* Not just a personal information device
Handheld computers are popping up everywhere these days. While the trend is to make these mobile devices more “special purpose,” especially for enterprise class applications, it’s fun to see so many ways to make them more general purpose. My husband is shopping for a GPS right now, and I suggested he buy a plug-in for his iPAQ Pocket PC. While searching for such products, we were amused to see how many ways you can adapt an iPAQ beyond the typical “e-mail and contacts” use. What better way to increase your ROI than to use the handheld in many different ways?
Let’s start with the GPS device. One of the more interesting options we found is the Navman GPS 3450, which turns your iPAQ Pocket PC into “a complete street navigation solution” for about 300 bucks. This looks to be a very useful tool for someone who needs to navigate around a city, such as a salesman, deliveryman or repairman. Or, it could be helpful to the average business person who travels a lot. It comes with voice navigation software, so you can interact with the device completely hands-free while driving. You can even do route planning, or use it to add to the enjoyment of your geocaching games.
Have you thought about using your iPAQ to capture still photos or video images? You can turn your Pocket PC into a “mobile digital imaging center” with the HP Photosmart Mobile Camera add-on. The camera has 1.3 megapixel resolution, and allows you to capture still images and add audio messages, or capture video with audio. Using software on the iPAQ, you can edit and resize the images, download them to a PC, e-mail them to others, or send them to a printer via Bluetooth, wireless LAN or infrared. I could see this as a useful tool for, say, an insurance adjuster, an accident investigator, a maintenance engineer or an overzealous soccer mom who needs to document a situation. The camera can capture the image, and database software on the iPAQ could log specific details about the circumstances.
What if you want to do a presentation from your iPAQ Pocket PC? The FlyJacket i3800 from LifeView is called a “mobile multimedia solution.” The FlyJacket i3800 can output to a projector, a VGA monitor, or a TV directly from your iPAQ. It also supports a range of video purposes, including previewing full motion video and taking video snapshots. Besides the projection device, a family of FlyCam devices from LifeView turns your Pocket PC into a digital camera. Now you can take and tote pictures of your kids everywhere and show them in a high-tech way.
Here’s a use for an iPAQ that is more in the specialty category, but I think it’s very innovative. Trekker from VisuAide is another iPAQ-based product that employs GPS technology. However, Trekker is designed specifically for people with vision impairments. This conveniently portable device uses GPS, talking digital maps and talking menus to help visually-impaired persons find their way in urban and rural areas. As the user walks along with his white cane or guide dog, Trekker keeps pace, announcing street names, intersections, addresses, stores and businesses, restaurants and area attractions as they come. There’s also a search function for an exhaustive database of points of interest, and a “Where am I?” function if the user is lost or disoriented. A real boon to the visually-impaired, this tool gives the user the freedom to explore his surroundings with confidence. I could also envision it being useful to elderly people who get confused easily and who need subtle reassurance about their surroundings. “Turn left at the post office to get home again…”
You say you should be able to make a call from your Pocket PC? Rumoring to be coming soon from HP is a new model iPAQ with an integrated phone and numerous modes of networking.
And finally, for you Linux geeks who like the thought of “do-it-yourself” wearable computing, you can follow the exploits of Ralf Ackermann, a researcher in the fields of multimedia communications and IP telephony. Ralf is building a prototype of a wearable iPAQ-based computer with various telephony and text-to-speech applications. You’ve got to see it to believe it: https://www.iptel-now.de/PROJECTS/WEARABLE/2G_IPAQ_WEARABLE/2g_ipaq_wearable.html
Linda Musthaler is vice president of Currid & Company. You can write to her at mailto:Linda.Musthaler@currid.com
