November 2002

A wave of new or improved handheld terminals has hit the UK market - all of them pitched at both warehouse environments and mobile computing applications. Several use the powerful Intel Xscale 400MHz processor, and come with 64MB of RAM as standard (128MB optional).

One of the suppliers, Panasonic, is new to this market sector, although it already has a reputation in rugged laptop computers. Now it has launched a handheld, the ToughBook CF-P1, which comes in a shock-resistant magnesium alloy case and is waterproof. It weighs 453g. The CF-PI offers a range of communication options including GPRS/GSM cellular networks, 802.11b wireless LAN and GPS receiver. There is also an optional barcode scanner. List price is a competitive £1,099.

Symbol has narrowed the the gap between handheld terminals and personal digital assistants (PDAs) with its new PPT8800. It embodies many of the features seen in the company's recently-introduced PDT8000 range, but weighs just over half as much in basic form (300g).

It uses the latest .NET 4.1 version of the Windows CE operating system, and offers support for Symbol's new AirBEAM family of mobility management tools. Integrated single-dimension barcode scanning capability is built in, and support for Bluetooth or 802.11b local-area wireless networking is optional.

Meanwhile, Intermec's 700-series Pocket PC-based handheld terminal is now officially available in Europe. It is the first device of its kind to combine a colour display, GSM and GPRS communications, 802.11b networking and Bluetooth networking in a single device.

Looking ahead, Casio planning to launch a hybrid PDA/handheld terminal in the first part of next year. Its IT-500 weighs just 250g, and with its metallic finish and slim case looks remarkably like a consumer PDA; yet it is dust- and splash-resistant to IP54 standard, and is built to withstand a drop from 1 metre.

• Further details of all these terminals and other mobile computing developments can be found in issue 3 of m.logistics, which is out now.