May 16 2008
HP Combines Office-on-the-go With GPS Navigation.
I do a lot of road travel for work, and I am currently in the market for a quality GPS navigation system. I am looking for a better-than-decent model, while at the same time spending as little as possible. Factory installed options are out the window, for they cost well over $1,000 and I can’t part with that much money for something that sits in my car. The suction cup editions are very handy, more affordable, and are great for families with more than one vehicle; however, finding a good one is the biggest battle. I don’t want to be stuck with a dashboard ornament after shelling out a couple hundred bucks. Fortunately, there is quite a selection out there. Hewlett Packard, a name I love and trust for all of my electronic machines, has just come out with the HP iPAQ rx5900 Travel Companion that may be the current winner for those in the market for some satellite navigation.
What’s great about this device is that it is a fully functional GPS navigation unit, in addition to a hand-held device equipped with Windows Mobile 5.0 and Microsoft Office applications. Carry your presentations, important work documents, emails, business contacts, schedules, photos, music, and more in the same little pocket-sized device that will get you all around town and guide you where to go. With the car installation kit (which is included with your purchase, believe it or not) it easily attaches to your car as a GPS system, so you aren’t stuck holding it while driving like the GPS features that come with today’s cell phones. It gets so frustrating trying to pay attention to the directions on a 1″ cell phone screen and abysmal speaker sound, which by the way occupies one of the two hands required for driving. Try pulling that one off in a standard transmission vehicle.
Armed with both 802.11 b/g wireless LAN and Bluetooth v2.0 connectivity, you can pull in any wireless signal you happen to be located in and access the internet. You could almost guarantee you will never be stranded with this electronic companion at your side (of course, with GPS navigation, you should never get stranded anyways). It also comes pre-loaded with TomTom Navigator 6 navigation software with full maps for all of the USA and Canada. This baby’s ready right out of the box. All you need is to plug it in and have somewhere to go.
In regards to the GPS market today, its not exactly “priced right” at nearly $500. However, look at the additional features you are getting. It basically serves as a Blackberry or Palm Treo without the phone functionality. It has a generous 2GB of flash memory, 64MB of RAM, and a mini USB port. Its like having a tiny pocket-sized computer. That alone would cost you nearly as much, so that’s why I think this is one of the best GPS systems out there. I have always had great experience with HP printers and computers, so I am going to give them a fair shot and take the plunge. If you are a road warrior with an on-the-go office like me, maybe you should too.
For more info and specs, check it out here.
