Thread: Need an experienced opinion or two on 20x...

Hi,
Is this the typical noob "What should I buy?" post? You decide...

I purchased a 20x/Mobile PC combo with intent to use Mobile PC, Google Earth, and USA Photomaps simultaneously on a Fujitsu u810 for off-road 4x4 exploration. Using bluetooth DUN w/ my trusty Treo650 for the internet part. Slow, but useable. After much weeping & gnashing of teeth, it's actually all working, although there are still some sleep/resume issues w/ gpsgate & com0com, etc.

The point is that the included version of Mobile PC is useless w/ anything other than a directly connected Garmin unit, i.e. virtual com ports won't fly. You need the "serial numbered/activated" version of Mobile PC to "see" serial ports, which is a separate purchase.

I'd read a lot of very positive things about Mobile PC & the 20x. I'll mention at this point that although it works pretty well on this tiny laptop screen, there are a couple of things I dislike. Broadly speaking, Garmin has sacrificed configurability for ease of use. An example is the omission of any way to set preferences for driving speeds on different road types. The unit is somewhat optimistic on initial ETA's so far, and I'm not a slow driver... There are also some glaring omissions in the POI data for Home Depot, Lowes, Walmart, etc in highly populated areas of NJ, for stores that are many years old. That shouldn't be. But overall, its a nice little kit.

Finally, my question. Since I'll need to purchase the software again anyway, I may not be married to the 20x either if there are units that:
a) have better real-world sensitivity/performance in a similar sized package.
b) have lower current draw. The 20x runs a little warm. I'll be using this micro-laptop for canoing/hiking/kayaking as well. The battery life is reputed to be 5 hours. We'll see, but every milliamp helps. I'm also considering bluetooth, if the reduction in USB current draw is a wash w/ the extra BT radio current.

I know this is a new product, so searching (I have...) hasn't yielded a lot of comparative data, so I'd value any opinions at this stage, especially regarding how Mobile PC stacks up to other s/w solutions for UMPC's, since I'm new to this.

BTW, for anyone considering doing something similar, the configuration hassles are, IMO, worth it. Being able to quicky toggle between realtime street level navigation, satellite imagery, and topographic maps on three taskbar buttons doesn't suck at all.

Thanks for reading,

____
Neil