Mobile computing is one of the hottest industries in
recent years. Recent advances have made it easier to
take the office with you when it's not possible to be
there. It started about fifteen years ago when portable
computerized address books first hit the market. Today,
we have laptops and PDAs with internet connections
inexpensive enough to make just about anyone's life easier.

The most basic devices available today are pocket sized
PDAs which allow users to store address books, calendars,
to-do lists, and memos in them for easy access anywhere.
It's possible to connect them to a computer via a serial
port to synchronize the information between the two
devices. $130 is all it takes to get into this entry level
market.

$450 will buy a PDA with a wireless internet connection
to allow users to have immediate access to email or the web
plus allow users to synchronize their information anywhere 
they go. These devices also offer quadruple the capacity of 
the entry level devices as well as rechargable batteries. 
Peripherals available for PDAs have expanded to include voice
recording technology, GPS locators and maps and even digital 
cameras. Full color screens are even becoming more popular.

For some, not even modern PDAs provide enough power for their
needs. Laptops are the ultimate PDA if bulkiness isn't a
concern. They can provide all the functionality of a PDA with
a near endless amount of storage. For long trips, most newer
laptops even include a DVD drive to watch movies. Laptops
usually come with both an ethernet port, to connect to the
network at work or home, and a telephone jack to dial in from
anywhere in the world. The biggest downside to laptops is they
are fairly expensive if they are not used for anything more 
than a PDA.

Before buying a mobile device, the most important thing to
question is exactly what it's going to be used for and whether
it's necessary to expand it's functionality in the future.
It's also important to determine whether instant access
everywhere is necessary or if synchronizing while in the 
office is all that's needed. The entry level PDA offers a
nice start but due to it's configuration, is fairly limited 
in expansion. Higher end PDAs are powerful enough to meet 
almost everyone's needs and are capable enough to provide 
for future expansion. Laptops offer the most expandability 
but are fairly pricy. 

Ken Witherow
This article is Copyright 2000, Ken Witherow. All rights reserved.
For questions or comments, email phantoml@rochester.rr.com