This is my latest acquisition from Trademe, and a very good one at that – the T5720 is almost a current model (not quite) and this particular one was made only four years ago. Although this one, which cost me $83, has 256 MB of RAM, I have ordered some more for it in order to be able to flash it with the 2008 update of XP Embedded. This will give it RDC 6.1 capabilities and therefore I should be able to take it home and connect over my broadband to the school system via our RD Gateway.
Our evaluation of lower end TCs continues and it is likely we will have more in classrooms by the end of the year (we have just one at the moment). Presently while there is a reasonably high volume being offered on Trademe, some of the prices being asked are more than I would expect to pay. However one of the major vendors (Core Technology Brokers) has told me they would discount to schools, this company also offers warranties, and I would be therefore inclined to choose them over ad hoc dealings with one off sellers and small players which sometimes are inexperienced in this line of product, also they would have the technical knowledge to be able to answer the various questions I have had up to now. Based on my experience to date I would recommend the T5300, T5510, T5520, T5700 models as being those which have sufficient capability to connect to a 2008 RDP server inside a network. So far I only have used the T5510 and T5520 models. Both of these are running Windows CE which is very suitable for RDP use because it has just enough capability and you don’t need to muck around too much to set it up. Here is a comparison table of some of the key specs of these different models of HP clients. I am preferring just to standardise with HP thin clients for now even though there are various brands.
| T5300 | T5510 | T5520 | T5700 | |
| CPU | TM5600 533 MHz | Crusoe 800 MHz | Eden 800 MHz | TM5800 up to 1 GHz |
| Flash ROM | 32 MB | 32 MB | 64 MB | up to 256 MB |
| RAM | 64 MB | 64 MB / 128 MB | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Graphics | Rage XC 8 MB | Radeon 7000 16 MB | S3 | Rage XC 8 MB |
| Display modes | 640x480 32 bit 800x600 32 bit 1024x768 32 bit 1280x1024 32 bit 1600x1200 16 bit | 640x480 32 bit 800x600 32 bit 1024x768 32 bit 1152x864 32 bit 1280x1024 32 bit 1600x1200 32 bit | 640x480 32 bit 800x600 32 bit 1024x768 32 bit 1280x1024 32 bit | 640x480 32 bit 800x600 32 bit 1024x768 32 bit 1280x1024 32 bit 1600x1200 16 bit |
| Printer port | DB25 | DB25 | DB25 | DB25 |
| Serial port | No | DB9 | DB9 | DB9 |
| Display port | HD15 VGA | HD15 VGA | HD15 VGA | HD15 VGA |
| USB ports | 1.1 x4 | 1.1 x4 | 2.0 x4 | 1.1 x4 |
| Network port | 100 Mbps RJ45 | 100 Mbps RJ45 | 100 Mbps RJ45 | 100 Mbps RJ45 |
| Audio | Internal speaker In/out ports | Internal speaker In/out ports | Internal speaker In/out ports | Internal speaker In/out ports |
| Keyboard port | USB only | PS/2 or USB * | PS/2 or USB * | USB only |
| Mouse port | USB only | PS/2 or USB * | PS/2 or USB * | USB only |
| OS | WinCE 4.22.144 | WinCE 4.22.144 | WinCE 5.04.595 | WinXPe 5.1.212 |
| RDP version | 5.1 | 5.2 | 5.5 | 5.2 |
* Note: T5510, T5520 have only one PS/2 port, for either a keyboard or mouse but not both. Unsure if port splitter can be used.
There are many other models but I have chosen four models than can be priced somewhere around $100-130. We have screens that are either 1024x768 or 1280x1024, meaning any of these models would suit. Personally my preference from all of the above would be the T5520 which tends to be at the higher end of current pricing, being the newest model. However I would be just as happy with one of the other three models for our typical classroom situation (subject to testing). As you can see the main difference between the 5300 and 5700 is the OS. For RDP support Windows CE is perfectly satisfactory (make sure you have the latest version on your platform; I had to flash the upgrade to the 5520 I had bought to fix problems with display redrawing). Note that all of these only support 4:3 native display ratios. If you are buying new screens make sure they are specced for the above list of resolutions. 15” screens (1024x768) are just about unobtainable new now but there are still plenty of 17” 1280x1024 screens available new and both sizes will be available second hand for years yet.
