How's it look?
To look at it, the Advantage is a very sweet looking device. It's just the right size to fit in both hands, much like Sony's PSP. I have to confess though... at first I didn't care for the Advantage.

The positioning of the buttons and the analog stick felt awkward and misplaced. It took about a week, week and a half, but I finally got used to it. Now it feels natural. I think my initial opposition was merely that it was different to what I was accustomed.

In addition to a Windows, OK, and a programmable browser button, the Advantage has a volume slider, camera and wireless manager buttons, and stereo speakers. Included ports are for VGA video out, 3.5mm audio out, and a miniUSB port for charging, syncing, and audio out. You can see it all in Figure B.

FIGURE B


Multiple views of the Advantage. Roll over picture for a larger image.

Included with the Advantage is a very nice leather case, which leaves all buttons and ports accessible as you can see in Figure C.

FIGURE C


HTC includes a nice leather case. Roll over picture for a larger image.

I'd really like to see more device cases include slots for credit cards and driver's licenses though. Like most, this one has none.

I haven't written a check in a year and I rarely carry cash; I use my credit card for everything. As such, I really don't have much need for a traditional wallet, preferring to carry my necessary cards in my device's case; and I know I can't be the only one.

As you can see in Figure D, the keyboard magnetically attaches to the front of the device, acting as a screen protector, yet continues to provide essential information.

FIGURE D


Vital info is still available while the keyboard protects the screen. Roll over picture for a larger image.

One of the neatest aspects of the Advantage is the ability to output the video to another source with the included cable. It has a myriad of useful applications for both the boardroom and entertainment room. Figure E shows video from the Advantage being displayed on a VGA monitor with speakers plugged into the 3.5mm audio jack.

FIGURE E


Output the video to a monitor or TV. Roll over picture for a larger image.

Beyond the ability to simply play videos, the video-out option allows the Advantage to function similar to a desktop or docked laptop. It can be used to display presentations, spreadsheets, etc. to groups as well. Outputing the Notes display to a large monitor or media projector, you can use the Advantage like a smartboard as shown in Figure F.

FIGURE F


Use it like a smartboard. Roll over picture for a larger image.

How's it measure up?
This section will showcase the benchmarking tests done on the Advantage using Spb Benchmark. Figure G shows the benchmark Index.

FIGURE G


The benchmark Index tests overall Pocket PC speed. Roll over picture for a larger image.

Figure H illustrates the CPU benchmark results.

FIGURE H


Benchmark results from the CPU tests. Roll over picture for a larger image.

In Figure I, you find the results of the File System benchmark.

FIGURE I


The File benchmark test how quickly the device writes files to memory. Roll over picture for a larger image.