Toshiba recently introduced a more powerful model in their slim e300 series of Pocket PCs: the e335. Outwardly, it's identical to the earlier e310, but it comes with a more powerful processor, more internal memory, and a slightly lower price.

Toshiba markets two versions of this product: the e335 and the e330. The only difference between these two is that the e335 comes with a user-installable version of ArcSoft PhotoBase, an electronic photo album program. We tested the e335 for this review.

From the front, the e335 measures 4.9 x 3.1 inches, about the same as other popular Pocket PCs. However, it is only 4/10 of an inch thick and weighs just a little over 5 ounces. I like this combination: thin and light enough so it doesn't weigh you down, but not too tiny.

The e335 has a simple design and a clear, 64 K color display. It's powered by the 300 MHz version of the new Intel PXA250 processor with XScale technology. This processor adjusts its own speed dynamically to conserve battery power while still meeting the needs of the program you are running. However, unlike some of the other new Pocket PCs, the e335 has no onboard utility to allow the user to adjust the processor speed manually.

With one Secure Digital expansion slot and no optional expansion sleds, expansion capabilities will be limited to storage memory only, not I/O. The e335 is powered by a 1,000 mAh lithium-ion rechargeable battery. We did not have a chance to benchmark the battery life, but the e335's predecessor, the e310, scored well on these tests.

Basic software from Microsoft and Toshiba

Like all Pocket PCs, the e335 comes with the Microsoft Pocket PC 2002 operating system and applications built in and ready to use. These standard applications include Pocket Outlook (Calendar, Contacts, Tasks, and Inbox), Pocket Word, Pocket Excel, Pocket Internet Explorer, MS Reader, Windows Media Player for the Pocket PC, and more. Also included is a CD that has a number of additional Microsoft applications, including ActiveSync. A complete description of the Microsoft software that comes on every Pocket PC is available in the At A Glance section, page 47, or on Pocket PC magazine's Web site (www.PocketPCmag.com/BG2003/MS_Software.asp).

Toshiba included two additional built-in utilities with the e335. The first is DataBackup, a simple utility that lets you back up all the data, programs, and other files found in internal RAM to a file storage card in the SD slot. You can also use this utility to restore data from this backup storage card. This is a handy feature when you are on the road and don't have access to ActiveSync. This is an "all-or-nothing" utility—you cannot back up and restore selected data or files in RAM.

DataBackup, built into the e335, lets you save data to, and restore it from, an SD card.

The second utility is Home, which lets you organize built-in and user-installed programs into three "tabs": Main, Programs, and Games. There is also a Running tab that lets you see which programs are active and close them down if you want to.

ArcSoft PhotoBase is an add-on program that comes with the e335 only. This program is found on a separate CD and must be installed by the user. PhotoBase is an electronic photo album that lets you organize and display digital photos. It has a sync feature that lets you synchronize images between your desktop and your Pocket PC.

ArcSoft PhotoBase is an electronic photo album program that comes on CD with the e335.

You can organize your electronic photos into albums and run a slide show, adjusting the display time for the slides or advancing manually at your own pace. Special effects can be applied to the transitions between slides. You can also send images to friends via e-mail or infrared transfer.

The low-end Pocket PC market is starting to get crowded

The slim, silver-colored e335 is small enough to slip into a purse or pocket, but powerful enough help you organize your life, read e-mail, take notes, view and edit documents, and more. It's so small it fits easily in a pocket with other items, but be sure to protect the display. One way to do this is to carry it in the soft slip-case that comes with it. Another is to use the "screen overlays" that are available for $19 (12 pack) from Toshiba's online store.

The storage-only SD slot is a limitation only if you want to use I/O devices such as GPS or wireless LAN. The maximum capacity for current SD cards is 512 MB, ample for most file storage needs. At $349 this is a pretty affordable device. Still, a number of other Pocket PC manufacturers have small $300 devices, and Dell has a $200 Pocket PC. Toshiba will have some competition.

According to Toshiba, the e335 is the consumer version of the product that will be offered through Toshiba's retail channel, which will include CompUSA, BestBuy, and other computer retailers. We checked on 1/7/03 and it was available at the CompUSA online store for $319.98 (includes $50 mail-in rebate). The e330 version, without ArcSoft PhotoBase is available through online stores such as MobilePlanet (www.mobileplanet. com) and CDW (www.cdw.com/), and can also be purchased through Toshiba's online store (www.shoptoshiba.com).

The Home utility built into the e335 helps you organize applications as well as open and close them.