Phones, PDAs Starting to Connect
The marriage of cell phones with personal digital assistants might seem like a match made in heaven, but the past few attempts have been miserable unions. The devices always ended up too big and clumsy to use.
Phone makers haven’t had much of an incentive to improve the devices because the market for honest-to-goodness, two-in-one devices has been so small.
But they are steadily improving. I tested six devices, including the three leading smart-phone models on the U.S. market today--the Kyocera Smartphone, the LG/TP3000 by LG InfoComm and the Ericsson R380 World phone--plus a small sampling of “wannabe” devices--Motorola’s pager-like Accompli 009, the S40 phone by Siemens and the i85s multi-function phone from Motorola.
Choosing one of these devices is much more complicated than buying your average phone (which is hard enough). In the smart-phone world, you have to consider the amount of memory, the capabilities of your laptop or PC, the ability of the device to work with your favorite phone book and calendar software and the battery life of the unit and its display.
All six devices I tested came with at least one CD-ROM. Many were packed with electronic user manuals, synchronization software and programs to keep a desktop calendar, phone book and other data.
What this means is that users should prepare themselves for a PC-like experience when setting up these devices. While loading the Ericsson desktop software, for example, I didn’t have the right version of DCOM981.3 in my Windows 98 program. That sent me to the Ericsson “readme” file to get instructions, then to a Windows site to download the mystery file. Later, the program refused to launch and sync with my Outlook data because I didn’t have an Outlook profile set up.
This growing link between phones and computers has other drawbacks. Many believe that the technological cross-pollination will lead to the widespread migration of “freezing” and other PC behaviors, as well as computer-like viruses into the hand-held world. Security also will continue to be a major concern, as more key data find their way into portable devices.
Another drawback is that smart phones have more limited battery life than stand-alone PDAs, and that makes regular PC synchronization vital. Some devices include some amount of emergency power to store data for a short time before everything disappears, but you’ll be in serious trouble if you leave on a trip without your charger.
The best smart phones, in my view, make no sacrifices on the phone side of things.
There’s a reason that cell phones outsell hand-held computer devices by a huge margin, and it’s not just because mobile phones are cheaper. They’re very close to being viewed as a necessity.
If you want to add phone functionality to a hand-held through the Visor phone or the new Sprint PCS add-on, be my guest. But don’t kid yourself into thinking it will hold up as your everyday cell phone.
Ericsson R380
This is a good smart phone that flips open to uncover a generous-size touch screen with a crisp display and easy-to-understand icons and buttons. Its ability to sync with widely used PC software such as Microsoft Outlook and Lotus is very useful. Still, I had some hitches loading the software. The voice quality was solid, and it comes with all the basic phone functions.
The major drawbacks include the phone’s mere 1.2 megabytes of memory, which is paltry next to the Kyocera Smartphone’s 8 MB and could ultimately impose limits on the device’s usefulness for users with large contact lists and the like.
It uses the Symbian operating system, which is a young but growing platform better known in Europe.
Carriers in the United States don’t sell the phone directly, but it works on Cingular and VoiceStream networks and can be purchased on Ericsson’s Web site for $499.
As for ergonomics, the buttons are not too stiff, the screen is easy on the eyes and its overall size and shape is comfortable in the hand. However, when the flap is open, the sideways display is hard to work with unless you set it down on a table.
The flap must rest on one hand, and the phone sideways position is a bit awkward.
Its lack of analog capabilities is a setback for users in this country, where digital networks are not as robust as in Europe. In addition, I found the custom stylus a bit fragile.
Kyocera Smartphone
This is my favorite of the bunch. It’s not especially attractive, and its $400 price is a drawback, but it does the best job of combining the benefits of a PDA with the best phone functions without major compromises for either.
It uses the same version of the Palm operating system resident in Palm V and Palm VII organizers and integrates the phone and PDA functions fairly elegantly. Tapping a Palm address book entry can launch a phone call to that person without a lot of extra steps, for example, and the speaker phone automatically activates when the flap is open. Though this is not exclusive to the Kyocera phone, it adds to its functionality.
The phone’s robust 8 MB is four times the amount of memory in a Palm IIIe and should be enough for most users. Installation of the sync software is easy and mostly mimics the Palm desktop software.
At first glance, the phone looks big. It’s wide and much larger than the shrinking phones people are used to seeing these days. However, the Kyocera device is fairly flat and not too wide to fit comfortably in my hand or to make the phone function awkward.
Its weight, 7.3 ounces, is more than some of its competitors, but it also is by far the most functional of the group. It weighs less than the combination of my Palm and cell phone, so my purse would be lighter with the Kyocera as a replacement.
LG InfoComm
This $300 phone was among the first combination devices to hit the U.S. market that was small enough to be attractive to buyers. It is lightweight and flips open to unveil a generous-size display. It is integrated in much the same way as the Kyocera, with the speaker phone automatically launched when the flap opens during a call.
It has a see-through cover that, when closed, allows a view to the phone number display and other messages. However, the plastic cover on my model blurred the view somewhat.
But LG InfoComm’s decision to use its own operating system limits the phone’s flexibility and its usefulness for people who already use other contact or appointment software. Because of the compatibility issue, the phone doesn’t coordinate its data with Outlook, Lotus or other popular PC software. I also found the phone’s calendar display limited.
The phone gets good grades on ease of use, though. The software was simple to install, and for the most part I didn’t need to crack the manual to figure things out.
Motorola Accompli 009
I tried the pricey new Accompli 009 to get a feel for how a totally different design stacked up against the phone-style combinations. This $600 Motorola wonder is in the form of a fat clamshell pager, but it comes with a tiny messaging keyboard and a beautiful color screen. It’s also packed with a wide range of non-pager functions, including a phone, Web browser, photo display and standard PDA features.
These are all strengths. But they are also weaknesses because the resulting product is so confusing that reading the manual is a must. The Accompli 009 uses Motorola’s proprietary Wisdom operating system, but the box says it is compatible with popular Web calendars, desktop organizers and PDAs, such as Outlook, Lotus Organizer and Notes, Act and Sidekick.
I found adding contact information or calendar appointments using the device a bit tedious, even with a full keypad. It’s far superior to doing those things on a phone keypad, but the comparison here is really with phones that have touch screens--and those speed up the entry process a great deal, especially if you’re good at Palm’s “graffiti” writing language.
The keyboard, of course, is really meant for messaging, and that is by far its best asset. If you’re a messaging maniac, you’ll love the Accompli 009.
The main drawbacks are on the phone side. To make or answer calls, you have to use the provided ear bud headset or let the world hear your conversation with the speakerphone attachment. The phone keys are also hard to see, and they don’t come with the familiar “abc” on the “2” button and so forth, which makes “spell-dialing” almost impossible.
Answering the phone when you’re not already using the device isn’t easy either, unless you keep the ear bud plugged in and near your ear. The device works only on digital networks.
Siemens S40
This phone was included for two reasons: It’s one of the first phones from Siemens (a big player overseas) to hit this country, and it is a good example of the dozens of phones that don’t have full-function PDAs built in.
The $150 Siemens S40 is a gorgeous lightweight phone, with brushed-silver casing, blue buttons and translucent-blue accent pieces on the back and a hidden antenna. It comes with a pared-down calendar, contacts and sleek minimalist styling that will probably be popular among the traveling executive set.
Fittingly, the phone comes with a European power adapter, works on European networks and reflects the Euro craze over ring tones by including an incredibly long menu of musical selections. Its display will work in any of 18 languages.
I easily loaded 289 contact entries from Outlook into the tiny device, and although the display is truncated, it seemed to take the key info OK, including all kinds of phone numbers and addresses (e-mail and otherwise). The calendar wasn’t nearly as good.
Even if everything translated well from Outlook to the phone, the display is so minuscule that I’m not sure it’s worth the trouble.
Another drawback is its one-plug design, which means the charger, headset and PC connection is an either-or situation. The headset jack is not the standard size, so forget buying your own favorite style off the shelf.
In most cases, I would applaud any simplification of these devices, but I think the Siemens S40 has so few buttons that it inhibits easy navigation through menus and features.
Motorola i85s
This $179 phone has messaging, limited e-mail and Web browsing features, but its PDA functions are cut off from the rest of the world.
Because there’s no syncing capability (unless you pay extra for a Web-based feature) and no infrared port, you’re left entering phone numbers through the phone--and that, believe me, is a special kind of torture.
Perhaps because the folks at Motorola figured this out, there is now a fold-out keyboard users can buy to make data entry easier.
The phone also uses a large assortment of confusing icons, especially for the phone book, such as a tiny picture of a factory to indicate a work phone. There’s another for fax, main, private and so forth. It would have been simpler if Motorola had skipped the icons and used the words.
Nextel’s i85s is one of the first to include Java capabilities, which allows business users to incorporate small custom applications that might otherwise be converted for use on a Palm or other hand-held device.
But the main beauty of the i85s is its push-to-talk feature (a fancy way of saying two-way radio), which remains unique to the i85s and the other Motorola phones made expressly for the Nextel Communications network.
What that means is that the user has two ways to communicate: by standard cell phone, or via two-way radio. (Nextel calls it “direct connect.”) You can call anyone via cell phone (as long as you have a digital signal), but your direct-connect function will reach only those specified as in your work group or family group.
Overall, the i85s is a difficult sell as a true smart phone. But it’s the best thing yet for folks who want the convenience of direct-connect without giving up the advanced features being built into many high-end cell phones.
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Elizabeth Douglass covers the telecommunications industry. She can be reached at elizabeth.douglass@latimes.com.
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The Skinny
Ericsson R380
* Price: $499 (through Ericsson)
* Weight: 5.8 ounces
* User memory: 1.2 MB
* Battery life: 4 hours talk time, 107 hours on standby
* Wireless carriers: GSM networks, including Cingular and VoiceStream
* Operating system: Symbian’s EPOC32
* Features: Supports Microsoft Outlook and Lotus for calendar and contacts database, e-mail, short messaging, voice memo, voice dialing, mini-Internet browser, handwriting recognition software, 22-language display
* The good: Compact and light for its features
* The bad: Awkward sideways display, limited storage
* The bottom line: Lots of features, but others are better.
Kyocera Smartphone QCP 6035
* Price: $400
* Weight: 7.3 ounces
* User memory: 8 MB
* Battery life: 5 hours of talk time, 180 hours on standby
* Wireless carriers: Sprint PCS, Verizon Wireless
* Operating system: Palm OS
* Features: Infrared port, voice dialing, voice memo, full Palm functions such as calendar, contacts database and notes; supports e-mail, incoming short messaging, Internet browsing
* The good: Excellent integration of Palm and phone functions with lots of memory
* The bad: Larger and more expensive than competing units
* The bottom line: Best phone-PDA combo on the market.
LG InfoComm LG/TP3000
* Price: $300
* Weight: 6.2 ounces
* User memory: 4 MB
* Battery life: 3.5 hours talk time, 135 hours on standby
* Wireless carriers: Sprint PCS
* Operating system: Proprietary LG InfoComm system
* Features: Calendar, contacts database, voice dialing, Internet browsing
* The good: Relatively lightweight and simple
* The bad: No support for standard PC productivity software, e-mail or short messaging
* The bottom line: Behind the times--wait for the new one.
Motorola Accompli 009
* Cost: About $600 (available late October or early November)
* Weight: 5.7 ounces
* User memory: 8 MB
* Battery life: 300 minutes talk time, 150 hours on standby
* Wireless carriers: GSM networks, such as Cingular Wireless and VoiceStream Wireless
* Operating system: Motorola’s proprietary Wisdom system
* Features: Full-color screen, contacts database, calendar, e-mail, short messaging, infrared port, Internet browsing
* The good: Jam-packed with features and a beautiful color screen
* The bad: Awkward to use as a phone
* The bottom line: A great device for the message-crazed, but it’s only passable as a primary wireless phone.
Siemens S40
* Price: $150
* Weight: 3.4 ounces
* User memory: 500 KB
* Battery life: 6 hours talk time, 260 hours on standby
* Wireless carriers: Cingular Wireless
* Operating system: No operating system
* Features: Calendar, contacts database, voice memo, Internet browsing, text in 18 languages, works in Europe
* The good: Feather light and beautiful looks
* The bad: Non-phone functions cumbersome to use
* The bottom line: A wonderful phone, but doesn’t cut it as a true two-in-one device.
Motorola i85s
* Price: $179
* Weight: 4.8 ounces
* User memory: 4 MB
* Battery life: 2.75 hours of talk time, 75 hours on standby
* Wireless carriers: Nextel Communications
* Operating system: Motorola’s Real Time Operating System
* Features: E-mail, short messaging, runs Java applications, Internet browsing, two-way radio
* The good: A unique combination of phone, two-way radio and PDA
* The Bad: Confusing and incompatible with many popular programs
* The bottom line: Two-way radio is great, but if you don’t need that feature, other choices are better.
