Hi all,
Below I will summarize concerns about the Apex and possible
solutions, if possible. Hopefully this will explain some things
about the Apex that people may be wondering about.
1. Lack of Compactflash card support
First of all, remember that the Apex has three USB ports, not two
like the mPower has. Therefore, you can use a card reader in one
port and still have two free. It is a hassle to carry a reader,
but it is a solution.
Next, keep in mind that the Apex has 8gb of storage on its flash
disk, so even if you have a 4 or 8gb cf card, you can move the
entire thing onto your flash disk and not have to worry about the
card at all.
2. Backups
It is important to think about backing up your flash disk. The
mPower has just 120mb of storage to worry about, so you can fit
several backups on a small card. The Apex has 8gb to back up, so
you must use a much larger capacity card or thumb drive for
backups.
3. Wifi cards
Keep in mind that, if you have a wifi card with your mPower, you
will not need it with an Apex. You can hold onto it, but we are
not sure if the Apex will include the drivers for such cards.
Likewise for the compactflash VGA adapter, if anyone happens to
have one; the Apex has built-in VGA, so that adapter is no longer
required.
4. Bluetooth Audio
Remember that the Apex will support bluetooth headsets and
speakers, so you do not need special ones like the bluetooth
headsets with audio bluetooth dongles. Also, the Apex supports
two bluetooth connections at once, so you can use your bluetooth
gps receiver and your bluetooth audio at the same time.
5. Dial-up, serial, and Infra-red
There is no longer a built-in dial-up modem in the Apex, so you
must purchase a usb modem if you need dial-up access. It is the
same with infra-red: there does not seem to be an infra-red port
in the Apex, so if you rely on this for anything (internet
through a phone, ActiveSync, and so on) you will need to switch
to a new connection, such as bluetooth or USB. Finally, it is
the same case with the serial port; there is no longer one, so it
would be a good idea to switch to bluetooth or USB.
6. Lack of Options
If you buy an mPower, you are only offered two choices: bt32, or
qt32. There is no VoiceNote option, and no 18-cell option.
All these are just possible issues you may run into when
upgrading from an mPower to an Apex. I have not said much in the
way of good points since (A) that is not the purpose of this
email and (B) I would go on and on about how great the Apex seems
to be.
Have a great day,
Alex
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