/2100-1041_3-1015726.html?tag=fd_top
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Brigthand have written up a nice comparasion of the new Ipaq’s which will be available in the next month. There are so many new models I would recommend you take a look at the article as it’s very informative.

http://www.brighthand.com/article/Everything_About_The_New_iPAQs
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