This was perhaps the worst-kept secret in the computer industry. For months, Microsoft and its hardware partners have been previewing the many new features of the next version of its Windows CE operating system, code-named Rapier and now known as Pocket PC. But that didn't stop Microsoft from holding a big party at Grand Central Terminal in New York City today for the official introduction of Pocket PC, along with the new Palm-size PCs and accessories built around the wholly revamped operating system.
Pocket PC represents Microsoft's renewed bid to extend the Windows operating system family to handheld and smaller devices, as well as wrestle a share of the business from 3Com's subsidiary Palm Computing, which currently owns about 80 percent of the market for PDAs (personal digital assistants), according to the Gartner Group. Palm organizers have been so successful in large part because of the company's "less is more" philosophy. To date, Palm has focused largely on easing the ability to accomplish simple tasksââ,¬"maintaining lists of contacts, scheduling meetings, and tracking tasks.
Microsoft, on the other hand, has followed a "more is more" model. The new version is crammed with brand-new features for personal information management (PIM), productivity, entertainment, and connectivity that let you do more whether you are at work, on the road, or at home. The slim Palm V is extremely attractive to executives and others who want only to manage PIM data, and the Palm IIIc adds a touch of colour, but neither can play back multimedia audio or video clips. In addition, their ability to serve as productivity devices is limited by their CPUs, storage, and expansion capabilities. Yet Pocket PC is simpler to use than previous versions of Windows CE. For these reasons, Pocket PC-based devices deserve a second look from both individuals and companies that previously only considered Palm organizers.
Two for Starters, More to Come
As of today's Pocket PC launch, only two Palm-size PCs are available: the Casio Cassiopeia E-115 (US$600 street) and the HP Jornada 545 (US$500 street) from Hewlett-Packard. We tested both of these new models. The Compaq iPAQ Pocket PC ($500 street), along with additional models from Casio and Hewlett-Packard, should all be available by early summer. Symbol Technologies, which makes PDAs with integrated bar code readers and wireless communications for inventory applications, announced the Pocket PC software update for the company's PPT 2700 series; these updated units will be available this summer.
Weighing 6 to 9 ounces and good for 6 to 12 hours of continuous use with standard rechargeable batteries, the new Pocket PC devices have 32-bit and 64-bit processors ranging in speeds from 131 MHz to 206 MHz, 16MB of ROM, 16MB or 32MB of RAM, bright 4,000 or 64,000 colours, 320-by-240-resolution displays, microphones, speakers, and stereo headphone jacks. The products range in price from US$500 to US$600. All of the announced models but the Casio Cassiopeia E-115 have standard USB synchronization.
The Compaq iPAQ Pocket PC (US$500 street) was not available in time for testing, but we did get a sneak peek at the product, which is a significant departure from Compaq's previous Aero Palm-size PC line. The iPAQ has the hippest design of the announced products and is the lightest (6.0 ounces) and slimmest (0.6 inches thick) Pocket PC device, though its reflective TFT screen will display only 4,000 colours. The unit should also be the fastest, with its 206-MHz Intel StrongARM processor and 32MB of RAM. The size reduction is achieved in part by using a thin, flexible lithium polymer batteryââ,¬"a new battery technology that literally molds itself to fit the insides of the deviceââ,¬"and by eliminating an expansion slot as a standard feature in favor of optional Expansion Packs that fit over the back of the device like sleeves. A CompactFlash Expansion Pack (US$40 street) and a PC Card Expansion Pack (US$150 street), each with a single Type II slot for their respective card types, should be available when the Compaq iPAQ Pocket PC ships (with a US$30 Expansion Pack coupon in the box). The clear advantage of Compaq's design is its flexibility: Those who don't need a card slot won't have to put up with the expense and bulk of an integrated one, whereas those who need expansion and storage options provided by a CompactFlash or PC Card slot can easily add one for relatively little extra cost.
A Look Back, and a Look Ahead
The first generations of Windows CE-based devices were labeled PC companions because they relied heavily on "host" PCs for applications and data. When not connected to their host PCs, Palm-size PCs were used primarily for looking up phone numbers or keeping track of appointments. All those PIM features are still there, but as the name implies, the new Pocket PC-based devices are powerful computers that have many of the productivity and multimedia capabilities of desktop and notebook PCs.
The functions at which pocket PCs excel start with PIM management and synchronization (including new software for exchanging data with Palm devices) and end at video and audio capture and playback. Intermediate functions, which will be most closely scrutinized by individuals and companies considering the platform for small business, professional, and corporate applications, include the ability to work with standard Microsoft Office files (via file transfer and as e-mail attachments) and to access corporate e-mail and applications either remotely or over corporate networks. Because pocket PCs have more expansion capabilities than most Palm devices, which rely on a serial connection and limited infrared connectivity, the range of accessories that can be built to connect directly to pocket PCs is greater. The Palm family includes Handspring Visors with Springboard modular expansion slots, although few module options are shipping, and a CF slot-equipped model sold by TRG. But neither model is a mainstream product on the scale of Palm or Pocket PC devices.
Comparing functionality of Palm PDAs and pocket PCs for PIM data, synchronization, and even e-mail connectivity requires drawing relatively fine lines of distinction, but there are more major differences in other areas, especially in multimedia. Want to use a PDA as a voice recorder? Palm, no; Pocket PC, yes. Want to play back MP3 audio files? Palm, no; Pocket PC, yes. Digital image viewing? Palm, yesââ,¬"in 256 colours; Pocket PCââ,¬"even better with up to 64,000 colours and larger screen sizes. Want to capture or play back video with or without audio? Pocket PC is your only choice. Ebook readers are available for Palm PDAs, but no Palm application measures up to the new Microsoft Reader, which can play back audio books as well as display text files using new ClearType technology.
To date, Palm devices have had the lead in wireless connectivity over small Windows CE devices (without using a separate mobile phone). Palm devices have also been able to use CDPD modems such as the Novatel Wireless Minstrel for Palm Pro and III and the forthcoming OmniSky product for Palm Vs, plus the Mobitex network-based Palm VII with its integral radio and antenna for instant (and admirably easy) wireless access via Bell South to PalmNet servers and services. Notably, Novatel Wireless was at the Pocket PC launch with the promise (and early models) of CDPD modem sleeves to work with new models, and Sierra Wireless demonstrated a PC card CDPD modem for Compaq iPAQ Pocket PCs using the PC Card Expansion option. As with earlier generations, pocket PCs can accept optional CF modems and make wireless connections via infrared (to devices such as notebook PCs and infrared-enabled printers as well as to infrared modem-equipped phones), via mobile phone serial data cables, and using CompactFlash digital phone cards and cables.
You'll pay more for a pocket PC than for a Palm PDA, but you get much more capability. Whereas the breadth of functions possible with a pocket PC can actually be distracting if you approach the category with only a single function in mind, the richness of this platform allows these devices to replace a number of other personal electronic devices and serve as helpful, entertaining electronic assistants from morning to night. The pocket PC is a personal and business productivity and communications tool that doubles nicely as an after-hours entertainment device. Needless to say, we like it.
Overhauled OS
Visually and operationally, Pocket PC is an improvement on earlier versions of Windows CE. Though the main interface is not as iconized as the Palm OS, the similarity to Windows desktop OS designs adds familiarity. You'll find fewer status indicators and other less-critical items on the screen, leaving more real estate for applications. You can still drill down through menus or tap and hold records to display optional actions quickly, but fewer screen elements in view clean up the interface significantly. (Worthy of mention is that both Casio and Hewlett-Packard ship overlay menu applications that use simplified big-button-style menus with their pocket PCs.)
A number of Pocket PC interface design changes add up to more pleasant operation compared with models from previous generations. Some changes are small, others are more noticeable, but in sum they improve usability. For example, the Start button is now in the upper left corner rather than lower left, with application-specific menus displayed horizontally on the bottom of the screen. You no longer need to double tap on the Pocket PC display; all selection and start actions work on a single tap. A new "OK" button in the upper right corner of the screen makes closing dialog boxes easier.
In the past, you had no way to view files and folders conveniently on the device unless you were connected to a PC. Now, the File Explorer utility on the Pocket PC displays device and storage card contents and enables you to move files. Rather than searching menus for record operation options, just hold your stylus or finger on a record and a window pops up with available operations.
One of our greatest complaints about earlier versions of Windows CE was the awkward steps you had to take to close applications which, if left open, could clog memory to the point of slowing or halting operations. Bsquare's bTask utility was a must-have add-in for earlier Windows CE versions, but bTask is no longer necessary with Version 3.0. The new OS has intelligent memory management that saves data and closes unused applications automatically when memory is needed for other applications. We questioned whether this feature would work, but in testing over a period of more than two monthsââ,¬"both shipping and near-production devicesââ,¬"we never ran into a problem that required closing applications manually. Pocket PC even dynamically allocates available memory between applications and data, a setting that previously required manual intervention.
You can customize both the opening menu and the Today screen within Pocket PC to eliminate information you don't want to see or to add commonly used programs. When you tap the Start button, the six most recently used applications are represented by icons just below the button, for quicker access. You can now use a new Find function to search for data across standard Pocket PC Outlook and Office applications.
Integration of similar application data types adds to the Pocket PC's new design. For example, print e-books and spoken-word books can each be managed and accessed by the Microsoft Reader. Outlook Notes incorporates both handwritten notes and voice recordings (both are also synchronized to the desktop as well). In addition to the standard recognizer and tiny virtual keyboard, Pocket PC also ships with Microsoft Transcriber, the new name for the impressive, trainable mixed text and cursive handwriting recognition engine previously sold as Calligrapher by ParaGraph.
Pocket PC Applications
All Pocket PC devices include a standard set of Microsoft applications burned into ROM. An included ActiveSync 3.1 CD-ROM also contains a set of common applications and sample files. OEMs can differentiate their offerings by adding additional applications to the ROM during the manufacturing process and on a supplementary CD-ROM.
The standard suite of Microsoft applications burned into the Pocket PC ROM includes ActiveSync, Calculator, File Explorer, Microsoft Reader with Clear Type, Microsoft Windows for Pocket PC, Pocket Excel, Pocket Internet Explorer, Pocket Money, Pocket Outlook (Contacts, Calendar, Notes with Voice Recorder, Tasks, and Inbox), Pocket Word, Solitaire, and Windows Media Player for Pocket PC. A new IMAP4 e-mail client adds greater support for e-mail (the POP3 e-mail support in earlier versions is still there as well).
The bundled CD-ROM includes the desktop versions of ActiveSync 3.1, Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0, Microsoft Money, Outlook 2000, and Windows Media Manager. Additional Pocket PC applications on the CD are Microsoft Transcriber, Pocket Streets, and Sample Books (a collection of 29 classic titles in the public domain such as Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Ernest).
With the shipping applications, the pocket PC is an able digital companion device for people who use Microsoft Outlook and Office applications on desktop PCs. You can access and manage personal and corporate e-mail via wired modems or via Ethernet or wireless access (using optional attachments). The new AOL Dialup client downloads an AOL Mail program, a badly needed feature.
The five most important new applications standard on Pocket PC are Microsoft Media Player for Pocket PC, Microsoft Reader with ClearType, Pocket Excel, Pocket Internet Explorer, and Pocket Word. Pocket Excel and Pocket Word, previously available on H/PC and H/PC Pro Windows CE models with keyboards and fold-up screens, let you read, edit, and create Excel and Word files. Though the PDA versions of the productivity products do not contain (nor can they transfer) every feature of the desktop versions of the Office programs, the ability to carry or e-mail standard documents and worksheets is a great advance. We found that we were able to transfer multipage Excel worksheets to a pocket PC and access all pagesââ,¬"with the fonts and colours used on the original.
Improved Internet, More Leisure
Pocket Internet Explorer will be the most important Pocket PC application for many users. This HTML 3.2-compatible browser supports JScript, SSL, 128-bit encryption, frames, and XML. When we went to the PC Magazine Web site, we found we had to scroll down columns of frames, but the graphics, contents, and links were all present and active. An AvantGo client is included in the Pocket PC ROM for synchronizing content from specially formatted Web sites to the PDA for off-line viewing. You can use AvantGo to subscribe to any Web site, but the AvantGo channels specifically formatted for handheld devices are the most pleasant to view. We tested Internet access with Pocket Internet Explorer using a wired modem and an Earthlink account. We found the new connection set-up process and modem configuration in Pocket PC a significant improvement over past releases.
For after-hours use, Windows Media Player for Pocket PC and Microsoft Reader with ClearType are terrific applications, particularly if you have at least one good-size CompactFlash card. Windows Media Player plays back both MP3 and WMA (Windows Media Audio) audio files, which makes it handy for use with headphones when you are on a treadmill, jogging, or commuting. File size is a problem, as with all mobile audio players. MP3 files use roughly 1MB per minute and WMA files use approximately 0.5MB per minute. Playback quality is fine, and you never need to worry about skipping because, as with all portable digital audio players, there are no moving parts.
Ebooks require less storage space than audio files. You can easily store several books on a small CompactFlash cardââ,¬"or even in the pocket PC's memory. For example, G. K. Chesterton's The Innocence of Father Brown stores in just 191K and Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer uses just 178K, so a single MB of storage can easily hold four to six books. You may spend a little while getting used to reading with Microsoft Reader, using the sample books provided on the Microsoft CD. Microsoft Reader can also be used to play back spoken books from Audible, with approximately 1 hour of spoken content per MB.
One minor complaint we have about both Windows Media and Microsoft Reader is that you cannot acquire new content for either independent of a PC. Even though you can access Web sites (with an Internet connection) directly with a pocket PC, to use audio or Ebook content for either application you must first download the content to a notebook or desktop PC and then transfer it to a pocket PC for the content to be properly formatted for use with the PDA applications.
The Bottom Line
All in all, the Pocket PC platform provides a wealth of features that invite exploration and use. Though pocket PCs have some features that will appeal to corporations and developers, such as support for 32-bit Visual Basic programming and thin clients, most users will look to the pocket PC as a multimedia-enabled PDA that can also be used with e-mail, for reading Word and Excel documents, for reviewing downloaded online content, and for ebooks and digital audio. Short video clips from companies such as AtomFilms, which was also at the Pocket PC launch, show the potential of this powerful PDA platform. This leads us to wonder about the potential for high-speed streaming video via wireless connection in future PDAs.
Other Electronic devicesââ,¬"including Palm and Psion PDAs, smaller electronic assistants from a wide range of manufacturers, and even two-way pagers and certain smartââ,¬"phones can ably handle personal information such as contacts, tasks, appointments, and memos. If you don't want more from a PDA than PIM features, a pocket PC is probably overkill. Pocket PCs manage personal information as well as or better than any other device on the market, but using a pocket PC just to manage a few contacts and appointments is akin to using a desktop computer for its clock and calculator functions. But if you a looking for a truly portable digital companion, the pocket PC is the way to go.
