HP takes new Palm PC out of the cradle

Hewlett-Packard today launched its high end Palm PC, the Jornada 430se.

The 430se is HP's second Windows CE based Palm PC and will rival Casio's Cassiopeia 100/105 palm PCs and Compaq's Aero 2180 Palm PC launched last week. (see Newswire 20 September)

After its launch in the US next month, the Jornada 430se will be available in the UK in November, at a high street price of £399 including Vat. HP's lower specification Jornada 420 has been reduced to £349.

Included in the 430se is an MP3 digital audio player, 16Mbyte internal storage, a 65,536 colour display, Microsoft's latest synchronisation software, Activesync 3.0 and a range of software including a voice activated contact book that looks up contact details in response to voice commands.

Good news for many Palm PC users is that the 430se doesn't need a bulky cradle to connect it to a desktop or notebook PC for synchronisation and recharging. Instead, a cable, or infra red connection can be used.

Bad news is that more functionality means no reduction in weight. The Jornada 430se weighs in at 8.8 ounces, the same weight as the 420.

The device comes with Windows CE 2.11 preinstalled.