Review: Computing on the Move - Part 4, Belkin F8u0803eaHP and F8U0306eaHP Pens

In Part 4, Don Bradbury completes his round up of peripherals for users on the move

Product	HPiPAQ Quadra 4-in-1 Pen/Laser/Stylus, F8U0306eaHP 4-in-1 PDA Stylus Pen, F8E708ea HPiPAQ Cleaning Wipes, F8u0803eaHP
Company	Belkin
Web	www.belkin.com
Price	Pen/Stylus £19.99 Pen £9.99 Wipes £14.99
We like
We don't like
Rating	Stylus 8/10 Pen 7/10 Wipes 8/10
Requirements

The hardware that a traveling computer user will have in his luggage for the day may extend to no more than his trusty laptop or PDA. That’s a risky strategy for any important work in hand. Batteries may go flat, the stylus for a touch-sensitive screen can easily go walkabout, and ambient lighting may be insufficient to work in, making keyboard work all but impossible. There may be other factors to consider, too, and many of these are already covered by accessory manufactures, so let’s take a look at a few more examples.

HPiPAQ Quadra 4-in-1 Pen/Laser/Stylus

The traveler may need access to pen or pencil, and while we're at it, sundry other items such as spare touch-screen stylus (they're always going missing). He might also find a use for a mobile, low power torch, or how about a red laser pointer for use with presentations and the like?

Two pens on offer in the Belkin catalogue are the 4-in-1 PDA Stylus Pen, from Belkin itself, and the HP iPAQ branded 4-in-1 Stylus, also marketed under the Belkin banner.

The former offers red and black ballpoint pens, together with 0.5mm pencil lead and end-mounted rubber, and a PDA stylus. Selection between the options is by gravity feed and then pressing the end button in the usual way, retracting each by means of the clip-mounted release button.

'Gravity feed' for the selection simply involves holding the pen with your choice of side uppermost while pressing the end knob. In our experience this rarely failed, and usually only then when a rapid replacement was being made without finding the proper orientation of the pen first. The cap covering the rubber was ridiculously tight, however, and we only managed to remove it by using pliers, slightly damaging it in the process. We pushed the cap back on but still had difficulty removing it again. A bit of inadequate design there.

The HP-branded 4-in-1 Stylus pen offers black ballpoint and touch-screen stylus by simple rotation of the barrel clockwise or counter-clockwise. When the user needs the torch or red laser pointing device, four tiny LR41 batteries - which are in the pack - have to loaded into the barrel, after which one of two buttons are pressed to select the required option.

The red laser was amply powerful, reaching easily across a large room. But we found the battery capacity limited for sustained use as the beam dimmed and then went out altogether after perhaps ten minutes or so of intermittent use, requiring a momentary rest before it sprang back to full brightness again for a time. However, with the usual safety precautions in mind concerning use of lasers, it works well enough for occasional use.

Cleaning Wipes

Finally, in this quick run-down of available accessories for the traveller, what could be more useful than a pack of dedicated cleaning wipes (ed - I'm sure we don't want to know!). Use of a handkerchief, even a 'clean' one, usually smears fingerprints (or detergent and softener residues) into a greasy mess on the screen. Far better is to use a specially formulated moistening on a non-scratch cloth, followed by a lint-free polishing cloth, both of which are in the pack.

We found this two-step, Belkin-marketed, HP iPAQ-branded offering works nicely on all screen and glass surfaces. It's far better than just any old cloth you happen to be able to bring to bear. Though just six sachets in the pack may seem a little mean at the price, we think a sachet should have a greater life than the use-once-and-throw-it-away that's suggested, though perhaps not for use on optics. It is recommended. Pop one sachet in your top pocket before leaving home or office.

In conclusion

Travelers need not feel devoid of options when conveniently portable devices such as these are available at reasonable cost. Naturally, selection from the wide range will be by need, but the eye does not have to be confined to our particular selection. The world is full of add-ons for the traveling computer user. We hope to have wetted our readers' appetite.

See Also:

Review: Belkin AC Anywhere

Review: Belkin Wireless PDA Keyboard

Review: Belkin USB Lamp and Belkin Retractable USB Cable

Don Bradbury