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One of the good points of the 3800 series was its comprehensive package of included software. Compaq have continued that trend and even improved upon it with the 3900 series. The anemic backup software has been replaced by a licensed version of Sprite's Pocket Backup (see review), which is excellent, and the funky new IR port has been coupled with the Nevo remote control software. Some users have had trouble with this, but it's a gorgeous program with some great features - and any bit of included software that extends the use of the machine has got to be a good thing. On the CD are full versions of ViaVoice, iPresenter, WordLogic, Quick View Plus, Presenter-To-Go, Macromedia Flash Player, Bust-Em, Real One Player, Jeode Java Runtime, Afaria, FileCrypto, Acrobat Reader and PocketWatch - plus a few trial versions. When the cost of this software is taken into account, the price of the iPAQ becomes a bit more reasonable.
 | The H3970's form factor is the same as all other iPAQs, meaning a vast number of accessories are readily available - and old ones can be re-used in most cases
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Fortunately, there's room to install all this software, as not only does the iPAQ ship with the standard 64 MB of RAM, but there's a further section of ROM devoted to storage, as mentioned above. Rather than the measly 6 MB of File Store on the last series, 22 MB are available now. In all my testing it worked flawlessly - although the same was thought about the 3800 until circumstantial evidence tied it to a tendency to hard reset. For further storage there's also the SD card slot, which is now SDIO capable. Unfortunately, I didn't have any SDIO cards lying around to test as they're still fairly scarce.
The 3970 is one of only a few PDAs to include Bluetooth support straight out of the box. As on the 3870, activity is indicated by a piercing blue flashing LED, which cannot be turned off. Some might find it annoying, especially as it's directly above the screen and very visible. The Bluetooth implementation on the 3970, as on the 3870, is nothing less than fantastic. Although it doesn't support the headset profile, a wide range of others are implemented to cover most eventualities. The software, accessible from the Start Menu or system tray is great, providing a lot of information and a powerful range of tools. You can file your detected Bluetooth devices into groups, bond with them quickly, filter and search through them, exchange business cards, setup modems, setup ActiveSync partners... All from well designed menu systems. The Compaq Bluetooth Manager is also the only one that comes with its own diagnostics, and for those battery-conscious people, you can also assign three different transmission power levels to groups of devices. These are just a couple of the interesting features of the Bluetooth implementation: the rest is equally good. Compared to the 3870, the implementation seems less buggy and also faster - but since I didn't have the chance to review them side by side I'll settle for saying I'm very satisfied with the 3970.
Aside from these differences, the 3900 series is largely the same as its predecessor. The stylus, button layout, operating system and other such details are all the same, and so for those familiar with the much-maligned 3800 (or its many reviews), there are no shocks here and no need for repetition.
The 3900 is a great evolution. The bugs in the last iPAQ have all been corrected and then some: the screen has gone from being the worst available to the best; the SD slot has gone from MMC to SDIO and the Bluetooth implementation has become the best I've seen. All this has been done without introducing any apparent new bugs or design disasters. In fact, all the good things about the last version (the sound and the included software, for example) have been retained, and other areas have even been improved upon (the iPAQ File Store, the IR port). Although there are smaller devices out there, there are none with so many accessories, and in that light the form-factor is also perfect. Compaq have achieved what is possibly the best PDA on the market at the moment, and the screen in itself is worth an accolade. The only thing wrong with it is its price: as Dell and Viewsonic are vying with Toshiba for the cheapest PPC, dropping close to the $200 mark, a $600-plus device is awfully expensive in comparison. What is clear though is that you get an awful lot of device for your money.
The iPAQ 3970 is available now from Compaq / HP and numerous retailers and eTailers for $749.99 USD.
- What's positive: Gorgeous screen, File store, SDIO, Bluetooth implementation, audio
- What's negative: Price, X-Scale not used
Overall: 
Price and availability
The will start selling for TBA () in November 1999.
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