List Price: $409.08 Our Price: $258.20 You Save: $150.88 (37%)

Product Description

The ASUS A626 perfectly combines versatility and style. This palm-sized marvel matches high quality with an impeccable standard of design and caters to the user's expectations for personal handheld accessories.Exceptionally slim at only 1.57 cm, the ASUS A626 really stands out from most of the other PDAs on the market. The casing is made of stainless steel and the whole PDA is less than 158g in weight. The 3.5" anti-glare touch screen completes the outlook of the A626 and provides the feeling of a solid and high quality luxury accessory.In situations where utilizing a notebook is more hassle than convenience, the A626 can really shine. With its wireless, it can keep the user connected to email, the Internet and corporate networks; while Bluetooth 2.0 with Enhanced Data Rate speeds up data exchange with a huge range of digital peripherals (phones, printers, etc) by up to two to three times over conventional Bluetooth standards. With ASUS's user-friendly application "Remote Presenter", it can also be easily utilized to remotely link and control presentations on a computer via Bluetooth. The most important feature is the fact that all data is stored in Flash memory, so precious information remains saved even if all battery power in the handheld has drained away.The ASUS A626 runs on Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0, and also provides true multimedia entertainment options. With its front-mounted speakers, it plays video and audio formats and has a huge library of games available for the Pocket PC platform. For its size, the A626 is simply the most versatile mobile entertainment gadget.With the combination of powerful applications and an ultra-slim outlook that radiates high quality, the A626 is a PDA of choice for the well-heeled and well-traveled.

A great productivity companion that will keep you connected to email and the Internet, the ultra-slim, palm-sized ASUS A626 PDA stands out from other PDAs on the market. Weighing just over 5.5 ounces, it features a brightly colorful 3.5-inch anti-glare touchscreen LCD and durable, fashionable stainless steel case. In situations where utilizing a notebook is more hassle than convenience, the A626 will help you stay productive and connected with its Windows Mobile 5.0 operating system and 54g Wi-Fi LAN (802.11b/g) for downloading email and surfing the Web in both corporate and coffeehouse environments.

With ASUS's user-friendly Remote Presenter application, the A626 can also be easily utilized to remotely link and control presentations on a computer via Bluetooth. And since all data is stored in flash memory (128 MB ROM with 64 MB SDRAM), your most important data remains saved even if all battery power in the handheld has drained away. You can expand the A626's memory vie optional Secure Digital (SD) memory cards.

The Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC operating system includes the Microsoft Office Mobile suite, which features Word Mobile, Excel Mobile, and PowerPoint Mobile. Meanwhile, the File Explorer application makes it easy to browse the files. It also supports Windows Media playback right out of the box. With Windows Media Player, you can play streaming and downloaded video and audio content in a variety of formats. You can also keep favorite tunes loaded on a memory card and listen to your music wherever you roam. With its front-mounted speakers, it plays a variety of popular video and audio formats (MP3, WMA).

With the integrated Bluetooth technology, you can connect wirelessly to peripherals such as your cell phone and make cable clutter a thing of the past. Bluetooth 2.0+EDR is up to three times faster than its predecessors, offering a maximum data rate of 3Mbps, and is also backwards-compatible with Bluetooth 1.x devices.

Specifications

• 312 MHz Marvell XScale processor
• 3.5-inch TFT LCD touchscreen with 65k colors, 240 x 320-pixel resolution (QVGA)
• 128 MB Flash ROM and 64 MB SDRAM
• 3.5mm earphone jack
• Integrated microphone and speakers
• Full duplex recording and playback
• 1200 mAh removable/rechargeable battery
• Dimensions: 2.8 x 0.6 x 4.6 inches
• Weight: 5.57 ounces

What's in the Box
ASUS A626, rechargeable battery, AC adapter/charger, carrying case, mini-USB cable, CD with software and drivers, printed user guide

Customer Reviews:

• LOVE IT!!!!!
  I love this Product!! It has been a life saver!! I love that I can connect it to outlook. I would buy again....more info
• GOOD DEAL
  This ASUS PDA has proven to be a solid performer. This was purchased to replace a much older PDA. It is easy to use, and I am completely satisfied....more info
• OK device
  Pros: nice built, nice screen, decent touch surface, good wi-fi, decent battery life, etc... all is as spec'd.
  Cons:
  - does not reconnect the SD card after resuming from standby. You cannot really use it like an MP3 player keeping your music on the card. Every time you power it on/resume you have to remove and reinsert the card to reconnect it.
  - very annoying and distracting bright LED blinking under the ASUS logo (under the mask) when connected to wi-fi (which is all the time, for me).
  As most electronics these days, a product rushed to market without proper usability testing.
  
  Follow up:
  Installed the firmware update from the Asus site, SD card issue solved.
  I also had an issue with some full screen applications not displaying properly. Installed the (older) LCD display update patch and this issue was solved also.
  They could have included this older display patch in the newer firmware patch.
  Also, they could have notified me of these updates, as I had registered the product. What is the point of registering then?
  Since starting to use bluetooth, I notice the similarly annoying blue blinking LED.
  There is also an issue with reconnecting my bluetooth device after resuming from sleep.
  
  I feel I should up my rating to 3.5 stars....more info
• Worked OK until it didn't work
  Purchased in mid September and worked OK for a couple of weeks. Still didn't like the fact that it won't recognize sub-folders in Outlook - so if you want all your contacts on the PDA, you have to copy them all into your main "Contacts" folder on main computer.
  After two or three weeks, the screen went blank. If I removed the battery and reinstalled it, I would see the splash screen, but once the product was "on" the screen went black. I could snyc from main computer, just couldn't see anything on the screen of the PDA!
  I e-mailed ASUS, the manufacturer. They responded a few days later telling me it couldn't be handled by e-mail and to call a number. I called the number and got a recording that said, "We are sorry we couldn't take your call personally. Please leave a number and we'll call you back." I left a message and my number. Never heard from them.
  I e-mailed the Seller at the address provided by Amazon. Business apparently goes by both TheFactoryDepot and/or Bright Lights Business. A couple days later I got an e-mail that said, "Will e-mail you tomorrow with instructions on how to get a replacement from ASUS." Two days later, a message was left on my answering machine telling me to call TheFactoryDepot to resolve the problem. I called the number they left on two separate occasions. Both times got a message that said, "This mailbox is full."
  I finally contacted Amazon directly, and they have initiated a refund under their A-Z Guarantee, which is truly a lifesaver. The product might be good, and it's entirely conceivable that I just got a bad one. But the complete lack of customer support from both ASUS and TheFactoryDepot/Bright Lights Business makes the product worthless in my opinion.
  But hat's off to Amazon - their customer support is top rate!...more info
• ASUS 626
  Good machine. Needed a replacement for an aging pocket PC. Did not want a phone to infiltrate my pocket PC. It interfaces with my home PC seamlessly and has added functionality my old PPC did not have. With bluetooth and WIFI it is a great little PC. If you want a powerful hand held PC then, this is it. ...more info
• Asus A626
  I bought the Asus A626 PDA as a gift for my son after having read several positive reviews. He seems to like this PDA very well so far....more info
• Decent product
  It works in a decent form. Like other people said, the wi-fi coverage is poor compared with a laptop, but it connects. Sometimes in my wireless router the connection is interrumpted without reason, but after a while it runs again. I updated to the last OS version provided by Asus (unfortunately not in spanish)and after that the messenger stops to work. So I must connect trough the internet page. It surf the web well, considering the size of the screen. I wanted it to being connected when I'm abroad, and with such a lot of places with wi-fi available now, is usefull for me. Of course, it always depends the needs you have. ...more info
• Asus A626 3.5" PDA Love it
  Preformed much better than expected. I was able to find lots of free software. Skip the windows media player and install TCPMP instead, plays well and did'nt have to convert most of video I already had.Only complaint is battery life. That would be more tolerable if I could pick up additional batteries and had a way to charge them. Might even buy one for my daughter now the price is $30.00 cheaper. Amazon overnight shipping was really overnight, I had it in less than 24 hours....more info
• asus a626
  was delivered from the vendor in a timely fashion it appears to have inherited some of the traits the xp has does like to crash palm is prob more stable but this unit does interface with the computer where the palm would not play nice with xp 64...more info
• Love this device
  I purchased this item for just storing phone numbers and addresses that I can take with me. But it does so much more. I would recommemd this product to anyone who whats an organizer. It keeps track of your appointments, you can make notes if you need to and so much more. I am very glad that I purchaes this mobile organizer from Asus....more info
• A Very Nice PDA
  I've owned a few PDA's in my life (like most of you). I was at the point where I bought into the idea that a phone with pda qualities would satisfy my need for constant information management and communication. I was wrong. I realized I just wanted my phone to make and receive calls. Enter the Asus 626. This is a sleek, user friendly device with a killer screen and WM6 standard. I don't use the PDA like I used to, but when I need it, it's there. The bluetooth connects perfectly. Wi-Fi connections are a snap, and I can surf the net in portrait or landscape at the touch of a button. The media player is pretty good, too.
  
  Maybe in a year or two (or when the bugs are worked out on the I-Phone), I will try the smartphone that does everything again. For now, I'm happy with my Asus....more info
• rolling disappointments
  stoked to get it, specs seemed great, but got it and was distressed about thickness of it..oh well, just takes getting used to...but weird lag time from press of power button and actual display on and ready to use....not long, but longer than expected...then the OS seemed so slow....and for all its memory, it did not seem to juggle more than a few applications being open....THEN the final straw....after syncing one day, it would not power up...hard reset got the ASUS screen, the green Windows screen, then the screen would go black and the buttons would flash their blue backlight a few times and then nothing would happen...or the red light that indicated wifi connection would flash a few times and then nothing....all of this after less than 30 days of ownership....
  ipaq 4000 series still the best in my book...too bad you cant put WM6 on those...oh well, asus...i am not impressed...more info
• Excellent PDA with no significant flaws
  Introduction
  
  This is my review on the Asus MyPal A626 Pocket PC PDA. It is a pure PDA, not a phone, though does have WiFi and Bluetooth capabilities.
  The basic specs are as follows:
  
  -Intel/Marvell XScale PXA270 312Mhz
  -64MB RAM
  -256MB Flash
  -Windows Mobile Edition 6 with mobile office
  -3.5" 320x240 16k color touch screen
  -802.11g and bluetooth
  -3.7V 1200mAh L-ion Battery
  -3.5mm headphone jack, SDIO slot, speaker, microphone, Ir
  
  
  
  Build and first impression
  
  First off, the build quality appears and feels quite good. The front Is a brushed steel or chrome with shiny chrome on the edges. The backside of the PDA is a soft gray plastic. The buttons are solid and have a nice feel, but the 4 task buttons are positioned to high to really make good controls if you plan on using emulators or some games on it. Also, the PDA is designed to be held either portrait or landscape, but assume I am holding it portrait when I am referring to it.
  
  The top of the PDA has the centered power button and and offset SD slot. The right side has the 3.5mm headphone jack, hold slider, and stylus. The left side has the USB port. The bottom side has the Ir and reset button. The microphone is above the screen on the front, and the speaker and indicator lights are below the buttons.
  
  Everything is well placed and convenient. My only complaint here is the bright LED indicator lights being right under the buttons, as they are bright and blink instead of staying on steady. I would have preferred them be on top or something less intrusive to the eye.
  
  
  Basic Usage
  
  Well, coming originally from Pocket PC 2002, I was interested in seeing what was added/changed in Windows Mobile Edition 6. (WME6)
  For one thing, it's more Vista like in it's loading bars and in it's resource management. On initial boot, it is already using half of the available RAM, leaving only about 34MB for your programs to run in. Conversely, my PPC2002 device had 64MB, and the left about 42-48MB for program storage and usage. Also, with this device, Windows and your programs are actually stored in the built in flash, Although it has 256MB (probably 248MB or so once converted), only 174MB is available to the user. However, it does come with a lot more, which justifies the OS becoming much larger.
  
  My PCC2002 was a light version to save on memory, so word didn't even have spell check. Well that is there now, excel now does graphics, and there is a power point viewer. Additionally, there are built in drivers and settings for WiFi, Bluetooth, etc. They have also added Transcriber, a new way to write, which I'll give more detail on later.
  
  Other notable new features for people comming from older PPCs are the CPU management, which is adjustable, portrait and landscape rotation, and quick tasks in the bottom right of the "Today" screen. The device is pretty responsive under default settings, but if you put the CPU to "Maximum", it is very responsive, though you sacrifice battery life. I keep it on "auto" most of the time, which is sufficient for most tasks.
  
  The device is comfortable to hold, thought the telescoping stylus is overly light and short, primarily because it comes out of the short side of the device. However, the stylus and screen work well together and are pretty accurate and easy to use. The screen requires just the right amount of effort IMHO.
  
  
  Audio
  
  Many people like the idea of the iPhone because it is a phone, PDA, and Music player all in one. However, a PPC device can play audio as well, and some do quite a good job of it. The sound of the ASUS through it's headphone jack is just above average. If anything, it's a little flat at it's default settings, so I go to the audio settings, where you get a bass and treble slider, each from -2 to +2, starting at 0. I found +2 for treble and +1 for bass works well for my music and headphones, but I'm sure this varies between headphones used. It also has a 3D setting for sound, which is a slider with about 18 stops, with 0 as the default. I liked it on about 5. With these settings on my headphones, most of my music sounded quite good, with good detail and minimal distortion. However, on songs with heavy deep bass, it didn't distort or quiet, but it could be a little sloppy with some of those notes. Nothing major. Volume levels will go high enough for most, and unless you have the bass on +2 and max the volume with some heavy bass music, you won't get distortion. I used the included Windows Mobile 10 for music, as well as TCPMP for music and AV.
  
  Overall, sound quality is on a similar level to an iPod, but there are some portable music devices out there with better sound. Definitely usable!
  
  
  Video Playback
  
  With TCPMP, this device is excellent at playing AV. I actually found a patch for TCPMP that allows the device to play flash videos, so I can get on youtube or a similar service and watch the videos full screen on my PDA. They are as smooth as a regular PC is with the high compression video. I have also done a quick test with Divx files on an SD card, but it was a lower bit rate one, which played fine. I have yet to try a higher bitrate Divx video yet, but I don't think it will have trouble. I update this once I give that a go.
  
  The screen is a pleasure to watch video on. While it won't be that bright in direct sunlight, the backlight is even and color seems fairly accurate an pleasing. I give this device props over video iPods because of it's larger screen and ability to play more formats, though will have less space unless you stock up on SD cards.
  
  
  Battey Life
  
  This is actually a strong point of this PDA. Even with it's modest 1200mAh battery, it's usage life is about 4-24 hours. If you set your playist up, and just let it play at moderate volume with the device on hold so the screen is off, you should easily get over 20 hours. Playing a high bit rate video with the backlight turned up should yield about 4-6 hours. Internet usage with the WiFi on isn't a whole lot better than palying video, but all things considering, I think this is excellent battery life. My HP iPaq 1910 only got 3-6 hours for all tasks, even in it's prime, and had difficulty playing anything but video tailored to it, and that was overclocked.
  
  
  Software Issues
  
  My only real complaint about this PDA is that Windows Mobile Edition 6, and reported 5 as well, have problems running older PPC software properly. The emulators made for ARM processors and PPC2000-2003 run significantly slower on this device thant hey did on my older, slower PPC2002 iPaq 1910. I am having a hard time finding newer emulators that were made for the newer OS, so I am kind of stuck for now. So if you have specific older software you want to run on it, try the software on a WME5 or 6 device first to see if it has any issues.
  
  
  [b]Included Accessories[/b]
  
  I was very happy to find the ASUS to come with an extra stylus and a simple soft case for the device. It also came with a USB cable, a wall charger, 3 CDs. and the booklets. The package was very good, and made me feel that ASUS really cares what their customer think.
  
  
  [b]Conclusion and Who it's for[/b]
  
  The ASUS MyPal A626 is an excellent PDA overall. It has no significant weaknesses, it comes well equipped for the price, and if you know what you are getting, you should be very happy with it.
  
  So who is the Asus A626 for? It is for someone who wants a PDA that can do more than schedule, but you don't need it as a GPS or Cell Phone. The built in flash is ALOT of space for a PPC, as most programs are only 500KB to a few MB, so you can fill it up with programs, and still have the SD slot available. Personally, I don't want my PDA and phone to be the same device, because I don't want to have to not use my PDA so my phone doesn't die, or vice versa. I like having the two devices separately, though you can communicate the two with bluetooth. I would like to see the ability to bluetooth your contacts to your phone, too.
  
  This device has a huge list of things it can do. Scheduling, Music, Video, Voice Recording, Notes, Typing, Games, Internet, and much more with appropriate software or addons. No, it's not also a cell phone, but it doesn't claim to be, so if you're not expecting it, it is a great device, all for about $300.
  ...more info
• A good deal!
  I adore my ASUS A626. I use the contact list, task list, schedule, and documents daily in my job as a pharmacy technician. When I upgraded from my last PDA, I chose the A626 because it was an affordable Pocket PC, a great alternative to the Palm based PDA. Granted, my favorite games are unplayable now as the Pocket PC and Palm systems don't 'mesh' properly, but I love my A626.
  
  The only downside I can see is the lack of accessories. I have only found one case for this item, and the case isn't that convenient (It has to be opened to write or page down in a document).
  
  My personal pet peeve is I can't 'page down' in word on the handheld. I read documents on my handheld quite a bit, and the only way to 'page down' is to tap the bar on the side of the page. I've gotten too used to pressing the 'down' button on the direction pad of the handheld... But, that is just a pet peeve.
  
  Am I glad I bought it? Yes. Would I buy it again? Definitely....more info
• REPEATED PROBLEMS
  I bought this as a replacement for an old Dell model & this unit has caused me headaches in synching with my computer. It takes a LONG TIME to synch--often needing to delete all Outlook data and start from scratch. Now it doesn't synch at all--and I can't figure out why. It also has problems displaying Word files. I need to convert to simple text files in order to display them. ...more info
• cheap hardware does come with a price
  I wish I can say this is a great bargin but it requires more attention on software support, I wouldn't bet on low price for great software support....more info
• Great unit but compatiblity issue kills its name.
  The ASUS MyPal A626 is one of the best Pocket PCs I have ever seen.
  
  But unfortunately, neither Amazon.com's description nor the manufacturer's note did not explain that it doesn't work with Vista computers very well.
  
  Although there is no problem recognizing the device and interact by putting files around, when it comes to synchronizing with Microsoft Outlook 2007, it does nothing.
  
  Windows Mobile Device Center tells me that it has been synchronized, but I find no difference on the unit.
  
  If someone knows a solution to this, I would greatly appreciate if you could contact me via Amazon.com...more info