Help Choosing a MobilePro

This site is amazing! I've been searching for this type of information for quite some time. I used to own a Palm and a Gateway laptop but neither truly met my needs. An HPC looks like EXACTLY what I need.

So I'm seriously considering the MobilePro 780, 790, 800, or 880 -- mostly because of the keyboard and screen size.

I run a small business through a web site which I developed myself, and I need to make sure that whatever I get can browse my admin pages (written in XHTML/CSS), and that I can get simple FTP access for doing short uploads of fixes. I'd also prefer to use wi-fi around the office for browsing and email (including my own POP3 and, regrettably, AOL).

Mostly I'm concerned about Pocket IE because people seem to complain about it a lot. And I haven't been able to find anything about FTP capabilities. I also need a good text editor (I currently use Crimson Editor for all of my development, but a Notepad-like app would be just fine). Are these things readily available? Expensive?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Rick
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Well, I've been using a MobilePro 900 for about 1 1/2 yrs now and I can tell you that I'm very very happy with it. Unfortunately, I have never used those other models you mention because I was a "Jornadian" before becoming a Pro! Good luck with your selection.

Rixware,

I have owned all of the devices at one time or another you mention. I would suggest that you post the URL to one of your XHTML/CSS pages and see if any Mobilepro user can access it.

The 790 has minor advantages over the other three machines you mention as it is a CE3.0 device and the others are 2.11.

There are numerous FTP programs available for file transfer that will run on the Mobilepros.

There are numerous wifi cards available and checking POP3 type email is not an issue with the Mobilepros.

However, none of the units you mentioned will connect to AOL...

As far as editors, there are more than enough to make you happy, from the simplest Notepad type to the complex desktop Word compatible type.

Rich

Since your top priority seems to be internet access, my recommendation would be the MobilePro 900C (which is what I have). Since it runs Windows CE .NET, it has the latest Internet Explorer, which I've found works fine with most websites and has FTP support like regular IE. It also has excellent hardware support (as far as HPCs go, anyway), so you can certainly find a WiFi adapter that will work with it - check the Hardware Compatibility List on here to see which ones are known to work.
A word of advice from someone who just recently entered the HPC world myself: Be prepared to be resourceful and flexible. There isn't a lot of software available for them, although the apps that come preloaded will meet most of your needs anyway. Keep an eye on this site, and a few others, and don't be afraid to ask questions. Despite the lack of support for HPCs, they are still great devices, with more functionality than a standard PDA and more mobility than most laptops. I would also highly recommend paying a visit to www.hpcnec.com, a website dedicated to the MP900C, created by one of the regulars from here.
Welcome to the forums, and let us know if we can be of any further help!

Well, I see that "regular" posted while I was typing my reply... lol Hey Rich!

Glad you like that site and have found it useful. We hope you will stick around and join in.

I would recommend for you needs that you consider a HPC2000 or CE4.x device, as I fear that 2.11 may be under powered for your requirements.

The PIE 4.01 SP2 in HPC2000 will load and display XHTML pages, after all XHTML is designed to be backwards compatiblt as well as forward. For most things that do not rely specifically on pure XML code (and there is a XML module for HPC2000 - but I am not sure on the NEC implementation) you will be fine.
Layout by XSL, like with CSS 2.0 is somewhat limited. However it gets CSS 1 right most of the time.

Take www.xhtml.se as an example anyone who wants to test on-device.

Pocket IE can view FTP sites, but cannot upload, as has been said here already applications are available to add such facilities & there are a large number of text editors and word processors avaialble which I am sure you can find one that will suit your needs out of.

Thank you for your help. This has already been enlightening.

I'm afraid the 900 and 900C -- though they look like amazing units -- are a bit beyond my price range.

It sounds like the 780 is out because of its OS. So I guess I'm wondering if the 790 is sufficient, or if an 880 upgraded to "890" would also work (I think I would like the size of the 880 screen better).

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I've been thinking about this all day, and I really like the specs on the 880 best of all. So I'd like to ask the questions in a little different way:

1. What are the issues I should expect with the 880 (unmodified)?

2. Are there browser upgrades/patches/replacements available for this model?

3. Besides speed (which I am only moderately concerned with), what are the cons to this model?

In other words...

4. How close will the 880 get me to my above stated goals (in summary: Wi-Fi browse, text edit, FTP upload)? Or will I want to pull (what little is left of) my hair out?

As an aside, I just found a page...

http://www.handango.com/aolsoftware/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?siteId=506&catalog=0%A7ionId=0&productType=2&platformId=2&productId=43334#

...which says they sell an AOL client for $20 that will work with any MobilePro system. Does anyone know anything about this -- as in, does it work?

Thanks!

Rick
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Edited by Rixware 2005-04-02 12:19 AM

Hey Rick,

I use that software on my Jornada 728 and it works fine! If your MP is running HPC2000 you shouldn't have a problem with it...

Mike...

That MIPS version of AOL client, 2.0, will work with the 790 as long as you don't mind losing Activesync. I used it for a while but decided I'd rather have Activesync. It does work great on ARM & SH3 devices though. I MAy be fine on an 880 or 780...I've never tried it. Doesn't even load on my 900c and the dang aol.com email section scrollbars are off the page. And of course Nyditot doesn't work on the 900c Maybe soon.....

Does anyone know if the AOL client 2.0 for ARM runs on the MobilePro 900 (running HPC2000?)

Mike...