HP Jornada 820 review

So, while helping to blur the boundaries further between notebooks and CE-based systems, it's clear that the latest incarnation of Windows CE does little to speed hardware response times. What it does do is add some useful new features. Obviously, support for USB has been added, as has the ability to cope with higher resolution displays (up to SVGA) as well as different types of pointing devices. There's also the new database functionality, with Pocket Access and support for ADO (ActiveX data objects) now included. Possibly the most significant upgrade in this version, however, is that Microsoft claims it extends battery life.

Bearing in mind that HP's last CE machine drained its rechargeable lithium ion battery in around five hours, you could be forgiven for thinking that the ten-hour claimed battery life was a little on the hopeful side, especially considering the larger screen and a processor boasting more than twice the clock speed. Incredibly, the Jornada lives up to its claims, yielding almost exactly ten hours per charge.

This is nothing short of a quantum leap for CE battery life and is the Jornada's most compelling feature as standard Windows 95 and 98 notebooks continue to come down in size. Coupled with the excellent keyboard and large colour screen, it makes the Jornada ideal for carrying out basic tasks like reading and writing emails, as well as longer Word documents on the move. It may not be as powerful as Toshiba's Libretto 100CT (reviewed issue 45, p152), but it's bigger, more usable, has a longer battery life and, at £849, it's considerably cheaper. If you don't need the full power of a notebook or a truly pocket-sized PC while you're on the move, this is the best solution so far.

Author: Jonathan Bray