Reviews
BoxWave
accessory round-up
Good stuff for your Treo and other gizmos, too
BoxWave
Corporation of Bellevue, WA, makes and sells an absolutely dizzying
array of accessories for just about any make or model of PDA or
smart phone, plus iPods, and even the new Sony Playstation Portable.
Wandering
around their Web site, I couldn't even count how many different
products they offer, or for how many devices. There's something
for everyone, no matter what kind of portable device you own.
Since my latest love is my Treo 650, I sourced some of their goodies
to enhance mine, but they sell many others not covered here, so
browse around their site and warm up your credit card; you're
bound to find something you'll want.
miniSync
- $28.95
The miniSync is an ultra compact combo sync and charging ãcradleä
that does its job alone, or connects to other BoxWave products
to do even more. Some described below require it.
Small
and pocketable for the road warrior, or anyone sick of carrying
around messy bundles of fat cables and connectors, the miniSync
has a standard USB plug on one end, and a Treo 650 multi-connector
on the other. In the center is a round spring-loaded reel holding
35ä of very thin, but extremely strong cable. BoxWave emphasizes
the tensile strength of this cable by picturing it on their site
holding two bricks in the air. I didn't try that trick, but the
insulated cable is very thin, much more so than a stock sync or
charging cable, which lets it easily retract into the 1ä diameter
center spool. Just grab the two connectors with both hands and
pull them out together, as long as you'll need up to its maximum
length. There are some click-stops along the way so you don't
have to pull them out the full 35 inches if you don't want to.
There's no physical HotSync button, so just initiate sync to your
computer using the HotSync icon on the Treo itself. When done,
disconnect the two connectors, give them a simultaneous tug and
they'll retract back into the center spool. No bulky cords to
get tangled into a mess. A brilliant piece of engineering.
Rating: A+
VersaCharger
- $34.95
This
stylish little gadget combines the functions of an AC wall charger,
a DC car charger, and an airplane charger (optional) in a single
translucent plastic body a little smaller than a prescription
pill bottle. It attaches to and requires the miniSync, which docks
with its USB port on one end. A pair of AC outlet prongs retract
from and fold back into it, and the other end sports a DC 12-volt
outlet plug protected by a snap on plastic cap. Smooth, sleek,
nothing to snag in your pocket, and small enough to travel with
anywhere. Plug it into either kind of power outlet, hook it to
the miniSync, plug that into your Treo's bottom port and the VersaCharger's
LED will change from red (charging) to amber (almost done) to
green (fully charged), while the Treo 650's LED changes from red
(charging) to green (fully charged). This thing couldn't be easier
to use, and it looks cool too.
VersaCharger's
Adaptive circuitry works with North American power standards and
international power standards (both frequencies and voltages).
Rating: A+
Battery
Adapter - $24.50
When
there's no other power source available, and your Treo 650's battery
icon gets dangerously low, fear not. BoxWave's sells yet another
accessory to save your bacon. The Battery Adapter (requires miniSync)
is just under 5ä long, with a 3ä cable that terminates in a standard
USB plug. Load it up with four AA batteries, and you can fully
recharge your Treo roughly 4-5 times. With one of these in your
pocket or purse, you can blab away on long calls, Web browse for
hours, and never have to worry about where the nearest AC or DC
outlet is. This charger is the perfect device in emergency situations
or where there's simply no other power source for recharging.
A tiny on/off switch and green LED let you know it's powered up
and the AA batteries have sufficient juice to get the job done.
Warning!
BoxWave's site recommends you use disposable Alkaline AA batteries,
but this does NOT apply if you're hooking it to a Treo 650. A
BoxWave tech rep explained it to me this way: ãAA Alkaline batteries
output a voltage of 1.5V while rechargeable NiMH 1800mAH AA batteries
are 1.25V. Four Alkaline batteries will transmit too strong a
voltage at 6V combined. Some devices such as the Treo 650 are
a bit more sensitive about voltage discrepancies. So NiMH 1800mAH
batteries will be the best thing for the Treo 650 when used with
the Battery Adapter.ä I tried four freshly-charged NiMH 1800mAH
batteries with the battery charger and my Treo 650 and they worked
perfectly. I told BoxWave they should add this warning to their
Web site's description of the battery charger, especially for
Treo 650 owners.
Rating: A
Styra
Ballpoint pen/stylus
The Styra is BoxWave's replacement stylus with a built-in ballpoint
pen, revealed by pulling off the black plastic top end cap. A
stylus with a built-in pen is indeed a handy tool, and this one
is identical in form to the Treo 650's stock, one-piece metal
stylus, but for peace of mind, I would have preferred to see the
Styra made with a threaded, screw-off, machined metal end cap
over the pen. What worries me is that after a lot of removing
and replacing the cap to use the pen, the plastic cap's grip on
the stylus body could loosen just enough that one day I might
fingernail it out of my Treo's silo and the cap would come off
but leave the stylus behind in its slot. Trying to fish it out
of there with no end cap would be an absolute nightmare. (Single
$5.95, two pack $11.99)
Rating: B
FlexiSkin
- $34.95
Here's BoxWave's grippy Treo 650 silicone rubber skin. Available
in six different colors, it's virtually identical to the uniQase
skin I reviewed in our last issue, with miniscule differences
in the shapes of the cutouts over the camera and speaker. But
BoxWave chose to make the big plastic belt clip and attachment
button optional, and the sample I received has a totally smooth
backside and a short hand strap/lanyard instead. The semi-translucent
skin leaves the Treo 650's keyboard uncovered, while a form-fitting
strip covers the function buttons just above it, and like the
uniQase skin, it has all the right cutouts for easy access to
everything, feels warm and grippy in hand, it's washable, and
retains its shape no matter how often you pull it on or take it
off, due to the nature of silicone rubber. About 1/8th inch thick,
a rubber skin is the lowest profile case you can put around a
Treo 650.
Rating: A+
Screen
protectors
Palm packs a clear screen protector in the box with each of its
latest models, but it has to be the worst I've ever seen. From
a single sheet, you have to scissor along the black outlines to
create a flimsy protector for the size of your model's screen.
No matter how carefully you do it, the results are never going
to look very good, and the extremely thin protector is a pain
to install, prone to fingerprints and stylus marks, and, well,
it's junk. Use it if you must, but BoxWave's two flavors of screen
protectors are infinitely better.
Packaged
with an ultra-soft screen cleaning cloth, both flavors are a perfect
fit for whatever model PDA or device you own. Sharp, square corners,
no scissors or fumbling needed, and while they are thicker than
palmOne's cheapie, the anti-glare model repels dust, doesn't show
fingerprints, improves handwriting recognition and stylus taps,
and reduces over 90% of UV rays caused by reflections.
Since
my Treo 650 is often in the car displaying GPS maps, the anti-glare
feature radically cuts down on unwanted reflections, and gives
the screen a wonderful semi-matte surface without impairing its
brightness, contrast, clarity, or colors, while the stylus gets
a slightly better and more accurate ãbiteä on its surface. ãSatisfyingä
is the best word to describe it.
Installing
one of these is easy, since the plastic protector comes with a
pull-tab backing - just carefully center it and then use the included
stiff little card to smooth out any bubbles. If you're off a bit,
it's trivial to remove it, reposition it, and smooth it down again.
BoxWave's screen protectors can even be removed, rinsed under
running water, shaken dry, and re-applied, and they should last
for a very long time, even under constant use. This is simply
the best screen protector I've ever seen.
If
the anti-glare model isn't your style, the Clear Touch Crystal
is BoxWave's other model. Touted as ãthe absolute clearest screen
protection availableä it's hard to argue with that. Installation
is identical to the anti-glare model, and it's also easy to re-position
and rinse off and re-install if necessary. BoxWave claims that
if installation doesn't look perfect edge to edge, top to bottom,
give the protector a few days to ãsettle downä and it will almost
meld itself to your device's screen and actually look better with
time.
I
suggest that you use not only their supplied soft blue cloth to
clean your screen first, but a can of compressed air to blast
away any dust particles would also be a good idea.
A
$600.00 phone or any device's glass screen demands protection.
It's a VERY expensive part to replace if you scratch it. So put
Palm's cheesy screen protector on your Treo as a temporary solution
only, but if you want your phone's screen to keep that ãfresh
out of the boxä look, I doubt you'll find any better solution
than BoxWave's ClearTouch new generation protectors. (Clear Touch
Anti-Glare- single $12.95, three for $38.85; Clear Touch Crystal
ö single $12.95, three for $38.85) Rating on both:
Rating: A+
In
dealing with BoxWave, I found their reps courteous, knowledgeable,
fast to respond, and they offer an unbelievably huge selection
of accessories. Buying multiple products in bundles will save
you some bucks. My only gripe is that there's no phone number
published on their Web site. Call me old-fashioned, but sometimes
I want a fast answer, and don't want to wait for emailed responses.
But that's just the way a lot of companies do business these days.öHarv
Laser
BoxWave Corporation www.boxwave.com
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