Product Roundup: Mobile Computing Anywhere, Anytime
Versatile Storage
The KanguruMicro MP3 is a keychain USB flash drive that is also an MP3 player. You can store your presentation, e-mail, photo album, and ytunes on the same convenient pocket-sized device. The unit's battery recharges through a USB port; it is driverless with most operating systems, and it is available in a variety of memory sizes (from 64MB to 256MB), with prices starting at under $80.
Upgradeable pocket memory drives are another cool new miniature storage option. Available from a variety of manufacturers, including SimpleTech, Kanguru, and PQI, these units cost only a few dollars more than the raw memory cards themselves. The SanDisk Cruzer, for example, costs about $140 with a 256MB card, and it can be supplemented with any number of extra memory cards as your needs require.
Getting in Sync
Synchronizing all the different devices and information involved in managing a growing business can be a real challenge. Several software solution providers with good track records have recently released new and enhanced products and services.
DataViz's Beyond Contacts approaches the synchronization challenge in a basic and effective way, addressing the needs of the large segment of mobile managers who use Windows PCs, MS Outlook, and Palm OS PDAs. This nifty, $49.95 application, not only synchronizes all your Outlook fields to your PDA; it includes a set of integrated Palm OS applications with the look and feel of Outlook, so there's virtually no learning curve.
Pumatech's new Intellisync 5.1 synchronization software provides advanced business features, such as synchronization of calendars, contacts, tasks, e-mail, and even e-mail attachments, between desktop computers and Pocket PC-, Palm OS-, or Symbian-based handheld devices. The $69.95 program supports a variety of desktop applications.
If your mobile workers need secure and reliable mobile access to corporate information from Web-enabled mobile devices, such as PDAs or WAP-enabled phones, check out Infinite from Captaris. This powerful mobile business solution also enables workers on the go to manage all their messages - including voice, fax, and e-mail - in a single Inbox. Project documents and time-sensitive information (such as "order status") can also be securely accessed for quick reference.
Version 2.0 of the LapLink Everywhere remote- and mobile-access Web service makes it possible for mobile professionals to have rapid, secure access to their e-mail, contacts, calendar, databases, and other desktop files, using any Web-enabled device from virtually anywhere. This easy-to-use-and-manage service is also less expensive to deploy than many other forms of secure remote access.
Network Anywhere
Laptop wireless networking adapters that are 802.11a, 802.11b, and the draft-compliant 802.11g specification are now a reality, and they can keep you connected at home, in the office, or at hotspots on the road. The versatile, new DWL-AG650 CardBus Adapter from D-Link is a multimode 802.11a/b/g draft-compliant unit that offers maximum connectivity speed - up to 54Mbps - in virtually any wireless LAN (WLAN) environment for less than $100. Multimode cardbus laptop adapters are also now available from ORiNOCO, Netgear, Linksys, and SMC.
Sidebar: The Ultimate Way to Stay Connected Hands Free
The sleek and stylish JABRA FreeSpeak? gives you total mobility and freedom by eliminating the wire between your headset and mobile phone. The FreeSpeak works with the latest Bluetooth phones and with many other mobile phones through a Bluetooth adapter. Weighing in at less than an ounce, the FreeSpeak is made of a soft, sound-absorbing material that reduces distortions, giving you crisp sound quality. The FreeSpeak fits comfortably and securely behind either ear, and the unit's earpiece features the new JABRA MiniGel(tm), an evolution of the company's patented EarGel(r).
Written by John Rhodes, author of Videoconferencing for the Real World. johnr@bestweb.net
Editorial Director: Ed Weil. weil@snet.net
