Created: 12 September 2026 · Last edited: 15 October 2026
The Zaurus “Poodle” SL-5600 was Sharp's successor to the “Collie” SL-5500 and introduced a substantially faster 400 MHz Intel XScale PXA250 processor, while retaining the compact portrait-oriented design, 3.5-inch 240 × 320-pixel colour touchscreen and slide-out QWERTY keyboard of its predecessor. It provided 64 MB of RAM and 16 MB of flash memory, together with CompactFlash and SD/MMC expansion slots and infrared connectivity. Unlike the “Collie”, the “Poodle” also incorporated a built-in speaker and microphone, making it better suited to multimedia applications and voice recording.
The Zaurus “Poodle” was sold in Japan as the SL-B500, while the international version was known as the SL-5600.
It supported numerous CompactFlash connectivity options, including 802.11b Wi-Fi adapters, CDPD wireless modems, Ethernet adapters and 56K V.90 modems.
The “Poodle” continued Sharp's use of Linux, and its faster processor made it considerably more capable than the 206 MHz StrongARM-based “Collie”. It also attracted a following among Zaurus Linux enthusiasts, who later developed alternative distributions and ROMs such as OpenZaurus.
Specifications
- Display: 3.5 inches, 240 × 320 px — Reflective TFT LCD
- CPU: Intel XScale (PXA250) — 400 MHz
- Battery: 1700 mAh (removable)
- Operating system: Embedix Linux
- OS version at launch: 2.4.18
Advertisement
Zaurus Poodle SL-B500
- Waterproofing: None
- Dustproofing: None
- Operating memory (RAM): 32 MB
- Built-in storage memory: 64 MB
- External storage: SD/MMC, CompactFlash Type I/II
The SL-B500 was the Japanese-market version of the same Poodle platform. One known software difference is that the Japanese version came with the NetFront 3.0 browser pre-installed, whereas the US version came with Opera 6.
The photo shows an NTT DoCoMo PHS modem card connected to the Zaurus SL-B500.
Zaurus Poodle SL-5600
- Waterproofing: None
- Dustproofing: None
- Operating memory (RAM): 32 MB
- Built-in storage memory: 64 MB
- External storage: SD/MMC, CompactFlash Type I/II
The SL-5600 was announced in mid-November 2002 but only reached retail stores in the US on 17 March 2003. It was the international version of the Poodle and the direct successor to the SL-5500, combining the new 400 MHz XScale processor with 64 MB of RAM and built-in speaker and microphone.
Zaurus Poodle SL-5600C
- Waterproofing: None
- Dustproofing: None
- Operating memory (RAM): 32 MB
- Built-in storage memory: 64 MB
- External storage: SD/MMC, CompactFlash Type I/II
The SL-5600C is the Chinese version of the SL-5600. The market release date is unknown but the first publication I discovered (linked below) dates from 16 August 2004 and says the device is now available. If the article was written when the SL-5600C became available, this would mean the Zaurus arrived in China close to two years after the Japanese and about a year and a half after the US release.