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September 15, 2004 at 08:00 PM
Tech products free workers from office constraints, tangled connections
By Ara C. Trembly
Agencies searching for better internal efficiency and/or the ability to do business anywhere increasingly are finding solutions in the growing variety of wireless products being marketed by technology vendors.
Wireless devices and accessories offer benefits that can translate into time savings and can make wire-clogged desktops a thing of the past. With the increased speed and efficiency offered by such products, agents may find themselves with fewer administrative tasks to perform and more time for critical activitieslike selling.
all-in-one wireless
One product that offers just about everything wireless can give is the HP iPAQ h6315 Pocket PC from Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Bellevue, Wash.-based T-Mobile USA, Inc. Weighing in at just 6 ounces, the unit features voice dialing, Wi-Fi hotspot connectivity, wireless e-mail, Internet access, instant messaging, picture taking, keypad typing and 64MB (megabyte) data storage, says Palo Alto, Calif.-based HP.
“The iPAQ h6315 is the first all-in-one wireless device to include built-in GSM global phone capabilities with integrated GPRS wireless data, Wi-Fi (802.11b) wireless broadband, and Bluetooth functionality,” the company says.
GSM is a cellular phone technology used primarily in Europe but also being introduced in the U.S. GPRS is an addition to GSM that helps support data transmission. Wi-Fi and 802.11b are wireless communication standards. Bluetooth is the specification for low-cost, short-range radio links between mobile PCs, mobile phones and other portable devices.
According to Rick Roesler, vice president of Handhelds at HP, the h6315 “goes beyond todays basic text-based e-mail messaging and gives customers greater access to their inbox, calendar and contacts.”
The unit is scheduled to be available by summers end at T-Mobile-owned stores and other authorized outlets at an estimated price of $499.99 with T-Mobile activation, says HP.
takes a licking
For those whose wireless devices could take a beating, Panasonic Computer Solutions Company has introduced the Toughbook CF-Y2, a slim, light notebook computer that offers “Intels latest state-of-the-art mobile technology,” the Secaucus, N.J.-based company says.
Rance Poehler, president of PCSC, calls the unit “a lightweight, compact, go-anywhere, do-anything notebook that wont fade to black the first time it is shaken or stirred.” He adds that the machines “five-hour run time means you can continue working while waiting for a connecting flight without having to squat on the airport floor next to an AC outlet.”
