Products in Perspective: Take it personally (PDAs)

A few years ago palmtop computers had little to offer. They had tiny display panels, poorly designed and bulky cases moulded from cheap plastic, and keyboards that were not easy to use. Worse, the operating systems and applications were idiosyncratic and lacked any real power or functionality. If you spotted someone using a palmtop on a train, chances are the owner was a clued-up computer buff with a penchant for parading the latest gadgets.

Today, palmtops are very different. For a start, they are now collectively known as Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) and, along with mobile phones, have matured into a mass-market product.

In many respects, PDAs are just as capable as desktop PCs. Generally, they have powerful processors and well-designed operating systems that make the most of them.

The applications have also grown up. Where once you would have been grateful for a note-taking facility and an eight-digit calculator, most of the latest PDAs have fully-featured word processors and spreadsheet programs that are capable of performing mammoth, cross-referenced sales forecasts.

However, is a PDA a suitable business replacement for a ?real? computer? After all, there are plenty of reasonably priced notebook PCs and, unlike PDAs, PCs share a common platform ? Windows.

PDAs, on the other hand, have no standard operating system: a machine from one manufacturer is unlikely to be able easily to exchange data with another. Without a standard, you could end up holding a dead duck if support for your chosen system dries up.

Naturally, if you have a specific job in mind for a PDA and you don?t care about being unable to update it, you will probably want to invest in a system that is rugged enough to last for the life of that task.

But what does ?rugged? mean? Can a PDA be rugged and pocket-sized and, if not, what are the options? Can it communicate with the computers in your office, or will you spend months building a contacts database on your PDA only to find it cannot be transferred to your PC?

With so many factors to consider, choosing a PDA can be a nightmare. Whether your business is based in a spare bedroom or a Boston skyscraper, making the wrong choice could be expensive.

To help you make a decision we have looked at some of the most popular PDAs on the market. In addition, we examine some of the emerging technologies and talk to a company that recently embarked on a PDA-based replacement for an outdated system.

Psion 3c

When it comes to PDAs, Psion is the industry veteran. The UK company launched its first machine, the Psion Organiser, in 1984, and has since gone from strength to strength. Its latest machine is the 3c which has 2Mb of RAM and a backlit screen.

The 3c has the same clamshell-style case as its predecessors. This flips open smoothly with a spring action to reveal an impressively wide LCD panel. Directly below this sits a shrunken Qwerty keyboard, while there is a row of small application icon buttons on the inside panel of the adjoining hinge.

The 3c?s applications are its strongest point. The word processor and spreadsheet are the anchors; these have lots of features and are easy to use. There is a Filofax-style agenda which can display your schedule in various ways. It can also be used to set up to-do lists and recurring alarms. In addition, there are plenty of minor, but nonetheless, useful programs, such as a world clock and a digital audio recorder.

The device can communicate with other computers and electronic units in a variety of ways. You can use a serial link cable which snaps into the side of the 3c; then, using Psion Manager, a clever PC program, you can copy files between the two systems by dragging-and-dropping.

Common document types, like those created in Microsoft Word or Lotus 1-2-3, can also be automatically converted to the Psion?s native application formats and vice versa.

The second option is to use the 3c?s built-in Irda infrared port. This is an easy way of transferring data or files to other Irda-compliant devices, such as printers or PCs, because no cabling is needed and most files can be sent in a few seconds.

Finally, there?s the Psion 3Fax fax-modem. This plugs into a phone socket and allows the Psion to be used as a paperless fax machine or to communicate with any other system that has a modem, so you can send and receive email and documents.

Worldwide support for the 3 Series is massive. There are plenty of software and hardware add-ons, including a GPS (Global Positioning System) mapping tool and Autoroute, the popular route-planning software from Microsoft.

Contact: Psion on 0990 143050

Price: #399

Hewlett Packard 320LX HPC

If it is computer-related and there is a market for it, Hewlett Packard will almost certainly make it. The corporate giant produces everything from barcode sensors to state-of-the-art desktop PCs. It also makes a wide range of palmtop computers and has just notched up a first in this country by launching the Windows CE-based HP320LX Handheld Personal Computer (HPC).

Windows CE (Compact Edition) is Microsoft?s latest attempt to conquer the palmtop computer operating system market. Ostensibly, Windows CE has the same interface as Windows 95, but works quite differently. It requires only a fraction of the memory and is portable between processors. Essentially, this means the growing number of HPC manufacturers have greater freedom when designing their machines than they would otherwise.

The HP machine has a Hitachi Risc SH3 chip running at 45MHz, which makes it roughly equivalent in power to a mid-range 486 PC. Like all HPCs ? Microsoft having laid down a set of minimum specifications ? the 320LX has a Type II PC-Card slot, an Irda infrared port, a serial connector and a full Qwerty keyboard. The review machine was a pre-production sample so it would be unfair to comment on the build quality, other than to say that it seemed sturdy enough.

Many people in the computer industry are sceptical about the need to run Windows on a PDA. But because most PCs have Windows installed, it is a natural progression to get that same operating system running on machines that are essentially companions to desktop computers.

This is confirmed the first time you use the 320LX. If you are familiar with Windows 95, you will find that you can instantly use Windows CE and, therefore, the 320LX. Pointing, clicking, dragging, dropping and any other operation you can think of are all performed in the same way as on a Windows 95 PC; the only difference is that you use a stylus on a touch-sensitive screen, not a mouse.

Of course, like the earliest versions of Windows, Windows CE has its share of problems. At the moment it is slow ? although not frustratingly so ? and the first generation of HPCs can display only four greyscales. Also, because it?s only a few weeks old, continued software support, whether from third parties or from Microsoft, is not a foregone conclusion. But realistically, if any operating system is going to dominate the handheld computer market, Windows CE is the most likely contender.

Contact: Hewlett Packard on 0990 474747

Price: #634

Sharp ZR-5800

Sharp is equally at home producing microwave ovens and hi-fi systems as it is making PDAs. A truly international company, its range of PDAs varies around the world to satisfy the demands of local markets. In the UK its flagship model is the ZR-5800, a 2Mb machine.

The ZR-5800?s case has a tough, leather-like finish and it looks robust. At 168x 98x25mm it is marginally bigger than its main rival, the Psion 3c, but it still slips comfortably into your pocket.

The machine has a single industry- standard Type II PC-Card slot, so there is plenty of scope for expansion, including memory upgrades and adding a modem. In addition, it has a serial and an infrared port for communicating with other devices. The latter port is Irda-compatible, but it can also use Sharp?s own, faster, protocols to transfer data or files.

The size of the screen strikes you as soon as you open the case. Although narrower than the 3c?s display, it is nearly half as tall again. This makes a big difference to the work area, and most applications ? particularly the spreadsheet ? benefit from this extra height. The screen is touch-sensitive so, using the slide-out stylus, you can perform Windows-like drag-and-drop operations. In fact, the interface seems to work in a similar way to Windows.

The backlit screen is bordered on either side by a strip of applications icons. These include word processor, spreadsheet, scheduler and contacts database programs, as well as a scrapbook. Essentially, the scrapbook is a doodling pad, but it is also handy for knocking up a map of directions or making a brief handwritten note, although the device does not yet include handwriting recognition.

The ZR-5800?s filing and linking capabilities are outstanding. Documents, notes, spreadsheets and appointments can be linked to particular databases, or even to individual contacts. This makes cross-referencing easy.

If, for example, you display a record in the contact application, a list of icon tabs appears at the bottom of the screen. Each tab leads directly to the linked item and, if necessary, opens the appropriate application. And it is not only the linking facilities that shine: the screen does too, thanks to a built-in backlight.

Contact: Sharp on 0800 262958

Price: #530

Apple Newton Messagepad 2000

Apple is a troubled company. Its corporate direction changes more often than a politician under pressure, and it has financial problems that are deep-rooted and highly publicised.

But to its credit, Apple can boast many successes and firsts. The Mac is a prime example of the former, launched in 1984 and still going strong; for an illustration of the latter, you need look no further than the Newton Messagepad, which made its debut in 1993.

In a competitive market it is useful to have a unique selling point, and the Messagepad?s is the fact that it does not come with a keyboard as standard. That might sound ridiculous, but the pad does not need a keyboard because it can recognise handwriting. Or, at least, it?s supposed to be able to.

The Messagepad has a pop-out stylus with which you control the machine and enter data. The range of applications is poor compared to other machines looked at: although it has a memo-taker, a contact database and a voice recorder, there is little else worthy of mention.

However, the advantage of the Messagepad is that you don?t have to juggle using a keyboard or a pen to make entries. If you want to take a note, you simply write it on the expansive, backlit screen in your own handwriting and the Messagepad recognises and converts it into characters that can be edited on the computer.

Unfortunately, although the Messagepad is good at recognising individual characters, it fails on whole words. If, for example, you pause in the middle of a word to consider the correct spelling, the Messagepad converts the fragment, which is irritating.

But it?s not all bad news. The Messagepad has a second recognition system called Graffiti. This has the same accuracy level but gives much greater control over the way you input and edit your work. In general operation, the Messagepad?s clean, icon-driven interface makes it easy to use ? but it is no Psion.

It can be easily expanded using the two Type II PC-Card sockets, and exchanging data is also straightforward because it has an infrared port and a serial connection.

It is difficult to recommend the Messagepad as an off-the-shelf purchase; any commercial future it has lies with vertical market applications.

There is no shortage of professional software developers willing to write software for the Newton operating system, and, given that the machines themselves are reasonably robust, they should survive for a few years.

However, with Apple going through a bloody rationalisation process in order to concentrate its efforts on the most profitable products, will Newtons still be rolling off the production line in a few years?

Contact: Apple Newton helpline on 0800 639866

Price: #790

Husky FS3

Sometimes, it?s just not possible to treat a handheld electronic companion kindly. If you want to use a PDA to take notes during site inspections, or perhaps while dangling from a bough administering tree surgery, then some knocks and scrapes are inevitable. This is where Husky comes in.

Trading since 1977, this UK success story specialises in making extremely durable, ?ruggedised? PDAs, and the FS3 is its latest example of the genre.

Looking similar to a squat rubber mallet and weighing slightly less than a bag of sugar, the FS3 sits comfortably in the palm and can be held in place by an elastic strap. The case is moulded from a durable resin, which surrounds everything but the 56-key alphanumeric keyboard and the eight-line LCD panel. An outer Perspex cover protects this panel and the whole unit is waterproofed to IP67 standard, which means it will not be damaged by accidental immersion. Furthermore, Husky claims the machine can withstand a 2m drop onto a hard surface, which our tests proved.

The FS3 is powered by an Intel 386EX processor running at 25MHz, supported by 2Mb of low-power DRAM. Hidden inside the case is a Type II PC-Card socket with keyed screws to prevent unauthorised access. The top of the machine has industry-standard parallel and serial connections, and on the base there is an Irda-compliant infrared communications port.

Unlike the other units reviewed, the FS3 is almost useless straight out of the box. It has version 6.22 of Microsoft?s MS-DOS built in, but this in itself offers very little. But this is not a criticism, because the FS3 is aimed at vertical applications.

Husky has a number of ?software partners?, and these can be commissioned to write applications to suit whatever job you want. So the FS3 is probably not the ideal system for a one-man band, but larger operations with staff on the road can benefit from a tough machine that can be tailored specifically to their needs.

A wide range of accessories, including barcode readers and additional memory cards, is available from Husky and some third-party companies. The FS3 runs off three AA-sized batteries or an optional rechargeable Nicad battery pack.

Contact: Husky on 01203 604040

Price: #2,348

Understanding the spoken word

Speech recognition on desktop computers is no longer the far-fetched dream it once seemed. Today?s Pentium PCs are powerful enough to carry out real-time speech recognition with a high degree of accuracy. This has been proven by the two leading software products in the field: IBM?s Voicetype, and Dictate from Dragon Systems. But are such advanced techniques beyond the capabilities of the PC?s palmtop counterparts? Maybe not... Recently, Dragon Systems announced its plans to bring its speech-recognition technology to the Apple Newton Messagepad 2000 (reviewed on page 120). The first version of Newton Dictate will feature a small vocabulary of a few thousand words, and only about 50 of these words (or phrases) can be ?active? at any one time. This compares poorly with a typical PC speech-recognition program ? which might have 30,000 words or more, all of which are active ? but it is hardly surprising given the comparatively limited hardware resources of a PDA. On the plus side, the active vocabulary can be designed to be grammar-sensitive, so the accuracy rate can be even higher than normal. Also, even though only 50 words are active at any one time, the ?passive? vocabulary can still be called on, just not in real-time. Although 50 words might sound limiting, bear in mind that many day-to-day data-gathering jobs will not require even this amount. Parcel depots might want to employ a handheld voice-operated system for sorting items by postcode, and recording meter readings and the like needs just a few keywords and numerals. From an operational point of view, and with a little extra equipment, people with restricted movement could use such a system to maybe control a wheelchair or operate a phone hands-free.