Free to go: the latest wireless PDAs

Entrepreneur,  Dec, 2002  by Amanda C. Kooser

• E-mail
• Print
• Link

WIRELESS PDAs: COOL GADGETS or business essentials? You make the call. Hard-traveling entrepreneurs who want to lose their laptop ball and chain will find a lot to like in the current crop of connected PDAs. Your money can be better invested in other features if you don't venture out of the office much--but we're here to talk about what to look for in a wireless-enabled palmtop.

Though the lines are increasingly blurry (see the Handspring Treo Communicator), we try to differentiate between smart-phones and wireless PDAs, which are PDAs first of all. Their primary wireless use is for data, Net surfing, checking e-mail and connecting to your own business network on the go. Generally you'll get a bigger screen and more expansion options than with a smart-phone. All those things that used to require a notebook computer and a phone line can be handled on one small device.

Of course, wireless doesn't end there. The $599 (all prices street) Toshiba PocketPC e740 specializes in Wi-Fi connectivity. This is ideal if you have an 802.11b wireless LAN setup or are a connoisseur of the many Wi-Fi hot spots that have popped up like mushrooms across the nation. Airports, hotels and even some coffeehouses will let you check your e-mail or browse the Net. Just keep security in mind. You won't want to access sensitive business documents in strange places without safeguards. On the integrated Bluetooth end of things, the $749 HP iPAQ PocketPC H3970 covers short-range wireless needs.

Palm blazed the trail for wireless handhelds with the much-loved and much-maligned Palm VII. They've followed that device with the $399 Palm i705. Its 8MB RAM and 33MHZ processor aren't knockout specs, but its price and straightforward, stripped-down nature is appealing. To get the e-mail, Net and instant messenger goodies, you have to sign up for Palm.Net service. That starts at $19.99 per month for 100KB of data transfer and goes up to $39.99 per month for unlimited use. All transmissions are encrypted.

The T-Mobile Pocket PC Phone Edition comes stocked with a hands-free headset and speakerphone capabilities. Available through T-Mobile (www.t-mobile.com), this device will look good to entrepreneurs who place a premium on phone functions, but still want to hang on to all the regular Pocket PC features. Data plans are sold separately from voice plans, and a VPN is required to connect to your business network. The Pocket PC Phone Edition is positioned as a "mobile office solution." It's a well-rounded device for Microsoft operating system fans.

RIM Blackberry messaging pagers are well-known in the business world. RIM has since iced the cake with the $499 957 Wireless Handheld, which runs on a proprietary operating system. You get all the standard PDA functions along with one of the most powerful mobile e-mail setups on the market. If you desire regular cell phone services on top of all that, look to the Blackberry 5810 model. Microsoft Exchange or Lotus Domino users who are outfitting an entire team of mobile workers will want to give RIM's enterprise e-mail solution service option and quantity discounts a close look. There are extra expenses both upfront and on a month-by-month basis with wireless PDAs, but when it helps your business run more smoothly, it's worth the cost.

Shopping List

HOW DOES THIS NEW CROP OF WIRELESS PDAS FIT WITHIN THE CONSTRAINTS OF
YOUR BUSINESS'S BUDGET?

COMPANY/MODEL            CONTACT                   OS

HEWLETT-PACKARD          (800)888-0220             POCKET PC
HP IPAQ PACKETPC H3970   WWW.HP.COM

PALM                     (800)881-7256             PALM 4.1
i705                     WWW.PALM.COM



RIM                      (877)255-2377             PROPRIETARY
957 WIRELESS HANDHELD    WWW.RESEARCHINMOTION.COM


T-MOBILE INTERNATIONAL   (800)937-8997             POCKET PC
POCKET PC PHONE EDITION  WWW.T-MOBILE.COM          2002


TOSHIBA                  (800)TOSHIBA              POCKET PC
POCKETPC e740            WWW.CSD.TOSHIBA.COM       2002


COMPANY/MODEL            PROCESSOR     MEMORY    FEATURES

HEWLETT-PACKARD          INTEL PXA250  64MB RAM  INTEGRATED BLUETOOTH
HP IPAQ PACKETPC H3970   400MHZ

PALM                     MOTOROLA      8MB RAM   GRAYSCALE DISPLAY,
i705                     DRAGONBALL              REQUIRES PALM.NET
                         VZ 32MHZ                SERVICE ACTIVATION
                                                 FOR WIRELESS

RIM                      INTEL 386     5MB RAM   FLASH BUILT-IN QWERTY
957 WIRELESS HANDHELD                            THUMB KEYBOARD,
                                                 PASSWORD PROTECTION

T-MOBILE INTERNATIONAL   206MHZ        32MB RAM  AVAILABLE THROUGH
POCKET PC PHONE EDITION  STRONG ARM              VOICESTREAM ON GPRS
                                                 NETWORK

TOSHIBA                  INTEL PXA250  64MB      INTEGRATED WI-FI,
POCKETPC e740            400MHZ        5DRAM     COMPACTFLASH II
                                                 AND SO EXPANSION SLOTS

COMPANY/MODEL            STREET PRICE

HEWLETT-PACKARD          $749
HP IPAQ PACKETPC H3970

PALM                     $399
i705



RIM                      $499
957 WIRELESS HANDHELD


T-MOBILE INTERNATIONAL   $550
POCKET PC PHONE EDITION


TOSHIBA                  $599
POCKETPC e740

COPYRIGHT 2002 Entrepreneur Media, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning