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By Chris De Herrera 
Copyright 1998-2007
 All Rights Reserved
A member of the Talksites Family of Websites

Windows and Windows CE are trademarks of Microsoft
Corporation
and are used
under license from owner.
CEWindows.NET is not
associated with Microsoft 
Corporation.

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by their respective companies.

Windows CE Versus Windows 95/98
Total Cost of Ownership
By Chris De Herrera, Copyright 1998
Version 1.02    Revised 11/28/98

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Individual users and corporations are debating whether or not to use a product like Windows CE.  It has some features of Windows 95/98 but it does not run Windows applications.  This white paper discusses some of the issues about supporting Windows 95/98 and Windows CE computer systems.

Here's a comparison of one family of the small notebook PCs versus a color Windows CE system:

Initial Costs
Description Libretto 50CT (Discontinued) Libretto 70CT Libretto 100CT NEC MobilePro 750C HP Jornada 820 NEC MobilePro 800
Operating System Windows 95 Windows 95 Windows 95 Windows CE 2.0 Windows CE 2.11 Windows CE 2.11
Purchase Price $700 $900 $1600 $800 $860 $999
Office $350 (97) $350 (97) $350 (97) Included (Pocket Office) Included (Pocket Office) Included (Pocket Office)
Modem - 33.6k $100 $100 $100 Included Included - 56k Included - 56k
Total $1,150 $1,350 $2,050 $800 $860 $999

Notes:  In order to install Office 97 on the Libretto computers you would need the floppy disk version or purchase a CD Rom drive at additional cost.  All prices quoted are approximate based on the lowest price from Shopper.com as of 8/28/98.

Time Estimates
Description Libretto 50CT Libretto 70CT Libretto 100CT NEC MobilePro 750C HP Jornada 820 NEC MobilePro 800
Install Operating System Preinstalled Preinstalled Preinstalled In Rom In Rom In Rom
Install Office 97 1 hour 1 hour 1 hour N/A N/A N/A
Full Backup 1 hour + 1 hour + 1 hour + 5 to 30 minutes 5 to 30 minutes 5 to 30 minutes
Full Restore 1 hour + 1 hour + 1 hour + 5 to 30 minutes 5 to 30 minutes 5 to 30 minutes
Reinstall 2-3 hours + 2-3 hours + 2-3 hours + 0 hours, In Rom 0 hours, In Rom 0 hours, In Rom
Cold Boot 2-5 minutes 2-5 minutes 2-5 minutes 30 seconds 30 seconds 30 seconds

Notes: Times quoted above are estimates. Windows 95/98 systems can be easily corrupted by the user if the user deletes Office 97 programs.  Windows CE systems have Pocket Office in rom so they can not be deleted.  Additional programs can be installed on Windows CE systems.

Connectivity

Description

Libretto 50CT

Libretto 70CT

Libretto 100CT

NEC MobilePro 750C

HP Jornada 820

NEC MobilePro 800

Ethernet Network

Yes, PC Card

Yes, PC Card

Yes, PC Card

Yes, PC Card

Yes, PC Card Yes, PC Card

IrDA (Infrared) (Printing, RAS)

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes Yes

Serial (Printing, RAS)

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes Yes

Parallel (Printing)

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

No No

VGA

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes Yes - 800x600

Note:  The Libretto requires the mini dock to provide serial, parallel and VGA ports.

Specifications

Description Libretto 50CT Libretto 70CT Libretto 100CT NEC MobilePro 750C HP Jornada 820 NEC MobilePro 800
CPU Speed 75mhz 120mhz 166mhz 80mhz 190mhz 133mhz
Cache (On CPU) 16k 16k 32k 24k 24k 24k
RAM/Hard Disk 16 MB/810 MB 16MB/1.5 GB 32 MB/2 GB 16 MB (user definable between storage and execution space) 16 MB (user definable between storage and execution space) 32 MB (user definable between storage and execution space)
Size (inches) 8.3 x 4.5 x 1.3 8.3 x 4.5 x 1.4 8.3 x 5.2 x 1.4 9.6 x 4.8 x 1.2 9.5 by 6.75 x 1.25 9.6 x 7.5 x 1.1
Weight (LBS) 1.85 1.88 2.35 1.80 2.63 2.6
Battery Life (Hours) 2-3 2-3 2-3 10 10 standard, 15 extended 8+
Instant On Resume Resume Resume Yes Yes Yes
Screen Size (Length,Width, # of colors) 640x480x16M 640x480x16M 800x600x16M 640x240x256 640x480x256 800x600x64k
Screen Size (diagonal, inches) 6.1 6.1 7.1 8 8.2 9.4
Screen type TFT TFT TFT STN DSTN DSTN
Card Slots 1 PC Card 1 PC Card 2 PC Card, Cardbus 1 PC Card, 1 CompactFlash 1 PC Card, 1 CompactFlash 1 PC Card, 1 CompactFlash

Conclusion

Although Windows CE does not have the same functionality that a Windows 95/98 system does, it is less expensive to support and maintain.  Windows CE cost less on initial purchase, requires less effort to maintain and are functional faster for users when they need them.  I recommend that users consider these issues when adopting computer systems for part time or less sophisticated users.

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