.KEYWORD cereplace
.FLYINGHEAD POCKET PC POSSIBILITIES
.TITLE Can a handheld replace a laptop?
.FEATURE
.SUMMARY If your chiropractor bills are getting out of hand because you’ve been lugging around a bulky laptop and its assorted paraphernalia, the answer just might be replacing your laptop with the compact convenience of a Pocket PC. Jeff Carlson takes a look at the hardware and software available that may make the switch possible.
.AUTHOR Jeff Carlson
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A variant of this article, describing the Palm device, originally appeared in TidBITS, a wonderful, Mac-oriented newsletter that’s one of the oldest on the Internet. We liked it and republished it with permission in the July issue of PalmPower Magazine. Pocket PC Life Staff Editor Steve Niles was so intrigued with the idea of a handheld replacing a laptop, that he rewrote the article, with the Pocket PC in mind. Special thanks to Jeff and our friends at TidBITS for allowing us to reprint and rework this valuable article. Please be sure to visit TidBITS at http://www.tidbits.com.
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If you think notebook computers have yet to catch on, spend some time at the airport. Once, it was fun to see if anyone else carried a laptop, but now it’s hard to avoid being jostled by someone’s overstuffed Targus bag. Laptops have enabled people to free themselves from the desktop, work on the road, and stay connected via email and the Web from nearly any location.
However, even a compact laptop weighs heavy on the shoulders when you’re carrying it all day at a trade show or switching planes in a large airport where your gate is always as far away as possible. An increasing number of people in search of a lighter alternative are wondering if it’s possible to leave the laptop at home and just carry a Pocket PC.
The verdict? Yes, it’s possible to replace your laptop with a Pocket PC, but you’ll have to tolerate a smaller screen size in trade for added portability.
.H1 Getting your input
If you’re serious about leaving the laptop at home, definitely consider a keyboard for your handheld. Though the Pocket PC’s Transcriber handwriting recognition feature is excellent, there’s a limit to how much you can write before your hand cramps up, not to mention the drastic decline in accuracy that probably results when you try to write quickly. As an alternative, there are attachable keyboards available for the Pocket PC.
.H2 KeySync Keyboard
The KeySync Keyboard is a standard layout keyboard compatible with the Casio Cassiopeia, Compaq Aero, and the HP Jornada. It uses a mechanical keyswitch system for a "real keyboard" feel. You can take a look at it in Figure A.
.FIGPAIR A The KeySync Keyboard connects with the serial cable from a standard cradle or travel cable.
The KeySync Keyboard has a 62 key layout and serial port connectivity, and it uses three AAA batteries. It measures ten inches in length, four inches wide, and an inch high. It’s designed for travel purposes, but as you can see by those measurements, it could be somewhat bulky. If that’s an issue, check out this next keyboard.
.H2 Stowaway Portable Keyboard
The newcomer to the field is the Stowaway Portable Keyboard from Think Outside at http://www.thinkoutside.com/pocketpc.html. It’s the only Pocket PC accessory you’ll carry that will consistently elicit "oohs" and "ahhs" from people. It also includes Pocket PC-specific features like programmable function keys and shortcut keys, but the kicker is that it’s a full-size keyboard that folds up to roughly the size of the Pocket PC itself. It’s pictured in Figure B.
.FIG B This full-size keyboard folds up for easy carrying.
The keyboard is being distributed by Targus at http://www.targus.com/default_product.asp?sku=PA800U.
.H1 Keeping in touch
Unless you’re on a bona fide vacation, you most likely need access to email and the Web. It’s easier to stay connected now than with earlier Palm-sized PC models thanks to improvements made for the new Pocket PC.
.H2 Modem connection
On the hardware front, you’ll need a modem. Fortunately, there are quite a number of Pocket PC-compatible modem providers out there. Sierra Wireless puts out a CDPD Wireless Modem called the AirCard 300 Type II PC Card; Nextcell, Inc. has a CDPD Wireless Modem with GPS called the Pocket Spider; and three companies–Kingston Technology Company, Inc, PreTec Electronics Corp, and Xircom-have 56KB CF Modems.
.H2 Email software
Receiving your email is easy with Pocket Inbox, one of the built-in Pocket PC features. It gives you full email capabilities on your Pocket PC. Not only that, Pocket Inbox allows you to open and send email messages with Word and Excel attachments.
.H1 A (small) window to your data
A major consideration when thinking about replacing your laptop with a handheld device is screen size. The Pocket PC’s small screen has been greatly optimized thanks to changes in the operating system, such as the repositioning of the Start button. The Menu bar has also been repositioned to the bottom of the screen so that your hand won’t block what you’re working on when you go to select a Menu item. Another nice change made to optimize the screen space is the elimination of those classic 3-D buttons that look great on a desktop but served little purpose and cluttered the screen on a handheld device.
So, you may not need a 14-inch active matrix color display a laptop affords for everything you do, but larger displays are easier on the eyes over long periods. You may also find looking at the small screen uncomfortable when typing. Laptops work well because you can sit up straight and have plenty of screen to view, but with a handheld it’s easy to catch yourself leaning ever closer to the screen or craning your neck, positions that are ergonomic nightmares and can be harmful over longer periods of time.
.H1 Compatibility
Word processing used to be a problem with handhelds because of incompatibility between documents created on your desktop and your handheld device. Now, however, word processing is easy thanks to Pocket Word, and you can even do spreadsheet work using Pocket Excel. Both standard Pocket PC features allow you to view documents that come straight off your desktop.
.H1 Portable power
A last consideration is energy. You’re going to need to carry a cradle around with you to recharge the Pocket PC’s batteries. They’re significantly lighter than an extra laptop battery, but carrying these still adds weight and awkwardness. Most cradles have a rounded or triangular shape that refuses to pack well.
.H1 Handy mobility
One solution for staying portable might be to carry both a laptop and a handheld device. Each has its strengths, and in some cases, like word processing, you can swap between them (especially when flying, since most seats have barely enough room to sit comfortably, much less operate a laptop). However, thanks to the hardware accessories available and all of Microsoft’s improvements to the OS, it’s possible to leave the laptop behind and do all your computing on your Pocket PC.
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.H1 Product availability and resources
For more information on the KeySync Keyboard, visit http://ibizcorp.com/keysync_pc.html.
For more information on Think Outside’s Stowaway Portable Keyboard, visit http://www.thinkoutside.com/palm.html.
For more information on the Sierra Wireless AirCard 300 Type II PC Card, visit http://www.sierrawireless.com/ProductsOrdering/300.html.
For more information on the Nextcell, Inc. Pocket Spider serial or CF wireless CDPD modem with GPS capability, visit http://www.nextcell.com/solution/dspider4.html.
For more information on the Kingston Technology Company, Inc. Compact I/O 56K modem, visit http://www.kingston.com/compactio/CIO56K.asp.
For more information on the PreTec Electronics Corp. CompactModem, visit http://www.pretec.com/2sec_compactmodemb.htm.
For more information on the Xircom CompactCard Modem 56 GlobalACCESS, visit http://www.xircom.com/cda/page/0,1298,1_1-519,00.html.
.H1 Bulk reprints
Bulk reprints of this article (in quantities of 100 or more) are available for a fee from Reprint Services, a ZATZ business partner. Contact them at reprints@zatz.com or by calling 1-800-217-7874.
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.BIO Jeff Carlson is the author of Palm Organizers Visual QuickStart Guide, available at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0201700638/tidbitselectro00A/. Jeff is the Managing Editor of TidBITS at http://www.tidbits.com. He can be reached at jeff@necoffee.com.
