Big review of Fujitsu Siemens Computers Pocket LOOX 4xx

Fujitsu Siemens Computers is one of the Pocket PC manufacturers whose all models I was able to review. Back in 2002, it was their first device, Fujitsu Siemens Computers Pocket LOOX 600; a year later I thoroughly examined their two most powerful models Fujitsu Siemens Computers Pocket LOOX 610. There is no point in recalling the first device but allow me just a few words about the latter. Technically, it was perfectly OK. At that time, LOOX 610 was one of the most advanced Pocket PCs on the market. However, even the most devoted users objected to its size and weight.

A successful company can learn from user feedback and Fujitsu Siemens Computers seems to be one of them. LOOX 420 differs from LOOX 610 like day and night. I am comparing them in detail further on but I can say right now that if you detested the design and dimensions of the old LOOX, you will love the new model. Besides, the new LOOX 400 series comes in two versions that differ in features, hardware as well as price, so that customers can choose. There are actually quite a few differences between them. A detailed comparison is at the end of the review; the model reviewed is LOOX 420.

Let me thank Sunnysoft and Fujitsu Siemens Computers for providing the devices for review purposes.

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What is in the box?

The device I obtained was a so-called Customer Evaluation Sample, i.e. a finished product intended for presentations and promotion but in an incomplete package. The device itself should not differ from that customers will find on the shelves. And this was what is supposed to be in the small, green box:

• FSC Pocket LOOX 420
• USB synchronisation cradle (LOOX 420 only)
• AC adapter with direct charge connector and different types of mains plugs
• Case
• Spare stylus
• Applications CD and information CD
• User manual and a few leaflets

I did not get the cradle or case but saw them in a picture. I only got an AC adapter with replaceable mains plugs - a convenient solution for users who often travel. The box contained plugs for continental Europe and the UK. Unlike in the previous LOOX model, here you need an adapter for direct charging - Dell and iPAQ users will know what I m talking about. The AC adapter is not backwards compatible - the connector is different size.

There are two spare styluses made of a combination of plastic and light metal in the box. It's good you don't need to rush to the shop when you loose one. It is not telescopic and is quite short but I have no objections to it.

There was nothing else in the box. If I manage to obtain a full package, I will post an update.

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Design

Although people's tastes are very different, I dare say that few will dislike the design and size of the new LOOX. It is a well-known fact that black (dark) colour makes things appear smaller than they are and therefore LOOX 420 looks even smaller than it is. There is no point in comparing it with LOOX 610; LOOX 420 is smaller, lighter and nicer. It seemed to me that LOOX 420 and Toshiba e400 must be built on the same platform but I was not so sure after all the tests. Also, there is a 5-millimetre difference in thickness. But - who knows. The device's combination of dark grey and silver colour together with canted edges looks nice and the grip is comfortable. Although the dimensions of 2.81 x 5.12 x 0.56 inches (70.6 x 113.1 x 14.1 millimetres) and weight of some 4.41 ounces (125 grams) are nothing exceptional these days, the device is still quite small and lightweight.

The front panel matches exactly my taste. It looks sober and discreet. The display is locate in the upper part and there is nothing but the main switch and two LED indicators above it. The one on the left can flash green or blue to indicate Bluetooth and Wi-Fi activity, respectively. The one on the right is green and orange, indicating status and events, such as charging, appointments etc. If you activate Bluetooth and Wi-Fi at the same time (yes, this device can do that), the left LED flashes green and blue alternatively. Under the display, there are four symmetrically arranged user-definable buttons for quick launch of Calendar, Contacts and special FSC Speed Menu. The last one takes you straight to the Today screen. Of course, you can assign all of those buttons different tasks. In the middle, there is a four-way D-pad with a button in the middle for confirming action. Although LOOX 420 has no problems with simultaneous press of several buttons, passionate gamers will probably be disappointed. The D-Pad is not suitable for controlling fast-paced action games. I had great difficulties especially in the diagonal directions. On the other hand, it is ideal for controlling applications - down is always down. In order to prevent switching the device on accidentally, you can deactivate the wake-on-press option for the soft buttons (the same way as in other LOOX models).

The back of the device is quite plain, with nothing but a battery compartment latch. The sides are equally uninspiring. There is nothing on the right; on the left, there is only sound record button that you can control with your thumb and an infrared eye close at the bottom (it actually makes the corner of the device).

On the top, there are three openings. In the middle, there is an SD/MMC slot, to the left is a standard 3.5-millimetre stereo audio jack, and to the right, there is a stylus shaft. On the bottom side, there is only a data connector and a small hole for software reset.

Pocket PC	Dimensions (in. / mm)	Weight (oz / g)
Asus MyPal A620BT	3.02 x 4.92 x 0.52 76.8 x 125 x 13.3	4.98 141
Asus MyPal A716	3.07 x 5.31 x 0.69 78 x 135 x 17.6	6.95 197
Dell Axim X3i	3.04 x 4.82 x 0.59 77.2 x 117 x 14.9	4.94 142
FSC Pocket LOOX 420	2.81 x 5.12 x 0.56 70.6 x 113.1 x 14.1	4.41 125
FSC Pocket LOOX 610BT	3.07 x 5.81 x 0.72 113.1 x 70.6 x 14.1	7.23 125
HP iPAQ h1940	2.75 x 4.46 x 0.5 69.8 x 113.3 x 12.8	4.38 124
HP iPAQ h2210	3.01 x 4.54 x 0.61 76.4 x 115.4 x 15.4	5.09 144
HP iPAQ h4150	2.78 x 4.47 x 0.53 70.6 x 113.6 x 13.5	4.66 132
HP iPAQ h5550	3.31 x 5.43 x 0.63 84 x 138 x 15.9	7.3 206.8
MiTAC Mio339	2.83 x 4.88 x 0.6 73 x 122 x 13.8	4.36 120
MiTAC Mio558	2.83 x 4.88 x 0.6 72 x 124 x 15.3	6 170
Toshiba e400	3 x 4.9 x 0.4 76.2 x 124.4 x 10.1	4.59 130
Toshiba e800	3 x 5.3 x 0.6 80 x 125 x 15.2	6 179
T-Mobile MDA II	2.75 x 5.12 x 0.71 70 x 130 x 19	6.53 185

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Parameters

From the technical point of view, the new LOOX does not offer anything revolutionary. Rather than innovations, it offers good quality components tested over years of usage by countless users. The CPU is a common Intel PXA255 processor running at 400 MHz which provides sufficient computing power for all common tasks from browsing the web to MP3 and video playback. The only feature that ordinary users may miss is a (quite common) software utility for adjusting the processor performance, which could save some battery power at lower frequencies. LOOX 610 had this feature and it is pity the new LOOX lacks it. LOOX could have offered more memory, at least in the higher model. Its 64 MB of RAM and no safe storage are is somewhat below average these days, and the memory is one of the slight inadequacies of the device.

The new LOOX's display does deserve praise. Although we will have to wait for a large, four-inch VGA display in PDAs from FSC, this one with 3.5" (89-millimetre) diagonal, resolution of 240 x 320 pixels and 65 thousand colours is definitely a match for competitors. It is well readable even in direct sunlight thanks to the transflexive TFT technology. You can set backlight intensity at eleven levels, which is a sufficient choice for any light conditions, considered there is no automatic backlight adjustment. Unlike most other devices, this one does not make it possible to set different backlight intensity for battery and mains operation. With maximum backlight, LOOX shines like a lantern. The display is clear and sharp and viewing say holiday photos is a great experience. I no longer have iPAQ h2210 that I used to praise to the heaven for snow-white white colour, so I cannot compare directly. Nevertheless, I dare say the LOOX's display is equally good. The white colour is not so extremely bright and shining, but who will notice but a nitpicker like me. And if that's not enough, you can continue with display adjustments using a standard applet for calibration which can also activate the ClearType technology. And another applet makes it possible to fine-tune ClearType to your liking. And one last note, the touch-sensitive layer is highly sensitive and accurate and responses are fast, so that you will enjoy working with it.

In today's multimedia world, a Pocket PC without audio features could hardly succeed. This LOOX, of course, can work with sound and its audio features re excellent. The integrated standard 3.5-millimetre stereo jack makes it possible to use any headphones, which can enhance the experience of movies or MP3 music. With good quality headphones (I tested the device with headphones Koss Porta Pro) and a useful Settings panel (by the way, it is almost identical as that in new iPAQs:), LOOX will satisfy even the most discerning audiophiles. I was absolutely satisfied with the sound having listened to more than MP3 songs. There was no noise, the playback was clear and faithful, especially if you deactivate bass and treble boost. On the other hand, if you use the sound enhancement features, the sound is more dynamic but rather distorted and overcharged, especially at the extreme settings levels, to say nothing about Super Bass. Those who use a PDA as an MP3 player will appreciate another useful feature - headphones volume setting. It is not completely independent of the main volume control but I did welcome the option. At the maximum level, you can listen even without headphones on the ears, which means you can listen even in a noisy environment. A loudspeaker is hidden under the D-Pad, its volume and quality are slightly above average. The D-Pad is designed so that the sound quality does not deteriorate when you play games and have fingers on the controls. Finally, a few words about sound recording. You can either adjust microphone sensitivity manually at three levels or activate an automatic adjustment feature. The quality of recorded sound is excellent at close and medium distance but recording of a conference was somewhat noisy. Nevertheless, it is OK for retrieving information.

Another difference between the new and old LOOX is in the speed of infrared data transfer. While LOOX 610 offered FIR, i.e. up to 4 Mbps, LOOX 420 works only at the standard speed of 115 kbps. The location of the infra port in the bottom left corner is not ideal either. However, it is not such a big problem because LOOX cannot replace a remote control anyway - I was only able to switch TV programmes from a distance of about 2 centimetres. LOOX connects to desktop either over USB or serial cable. Furthermore, both LOOX models of the 400 series offer Bluetooth from Widcomm, which has almost established itself as a synonym for Pocket PC Bluetooth capability. It offers maximum comfort and even though the Plugfree application that controls Bluetooth in LOOX 610 has improved significantly, it still cannot compare to Widcomm. Widcomm offers all possible profiles. I tested internet connection using mobile phone Ericsson T610, data transfer between LOOX and other Pocket PCs, network game Snails over Bluetooth with Dell Axim X3i, communication with GPS Haicom, as well as synchronisation with a BT module from MSI. Paradoxically, The only problem I had was when I tried to connect with LOOX 610. The devices identified each other but when I tried any action, LOOX 610 started behaving strange and always switched off after a while, indicating termination of communication with the BT module. Except for this trouble, the Bluetooth functionality in LOOX 420 was absolutely perfect.

However, Bluetooth is not the only wireless protocol in LOOX 420. Besides BT, the more powerful LOOX model offers also Wi-Fi which makes it possible to communicate at a longer distance at a higher speed but with significantly higher power consumption. Unlike in most other Pocket PC, a Wi-Fi control utility offers almost no configuration options. You can activate Wi-Fi either by taping on an icon on the Today screen or in Settings. Besides standard options cared for by the system, you can regulate only transmitter output. Besides the usual IEEE 802.11b protocol, LOOX offers also a proprietary technology from Cisco called LEAP. I tested Wi-Fi at work with a corporate access point. The conditions at my workplace are ideal for testing - the signal is quite weak, so that any problems and shortcomings surface immediately. Even though the difference is not dramatic, this LOOX somewhat lagged behind the competition. While LOOX 610 and Dell Axim X3i with an external antenna as well as HP iPAQ h4355 worked so-so, LOOX 420 cold not catch the signal but for a few exceptions. When I changed location and the signal grew stronger, LOOX started working fine. This is most likely due to the integrated antenna. Unfortunately, I do not have exact figures because Mini Stumbler, a utility measuring signal, did not work with LOOX and the control utility supplied by the manufacturer does not offer this functionality. On the other hand, we should note that the signal is extremely week in my office and LOOX had no problems in places where the signal was at least a little better. One final note, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi can be activated at the same time, so if you need this functionality, the new LOOX is a step ahead of 610 in this respect.

And moving onto the power - LOOX 420 is equipped with a 1130-mAh replaceable Lithium-Ion battery. It can power the device for an excellent 4 hours and 15 minutes with maximum backlight intensity and standard usage. However, the time on battery is subject to the way you use the device. Obviously, when you play Bubbles with backlight off, the device will consume considerably less energy than when you browse the internet intensively over Wi-Fi with maximum backlight. It is possible to buy a spare battery and swap the batteries when necessary. There is an integrated backup battery that protects the memory contents against power shortage, so if replacing the battery does not take longer than half an hour, your data are safe.

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Expandability

As you may have noticed in the photos, the new LOOX has fewer expansion slots than LOOX 610 - LOOX 420 offers only one SD/MMC slot with full SDIO support, which means you can add more functionality to the device. The absence of a CF slot is therefore less painful. I tried an SDIO digital camera from HP and it worked perfectly with proper drivers installed. Bluetooth offers further expansion options. I tested two different GPS modules and there were no problems whatsoever. Unfortunately, you cannot use accessories from previous models because the system connector is different.

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Software

Let's start with an important notice - LOOX 420 will not ship with Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition for the time being. That does not mean that users will have to do without it for good. An upgrade is planned for the end of this summer when it should be available for download from the FSC website for free. Otherwise the ROM contains all the applications included in the Premium Edition including Microsoft Reader and Terminal Client, as well as a few bonus applications.

First of all, here is an application called FSC Speed Menu that we know from previous LOOX models. It is basically an enhanced Start Menu but it is optimised for the D-pad. By default, it is assigned one of the buttons, so it takes just a second to launch it. Another bonus application is a backup/restore utility called FSC Backup. You can backup all or selected data only, and protect a backup of sensitive data with a password. LOOX 4xx does not have a safe storage in part of the ROM, so a memory card is essential for backing up your data (apart from a backup over ActiveSync). That's all, there was not enough room for more bonus applications.

The CD-ROM supplied with the device contains only software from Microsoft. If you purchase the higher model, you will receive a coupon to "buy" several applications offered by FSC. The system is very similar as that used by HP. The box contains a Pocket LOOX Choice coupon with an alphanumerical code. First, you have to register to the Pocket LOOX Choice website and then register your coupon for which you receive a certain credit for which you can "buy" applications of your choice. I consider this way of distributing bonus applications almost ideal and incomparably better than the usual bonus CDs. In this system, all customers can be satisfied, not only those whose taste or needs the manufacturer accidentally met when compiling a bonus CD.

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Pricing

The price tag makes the device yet more appealing. The recommended retail prices of EUR 329,00 for the more powerful model and EUR 279,00 for the other have fallen even before the product has been launched to the market due to tough competition. FSC thus offers the device at a price of lower class models of competing brands. With this pricing policy, FSC faces the "danger" of high sales:) The device is available in the EMEA right now, unfortunately I have no idea if it will be available in US, too.

[POLL]

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Benchmarks & Tests

In my effort to offer increasingly value-added "services", as of now, the Benchmarks & Tests chapter will include detailed description of the test I performed on each device. I have complied a 128-MB test SD card with various games (Anthelion, Snails and Z-Raid [affiliate]), videos (a trailer for Shrek 2 in MPEG format with 650 kbps bitrate, and the same short video in Windows Media format with 250, 500 and 1000 kbps bitrates), MP3 music of various genres, several documents and images. I chose the 1-Mbps limit for videos because with this bitrate, a 150-seconds clip has more than 21 MB, which means that a two-hour feature film would take up over 1 GB. Even though memory cards are available in ever larger capacities, I think there is no point in bothering with a better quality, especially if we consider the fact that on such a small display, there is virtually no difference between this clip and a clip with half the bitrate. In fact, the subjective quality of a clip with the lowest bitrate is more than sufficient. One more note - while in the previous parts of the review I tried to give priority to the facts over my impressions and feelings, it will be the other way round in the following part:)

The device's performance is sufficient for normal tasks. Due to the more or less standard processor, there is little difference between this LOX and other devices of the same category. I did not notice any computing power shortage while watching videos, listening to MP3s or playing games. The only exception was my attempt to play a video with 1-Mbps bitrate directly from the memory card when the bus was too slow yet I cannot say the jerkiness of the playback was annoying. After I copied the file to the main memory, LOOX replayed it absolutely smoothly. A video with half that bitrate posed no problem for the memory card and playback was smooth, too.

The display was really good; the image was sharp and rich. It was well readable even in direct sunlight when tilted. There was a visible rainbow-coloured reflection but it did not annoy in any way. The display shows no yellow or other tint and all colours and shades appear what they should. I used the game Z-Raid to test button controls as well as fast display scrolling. The so-called D-Pad is ideal for the basic four directions (right, left, etc.) but diagonal direction pose a problem. Although it improved after a few minutes, attempts at diagonal movement were the most common reason for failing the game. Besides, I had some problems with the buttons that are too close to each other for my large fingers. The refresh rate hovered around 56 Hz, in some situations there were slight jerks in otherwise smooth scrolling. The 3D action game Anthelion was smooth and flawless as was the game Snails. Controlling the device with the stylus is accurate and without any limitations. And I described the audio features in detail above.

I tested wireless communication quite thoroughly. There were no problems with Bluetooth - connection was stable for several hours. However, I would welcome a more comfortable control for Wi-Fi than one settings applet, although this is a matter of software and can be resolved by a new patch. More importantly, reception should improve. Out of several devices that I could test, LOOX 420 had the biggest problems connecting. I must admit though that the conditions were quite harsh. Nevertheless, the others performed better.

And finally, some figures. I use Spb Benchmark for a complete performance test. Having reviewed several new Pocket PCs, I can compare them. If you are interested in the detailed results, the complete .XML file is available for download here: Benchmarks [3KB]. If you copy the contents of the file to the form on this page (click on Add device), you can compare the results with other devices.

I tested the graphics also with the GXmark graphical performance test. It is not as sophisticated as Spb Benchmark and offers comparison only with iPAQ h3600 but it at least shows how many graphic objects can move on the display simultaneously:)

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FSC Pocket LOOX 410 - the differences

In this chapter, I compare the two LOOX models of the 400 series. The first difference is in the box. LOOX 410 ships just with a USB cable and no cradle, which is an optional accessory you can buy extra. There is no bonus applications voucher, either. There is no visual difference between the two models - you will find out which one you hold only after examining the product label under the battery. The main differences are twofold. First, LOOX 410 has a slower processor, an Intel PXA255 running at 300 MHz. Second, the lower model does not have an integrated Wi-Fi module. That's all, as far as I know.

In practical tests, LOOX 410 performed as follows: playback of a movie with 500 kbps bitrate was slightly jerky. Nevertheless, a 650-kbps MPEG was fine. A 250-kbps video was absolutely smooth. In games, LOOX 410 performed as expected. Scrolling of Z-Raid was smooth, average refresh rate was around 54 Hz. Snails played without any problems, too. The biggest difference was in 3D Anthelion. It basically did not work with maximum level of detail but when I reduced sound quality and deactivated light effects, it was OK. MP3 playback was fine, as were other features. Benchmarks of both devices are in the table below:

	FSC Pocket LOOX 410	FSC Pocket LOOX 420
Spb Benchmark index	1096	1528
CPU index	1292	1789
File system index	766	1075
Graphics index	2740	3781
ActiveSync index	2414	1396
Battery	4h54m	4h15m

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