Casio E-200 Review by Matt Keys
-First Impressions
The first time I saw the E-200 was online, and although I had never seen it in person, I could tell that I liked the looks of it. Being an ex-Cassiopeia owner, I expected quality. When I first received the device, I saw something that the pictures didn't show. Both sides of the device and around the screen were a shade of purple, which sounds bad, but it really isn't. The purple around the sides is much more prominent, while the purple around the screen looks more chrome. Personally I think this is pound for pound one of the most attractive devices from Casio, although I have heard other people claim it as "The ugliest Pocket PC ever"; it all comes down to taste I suppose.
One of the first things I noticed when I picked it up, was its weight. It is not the lightest of the new devices, and in fact it might be the heaviest at 6.7oz. But it feels just right in my hand, I wouldn't want it any lighter, or heavier for that matter.
-What's in the box
Nothing special here, I would have liked to see Casio package some extra goodies, but there isn't much of anything interesting besides the E-200 itself.
· Casio Cassiopeia E-200 PocketPC
· Soft slip case
· AC adapter
· Quick Start Guide
· USB cradle
· ActiveSync 3.5
· Microsoft Outlook 2002
· Cassiopeia Software Application CD
· E-200 Accessory Catalog (some cool stuff in there)
-Specifications
· Strong ARM 206MHz Processor
· PocketPC 2002
· 32MB Flash ROM, 64MB RAM
· 65,536 color reflective display (16-bit)
· USB host (through cradle)
· MMC/SD slot
· CompactFlash II slot
-Screen
As I am sure you all remember, Casio used a very vibrant TFT screen in their line of Cassiopeia devices. Known for their great indoor readability. Casio, with the launch of the E-200, broke with that tradition and conformed to the reflective TFT screen used by all of the new Pocket PC's. But don't be mistaken, even though all the new PocketPC's use the same screen technology, they have different levels of readability. The E-200 excels highly in this area, both for indoor and outdoor use. It doesn't have that crisp and vibrant look that the older models did, but as far as reflective TFT screens go, it is one of the best.
However, as some of you have no doubt heard, there have been some instances of a "dust problem" in the E-200. I have unfortunately seen this with my own eyes. I have been keeping track of it over the past few weeks, and the dust has not gotten any worst. This leads me to believe that the dust is not gathering under the screen, but that the dust has been there since being manufactured.
The only other complaint that I have about this screen is its size compared to the iPaq's screen. The Casio measures 3.5" diagonal, while the iPaq is 3.8". It might not sound like much but when you see the two side by side the difference is obvious. Despite the size difference, each device only has 320x240 pixels. This means that the iPaq's pixels are physically larger. So it is all a trade off in the long run.
-Buttons/Gamepad
I was disappointed to see Casio switch over to the "iPaq like" gamepad, with the joypad in the middle surrounded by buttons. The "GameBoy like" controls used in previous Cassiopeia's allowed for easy access to all buttons during play. In my opinion, Casio should have at least made it so pushing in on the joypad would register as the "action" button. With that setup, it is perfect for playing PocketQuake or other games which use mouse-look (mlook). As for the functionality of the button, such as registering multiple button presses and diagonals, the Casio fairs pretty well. It does not come without its issues though, while it can detect multiple button presses, it is a bit picky about which ones:
· The E-200 does detect diagonals
· You cannot however, rotate your thumb around the joypad. You must first lift your thumb, then press in the desired direction. Rolling your thumb around the pad while still holding down will result in you going in the same direction you were when you started rolling.
· The E-200 can detect both a direction and a application button
· The E-200 cannot detect a direction and two application buttons
· An application button, plus a direction, plus the action button is accepted
Most of these are simply not a problem in most games, the only one that annoys me, is the fact that you cannot rotate around the joypad without lifting your thumb. However after a while of using the E-200 I found that I wasn't having this problem as much, because I had learned to lift my thumb up a bit before changing directions.
-USB Host
The USB Host functionality really caught my attention. Casio was the first company to bring this feature to the market. The upcoming NEC MobilePro P300 will also feature USB Host.
The Casio came pre-loaded with a generic keyboard driver, and being that my keyboard is USB, I decided to give it a go. Overall, the experience was not what I had hoped for. The drivers and the keyboard both worked as expected, but it was something else that was bothering me. The USB host is done through the cradle, so you must have the cradle with you at all times to use it. This wouldn't be so bad if the cradle didn't have that big USB cable hooked up to it. In fact it would be quite mobile if you could detach the cord from the back of the cradle when you want to take it somewhere, however, Casio did not include this feature. I think this may have been because Casio wants to have AC power on while you use USB devices. For low power consuming things like keyboards it works just fine without hooking it up to AC power.
This of course could all be remedied by purchasing a PCMCIA sleeve (MSRP $149.99), which includes a built in USB Host port and second battery. But if you do not require the extra battery life, or the PC Card support, you could just pick up a second cradle and chop the cord off. Using my psycho cord chopping method, you would not only have USB functionality. You would also have a stand for your E-200 to hold it up while you type or use any other USB device.
-Expansion Slots
Casio included two expansion slots in the E-200. Only two other Pocket PC devices support this; the Toshiba Genio, and the upcoming NEC MobilePro P300. The configuration of the E-200 is one Compact Flash (CFII) card slot, and one MultiMedia Card (MMC) slot. The Compact Flash slot is located at the top of the E-200, and comes loaded with a "dummy card" to keep out dust and the like when you are not using a CF card. I am not a fan of removable parts, but I guess it is better than no cover at all. The slot takes both type I, and type II CF cards.
Casio's second form of expansion, the MultiMedia Card slot, is located on the left side of the E-200. I was a bit surprised how Casio made the cover; it doesn't meet the quality standards that I expect to see from a Casio device. The cover is made of thin plastic, and in order to open the cover you must push a button in on the back of the E-200 with your stylus. Once the cover is out, it is held on by plastic hinges and does not feel very sturdy. It takes a little bit of a struggle to close the cover again, as you must close it when it is in just the right position. Once closed it feels sturdy, however, it often makes a creaking noise while in your hand.
-Multimedia
Okay so here is the important stuff, because if you are anything like me you use your device as a movie/gaming device 90% of the time. These two operations demand a lot from a device, and historically speaking Cassiopeia's have always been up to the challenge. So over the past few weeks, I have forced myself to spend hours upon hours playing games and watching movie clips. And after all of my exhausting work, I feel confident enough to tell you about the Casio as a multimedia device.
When first released, the Casio E-200's had a problem with the GAPI (used in most games) which cause most games to not work, and sometimes led to a hard reset of your device. Casio was very quick to release a patch, which fixes this issue, and there has not been a problem with the GAPI since.
I have always been a bit of a movie buff, and as such, one of the first things I put on my E-200 was PocketDivX. I grabbed a few clips from our multimedia section and started playing. Both the screen quality and the playback were awesome. I never experienced any significant drops in FPS, and the E-200 was just nice to hold while watching a movie. A problem I had while watching movies on other devices is the fact that they would heat up a lot and become uncomfortable in your hand. I did not have this problem with the E-200, if anything I would say it stayed cool.
As a gaming machine, I think the E-200 fairs pretty well. It is very comfortable to hold in your hand. It has just the right weight/shape balance that really makes it easier to use. I loaded up a few personal favorites, like Snails, and Tennis Addict, and wasted the night away playing.
I have only come across one problem besides the gamepad issue, and that problem is the speaker. The problem is not that the speaker is in the joypad like you may have thought. I find that when I cover the joypad with my thumb it is just as loud as before. The problem is, the Casio's speaker is way to quiet. On the loudest volume setting it still isn't loud enough, and it becomes very scratchy sounding. So I am forced to use some of the middle settings, which unless you are in a completely silent environment, are simply not loud enough. The only way I can get acceptable volume is while using headphones. And headphones aren't exactly appropriate for all occasions.
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