February 8, 2003

Pocket PC phone

The first combination cell phone and PDA to run Microsoft’s Pocket PC Phone Edition is now available, taking a decidedly PDA-centric approach to its tasks. The Pocket PC 2002 Phone Edition includes the entire Pocket PC 2002 operating system, along with extras designed for personal digital assistants that have built-in wireless voice and data capability. The unit works on both GSM/GPRS networks—an appealing feature for international travellers. The device is powered by a 206MHz Intel StrongArm processor, and comes with 32MB of memory. It measures 12.7x7x2 centimetres, and weighs 193 grams. The unit has a Secure Digital expansion slot and can synchronize with your PC through a USB port. Microsoft Media Player and Reader software are bundled with the PDA. Operating at speeds approaching those of 56kbps dialup connections, the GPRS data network delivers web pages to Pocket Internet Explorer with acceptable promptness. T-Mobile ships $549 device merging cell phone and Microsoft-powered PDA.

Portable tiny player

This tiny Yepp YP-90S player can plays MP3 and WMA files. A clear display simplifies navigating the stored music. Comes with a USB 1.1 connection, an FM tuner, and a voice recorder. It has 64MB of internal flash memory which is not expandable and can hold about 15 songs at 128 kbps. Weighing 34 grams, the device is powered by two AAA batteries. Its circular LCD shows information about the current track, including the artist name and song title. The proprietary file management software, Yepp AudioManager, is a basic program that gets the job done, lets you rip directly from CDs, and sends files quickly to the player through a USB 1.1 connection. and no expansion slots.