 Current Cover
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POCKET PC/WINDOWS CE NEWS
In an interview conducted by Taiwanese Digitimes.com, HTC president H. T.
Cho comments on PDA development and outlook. HTC is Compaq's primary ODM
for
the iPAQ Pocket PC.
Haven't seen the Samsung Nexio yet? Samsung has an awesome Flash page on
their CES display that includes the Nexio. Click here to check it out!
Microsoft announces the Chinese version of Pocket PC 2002 in Taipei. Pen Editor C. H. Blickenstorfer attended and took some pics of cool new PPCs from Asus, Compal, Inventec, etc.
Below: Blickenstorfer meets with HTC president H. T. Cho. HTC OEMs the iPAQ for Compaq. Blickenstorfer presented a keynote address at the Taipei International Convention Center on the past and future of the pen industry.
The
Compaq iPAQ
handheld will reportedly run Linux 2.4 kernel. [uni
xreview] PC
World has recently examined: Pen Computing's Shawn Barnett provides a detailed report on Jeff Hawkins' keynote at Comdex.
PhatWare has
announced 20%
Holiday Season pricing through 31Jan02 on the following products:
CalliGrapher
6.01 English Editions; HPC Notes 3.07 Editions; HPC NetProfile 1.4;
HPC Spell
2.5; and HPC dbExplorer. PenRight! has is now
shipping
MobileBuilder v2.1 (cross-platform, rapid application development
tool) that
supports building handheld solutions that run on Windows CE/PocketPC,
Palm,
and MS-DOS operating systems. Some other key features: Visual C++ v3.0
emulator;
Symbol scanner support; improved distribution runtime; and a demo
version for
evaluation. Microsoft has
reportedly
recently showed off a prototype Tablet PC running a customized version of
Windows XP along with a software developer kit (SDK) for the new platform at
their Professional Developers Conference (PDC). The unit is not expected to
be
available until 2002, and it will include handwriting and voice input.
[SOURCE:
Infoworld]
You can now use a SmartCard
to logon and gain access to Compaq's iPaq PocketPC handhelds. Microsoft is expected to show off
their new Windows CE v4.0 operating system at Comdex Fall 2001. This OS will
reportedly support: Intel's new X-scale
processor technology; new gigabyte Type II PC Cards from IBM & Toshiba; and wireless communications. ARM
has announced a new version of their microprocessor core for handheld
devices
that will offer improved performance and better battery life
features.[InfoWorld,
PC
World] Paragraph
CalliGrapher 6.01 (natural handwriting recognition engine that
supports
cursive, print, and mixed styles) is now available for Microsoft
Windows-powered
Pocket PCs and Handheld PCs devices. There is also a new software
developer
kit (SDK) available for programmers and integrators.
The
Sceptre X Pad 100 is a new mobile slate handheld that runs Windows
CE 3.0
and is powered by a Intel StrongARM 1110 processor. It also is
configured with
a 10.4" TFT (SVGA) built-in touch screen; and can support up to
128-MBs
of SDRAM, IBM Microdrives, and a desktop cradle.
See a table of all new consumer market Pocket PCs.
Reuters reports that Samsung will introduce a Pocket PC in 2002.
According to the release, Samsung's Pocket PC(s) will have built-in phone
functionality.
In a one-two punch, Microsoft and Hewlett
Packard announced
a new revision of
the
platform and the first of a new generation
of Pocket PC devices, respectively. Pocket PC 2002 provides a number of
enhancements and improvements to Microsoft's increasingly successful Pocket
PC platform. The new rev also beefs up security, communications, and
enterprise integration. Microsoft also set new hardware requirements for
Pocket PC 2002. The most relevant of those are exclusive support of the ARM
processor core and mandatory Flash ROM. HP's new Jornada 560
Series is the first announcement of a product designed specifically for
Poc
Symbol Technologies announced that its handheld
industri
market devices will run the new Pocket PC 2002 mobile platform. See press
release.
Read Pen Computing's full review of the Casio IT-700 Industrial Pocket PC. The IT-700 combines the technology and finesse (and the gorgeous color TFT screen) of Casio's consumer electronics offerings into a much tougher "industrial" shell.
PC World is reporting a new Intel processor based Windows CE handheld from NEC.
Microsoft is
reportedly expanding their "code-sharing" efforts with regards to
Windows CE. Current developers can get access to "read-only" versions
of Windows CE v3.0. [SOURCE: InfoWorld]
Intermec Technologies Corp. is now shipping its popular 5020 family of
handheld data collection computers pre-loaded with Microsoft Windows CE 3.0 and SQL
Server 2000 Windows CE Edition (SQL Server CE). "Intermec is among the first to market
with a Windows CE 3.0-based device with an embedded SQL Server CE database engine.
The Intermec 5020 and 5023 handheld computers are designed specifically for rugged,
enterprise-wide duty, allowing information collected on the "front line," from loading
dock to warehouse, to be easily integrated into a company's IT infrastructure.
Compaq says in its second quarter financial report it shipped 450,000 iPAQ
Pocket PCs during its second quarter. The company also announced $50 rebates for
the iPAQ 3635 (which includes the CF Card sleeve), reducing the price to $549.99.
In the report, Compaq claimed that it has "extended its leadership in
next-generation Internet access devices."
An unlikely candiate emerged as the fastest CE device ever tested in Pen Computing Magazine's PenLabs when an Itronix fex21
blazed through the bSQUARE Analyzer benchmark suite at a blistering average of 63.55 SquareMark. The fex21 is powered by a 129MHz Toshiba TX3922 processor.
Phatware Corporation released RC1 (Release Candidate 1) of ParaGraph CalliGrapher 6.0 for
Windows CE devices, including Pocket PC. The impending 6.0 release of the CalliGrapher
handwriting recognition engine
includes a variety of improvements and new features compared to rev. 5.3
which Transcriber is based on.
Socket Communications
recently demonstrated their new Socket Bluetooth card in a Pocket PC device
printing wirelessly to the new Bluetooth-savvy HP
Deskjet 995c inkjet printer. There was also a demo of a TCP/IP wireless LAN
connection via the AXIS 9010 Access Point.
Pumatech has announced:
#1.) Browse-it v3.0 software [web browser for Palm OS]; #2.) Enterprise
Intellisync [corporate focused data synchronization]; and #3.) Mind-it v5.1
software [WAP-savvy real-time notification technology]. Pen Computing Magazine also posted an updated table, including benchmarks, of all consumer/business market Pocket PCs.
Casio announced the Cassiopeia Pocket Manager BE-300,
a US$299 PDA that's based on Embedded Windows CE, but uses its own suite of software. The BE-300, which will ship in September (Casio expects to ship half a million during their current fiscal year) and is aimed at
business professionals who need robust Windows connectivity but not necessarily the "Pocket PC" suite of software apps.
See Pen Computing's preview of the BE-300.
Symbol Technologies announced the PPT 2800, a second generation rugged Pocket PC
that can be equipped with bar code scanning, and a variety of radio options including 802.11b wireless LAN and
Voice-over-IP. Unlike the initial PPT 2700 rugged Pocket PC, the new 2800 model is based on a 206MHz Intel StrongARM processor.
See press release.
According to Dataquest, Compaq's iPAQ and related handheld
products
generated Compaq over US$200 million in revenue for their recent fiscal Q'2
time-period. This is significant according to Dataquest analysts when
compared
to Palm's US$135 million, and Handspring's $65 million during the
same
time period.
Pumatech has announced Intellisync
v4.0 (US$70) with support for Symbian
EPOC
, Palm OS , and Microsoft's Windows CE & PocketPC
devices. Intellisync provides two-way synchronization capabilities between
desktop Personal Information Managers (PIMs) like Microsoft Outlook to
handheld
devices.
SYWARE has announced new support for
Microsoft's Visual Basic in their
real-time
wireless enterprise development tool called mEnable Software Developer Kit
(SDK)
v1.2. Key features: build Pocket PC/Windows CE applications, access
ODBC-enabled
databases, and TCP/IP support. June 19, 2001
Phatware Corporation has announced
the release of ParaGraph CalliGrapher Beta 3 for
Windows CE devices, including Pocket PC. The new 6.0 release of the
CalliGraphe
handwriting recognition engine
includes a variety of improvements and new features compared to rev. 5.3
which Transcriber is based on.
June 15, 2001, #681
The Casio Cassiopeia E-750 Pocket
PC is available in Japan. The new model is
roughly the size of the E-125 sold in the US, but borrows styling cues
from the EM-500. It is based on a 200MHz version of NEC's next generation
VR4131 chip.
Communication Intelligence Corporation
(CIC) has announced plans to incorporated CIC's Inktools electronic
signature Software Developer Kit (SDK) with JetForm's mobile forms solution called
PocketForm.
June 13, 2001, #680
IBM has announced a rebate for select MicroDrive products.
June 7, 2001, #677
Metricom via Wireless WebConnect! has announced a new
service option for San Francisco Bay Area residents that offers 64-Kbps
local Ricochet wireless services for only US$40 per month.
June 5, 2001, #676
Socket Communications and connectBlue have linked in a recent
demo a Socket's Bluetooth Card in a PocketPC handheld and connectBlue's
Serial Port Adapter (RS-232) to wirelessly control a Lego robot.
June 4, 2001, #675
CMS Peripherals reportedly has
plans for a new Type II PC Card that could be used by Windows users
(including Windows CE/PocketPC), and give them access to over 2-GBs of
storage capacity. The unit will also be accessible via a USB interface.
MapFrame has announced that their
facilities and GIS data mapping solution FieldSmart (View, Collect, Inspect,
and Design) now supports Windows CE devices. The package can also import CAD
files.
May 31, 2001, #673
Electric Pocket has
announced that they are now shipping BugMe! (US$20) for PocketPC and Windows
CE devices. BugMe! was previously only available on Palm OS devices, and
allows a user to create "sticky notes" that can include: voice reminders,
freehand notes, text notes, and sketches.
Aportis Technologies has announced
a new edition of their mobile document publishing client software AportisDoc
Mobile (US$30) for Palm OS and PocketPC/Windows CE devices.
May 30, 2001, #672
According to a PC World
article, Microsoft is pretty happy about what they call their "successful
Pocket PC"
handheld platform.
Firepad has announced that they
are now shipping their vector graphic Mobile Application Platform v2.0 for
PalmOS, and have plans to port the software to Pocket PC devices.
May 25, 2001, #671
SYWARE has released a new free
package of six easy-to-use
Pocket PC database applications (Calorie Manager, Music Manager, Photo
Manager, Grades Managers,
Recipe Managers, Checkbook Manager) that were built using SYWARE's Visual
CE.
May 23, 2001, #670
Pumatech has announced Mind-it
v4.3 with support for Windows NT that can be integrated into backend
capabilities
(Web, database, etc. servers) to enable email or mobile device notification
services.
Mind-it is also integrated into Pumatech's complete Mobile Application
Platform (MAP).
May 22, 2001, #669
DigiSoft has announced
reViewMD that offers
DICOM image viewing capability that is ideal for physicians on Windows CE
and PocketPC platforms. The package also supports -- like DigiSoft's
consumer focused PictPocket -- the following other file formats: MPEG-1 and
MPEG-2 video, BMP, 2BP, JPG, JPE, JPEG, GIF, PCX, PCD, TIF, and TIFF.
ParaGraph has announced that
Phatware will be supporting
ParaGraph's CalliGrapher and
PenOffice line of products in upcoming versions of Phatware's HPC Notes for
Windows CE & Pocket PC.
May 21, 2001, #668
Electric Fuel
Corporation
has announced plans to release a new line of "Instant Power Chargers" for
handheld devices by end of Q2'2001. The power chargers will deliver 8 full
battery charges to a variety of mobile devices: Palm V/Vx; Compaq iPAQ
Pocket PCs; Handspring Prism and Visor Phone models; HP Jornada; Casio
Cassiopeia; and Novatel Minstrel V wireless modems.
May 18, 2001, #667
Landware has posted a visual tour
of Pocket
Quicken v2.0
that should be
shipping in early June 2001.
Cutting Edge Software has teamed with
DDH Software to build a new utility
called QuickData utility
that enables Quicksheet spreadsheets and HanDBase database to import and
export information to each other.
May 16, 2001, #666
Nextel Communications has announced
plans to re-sell
Socket Communication's new Digital
Phone card
that supports Windows PocketPC devices.
May 15, 2001, #665
IA Style has announced the release
of IA
ScreenShot -- a one-click solution for capturing screen images on Microsoft
Pocket PC devices.
May 11, 2001, #664
Conduits Technologies has announced
the release of
Timekeeper 1.0 for Pocket PC (US$10) -- this stopwatch and countdown time is
highly configurable, and also supports customized skins for personalization.
May 10, 2001, #663
Socket Communications reports that
their Ethernet
and Bluetooth Compact Flash plug-in cards for Pocket PC devices will be used
by Microsoft in an upcoming 11-city
Mobile
Experience Tour that will highlight Microsoft savvy wireless solutions.
Compaq
has
posted a new ROM update for their Compaq iPAQ Pocket PC H3600 models. This
update fixes: alarm problems, scroll lock issue, better power performance,
Kernel reset hang, and serial connection problems.
May 9, 2001
Audible and
Symbol Technologies have announced a new
agreement to co-market each
other's technologies. Specifically, Symbol's Pocket PC devices, and
Audible's
Audible Wireless solutions and AudibleReady PC-based portable digital audio
players.
May 7, 2001
Photogenics for Pocket PC
is a full-featured image and graphics solution for handheld devices. Some
key capabilities: retouch images, draw & paint tools, filters, layers,
editing functions, and screen image grabbing.
April 30, 2001
PC
World is
reporting that Toshiba plans to launch in the United States a PocketPC
handheld family of devices in July 2001.
April 20, 2001
Pocketmultimedia has announced
PockIt Recorder
for PocketPC devices that enables mobile users to build professional
multimedia products in wireless environments.
April 19, 2001
WinInformant
is
reporting that Microsoft has been allowing "major industry" partners to gain
access to the new Windows CE OS and preview releases of Windows XP embedded
OS.
April 17, 2001
Syware announced Visual CE with mEnable, a new package that combines the popular Visual CE database and forms building tool with Syware's innovative mEnable wireless software.
Compaq's iPAQ Pocket
PC (#H3135)
can now be purchased with a CompactFlash (CF) Expansion Pack [software,
storage, communications] for US$399.
LinkUp Systems Corporation announced that Taiwanese AskeyComputer will use its ARM-based
L72XX system-on-a-chip family to drive Askey's low-cost "piccolo" Pocket PC.
April 11, 2001
Malaysia intends to introduce a "Government Multi-Purpose Card" that would
replace the multitude of cards people nowadays use. The system was demonstrated on what appears to be a Casio
Cassiopeia EM-500 with a special reader.
SYWARE has announced a version of
their real-time
capable TCP/IP wireless database solution called mEnabled that provides
Windows CE support for handhelds and backend database support for Enterprise
networks via Visual CE and Microsoft SQL Server (or other databases like
Oracle, Sybase, Microsoft Access).
April 6, 2001
Phatware has announced
the release of HPC Notes
v3.07 for Windows CE/PocketPC (supporting their following four editions:
Professional, Standard, Desktop, and Lite). There is also now a Palm OS
version.
Pumatech has announced
"Intellisync Anywhere v2.0
Software for Lotus Domino R5" that supports both Palm OS and Windows
CE/PocketPC devices. The package can also support mobile notification via
pagers or SMS-capable cellphones. Data can also be accessed via a standard
Web browser or WAP-enabled device via Pumatech
Services.
April 4, 2001
CNET is reporting that
Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard (HP) have reached an agreement with the
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to stop running ads that suggest PocketPC
devices come with built-in wireless Internet access because the ads are
misleading in that they fail to mention that customers would need an
additional modem device to make the wireless Internet access capability a
reality.
Orbit Industries' Stinger Finger Stylus
offers a "finger pick" stylus interface to handheld devices that comes in a
bundled three-pack (black, silver & graphite; or blue, yellow & red).
AvantGo has announced that you can now sign-up for
Consumer Reports via AvantGo's free online
mobile content deliver services.
Conduits Technologies is reportedly now shipping
v1.2 of Pocket Album for PocketPC (US$20). The new version offers: two
display modes, image collection tools, display customization features, and
improved playback options. This version also supports Colorgraphic
Communications' Voyager VGA PC card that can
output 640x480 or 800x600 resolution displays.
April 2, 2001
Socket Communications will be
offering a new
software developers kit (SDK) called "SPANworks
II Bluetooth SDK" that will support the development of Team Computing
applications that use Socket's Bluetooth wireless technology on Windows
Powered Pocket PCs.
March 30, 2001
Microsoft is making significant agreements of
support related to their new Tablet PC platform. Some new partners include:
Intel, Compaq, Fujitsu PC, and Transmeta.
March 26, 2001
Brighthand.com's Steve Bush (who is also Pen Computing's CE editor) reviews the Intermec Model 70 Pocket PC.. (Full review also in the next issue of Pen.
March 23, 2001
InfoWorld has coverage of the
release of Microsoft SQL Server 2000 for Windows CE v1.1.
March 22, 2001
See Pen Computing's preview of the new
HP Jornada 525 Pocket PC on Brighthand.com.
Compaq has released a v1.69 ROM upgrade patch for
their
English iPAQ H3600 devices.
March 13, 2001
Blueice
Research has released a PKI server
architecture that includes a Palm OS Multipass v1.2 client for strong
authentication and digital signatures. A Windows 32-bit, PocketPC, and EPOC
Multipass clients are also planned for the near future.
March 12, 2001
Karrier
Communications has
announced the release of v5.1 of IntelliGolf for Palm and Windows
CE/PocketPC devices. Some new features: wireless access to over 10,000
signature courses; beam round stats between devices; support for 16-bit
color; and improved statistics & scoring.
March 9, 2001
Christian
Czech has announced the
release of dNote v3.3 (note tool) and dTree v3.0 (file explorer) both for
Windows CE.
March 5, 2001
SYWARE's mEnable
wireless software architecture
allows mobile Windows CE based users connected to TCP/IP networks (wireless
RF, broadband, Bluetooth, etc.) to gain access to backend Enterprise
solutions written in C++ or Visual Basic programming languages linked via
ODBC to databases like: Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, Microsoft Access,
and/or Sybase. A 10-runtime license with software developer kit (SDK) is
US$499, and a 100 runtime license with SDK is US$1999.
March 1, 2001
Ectaco has released
Language Teacher PocketPC
(Windows CE v3.0) that supports English-Hungarian and English-Serbo-Croatian
running on MIPS, ARM/StrongARM, or SH3 CPU-based devices.
February 28, 2001
Microsoft has
posted a
Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) site for questions related to "SQL Server
2000 Windows CE Edition."
February 27, 2001
BSQUARE has created a
new software developer kit
(SDK) for Windows NT and NT Embedded called "Time Critical Extension (TCX)"
that should make writing device driver code significantly easier and faster.
Pricing starts in the US$3495 range for 10 licenses.
InfoWorld
is
reporting that Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard are negotiating with the U.S.
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to settle false-advertising charges coming
from a PocketPC print ad campaign entitled "Can Your Palm Do That?."
February 23, 2001
OmniSky has announced:
#1.) New strategic alliance
with 2Roam; #2.) Beta testing of services
in United
Kingdom has recently started (with the rest of Europe coming soon); #3.)
Telephia has published a report that
found OmniSky
25% faster for data transfer when compared to similar services; and #4.)
Recent demo with Macromedia showed
Flash
multimedia content flowing over OmniSky to PocketPC devices.
February 19, 2001
Macromedia has
announced a new partnership with
Microsoft to bring Flash Player to
Pocket PC
devices from companies like Compaq, Hewlett-Packard, and Casio. Developers
can download the Player and Flash animation software toolkit immediately
from Macromedia's developer site.
Symbol Technologies has
announced a new deal worth
over US$70 million to provide Kmart with
enterprise
capable mobile handheld devices and wireless LAN technologies.
February 16, 2001
PixAround.com has released "PixScreen PDA Lite"
that enables handheld users (Palm OS or Windows CE) to view "360-degree
PixAround Scenes."
SanDisk has announced a new 512MB (US$799)
CompactFlash (CF) memory card, and a new 128-MB (US$189) SmartMedia memory
card. SanDisk also has new 256-MB (US$399) and 384-MB (US$599) CF cards in
the works. All of these should be shipping to distributors, OEM partners,
and retailers by the end of Q2'01.
February 15, 2001
Audible has announced that Microsoft has invested
US$10 million in Audible to further joint development efforts related to
extending spoken-audio content to Windows Media technologies.
February 13, 2001
Thinque has signed a new agreement with
Symbol
Technologies that will enable Symbol's handheld
units the SPT 1733/34, the PPT 2733/34, and the PDT 753X to be a host
platforms for Thinque's Mobile Solutions Platform (MSP) software used to
build field force automation solutions.
February 9, 2001
Mobli is a new software and services website
dedicated for mobile handheld users (Palm OS, Pocket PC, and Symbian).
February 8, 2001
Microsoft is reportedly going to allow new Windows CE alliance members to
gain access to operating system source code that should enable
microprocessor companies to build optimized solutions for the
next-generation of Windows CE codenamed "Talisker." [Source:
PC World &
InfoWorld.
February 7, 2001
Direct Logic Systems has announced a new
"non-violent" puzzle game for Windows and Palm OS devices called Abbie
(freeware) that includes a framework for upgrading to additional puzzles
(US$13).
Ectaco International has announced an
English/Hebrew Palm OS version of their "Language Teacher" software that
already supports Windows desktop and Windows CE mobile devices.
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HP this week introduced two new iPAQ products, both with a
brilliant new transflective display, a 400MHz XScale processor, and 64MB
RAM. While on the surface the new models are identical to the 3800 series,
including the prominent Compaq logo, the screen is noticeably different.
Gone is the sidelight that tends to light up the glass in current models,
and in its place is more vibrant color and better contrast. The new device
also has several new features, including a seperate, more powerful
"consumer" IrDA transmitter to go with the new remote control software. HP
says its IrDA application, called Nevo, will give users access to almost any
consumer RC device on the market; in the off chance that a driver isn't
available, Nevo can be trained with an existing remote.
Fujitsu announced the Pocket LOOX Pocket PC. The device runs on an Intel PXA250 XScale processor, has a Li-Polymer battery, Type II CF Card and a SD slot, a relfective TFT,
measures just 5.15 x 3.2 x 0.7 inches and weighs less than six ounces. Price is
expected to be US$599. Battery life is said to be up to 15 hours, and up to 24 hours with an optional extended pack. The device is said to go on sale in the US by the end of May. [
Microsoft unveiled the latest addition
to the Pocket PC 2002 family -- Pocket PC 2002 Phone Edition at 3GSM World Congress in France.
Ben Waldman, vice president of the Mobile Device Division at Microsoft, demonstrated the HP Jornada
928, a Pocket PC 2002 Phone Edition device during a press conference at the show. The 928 is based on a TI OMAP 710 processor, has 64MB of RAM and 32MB ROM. It supports EGSM/GPRS wireless voice and data.
Fujitsu Transaction Solutions, Inc., announced the iPAD at the Jan. 13-16 National
Retail Federation Expo in New York. The sleek 10 ounce device is based on Microsoft's
CE .NET (Windows CE 4.0). See 
Panasonic announced the Toughbook 01 ruggedized handheld computer. The new model is based on Windows CE 3.0,
has a 206MHz StrongARM processor, a reflective color LCD, 32MB of FlashROM and 32MB of SDRAM. In addition to cursor control
buttons and a touchscreen, the 01 has a RIM-style mini-keyboard. A 1.4aH Li-Ion battery provides 8 hours of operation with
the sidelight on. The device can be purchased with a variety of internal wireless options. Estimated street price is US#999.
The