Got iPAQ, not satisfied with a measly SD Card slot? Nexian's NexiPak lets you add two type II CompactFlash expansion slots - and a whole lot of bulk, according to Anthony Newman.
Nexian were the first company to produce a dual CF sleeve for the iPAQ, in the form of their Nexipak. Since then, two more have entered the fray, from Seidio and Portable Innovations. Nexian deserve credit, therefore, for cracking the market - but how does the product stand on its own?
Nexian have followed the standard Compaq sleeve design, offering of a matt-black sleeve with full-length arms and two CF Type II slots are arranged so that both are at the top, one on top of the other. Unlike competing alternatives, this adds considerable thickness to the device, and makes it quite unwieldy indeed. The bottom half of the Nexipak, by contrast, is taken up with a removable battery back (attached by a secure clip), which contains a 1550 mAh rechargeable Lithium Polymer battery - enough to more than double your iPAQ’s juice, as well as add considerable weight. The battery can, thankfully, power the iPAQ on its own - but the Nexipak will not work without the battery installed. The battery has its own charging jack, suitable for the connector found on the 3600 series, and an LED is included on the back of the sleeve to indicate charging - however this only illuminates when charging the whole device and not just the expansion battery.
 | | Ill: Nexian |
Nexian have chosen not to include any sort of cover for the two CF slots, so they are left totally unprotected when not in use. This should not prove a problem, but the inclusion of even a dummy card (as is provided with their NexiCam) would have been an inexpensive but appreciated gesture. The second design issue is that there is wasted space on the back of the device. The battery is actually thicker than the two card slots, so the top half of the device has a CF-card shaped recession that seems to serve no purpose. As unavoidable as this may have been, it certainly makes the sleeve seem a little amateurish.
No drivers are required for the NexiPak: plug it in and you’re away. Unlike competing offerings, Nexian state that both slots can be used for expansion, and not just memory cards. In our experience, the Nexipak managed to handle all cards we could throw at it, and its battery lived up to expectations. It would be especially useful for high-drain applications such as Wi-Fi, or just to sustain normal use without a charger.
Availability
The Nexipak is available for $149.99 from Nexian's website, and is compatible with all iPAQs. Replacement batteries are $39.95 USD.
Conclusion
Although the NexiPak is in dire need of a slimmer form-factor and could make good use of a standard rather than proprietary type battery, it does offer an industrial-strength battery and decent build quality to match. Sadly, it is fairly expensive at $150 USD - for comparison, competing alternatives such as the Seidio Seidiopak is $99 USD and the Portable Innovations MemPlug even cheaper. At the end of the day, if you’re using multiple, high-drain CF cards and don’t want the even greater bulk of the dual PC-card sleeve, the Nexipak is the one to go for, despite its rivals.
- What's positive: Huge battery, two slots in the right position, replaceable battery with separate charging jack
- What's negative: Bulky and heavy, inefficient use of space, expensive
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