Decisions, Decisions! iPAQ Sleeve recommendation

Thunderforge · 09-06-2002

Ok iPAQ stumblers, I'm looking for input from those of you using this setup now. I'm just about finished assembling my iPAQ rig and I am debating between two sleeves.

Setup is:

iPAQ 3630
iPAQ Quick Serial cable
Cig to iPAQ 3630 charger
Garmin Etrex w/ DB9 serial
ORiNOCO Silver card

As you can see I'm missing a PCMCIA sleeve. I'm trying to decide between the 1-slot PCMCIA sleeve with the removeable battery for $103, or the 2-slot PCMCIA sleeve for $138. The 2-slot sleeve would have more versatility, but even if I had a second PCMCIA card to run in it with the Silver card I figure two cards would drain the power before I hit the end of the driveway. Of course that doesn't matter when Wardriving because of the charger, but when Warwalking I would bet it would drain pretty quick.

Well that's where your input comes in. Ideas? Comments? Suggestions?

c-mag · 09-06-2002

I've been using the dual PC Card sleeve for a while and it is bulky. The thickness of the back is 1.5X the thickness of a PC Card thicker than the PC Card Expansion Pack Plus (quick comparison), which I just recieved today. I really can't see using the dual pack on a regular basis, because of the thickness, unless you're going to be doing something that explicitly requires two slots. The + version also has a user-replacable battery, which can be switched for an extended run time battery.

Plus, the PC Card Expansion Pack Plus looks sexier! Isn't that why you bought an iPaq in the first place?

Grey Wolf · 09-07-2002

With the dual slot you have two batteries, and the charging port, that you don't have on the plus pack. So if you upgrade to a newer iPAQ, that's something to think about. Going with the plus pack and the extended battery will get you well over the price of the dual slot. Seems like I can run for about 2 ~2.5 hours with the plus pack, and with the dual slot, I think I always quit before it ran out. My guess is I could get about 5 ~ 6 hours with the dual and just the orinoco card.

Ok so I have both a dual slot and a PCMCIA + pack, and the plus pack is what I like to use the most. It's still new, about a month old, but it's what I'm using the most, and I can use either one. Thickness wise, my guess is it makes your iPAQ about 3 times thicker with the dual sleeve on, and about twice as thick with the plus pack.

Grey

blackwave · 09-07-2002

Quote:

Originally posted by Thunderforge
Well that's where your input comes in. Ideas? Comments? Suggestions?

I have yet to find a need for a dual sleeve whilst stumbling, and that is all I use it for.

kensington · 09-07-2002

No need to worry about battery life in the dual sleeve, in my trip up north with the backlight set to go off after a couple minutes i was able to go for over 3 hours w/o issue and that's with MS being saved to the 5 GB PCMCIA card. Which brings me the reason why you would want a dual sleeve, storage (since the 3630 does not have an SD slot). Regular CF, microdrives and the full size PCMCIA's are coming down in price so if you actually do more than stumble (movies or music) you might want the added storage. Otherwise I would think the expansion pack plus would be fine. Yes, the brick makes your rig large but i think it's worth it, the dual batteries really do extend the life. I also became very happy when I finally found a decent sleeve to use

Just thought of something else, if you decide to do a dual boot you would want the dual sleeve and get some type of memory card to store linux on.

The Others · 09-07-2002

Remember that PCMCIA devices are hot swapable, therfore if you do only get a single sleeve and suddenly find the need to use another PCMCIA device whilst stumbling it can easily be swapped over without headache.

c-mag · 09-07-2002

Quote:

Originally posted by Grey Wolf
With the dual slot you have two batteries

You also have two batteries with the plus pack, the thing is that the plus pack ships with a slim battery. An extended battery is also available, but that'll run you more than the dual slot.

Quote:

the plus pack is what I like to use the most.

I concur.

If you truly value your iPaq, I would recommend the plus pack as it has the integrated screen protector. I've heard horror stories about screens being damaged whilst in vehicles, namely those with floor-mounted gear shifts.

Thunderforge · 09-08-2002

Thanks for the input everyone. I think I am going to go with the Plus sleeve, since it's a bit cheaper, has the protective screen and allows me to get a longer life battery down the road. I'll be going tomorrow to get it. So once my cables get here my Mini rig will be complete. I'll post pics of both rig setups once I get it all up and running.

Thunderforge · 09-09-2002

Hmmm. Well I just picked up the PCCard + sleeve and noticed that the manual references the Expansion Pack Plus CD, but I didn't get a CD in my package. Did anyone who bought this get a CD with theirs? and if so what did you need to use off of it?

blackwave · 09-09-2002

Quote:

Originally posted by Thunderforge
Hmmm. Well I just picked up the PCCard + sleeve and noticed that the manual references the Expansion Pack Plus CD, but I didn't get a CD in my package. Did anyone who bought this get a CD with theirs? and if so what did you need to use off of it?

No, I ordered mine directly from Compaq, there was no CD, I haven't bothered to read the manual. I just slipped it over my iPAQ and I was in business.

Thunderforge · 09-09-2002

Quote:

Originally posted by blackwave

No, I ordered mine directly from Compaq, there was no CD, I haven't bothered to read the manual. I just slipped it over my iPAQ and I was in business.

As I figured. Cool deal. Now I just have to gome home after work and open the serial cable I just ordered and I will be set. car charger was delayed a day or two in shipping. =(

So how long does it take to fully charge the iPaq and Plus sleeve from a completely drained state?

c-mag · 09-09-2002

Quote:

Originally posted by Thunderforge

As I figured. Cool deal. Now I just have to gome home after work and open the serial cable I just ordered and I will be set. car charger was delayed a day or two in shipping. =(

So how long does it take to fully charge the iPaq and Plus sleeve from a completely drained state?

The CD comes with the CF version, not the PC Card version. That was quite a fiasco, as (most) everyone who bought it proceeded to install the drivers for the pack, which then crashed the iPaq beyond recognition

.

It took me at lest a couple of hours, but the iPaq was fully charged at the time; only the sleeve required charging.

blackwave · 09-09-2002

Quote:

Originally posted by Thunderforge

As I figured. Cool deal. Now I just have to gome home after work and open the serial cable I just ordered and I will be set. car charger was delayed a day or two in shipping. =(

So how long does it take to fully charge the iPaq and Plus sleeve from a completely drained state?

I recall it being a few hours max, you will know because the damned sleeve and the iPAQ amber LEDs blink, and keep you up all night staring at them..

c-mag · 09-09-2002

Quote:

Originally posted by blackwave

the damned sleeve and the iPAQ amber LEDs blink, and keep you up all night staring at them..

Tell me about it

. Plus, I've got two PCs, a hub, speakers, a KVM switch all in adition to the iPaq and expansion pack...

blackwave · 09-09-2002

Quote:

Originally posted by c-mag
Tell me about it . Plus, I've got two PCs, a hub, speakers, a KVM switch all in adition to the iPaq and expansion pack...

Yes I have a ton of LED things as well, but the iPAQ is the only one with a heartbeat type of pulse, and it is bright as well.. everything else flickers...

09-06-2002	#1 (permalink)
Thunderforge Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Florida Posts: 342	Decisions, Decisions! iPAQ Sleeve recommendation Ok iPAQ stumblers, I'm looking for input from those of you using this setup now. I'm just about finished assembling my iPAQ rig and I am debating between two sleeves. Setup is: iPAQ 3630 iPAQ Quick Serial cable Cig to iPAQ 3630 charger Garmin Etrex w/ DB9 serial ORiNOCO Silver card As you can see I'm missing a PCMCIA sleeve. I'm trying to decide between the 1-slot PCMCIA sleeve with the removeable battery for $103, or the 2-slot PCMCIA sleeve for $138. The 2-slot sleeve would have more versatility, but even if I had a second PCMCIA card to run in it with the Silver card I figure two cards would drain the power before I hit the end of the driveway. Of course that doesn't matter when Wardriving because of the charger, but when Warwalking I would bet it would drain pretty quick. Well that's where your input comes in. Ideas? Comments? Suggestions? __________________ Back to the forge, TF

09-06-2002	#2 (permalink)
c-mag Onomatostumbler Join Date: May 2002 Location: Golden, BC, Canada Posts: 627	I've been using the dual PC Card sleeve for a while and it is bulky. The thickness of the back is 1.5X the thickness of a PC Card thicker than the PC Card Expansion Pack Plus (quick comparison), which I just recieved today. I really can't see using the dual pack on a regular basis, because of the thickness, unless you're going to be doing something that explicitly requires two slots. The + version also has a user-replacable battery, which can be switched for an extended run time battery. Plus, the PC Card Expansion Pack Plus looks sexier! Isn't that why you bought an iPaq in the first place? __________________ Stumblematopoeia!

09-07-2002	#3 (permalink)
Grey Wolf Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Cincinnati, Ohio Posts: 345	With the dual slot you have two batteries, and the charging port, that you don't have on the plus pack. So if you upgrade to a newer iPAQ, that's something to think about. Going with the plus pack and the extended battery will get you well over the price of the dual slot. Seems like I can run for about 2 ~2.5 hours with the plus pack, and with the dual slot, I think I always quit before it ran out. My guess is I could get about 5 ~ 6 hours with the dual and just the orinoco card. Ok so I have both a dual slot and a PCMCIA + pack, and the plus pack is what I like to use the most. It's still new, about a month old, but it's what I'm using the most, and I can use either one. Thickness wise, my guess is it makes your iPAQ about 3 times thicker with the dual sleeve on, and about twice as thick with the plus pack. Grey __________________ ~the packets are out there~ waiting....

09-07-2002	#5 (permalink)
kensington Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: here Posts: 62	No need to worry about battery life in the dual sleeve, in my trip up north with the backlight set to go off after a couple minutes i was able to go for over 3 hours w/o issue and that's with MS being saved to the 5 GB PCMCIA card. Which brings me the reason why you would want a dual sleeve, storage (since the 3630 does not have an SD slot). Regular CF, microdrives and the full size PCMCIA's are coming down in price so if you actually do more than stumble (movies or music) you might want the added storage. Otherwise I would think the expansion pack plus would be fine. Yes, the brick makes your rig large but i think it's worth it, the dual batteries really do extend the life. I also became very happy when I finally found a decent sleeve to use Just thought of something else, if you decide to do a dual boot you would want the dual sleeve and get some type of memory card to store linux on. Last edited by kensington : 09-07-2002 at 07:52 AM.

09-07-2002	#6 (permalink)
The Others PeaceDriver Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Dos Palabras, Mandoras Posts: 2,920	Remember that PCMCIA devices are hot swapable, therfore if you do only get a single sleeve and suddenly find the need to use another PCMCIA device whilst stumbling it can easily be swapped over without headache. __________________ all good ends all ?u=273

09-08-2002	#8 (permalink)
Thunderforge Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Florida Posts: 342	Thanks for the input everyone. I think I am going to go with the Plus sleeve, since it's a bit cheaper, has the protective screen and allows me to get a longer life battery down the road. I'll be going tomorrow to get it. So once my cables get here my Mini rig will be complete. I'll post pics of both rig setups once I get it all up and running. __________________ Back to the forge, TF

09-09-2002	#9 (permalink)
Thunderforge Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Florida Posts: 342	Hmmm. Well I just picked up the PCCard + sleeve and noticed that the manual references the Expansion Pack Plus CD, but I didn't get a CD in my package. Did anyone who bought this get a CD with theirs? and if so what did you need to use off of it? __________________ Back to the forge, TF

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