 Monday, June 17, 2002
Exego Brings PC Files to Your Cell Phone
"Verizon Wireless has launched Exego, a national service that lets customers access and transfer PC files via select mobile phones.
The service, previewed in San Diego in mid-March, requires application software from Summus called Exego, and runs on only two mobile phone models, available from Verizon, that support the binary runtime environment for wireless (BREW). The Exego service costs $6 a month, plus airtime charges.
Exego's initial application is a module that lets you view image files. The company plans to introduce additional modules--a mapping application is due for release later this year, and a video player is due in early 2003....
Exego currently provides access only to files uploaded from a PC to the Summus server.... But Summus is developing an application that permits direct access to your PC through a cell phone. The BlueFuel Personal Server, scheduled for release by the end of the year, is an application that makes an Internet-connected PC accessible via the wireless network....
The two supported phones, available from Verizon, are the Z-800 from Sharp, a $400 model with a 2-inch color display; and Kyocera's $50, black-and-white 3035e model. Verizon expects to offer other BREW-capable phones later this year, and Summus plans to work with other wireless carriers and to support other platforms, including Java and the Pocket PC and Symbian operating systems. Company representatives say they have not yet decided whether they will support devices running the Palm OS, although they say there are no technical barriers to doing so....
Summus is also lining up deals with partners to provide additional third-party content and services via Exego. The company has already inked a deal with Zio, which will make its handheld games available over Exego. Other offerings in the works include real-time traffic information from provider Iteris, electronic greeting cards from Funcaster, and an ATM locator from ServiceObjects." [PC World]
Toshiba Unveils High-End Pocket PC
"The Toshiba Pocket PC e740 is the company's third foray into the handheld market, and comes on the heels of the Pocket PC e310, which was released earlier this year. But unlike the e310, which was more of an organizer with expandability options aimed at the consumer market, the e740 was designed with an on-the-go corporate user in mind.
Priced at $599, the new Pocket PC comes with integrated 802.11b Wi-Fi wireless connectivity, and an Intel PXA250 chip with 400-MHz processing speed....
The e740 also boasts 64MB of RAM and 32MB of ROM. It comes with two card slots, Secure Digital and CompactFlashII, and boasts a 3.5-inch 240-by-320-pixel color display. It also comes with an Advanced Lithium-ion battery to support the extra processing power....
The new handheld is aimed toward corporate users who need to access and view data on the fly, according to Toshiba. In addition to the handheld's Wi-Fi capabilities, users can also purchase a Bluetooth SD Card for $149 for wireless connectivity.
'This is not really a data-creation device as much as it is a data-viewing device,' says Carl Pinto, director of product marketing at Toshiba....
While still sleek in design, at 4.9 inches by 3.1 inches by 0.6 inches, users of the e740 can view PowerPoint presentations on the screen thanks to the bundled software. To show presentations on a projector or a monitor, users will need to purchase the Toshiba Expansion Pack for $99 more, however. The Expansion Pack integrates an RGB monitor port and a USB port that can connect the handheld to USB devices such as a full-size keyboard.
For multimedia purposes, the e740 comes with a speaker and microphone and a stereo headphone minijack." [PC World]
Pretty sweet PDA! It has what the Sony Clie NR-70V is missing - wireless connectivity, although no integrated digital camera. To my mind, the keyboard on the Clie NR-70V is pretty useless without wireless, so Toshiba has the leg up now, especially with ports to add a monitor and keyboard. Sounds a bit like a scaled-back OQO.
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