The iPAQ is a discontinued line of Pocket PC devices produced from 2000 until 2010. It was first unveiled by Compaq in April 2000. iPAQ included PDA-devices, smartphones and GPS-navigators. A substantial number of devices were outsourced from Taiwanese HTC corporation.

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HP iPAQ HW910 PDA
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Modified Hewlett-Packard iPAQ 2210
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Compaq iPAQ 3800 series model
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Hewlett-Packard iPAQ 4700

Following Hewlett-Packard (HP)'s acquisition of Compaq, the product had been marketed by HP. The devices use a Windows Mobile interface. In addition to this, there are several Linux distributions that also operate on some of these devices. Earlier units were modular. Sleeve accessories were released called "jackets", which slide around the unit and add functionality such as a card reader, wireless networking, GPS, and extra batteries. Later versions of iPAQs have most of these features integrated into the base device itself, some including GPRS mobile telephony (SIM card slot and radio).

History

The name was borrowed from Compaq's earlier iPAQ Desktop Personal Computers.

The iPAQ was developed by Compaq based on the SA-1110 "Assabet" and SA-1111 "Neponset" reference boards that were engineered by a StrongARM development group located at Digital Equipment Corporation's Hudson Massachusetts facility. At the time when these boards were in development, this facility was acquired by Intel. When the "Assabet" board is combined with the "Neponset" companion processor board they provide support for 32 megabytes of SDRAM in addition to CompactFlash and PCMCIA slots along with an I2S or AC-Link serial audio bus, PS/2 mouse and trackpad interfaces, a USB host controller and 18 additional GPIO pins. Software drivers for a CompactFlash Ethernet device, IDE storage devices such as the IBM Microdrive and the Lucent WaveLAN/IEEE 802.11 Wifi device were also available. An earlier StrongARM SA-1100 based research handheld device call the "Itsy" had been developed at Digital Equipment Corporation's Western Research Laboratory (later to become the Compaq Western Research Laboratory).

The first iPAQ Pocket PC was the H3600 series, released in 2000.[1] It ran Microsoft's Pocket PC 2000 operating system, and featured a 240 x 320 pixel 4096-color LCD, 32 MB of RAM, and 16 MB of ROM.[2][3] Compaq released a similarly-designed H3100 series Pocket PC in January, 2001.[4] It was a lower-priced model[5] with a 15-greyscale monochrome LCD, 16 MB of RAM, and a dark grey D-pad instead of the chrome D-pad of its predecessor.[6][3] The H3600 series was succeeded by the H3800 and H3900 series, which retained the same form factor, but had a different button layout.

Soon after HP's merger with Compaq in 2002, HP discontinued its Jornada line of Microsoft Windows powered Pocket PCs, and continued the iPAQ line that started under Compaq.

In June 2003, HP retired the h3xxx line of iPAQs and introduced the h1xxx line of iPAQs targeted at price conscious buyers, the h2xxx consumer line, and the h5xxx line, targeted at business customers. They were sold pre-installed with the Windows Mobile for Pocket PC 2003 Operating System. The h63xx series of iPAQs running the Phone Edition of Windows Mobile 2003, the hx47xx series and the rz17xx series, both running the Second Edition of Windows Mobile 2003 were introduced in August 2004.

In August 2004, HP released the rz17xx and rx3xxx series of Mobile Media Companions. These devices were aimed at consumers, rather than the traditional corporate audience. Emphasis was placed on media features, like NEVO TV Remote and Mobile Media. They ran on Windows Mobile 2003SE.

In February 2005, the iPAQ Mobile Messenger hw6500 series was introduced to selected media at the 3GSM conference in Cannes, France. It was replaced a year later by the hw6900 series, running on Windows Mobile 5.

In 2007, the iPAQ rx4000 Mobile Media Companion PDA/media devices and rx5000 Travel Companion PDA/GPS devices were released. Both series of iPAQs work on the Windows Mobile 5 Operating System (WM5), as do the hx2000 and hw6900 series. The first HP Windows Mobile 6 device, the iPAQ 500 Series Voice Messenger, with the Windows Mobile 6 Standard Operating System (WM6), and numeric pad, was released in the same year.

The entire iPAQ line was completely revamped by the introduction of five new iPAQ series to complement the introduction of the iPAQ 500 Series Voice Messenger earlier in the year. The models announced were the 100 Series Classic Handheld, the 200 Series Enterprise Handheld, the 300 Series Travel Companion, the 600 Series Business Navigator and the 900 Series Business Messenger. The 100 and 200 Series are regular touchscreen PDAs without phone functionality running WM6. The 300 Series Travel Companion is not a PDA; marketed as a Personal Navigation Device, it is a handheld GPS unit operating on the Windows CE 5.0 core Operating System with a custom user interface. The 600 and 900 series are phones with integrated GPS and 3G capabilities, running the WM6 Professional. The 600 series possesses a numeric pad and the 900 series features a full QWERTY keyboard.

Hewlett-Packard introduced a smartphone iPAQ Pocket PC that looks like a regular cell phone and has VoIP capability. The series is the HP iPAQ 500 Series Voice Messenger.[7]

In December 2009, HP released the iPAQ Glisten, running on Windows Mobile 6.5.

In mid-August 2011, HP announced that they would be discontinuing all webOS devices.[8]

Model list

Jacket-compatible

These older models are compatible with the iPAQ Jacket which can accept 1× CompactFlash, 1× PC Card or 2× PC Card slots.

iPAQ jacket PN 173396-001 PCMCIA (PC port) 1× internal Li-ion battery PN 167648 3.7 V 1500 mAh (upgradable).

More information Model (variants), Release Date ...
Model (variants) Release DateRAM (MiB)ROM (MiB)SlotsCPUCPU Clock

(MHz)

OSWiFiBluetoothIrDAPN 173396-001Special Feature
H3650 (H3630, H3635) 2000[9]3216NoneSA-1110206PPC2000None None YesYes4096-color display [3]
H3150 (H3130, H3135) 2001[4]1616NoneSA-1110206PPC2000None None Yes4-bit gray scale display[3]
H3670 (H3660) 2001[10]6416NoneSA-1110206PPC2000YesYes
H3760 6432NoneSA-1110206PPC2002
H3830 (Rosella) 32321SDSA-1110206PPC2002 PremiumYes
H3850 64321SDSA-1110206PPC2002
H3870 64321SDSA-1110206PPC2002BT1.1YesYes
H3950 64321SD/IOPXA250400PPC2002 PremiumYesNEVO TV Remote Software
H3970 64481SDPXA250400PPC2002 PremiumBT1.1YesYesNEVO TV Remote Software
H5150 64321SDPXA255400WM2003BT1.1YesYesNEVO TV Remote Software
H5400 64481SDPXA250400WM2003802.11bBT1.1YesYesNEVO TV Remote Software, Biometric Fingerprint reader
H5500 128481SDPXA255400WM2003802.11bBT1.1YesYesBiometric Fingerprint reader
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Newer models

  • SDIO can support up to 2GB.[11]
More information Model, Release Date ...
Model Release DateRAM (MiB)ROM (MiB)SlotsCPUCPU Clock

(MHz)

OSWiFiBluetoothMore
H1910 200264161 SDPXA250200PPC2002NoNoNo RS-232 Support
H1915 200264161 SDPXA255200PPC2002NoNoNo RS-232 Support
H1930 200364161 SDIOS3C2410203WM2003NoNoNo RS-232 Support
H1940 200364321 SDIOS3C2410266WM2003NoBT1.1No RS-232 Support
rx1950 2005 32641 SDIOS3C2442300WM5802.11bNo
rx1950 Navigator 32641 SDIOS3C2442300WM5802.11bNoGPS
H2100 6464 1CF 1SDIOPXA270312WM2003802.11bNo
H2110 6464 1CF 1SDIOPXA270312WM2003SENoYes
H2210 or H2215[12] 6432 1CF 1SDIOPXA255400WM2003NoBT1.1NEVO TV Remote Software v2.0
H4150 October 15, 200364321SDIOPXA255400WM2003802.11bBT1.1
H4350 64321SDIOPXA255400WM2003802.11bBT1.1Integrated QWERTY keyboard
hx2100 64641CF 1SDIOPXA270312WM5NoBTIrDA, USB 2.0
hx2110 64641CF 1SDIOPXA270312WM2003SENoBT1.2IrDA, USB 1.1
hx2190b 641921CF 1SDIOPXA270312WM5NoBT1.2IrDA, USB 2.0
hx2200 64??1CF 1SDIOPXA250400PPC2003 PremiumYesNo
hx2410 64641CF 1SDIOPXA270520WM2003SE802.11bBT1.2
hx2415 64641CF 1SDIO 1MMCPXA270520WM2003SE802.11bBT1.2
hx2490b 641921CF 1SDIOPXA270520WM5 Premium802.11bBTIrDA, USB 2.0
hx2490c 645121CF 1SDIOPXA270520WM5 Premium802.11bBTIrDA, USB 2.0
hx2495b 641921CF 1SDIOPXA270520WM5802.11bBT1.7.1
hx2750 1281281CF 1SDIOPXA270624WM2003SE802.11bBT1.2
hx2790 October, 2005 [13]641921CF 1SDIOPXA270624WM5802.11bBT1.7.1
hx2790b 2005 643201CF 1SDIOPXA270624WM5802.11bBT1.7.1
hx2790c 2005 645121CF 1SDIOPXA270624WM5802.11bBT1.7.1
hx4700 2004641281CF 1SDIOPXA270624WM2003SE802.11bBT1.2VGA, 5.0 officially, may be unofficially

upgraded to WM 6.5

rz1700 32321SDIOS3C2410203WM2003SENoNo
rz1710 25??1SDIO 1SD/MMCS3C2410203WM2003SENoNoFull RS 232, IrDA
rx1950 64321SDIO 1SD/MMCSC32442300WM5.0802.11bunknownMay be unofficially upgraded to WM 6.1
rx3100 64321SDIOS3C2440300WM2003SE802.11bBT1.2NEVO TV Remote Software v2.0
rx3115 64321SDIOS3C2440300WM2003SE802.11bBT1.2NEVO TV Remote Software v2.0
rx3415 64321SDIOS3C2440400WM2003SE802.11bBT1.2NEVO TV Remote Software v2.0
rx3417 64641SDIOS3C2440400WM2003SE802.11bBT1.2NEVO TV Remote Software v2.0
rx3700 641281SDIOS3C2440400WM2003SE802.11bBT1.2Camera
rx3715 641281SDIOS3C2440400WM2003SE802.11bBT1.2IrDA, 1.2 MP Camera,

NEVO TV Remote Software v2.0

h6300 64641SDIOTI OMAP168WM2003802.11bBT1.1GPRS/Camera
h6310 64641SDIOTI OMAP 1510168WM2003802.11bBT1.1GPRS
hw6500 64641SDIO 1miniSDPXA270312WM2003SEBT1.2GPRS/EDGE, GPS
hw6900 (Sable) 64641miniSDPXA270416WM5.0802.11bBT1.2GPRS/EDGE, GPS
rw6800 641281miniSDPXA270416WM5.0802.11bBT1.2GPRS/EDGE
110/114 642561SDHC/SDIOPXA310624WM6.0802.11b/gBT2.0 w/ EDR
210/211/214 1282561CF 1SDHC/SDIOPXA310624WM6.0802.11b/gBT2.0 w/ EDRVGA, USB Host Support
614c 1282561SDHC/SDIOPXA270520WM6.0802.11b/gBT2.0 w/ EDRQVGA, GPRS/EDGE/3G, GPS
910c 1282561microSDHCPXA270416WM6.1802.11b/gBT2.0 w/ EDRQVGA, GPRS/EDGE/3G, GPS
Glisten 2565121microSDHCQualcomm MSM7200A533WM6.5802.11b/gBT2.0 w/ EDRQVGA, GSM/UMTS/HSDPA, aGPS
Close

Alternative operating systems for the iPAQ

OpenEmbedded

The OpenEmbedded distribution is (as of 2016) the only actively maintained Linux distribution for the iPAQ models, by way of the meta-handheld layer.[14]

Familiar Linux

An alternative Linux-based OS available for the iPAQ was Familiar. It stopped being actively maintained in 2007.

It was available with the Opie or GPE GUI environment, or as a base Linux system with no GUI if preferred.

Both Opie and GPE provided the usual PIM suite (calendar, contacts, to do list, and notes) as well as a long list of other applications. Support for handwriting recognition, on-screen keyboard, bluetooth, IrDA and add-on hardware such as keyboards are standard in both environments.

The v0.8.4 (2006-08-20) version supports HP iPAQ H3xxx and H5xxx series of handhelds, and introduced initial support for the HP iPAQ H2200, Hx4700, and H6300 series.[15]

Intimate Linux

On devices with added storage (primarily microdrives) there is a modified port of Debian called Intimate.[16] In addition to a standard X11 desktop, Intimate also offered the Opie, GPE and Qtopia suites. (Qtopia was a QT-based PIM suite with an optional commercial license.)

NetBSD

NetBSD will install and run on iPAQ.

Plan 9 from Bell Labs

Plan 9 from Bell Labs runs on some iPAQs. The nickname of the architecture is "bitsy," after the name of the ARM-based chipsets used in many of the machines. The "Installation on Ipaq" part of the wiki states: "These instructions are for a Compaq Ipaq and have been tested only on models H3630 and H3650 with 32MB of RAM." In regards to iPAQs, the page on the wiki titled "Supported PDAs" only mentions that the "H3630 and H3650 are known to work."

Ångström distribution

See Ångström distribution

Upgrades

The hx2000 series and some later models are upgradeable to newer versions of Windows Mobile. These upgrades could be purchased from HP. Windows Mobile 2003 could be installed on the H3950, H3970, h5450 models and possibly other models of the H3xxx series with sufficient ROM capacity. Other "cooked" (ready to run) roms have been provided by the group known as the xda-developers and are available for the hx2000 series, the hx4700 and others. The upgradeable versions for the hx2000 and hx4700 include Windows Mobile 6.0, 6.1 and 6.5 which are the newest releases of the Windows Mobile platform.

Internal Li-ion battery

iPAQ models 3100–3700 are fitted with internal Li-ion battery PN 167648 3.7 V 1500 mAh which can be replaced with a 2200 mAh unit. The same battery is used in the iPAQ jacket PN 173396-001 PCMCIA (PC port), which may also be upgraded to a 2200 mAh unit. The 3800/3900 series are fitted with a 1700 mAh cell as standard, also upgradeable to 2200 mAh. Compaq presumably upgraded the battery to cope with the faster CPU's power requirements.

RAM upgrades

It is possible to have the internal RAM of an iPAQ H3970 and hx4700 upgraded to 128 MB by using a specialist service to replace the surface-mount BGA RAM chips.

See also

References

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