AT&T Wireless to lend Palm users a hand

MILPITAS, CALIF. - AT&T Wireless plans to become the first carrier to offer a high-speed, mobile service in the U.S. to users of Palm's Tungsten W PDA, as soon as the device becomes certified.

Customers of the device can expect data transmission speeds of up to 40M bit/sec and service availability in 99 of the 100 largest metropolitan areas in the U.S., according to the carrier. Originally scheduled for this month, the release dates of Palm's device and AT&T Wireless' service have been pushed back because of delays in certifying the Tungsten W by the PCS Type Certification Review Board. Palm says new launch dates will be announced soon.

Tungsten W, which was announced in October, is aimed at the corporate market. The device includes an integrated keyboard, e-mail and short message service support. The device also includes Palm calendar, contact and to-do list software, Acrobat Reader, a Web browser and Documents To Go Professional Edition software.

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MILPITAS, CALIF. - AT&T Wireless plans to become the first carrier to offer a high-speed, mobile service in the U.S. to users of Palm's Tungsten W PDA, as soon as the device becomes certified.

Customers of the device can expect data transmission speeds of up to 40M bit/sec and service availability in 99 of the 100 largest metropolitan areas in the U.S., according to the carrier. Originally scheduled for this month, the release dates of Palm's device and AT&T Wireless' service have been pushed back because of delays in certifying the Tungsten W by the PCS Type Certification Review Board. Palm says new launch dates will be announced soon.

Tungsten W, which was announced in October, is aimed at the corporate market. The device includes an integrated keyboard, e-mail and short message service support. The device also includes Palm calendar, contact and to-do list software, Acrobat Reader, a Web browser and Documents To Go Professional Edition software.

Although the Tungsten W supports voice, it primarily is designed for data communications. The device requires hardware attachments, such as a wired headset, for use as a phone.

The device supports multiple GSM bands including 900MHz, 1800MHz and 1900MHz that will let customers traverse networks of international carriers with which AT&T Wireless has roaming agreements.

This is not the first combination PDA and phone that AT&T Wireless has supported. The carrier also supports the Siemens SX56 device and Research in Motion's BlackBerry with phone.

AT&T Wireless will charge Tungsten W users by the amount of data they send and receive, not by the amount of time they spend online. Plans will range from 8M bytes per month for $20 to 100M bytes per month for $100. Voice plans will be sold separately, but customers will receive just one bill for both services. The 8M-byte plan requires the purchase of a voice plan.

Tungsten W devices will have a suggested retail price of $550.

Lawson is a correspondent with the IDG News Service's San Francisco bureau. Network World Senior Editor Denise Pappalardo also contributed to this story.

Read more about wireless & mobile in Network World's Wireless & Mobile section.