Photo gallery: Acer n50It's a sign of things to come: PDAs are getting double storage slots (CF/SD/MMC), faster processors, while maintaining a cool smooth look. With the Acer n50, it includes all that and an 8-hour battery life.
Upside
The n50 adopts a simple yet fashionable compact design that's
suitable for anyone who wants to make a style statement. Unlike
the conventional Pocket PC design, its shortcut buttons have been
fused on two tactile panels, giving it a post-modern look.
Another significant difference from the Acer n30
is the return to using Intel processors. The PDA has plenty of
inviting features, such as a faster processor speed of 520Mhz
which is ideal for applications like its Pocket TV Enterprise
Edition. Memory is ample, with 64MB of flash ROM and 128MB worth
of RAM. What's more, with the inclusion of a removable battery,
users will have the flexibility of having extra juice using
spares.
Downside
The handheld has put on a tad more weight at 150g than the n30's
130g, though the difference can hardly be felt. Users should also
note that as the face panels are placed closely together, dirt
tends to accumulate along the grooves and it isn't easy to clean
this out. Operating its five-way directional pad can be a little
frustrating as at times it feels a little too rigid to be used.
Forget about using your standard earphones as the n50 comes with
a 2.5mm jack to be used with its packaged earpiece. The
handheld's resolution also remains at QVGA, producing less sharp
images than VGA-carrying PDAs. Those hoping for a non-volatile
memory capacity will be disappointed, as this isn't
available.
Outlook
As far as PDAs go, the n50 holds all the good traits that a
handheld should have. Although there's nothing impressively new
with this Acer offering compared with other Pocket PCs, no doubt
the handheld is able to perform well enough in terms of
functionality.
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