The 300-series machines represented Hewlett-Packard's first entry into the field of Windows CE compatible handheld computers. With only 4 MB of RAM, a low-contrast grayscale LCD with optional backlighting, and only a 44 MHZ Hitachi CPU, the 320LX is a somewhat underpowered yet useful machine. Originally produced with Windows CE 1.0, shortly after its introduction HP released a user-installable operating system ROM upgrade to Windows CE 2.0.

Although the 320LX I have in my possession was produced only about 4 years ago, disappointingly HP no longer provides satisfactory support for this product. In particular, the ROM upgrade is no longer available.

Not long after the 300-series began, HP introduced a new product line name, Jornada, which is used to this date as the brand name for their handheld/pocket PC product line.

Windows CE 1.0 may be the first version of this modular operating system, but nevertheless it is quite capable. The development system is based on version 5 of Microsoft's Visual C++, and most essential features of the Win32 API are present. As a matter of fact, I was able to port some of my Win32 and Windows CE development projects to version 1.0 with relative ease, including my Pocket TELNET.

Unfortunately, in one way Windows CE machines represented a step backward in the evolution of pocket computers: these devices are not end-user programmable! That is, no built-in means exist for end users to create simple programs or applications on this device; development is performed on desktop computers using cross-platform tools.