Big review of Yakumo Delta 300 GPS

Many different modules have been integrated in Pocket PCs, ranging from Bluetooth and WiFi, GSM/GPRS or CDMA cellular phone, to recent models with a digital camera or integrated keyboard. So, an integrated GPS receiver is a natural extension of this trend. First of all, some basic information. Although this is supposed to be a “big” review, it is not as big as others. The reason is that besides the GPS capability, the Yakumo offers only the very basic Pocket PC features that are discussed in every review on this server. If, by chance, this is the first review you are reading on this server, I recommend that you read a review of MiTAC Mio339 first, because the Yakumo has a lot in common with it (available photos show that it was also marketed under the Yakumo brand as Yakumo Delta 300), or take any other low-end device. Another thing is that the system was in German but there is an Englidh version available, too. Third, the device is being offered also as CoPilot and Navman, so its marketing strategy resembles that of the XDA device with an integrated mobile phone.

I would like to thank PDAonline.cz which lent me the device for this review.

---

What is in the box?

A plain blue-white box contains the Pocket PC and a few common accessories as well as one unexpected yet very convenient.

• Yakumo Delta 300 GPS
• Stylus
• USB cable
• AC adapter
• 12V car adapter
• Brief user guide
• 1x CD-ROM with basic applications
• 1x CD-ROM with bonus applications

Let’s leave the device for a later time and take a look at the accessories first. The stylus is telescopic – folded length is 75 millimetres, unfolded 110 millimetres. The USB cable is the simplest one possible, some 120 cm long, with a connector at each end. The USB plug integrates a power connector. There is no cradle in the package but you can buy it extra - a device with an integrated GPS is not expected to spend much time on the desk but outside, so the absence of a cradle should not matter very much.

The AC adapter is simple, with a fixed cable and replaceable mains plugs. The package contains only one though, for the country of sale. The adapter is weaker than usual in Pocket PCs (5V, 1A) and the connector is incompatible with other devices. On the other hand, the cable is longer than usual – 190 cm, which will definitely come handy. When I spoke of an unexpected piece of accessories, I meant the cable for charging in the car (12V). This type of accessory is available for most PDAs but this is the first time I saw it included in the basic package. There will undoubtedly be some users who will find it useless but I believe most others will welcome it.

The printed manual was of a very poor quality but unlike in competing devices, it was in the local language:) The package includes also two CD-ROMs with applications. The first one offers a traditional suite of Microsoft applications, and the second one carries bonus applications provided by the manufacturer.

That’s all for the package, let’s move on to the device itself. If there is something lacking it is at least some sort of protective case; you have to buy one extra.

---

Design

The Yakumo looks incomparably better than the aforementioned MiTAC Mio339. It is no designer piece but at least does not look so awfully cheap. The plastic body mimics a more posh material and combines with metal buttons to create quite an elegant impression. Assembly is yet better, all parts fit perfectly with no leeway, no screeching. The dimensions are 112.18 x 69.6 x 16.3 millimetres (24.15 with open antenna), and weight 147 grams, which is fine for any pocket.

The front panel is dominated by a display, which we will deal with in detail later. Let me assure straight away that it has absolutely nothing in common with the atrocious one in the MiTAC Mio339. Above the display, there are two status LEDs (one indicates charging, the other notifies of events). Below the display, there is a miniature joystick with four user-definable buttons, a microphone pinhole and speaker.

A remarkable element on the rear is a GPS module flip. Otherwise there is only a hard reset switch (disconnects the battery). The battery is irreplaceable, so its compartment is not accessible.

On the left side, there are two important buttons – the main switch and a sound record button. A sunk software reset button, headphones output and an eye to attach a neck strap (does not look very durable...) are also located on this side of the device. The opposite side is free of any controls.

On the top side is an SD/MMC slot, infrared eye and stylus shaft. On the bottom side is nothing but a data connector.

---

---

Parameters

As far as technical parameters are concerned, the Yakumo is slightly under average yet it offers some not-so-common features. The processor is an outdated Intel PXA255 running at 300 MHz. Surprisingly, it is possible to manually adjust processor performance (low, high, maximum), which affects power consumption. Changes take place immediately, without a restart. Out of the officially declared 64 MB of RAM, a decent 57 MB is accessible to the user. On the other hand, not a single kilobyte in the 32-MB FlashROM is available to store user data.

Before I started examining the device, I was worried the most about quality of the display. The one used in the MiTAC Mio339 was atrocious. The Yakumo is nowhere near that that and although it is not absolutely perfect, it ranks among the better ones. It is a transflexive LCD panel with LED backlight, 89-milimetre diagonal (3.5 inch), standard QVGA resolution of 240x320 pixels and support for up to 65 thousand colours. The backlight is adjustable at eleven levels separately for battery operation and charging. At the maximum backlight setting, it shines like a torch. It is almost snow-white, with no annoying bluish or yellowish tint. Contrast is also very good. On the other hand, the minimum backlight level does not mean it is switched off completely but remains pointlessly intensive. It is possible to deactivate the backlight completely (by disabling automatic backlight activation upon tap on the display or press of a button) but this is not a very comfortable way to achieve the goal. The display is perfectly readable indoors. However, outdoors, readability falls the level common in most Pocket PCs, which might be a problem in a navigation device. The touch-sensitive layer is evenly responsive all across the display.

The Yakumo offers only the very basic audio features and capabilities. Its integrated loudspeaker provides surprisingly good quality of playback of MP3 music. It is also loud enough so that I could hear sound alerts from navigation applications even when driving a noisy car. I cannot comment on the quality of the headphones output because it uses a 2.5-millimetre jack and I could test it only with a pair of headphones of inferior quality. The only parameter I could judge was the volume, which was more than sufficient at the maximum level. There is no way to adjust other audio parameters, unfortunately. The Yakumo can record sound, like most other Pocket PCs. Again, there are no parameters to set but the quality is satisfactory in both close-range recording and a conference talk at a distance.

As far as communication with the outer world is concerned, there is not much to talk about except for the GPS module (which is a communication channel, too, albeit one-way). The device can connect to a desktop computer over USB. An infrared port is “slow”, offering 115-kbps transmission, but when assisted by an application called Total Remote, it could control home appliances (TV, DVD) from up to 2 metres. Neither Bluetooth, WiFi nor GSM module are present in the device.

The device is powered by a 1350-mAh integrated Lithium-Ion battery. I could not test it with Spb Benchmark (does not work with the German version of the OS), so I can provide only two figures. The Yakumo worked exactly for 6 hours with full backlight. When I activated the GPS module and had the Pocket KiM application keep checking the location all the time, the device lasted for 4 hours, which is not bad at all. There are many ways to wake up the device, e.g. by connecting a USB cable (whose other end DOES NOT have to be plugged into a PC).

---

GPS receiver

Unlike other Pocket PCs, this Yakumo has an integrated GPS module with an antenna in the form of a flip that creates a hump on the back of the device. The module activates by opening the flip, which conveniently saves battery power when you do not need the navigation. For the case that the built-in antenna be screen from signal, there is a rubber-capped external antenna connector in the centre. The otherwise cool solution has a major glitch – as you can see in one of the images, there is a considerable angle between the antenna and the body of the device, so there is a danger of breaking it off. I did not try but the device being all plastic, I don’t think it would take much effort.

I tested the GPS receiver with several software applications, most extensively with PocketKiM. I have not encountered any problems. The device establishes its position after activation as fast as any common GPS receiver. I would attribute occasional loss of signal when driving in mountainous woodland to making a compromise between visibility of the display and proper upward position of the antenna rather than the quality of the receiver (all I mean is its position in the car which probably was not ideal). An external antenna would solve the problem but you have to buy it extra. I drove some 1000 km with the GPS and it worked fine all the time.

---

Expandability

Yakumo’s expandability options are very basic. It features one SD slot that supports both memory and I/O cards (WiFi, Bluetooth...), a functionality I tested with an SD digital camera. In the future, there may be some accessories that connect via the data connector (although these are usually GPS receivers, which would make little sense in this case:) You can also connect the device to a mobile phone over the infrared port. Nothing more.

---

Software

The software suite is basically the same as that in MiTAC Mio339. I believe you won’t mind a Copy & Paste operation here and there:) The operating system is Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PC Premium Edition. I have no information about availability of an upgrade to the Second Edition. The basic suite of applications includes Pocket Inbox, Pocket Word and Pocket Excel, to mention just a few. The manufacturers adds some extras.

An excellent application is an MP3 player called simply MP3Player. It supports playlists and display deactivation during playback to save some battery power.

Another useful and quite sophisticated application is an image manipulation utility called (surprise, surprise) Picture Viewer. It is so complex that it would deserve a review of its own, so let me introduce it just briefly. The basic features include simple preview, detailed view of a selected image including basic properties, attaching a text or sound comment, slideshow, and rotation. You can crop and resize images, draw in them, send them by mail etc. Overall, Picture Viewer cannot compare to applications like Resco Picture Viewer but offers better comfort than the integrated Pictures application and, most importantly, it is free.

Another bundled application is eBackup, a wizard-based backup utility. In a few simple steps, you choose what to backup and where to save the data or what to restore. Wait a short while and it’s done. Nothing very exciting but still better than backing up using ActiveSync.

The last item is eMenu, a utility that combines an applications launcher, system info and a simple task manager.

If you are curious what is on the bundled CD-ROM, I assure you there is nothing more than MS Outlook, MS ActiveSync and a Citrix client.

---

---

Pricing

A price tag of £249.95 for a device with an integrated GPS module is not a bad deal but not a bargain, either. Much more attractive are navigation packages that include the device bundled with a car holder, memory card or navigation software.

[POLL]

---

Benchmarks & Tests

We will be quickly through with the benchmarks - Spb Benchmark did not work with the German system at all, not even the basic test or the battery test – simply nothing. (I encountered the problem only with the benchmarking application; other software had absolutely no problems). So, I can offer only my personal experience. As far as speed and memory are concerned, the Yakumo matches its competitors. It is a fact that navigation software will test your device’s performance, so a faster processor would come handy, but the target customers will probably not mind somewhat slower redrawing of the map on the display.

I tried a few games, as usual. The gaming experienced corresponded to the device’s parameters. 3D games (such as Anthelion) were a little jerky, whereas 2D games (Snails, Z-Raid) were quite fine. I was quite disappointed by the tiny joystick. It is virtually unusable for playing games because when you press in the desired direction and release, it “gets stuck” –the particular direction remains active for a second or so even though the stick is back to the central position. It is therefore impossible to control an aircraft or a car this way, unfortunately.

I mentioned the display, audio capabilities, GPS and other features above. I would describe the device in one word as “nice” – not bad but not particularly impressive either.

---

Detailed evaluation

The Yakumo Delta 300 GPS is the fourth device to which I have applied a more detailed and stricter evaluation system. This is because the rating of most devices I have reviewed lately ranged from 90 to 95 percent and it was difficult to tell which device is better (I tried to avoid a 100-percent rating). Another reason is that this new system is more transparent... That is why the final rating is NOT BACKWARDS COMPATIBLE. 90 percent now and 90 percent before are completely different figures.

Now, a few words to explain the new system. The type can be Pocket PC, Pocket PC Phone Edition, or Smartphone. Class means the target group, which is key for understanding the other categories. Number of points in the other categories are relative with regard to the class. For instance, a device with a VGA display, two expansion slots, BT and WiFi modules in the high-end category will receive nine points for a certain weight, whereas a device in the “entry” class with a QVGA display, one slot and no radio module will receive three points for the same weight. The date is also important – if I am rating a 1.3-Mpix integrated camera today, it will receive 10 points because there is nothing better available. Half a year later, when 2-Mpix integrated cameras will become available, this one would receive fewer points.

If you would like to comment on the evaluation, please join the discussion below. I am not doing this for my own pleasure but to make choosing a new device easier for you. If you think it is a wrong idea, just let me know:)

Rating
Name:	Yakumo Delta 300 GPS
Type:	Pocket PC
Class:	Low-end
Date:	January 24, 2005
Design, user friendliness
Design:	7
Dimensions:	7
Weight:	6
Buttons, user comfort:	5
Assembly quality:	9
Performance, memory
Processor:	4
Free RAM:	8
Free ROM:	8
Display
Dimensions:	5
Size:	7
Quality (indoors):	9
Quality (outdoors):	7
Backlight:	9
Touch layer:	8
GPS
General:	9
Audio
Microphone:	7
Loudspeaker:	9
Headphones output:	7
Communication
USB:	6
Infra:	8
Battery, power settings
Features:	6
Battery life:	7
Expandability
General:	3
Software
System, settings:	4
Bonus apps in ROM:	5
Bonus apps on CD:	1
Accessories
Quantity:	5
Quality:	5
Other
Overall impression:	6
Manufacturer's support:	6
Price/performance ratio	7
Total
Yakumo Delta 300 GPS	6.19 out of 10

Notes :: Rating on the scale from 1 to 10. The higher the figure, the closer to the ideal. If a device receives 10 points for "Design", it means it is beauty from heaven. On the other hand, if it receives 10 points for “Weight”, it means it is extremely light.

Article rating - (247 votes)