Itronix fex21 Brochure
801 South Stevens • P.O. Box 179 • Spokane, WA 99210 • 509.624.6600 • 800.441.1309
Technical Bulletin
Compact Flash Cards Fex21, GoBoo
k H•206, and
GoBook Q•100
Introduction
There are two purposes for this Technical Bulletin:
1 To notify customers of a potential issue that may be encountered when using certain date codes of SanDisk Compact Flash (CF)
Cards supplied with Itronix Handhelds.
2 To identify the CF Cards qualified for use with Itronix Handhelds in the event that customers purchase them from a source other
than Itronix.
Itronix conducted an investigation after receiving field reports of CF Card issues from handheld customers. The investigation identified
two different scenarios: a date code issue with SanDisk CF Cards purchased from Itronix, and a compatibility issue with the handheld
hardware and CF Cards other than those supplied by Itronix.
two different scenarios: a date code issue with SanDisk CF Cards purchased from Itronix, and a compatibility issue with the handheld
hardware and CF Cards other than those supplied by Itronix.
Date Code Issue
At the request of Itronix, SanDisk conducted an investigation and determined that date codes from June 2002 through November 2002
may not work correctly resulting in card errors and lost data. It has been determined that this anomaly can occur when using the identified
date coded SanDisk CF Cards in Fex21, H-206, and Q100. The type and nature of this problem is commonly referred to as an “over-
program” failure; technical aspects are beyond the scope of this document. The CF Cards are not electrically damaged by this condition
and the problem can be corrected by the vendor.
may not work correctly resulting in card errors and lost data. It has been determined that this anomaly can occur when using the identified
date coded SanDisk CF Cards in Fex21, H-206, and Q100. The type and nature of this problem is commonly referred to as an “over-
program” failure; technical aspects are beyond the scope of this document. The CF Cards are not electrically damaged by this condition
and the problem can be corrected by the vendor.
CF Card Compatibility with Itronix Handheld Products
With regard to the second scenario, OEM grade SanDisk CF Cards are the only CF Cards qualified for use in Itronix handheld products. The
use of any other vendor CF Card may result in CF Card errors and loss of data.
use of any other vendor CF Card may result in CF Card errors and loss of data.
Fault Condition
Two fault conditions have been associated with CF Cards. The first fault condition has been observed with specific SanDisk Compact Flash
Card date codes as well as cards that are not qualified for use in Itronix products. This fault results in data corruption on the card, which can
cause Windows CE to report “lost clusters,” “cross-linked clusters,” “invalid file length,” or even to report that the card can not be read and
request permission from the user to reformat the card. The second fault condition has only been observed with cards that are not qualified
for use in Itronix products. The CF Cards in question appear to function normally until the handheld is suspended either manually or by
inactivity time-out. When the user attempts to power the handheld on there is no display, the backlight may function, and the unit will
appear to charge when connected to external power.
Card date codes as well as cards that are not qualified for use in Itronix products. This fault results in data corruption on the card, which can
cause Windows CE to report “lost clusters,” “cross-linked clusters,” “invalid file length,” or even to report that the card can not be read and
request permission from the user to reformat the card. The second fault condition has only been observed with cards that are not qualified
for use in Itronix products. The CF Cards in question appear to function normally until the handheld is suspended either manually or by
inactivity time-out. When the user attempts to power the handheld on there is no display, the backlight may function, and the unit will
appear to charge when connected to external power.
97-0097-001 03 April 2003