Glass Lantern, LLC - Articles: Pocket PC Resources 3/3/2003

Pocket PC digital photography resources
Updated March 3, 2003

This article provides information on products useful to digital photographers who use (or are planning to use) a Pocket PC. For general Pocket PC and digital photography information, additional links are provided at the bottom of this article.

Overview

Your digital camera is great, but how do you store and view all of your pictures when you're on vacation or doing a big shoot on location? Laptops are heavy and fragile, yet you need a bigger screen than the tiny one on the back of the camera. Memory cards are expensive, and who needs another one-trick-pony purchase, such as a picture storage device, that only does one thing? With the right software, a Pocket PC is a great tool for viewing and managing the transfer of pictures from your memory cards to less expensive storage. The Pocket PC has a large screen visible even in direct sunlight, a fast processor, good case and accessory options, long battery life, and much more. With it, you have access to the full spectrum of built-in Pocket PC software, including a File Explorer to manipulate your files, voice recording functionality, etc. Don't have a Pocket PC yet? There are surprisingly inexpensive devices on the market that can fill this role. For example, to transfer images using software like Pixfer, you would:

Purchase a Pocket PC device if you don't already have one.
Purchase an accessory for the Pocket PC that connects to a hard drive, where you will store your images. This accessory is typically an expansion pack that slides on to the back of the Pocket PC and has a PCMCIA (PC Card) slot built-in.
Purchase a compatible hard drive.
Run Pixfer to transfer images from your camera storage card to the hard disk.

Recommended Pocket PC Kit

If you are not familiar with Pocket PC devices, here is our guide to the equipment you'll need and how it all fits together.

We recommend an HP iPaq 3800 or 3900 series Pocket PC. These have a 16-bit color screen that is very bright, and the iPaq line has good expansion pack, battery, and case options readily available. Depending on the type of memory card your digital camera uses, you may require an adapter for your storage type. The following table only applies to the iPaq 3800/3900 devices - if you use a different Pocket PC, you'll need to look at the slots and accessories available for it. The images below show an older iPaq 3600.

Camera memory card type	Adapters required if only viewing images	Adapters required if transferring to hard disks
SD/MMC	None	PC Card expansion pack
Compact Flash (CF)	CF expansion pack	dual PC Card expansion pack + CF -> PCMCIA adapter
PCMCIA (PC Card)	PC Card expansion pack	dual PC Card expansion pack
Memory Stick	CF expansion pack + Memory Stick -> PCMCIA adapter	dual PC Card expansion pack + Memory Stick -> PCMCIA adapter

For example, let's say you have a camera that uses Compact Flash cards. If you simply wanted to view images with a program like PocketLoupe, you could use an iPaq with a Compact Flash expansion pack attached:

If you also wanted to transfer images to inexpensive hard disk storage with Pixfer, you could use a setup such as the following, with a dual PC Card expansion pack attached: (Note Toshiba 2GB PCMCIA drive shown as well.)

You would then insert a CF card in a PCMCIA adapter and a hard disk like the Toshiba 2GB PCMCIA drive into the dual PCMCIA expansion pack (shown partially inserted here):

Or, for larger storage capabilities, you could use an external PCMCIA hard drive such as the IBM Travelstar 8E 8.1GB drive:

That's essentially the setup. Of course, you can add other accessories such as cases and screen protectors, external battery packs, etc. Some suggestions are discussed later in this article.

Choosing a Pocket PC

If you want to select a different Pocket PC than our recommended kit, there are a number of issues you'll need to consider. The Pocket PC marketplace changes rapidly, and there are plenty of sites (see end of this article) that provide specifications and reviews for the models that are currently available. Here are some specifications you'll want to pay close attention to:

Screen color depth: Make sure the Pocket PC you choose has enough colors to display your photographs effectively. Most current devices are 16-bit color, but some are 12-bit. Although the extra 4 bits of color may not sound like it would make a big difference, it means the difference between only 4,096 colors and over 65,000. If you are going to view pictures, buy a 16-bit color Pocket PC.
Slots for cards and storage: Some Pocket PC devices have built-in slots that can hold add-on storage cards. Ideally, your Pocket PC should have a slot that allows you to insert a card from your camera without an add-on expansion pack (sometimes called a sleeve or jacket). Some newer devices even have two slots, such as one SD and one Compact Flash. This would allow you to transfer pictures from SD to a less expensive 1GB IBM Microdrive without the additional bulk and expense of an add-on expansion pack.
Expansion accessories: If you want to store images on larger, less expensive hard disks, make sure the device has a PCMCIA (PC Card) expansion pack available. Even from a single manufacturer, some models support an expansion pack, and others do not. Consider the size and weight of expansion accessories as well - some add-ons are significantly larger and heavier than others, but may also offer extras such as additional battery power.
Processor & memory: If you are going to view multi-megapixel digital images, make sure you have a fast processor (XScale 400Mhz or faster) and at least 32MB of built-in memory. Note that XScale isn't currently faster than the older StrongArm 200Mhz processors, but future versions of the Pocket PC operating system are likely to take better advantage of the XScale processor...go for the newer processor unless you get a great deal on an older model.
Battery capacity: You should be able to get a significant number of hours out of the built-in battery. For long trips, make sure that you can hook up an external charger or battery pack easily. (See the power management section below.)
Outdoor screen readability: Most laptop screens become impossible to see in sunlight, while many Pocket PC devices really shine both indoors and out. Make sure to try a Pocket PC in different lighting situations to make sure you'll be able to use the device and view images effectively.

Power management & accessories

If you're out of battery power, your Pocket PC will do an excellent imitation of a paperweight. Fortunately, it isn't difficult or expensive to bring along some extra power. First, some general battery tips:

If you are transferring pictures from a card to a disk, it will take longer with slower Compact Flash cards and your battery life will be reduced. Fast cards are not drastically more expensive than slow cards. Rob Galbraith and DPReview have lists of which cards are fast and which are slow.
If you're going to be driving on your trip, consider a car lighter power adapter.
Cold weather can kill your battery life very quickly. Try to do transfers while the battery is warm.

Even with these tips, Pocket PC will still eventually run out of power, but there are many solutions for getting more even when you are away from an outlet. With all of these options, make sure you get a cable and connector that will work with your specific Pocket PC. Fortunately, many of the Pocket PC devices use the same connector.

There are power extenders that take AA (or larger) batteries to power your Pocket PC, from suppliers such as Semsons & Co. Or, you can build your own. Some take alkalines, and some will take rechargeable batteries, preferably NiMH.
The Electric Fuel Instant Power cartridge is powerful and lightweight.
The Digital Camera Battery company has made cables at least for the Compaq iPaq, although they don't list them on their site. Inquire and perhaps they will make one for you.
Solar chargers, ranging from the do-it-yourself approach, to commercial products such as the iSun or the Pocket-Pal. Read up on these, as some people say they work great, and others give them the thumbs-down.
Perhaps at some point we'll be able to wind up our Pocket PCs to charge them up.
Most manufacturers have an array of charging options, such as car chargers. Check with the company that created your Pocket PC.

Storage

The internal memory in a Pocket PC won't hold many high resolution pictures. If you're using a program such as Pixfer to transfer pictures from the card that your camera uses to clear space for more images, you'll want additional add-on storage.

PCMCIA card drives - The best size/convenience/cost tradeoff is probably a PCMCIA drive such as the MK2001MPL Toshiba drive. Available under the Kingston or Toshiba brand, they are currently 2GB and 5GB in size. They are the size of a thick credit card, and fit completely inside a Type II PCMCIA slot. They are also low power, so you get quite a bit of transfer mileage.
External PCMCIA connector drives - These are more bulky, but can be very inexpensive. They are essentially a laptop hard drive in a box attached to a cable ending in a PCMCIA card adapter. You plug the adapter into a PCMCIA slot for your Pocket PC, and it appears on the device like any other storage card. Examples include the IBM Travelstar 8E 8.1GB hard drive. (Around $50) You'll need a (currently free) driver for most of these drives. Check out the Storage Brick driver for more information and a list of additional compatible drives. This is probably the least expensive storage you're going to find...at the downside of size, convenience, and battery life.
PCMCIA to Compact Flash adapters. If you wish to use a PCMCIA hard drive, but do not have a slot to plug it into, there is an adapter from semsons.com that will let you plug a PCMCIA card into a CF slot. Although this appears to work in many cases, it could potentially cause problems due to large power requirements the CF slot is not set up to handle.
USB hard drives. Although some Pocket PC devices can make a physical connection to a USB hard drive, the Pocket PC does not have any software (drivers) built in to run the hard drive. Other Pocket PC's do not have any USB host (the necessary connection) capability at all. There are two potential solutions. First, for devices that have a USB host connector as an add-on option, such as some Toshiba models, there is an "in progress" Pocket PC USB mass storage driver. This effort appears to still be in the early phases, may not be reliable, and currently requires significant technical ability to make it work. Second, Ratoc is taking orders for a Compact Flash USB host adapter bundled with a mass storage driver.
Direct camera connection. Why not just hook up your camera directly to the Pocket PC and transfer the images off? For cameras that appear as a normal hard disk via a USB connection on a standard desktop PC, the above USB solutions may work with a direct camera connection. The key is whether the camera truly supports the "mass storage" USB specification. If so, it should function no differently than an external USB hard drive.

Software

There are a large number of tools out there for your Pocket PC:

Of course, Pixfer is critical for efficient image transfer, and PocketLoupe displays your images, including raw formats such as Canon CRW, Nikon NEF, Minolta MRW, and Fuji S2 RAF.
StorageTools formats and verifies storage cards if you have corruption issues.
The Storage Brick driver allows you to use external PCMCIA connector hard drives.

Miscellaneous

Some devices can be overclocked to make them run faster. Although this is obviously not supported by the manufacturers and has the potential to damage your device, some users find it significantly speeds up their devices.
The Toshiba e550g does have a PCMCIA expansion pack, but it is only sold in Japan. Someone used pdakobo to send him one, and it apparently works fine with storage PCMCIA cards. Information can be found on the e550g Fan Site accessories page.
Dell Axim and storage: We have not found a way to connect a CF card and a PCMCIA drive to a Dell Axim device. The semsons PCMCIA->CF adapter may make a PCMCIA drive work, but it would tie up the only CF slot on the device, and this is not a particularly robust solution even if it would work.
The Casio e200 Pocket PC has a PCMCIA sleeve available.

General Pocket PC & Digital Photography info

Pocket PC:
PocketPC.com, Pocket PC Passion, Brighthand, PocketPCThoughts
Pocket PC software:
Download.com, PocketGear, Handango
Equipment prices:
PriceWatch, TechBargains
Digital Photography:
Digital Photography Review, Steve's Digicams, RobGalbraith.

Update History

03/03/2003	Updated with current information and links.
11/06/2002	Added recommendation for full kit & images of iPaq setup. Minor other edits & clarifications.
09/03/2002	First posted.

Disclaimer

Articles attempt to provide accurate and timely data, but use this information at your own risk; Glass Lantern, LLC is not responsible for any bad experiences due to inaccuracies, exclusions, or other issues, and does not vouch for any of the products or suppliers in this article, which is meant to provide guidance only. Make sure you are comfortable with the solution you decide to use through your own research, and investigate any company before handing over your credit card. Now go take pictures.