PDA Topics for the Radiologist
PDA Topics for the Radiologist |
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Richard H. Wiggins, III, MD has reported no financial interest, arrangement or affiliation with a commercial organization that may have a direct or indirect influence in the subject matter of this presentation.
Objectives
Contents
Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) are also known as handheld computers, palmtops, and pocket computers, and their sales are growing exponentially across the world. These devices grow in popularity as they become more powerful and as the number of available applications increase. The original devices, dealing with basic Personal Information Management (PIM) have evolved to advanced units with communication, entertainment and wireless Internet capabilities. These are now most commonly pen-controlled devices, with PIM, as well as networking, and some units even include voice recognition abilities. The term PDA has expanded to include “smart” pagers, Internet appliances, ever-shrinking palm computers, and even wearable computers [1, 2, and 3].
Modern healthcare is now evolving rapidly as technology speeds our imaging abilities. As medicine technology advances, the amount of information becomes staggering, making a PDA device, with the ability to store a great amount of information, increasingly valuable to healthcare. Mobile computing makes this knowledge acquisition possible in a way not imaginable just a decade ago.
There have been many interesting developments to the PDA world since Apple first launched the Newton MessagePad in 1993. In 1998, 7.4 million PDA units were sold. These numbers will likely increase to pass the number of desktop computers sold per year this decade. It is now clear that the use of PDAs in medicine will also grow exponentially. The ability to carry a significant amount of information on disease processes, laboratory values, and for radiologists, images showing examples of various diseases can greatly influence medical care [2, 3, and 4]. The youth of today will be the first generation to have largely “grown-up” with computer access. This generation will not only understand the technology better than any other will, but will expect the digital interactions in their everyday activities like never before.
There are many different types of devices that could be included in a discussion about PDAs, including “smart” watches, "smart" pagers and cellular phones, RIM Blackberry devices, Psion/Symbian/EPOC32 OS PDAs, Web/Tablet PCs, Palm OS units, and the Windows CE/ Pocket PC PDAs.
These last 2 types of PDAs are the most popular overall, have the largest user base, and therefore will be the focus of this discussion. This review will focus on a few areas of PDAs: their history, general purchasing issues, general PDA features, and the largest area of interest recently, the differences between the Palm OS and the new Pocket PC 2002 OS, replacing Windows CE.
PDA History
A graduate student at the University of Utah, Alan Kay, first described the idea of a PDA in the 1970s. His original idea was the Dynabook, an interactive computer like a book with a flat panel display and wireless communications abilities. He was clearly way ahead of his time. It took technology 3 decades to catch up with him. The Dynabook prototype was actually created by Xerox’s Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) in the 1970s, but was never pushed to market the device. This same group first came up with the What-You-See-Is-What-You-Get (WYSIWYG) Graphical User Interface (GUI), as well as the mouse (later popularized by Apple), and now running on almost all desktop computers [5 and 6].
In 1980, the business world utilized the week-at-a-glance day-timers to organize schedules, keep track of date, names, contact numbers, etc. Over the next decade, this paper trail was converted into the digital arena.
The Psion devices were first released in mid 1984. These advanced units were able to incorporate a simple calculator with a calendar and clock, and a simple database, but more importantly, also allowed expansion capabilities:
Also in 1984, Research in Motion (RIM) was founded, specifically targeting the wireless communications market. RIM joined with AT&T recently and released the Blackberry 5810, with Java-based integration of a phone with email services, including a built in QWERTY keyboard running the BlackBerry OS:
BlackBerry has also joined with NexTel to release the BlackBerry OS PDA and cellular phone unit, the BlackBerry 6510:
In the early 1990’s, Casio became successful with the Databank watch line, offering a small source for basic PIM:
These small devices allowed the user to keep dates, names, addresses, phone numbers, and memos in a small package. Modern versions include Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and even basic digital cameras:
Palm OS
John Sculley, then Chairman and CEO of Apple did not first describe the actual name “PDA” until 1992. The first real PDA was developed by Apple with the Newton MessagePad, which was first announced late in 1992, and began shipping in 1993. The Newton was truly a revolutionary device, and 80,000 units were sold in 1993. This was the first such unit to utilize a type of character recognition for the input of data. The handwriting recognition abilities were somewhat limited initially, and there was limited infrared support. The technology was not yet advanced to the point where such a device could be produced for the mass market at an affordable price however, and Apple was forced to leave the PDA field in 1998, after releasing several different models [2 and 3].
Palm, Inc. was founded in 1992, and acquired by U.S. Robotics in 1995, releasing their first Palm Pilot 1000 in 1996. This PDA had improved handwriting recognition, and a much refined GUI. The Palm Pilot 1000 was also much smaller, faster, and cheaper than the MessagePad. Palm began licensing their Palm OS platform to third parties in 1997, and was the first to release a PDA device with wireless internet access using Palm.Net, the Palm VII, in 1999. Palm.Net ia an always-on wireless service, with unlimited coverage in almost all major metropolitan cities, without roaming charges, for $34.99 a month with the annual plan. The unit has 8 MB memory, and can store 10,000 addresses, 5 years of appointments, 3,000 memos, 400 emails, and runs with the lithium rechargeable battery, lasting about a week between charges. The i705 has the expansion slot compatible with Secure Digital and MultiMediaCards. The display however is a transreflective monochrome with a backlight.
Palm released the m515 in 2001 with an improved adjustable backlight display, and 16 MB internal Random Access Memory (RAM), also with the Secure Digital and MultiMediaCard capabilities [7, 8, and 9]. In October of 2002, Palm released the scaled-down model called the Zire with 2 MB memory and a monochrome screen, and less then a month following this, released the new Palm Tungsten (m550) with the new OMAP processor running Palm OS 5.0.
This new device from Palm included a 320 X 320 color backlit display with 16 MB RAM, embedded Bluetooth capabilities, with the new Texas Instruments OMAP1510 enhanced ARM processor running at 144 MHz.
Sony is one of the companies that have licensed the palm OS, and has integrated multimedia prior to the other Palm OS developers, now releasing the PEG-NZ90, with a 2 Mega Pixel camera, built-in Bluetooth, a Wireless LAN slot, a 320 X 480 color display, and basic multimedia functions, running the new ARM-compliant 200 MHz CPU.
Handspring has released its new PDA and cellular phone unit, the Treo 300 communicator, with 16 MB RAM, and the Motorola 33 MHz processor and a 12-bit backlit color display.
Microsoft Windows CE
Microsoft recognized the importance of the PDA and in late 1996 launched the Windows CE OS. This attempt to port the popular Windows desktop OS to the PDA world was not warmly accepted initially. The first Windows CE v1.0 allowed for a monochrome display, but was somewhat hindered by short battery life, instability, limited OS abilities, and a poor GUI, especially compared to the Palm OS.
Windows CE v 2.0 added color support, and improved stability, and v 2.1 added Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC) processor support a year later in 1997. This was a direct attack by Microsoft at Palm, with the release of devices without the small keyboard in the earlier versions [5, 8, and 9]. These devices had similar stability problems, short battery life, and synchronization difficulties. The much improved Pocket PC OS was released in early 2000, and in late 2001, Microsoft released the much improved Pocket PC 2002 OS.
These units came with hardware requirements of using the ARM processor. Specifically, the first units utilized the StrongARM 206 MHz processor from Intel, promising lower cost, and power use, and increased performance, from Compaq, HP, Casio, and Toshiba. They also add an improved GUI, and multimedia features. The keyboard based Windows CE units evolved into the less popular Handheld PC Pro units still made by NEC, Intermec, and HP [10 and 11]. The new HP iPAQ h1910 pocket pc device has a 200 MHz CPU, with 64 MB SDRAM, and a 240 X 320 TFT backlit screen.
EPOC OS
Psion released a PDA unit called the EPOC, and this later became the name of the OS running on the devices. Psion attempted to license the OS in 1997, and then joined with Motorola, Erickson and Nokia to form Symbian in an effort to produce the next generation of wireless PDA devices using the EPOC OS. This 32-bit OS does allow support for preemptive multitasking for Read-Only Memory (ROM) based devices [5, 8, and 9]. Nokia has continued development of the EPOC OS, and is releasing its own version of the cellular phone and PDA unit, the Nokia 9210, and Psion has continued development with a line of mobile computers such as the Series 7 model
In 1999, Palm controlled 70% of the worldwide PDA market and boasted an over 5 million user installed base. The user friendly GUI and greater battery life of the Palm OS attributed to this popularity over the Windows CE units. The significant advances of the new Windows Pocket PC 2002 OS will continue to erode the Palm OS market share, as the business world begins to adopt the improved wireless technology available, such as Bluetooth, and combination PDA and cellular phone units. PDAs are growing in sales exponentially, and sales are expected to reach 85 million units in 2006 [4, 5, 8, 9, 12, and 13].
General PDA Purchasing Issues
What do you want to do with it?
There are usually three basic PDA user types. The first type is the users who just want to keep track of PIM data, such as names, addresses, phone numbers, important dates, etc, but will likely never use additional expansion cards or complicated applications. These are usually people that are just looking for a digital version of the paper date book they already have. The second type is the users who are a little more tech-savvy, who are looking for the latest cool gadget that may very well end up sitting on the shelf for days at a time. The third type is the power user (or enterprise solutions), who is interested not only in PIM, but also organization applications, such as working with Microsoft Office documents and Web browsing and connecting to a wireless network.
Cost
Most users will consider cost a significant issue in what PDA to get. Generally, those devices under $200 will have only a gray scale display, with less memory and a slower processor, and less expansion capabilities such as Compact Flash (CF), Secure Digital Card (SDC) or Multimedia Cards (MMC). These cheaper PDAs will be used mostly for basic PIM.
The $200 - $400 price range PDAs will be used mostly for PIM, but have the ability to handle applications such as Web browsing. These PDAs will have a little more RAM, slightly faster processors and more expansion capabilities, such as CF, SDC, MMC and the Sony Memory Stick.
The Higher price range PDAs, over $400, will include the new Pocket PC 2002 units, with more RAM (32-64 MB), higher processor speeds (200-400 MHz), and higher resolution color displays (65,000 colors), and the most expansion capabilities with the expansion cards above.
In general looking at these three groups above, the PDA neophyte who is looking for basic PIM and reliability will gravitate to the Palm OS, while the power user and enterprise solution manager will likely gravitate towards the Pocket PC 2002 devices, for their increased Wireless capabilities. The middle type of user will find attractions to both OSs.
General PDA Features
Data Input
The data input to a PDA device can vary widely. The pen-stylus is the most commonly used method for data input, using handwriting recognition. There are also touch sensitive screens and, and portable fold-out keyboards available for many devices. The Palm OS utilizes a Graffiti system, which organizes characters by unique patterns, for example, an “a” is an upside down “V”, like this: “?”. The original method used by the Newton actually learned how the user wrote, and the recognition abilities increased with increased use, even allowing for multiple user recognition profiles on a single unit. The Graffiti method used by Palm OS devices was very different, in that the PDA taught the user how to write characters. There are now varieties of touch sensitive screen keyboard technologies in PDAs, and even basic voice recognition capabilities for data input.
Synchronization
The synchronization between a PDA and a desktop computer has significantly increased the usability of these devices. Most devices utilize a type of cradle that the device sits in, while synchronizing, but there are a few units with infrared and modem capabilities:
The Palm OS units utilize the Palm desktop on a PC or Mac as another method of inputting data. The Pocket PC 2002 units utilize the ActiveSync technology to continuously synchronize data between the PC and the PDA. The Pocket PC 2002 units have simplified versions of Microsoft Word and Outlook for easy transmission of files between devices and PCs. Palm OS devices can use third party programs such as Documents To Go (from DataViz: http://www.dataviz.com/) to view Word files [5 and 7].
Displays
The Display technology used in PDAs has evolved along similar lines to laptop computers. The original Psion device had a basic 16 character display, and the original Palm units used a Film compensative Super Twisted Nematic (FSTN) display, which has evolved to the Thin Film Transistor (TFT) display used in the m505. The first Palm Pilot 1000 had a 160 X 160 pixel grayscale touch sensitive display. The newer m505 unit from Palm has the same 160 X 160 pixel spatial resolution, with increased contrast resolution, with a color display. The new Palm Tungsten m550 has a 320 X 320 color display. Sony is one of the groups that has licensed the Palm OS, and has released the Sony Clié PEG-T615c with a 320 X 320 backlit TFT 16-bit display [14].
The first Windows CE devices had a larger screen, with 480 X 240 or 640 X 240 pixel 4 shade grayscale displays. The next generation of Windows CE v 2 devices left the keyboard behind, with about 240 X 320 pixel displays, usually with 16 shade grayscale or 16-bit color. The new Pocket PC 2002 units have a similar spatial resolution with 16-bit color, and usually a backlit Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) TFT display [5 and 15].
Processors and Memory
The first Windows CE devices had processors ranging from 36–44 MHz clock speeds and usually had 2–4 MB RAM. These devices were really underpowered for the attempt to run Windows CE and instability was a huge problem [15]. The next generation of Windows CE v 2 units ranged from 60–130 MHz processors. Modern Pocket PC 2002 units have the new 32-bit 206 MHz StrongARM processor and about 32-64 MB RAM.
The original Palm devices had the Motorola DragonBall 16 MHz processor, which has increased only slightly to the 33 MHz 32-bit DragonBall VZ chip in the m505 and m515. The amount of RAM has increased more significantly from 128 KB in the Palm Pilot 1000, to 8 MB in the m505, and 16 MB RAM in the new Palm m515.
Expansion Methods
There is a wide variety of expansion options for mobile computers. The oldest industry standard for mobile computing expansion is really the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA, or just PC for short) card released in 1990.
There are three types: I, II, and III, with increasing thickness in size. Type I is usually used for additional ROM or RAM, while Type II is often modem types, and Type III can be used for external hard drives. This is the original expansion interface device, with a 68-pin connection, but these cards are relatively large, and require significant amounts of energy to operate, and therefore are not usually found in PDAs [5 and 16].
The CompactFlash (CF) card has really been the industry standard for removable media in portable devices with wide support, first released in 1994 by SanDisk Corporation. These are about 25% the size of a PCMCIA card (about the size of a matchbook), and are solid state (no moving parts), using flash technology, and can fit in an adapter to function through a PCMCIA connection.
There is also an Ultra CF card from SanDisk, with a faster data transfer rate of up to 2.8 MB per second, specifically made for digital photographers, to save images faster [5 and 17]:
The SmartMedia Card was created by Samsung and Toshiba and uses flash memory. SmartMedia cards actually have different voltage allowances (some are only 3.3 volts, some 5 volts, and some can be both, but they must be the same as the device they are being used with), and have therefore had significant intercompatibility problems [5 and 18]. PCMCIA adapters are also available for smart media cards.
The MultiMediaCard (MMC) was created by a joint effort of SanDisk with Hitachi and Siemens. This small card is about the size of a postage stamp, and can provide an impressive amount of memory storage in that small space. These are also solid state, so there are no moving parts.
The Secure Digital Card (SDC) was created jointly by SanDisk, Toshiba, and Matsushita (creator of Panasonic products) in 2000. These are the same size as the MMC, with a similar solid state interface, so that readers of SDCs can accept MMCs, but not all MMC readers can accept SDCs. In addition to the memory storage of the MMC, the SDC actually has an I/O interface that can allow connections with other devices such as GPS or 802.11b. The memory size will continue to increase, as with other technologies, and 2 GB SDCs are expected in 2003 with data transfer rates approaching 20 MB/sec [5 and 19]. These cards can hold an impressive amount of data. For example, a 512 MB secure digital card, can hold over 7,000 JPEG images at 640 X 480 pixel resolution, 3 hours of MPEG-4 video, and almost 12 hours of audio time with MP3 files.
The Memory Stick was developed by Sony and Fujitsu, as a memory platform to move data between Sony devices. This type of media (about the size of a stick of gum), is also solid state, and supports the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) specification (announced in 1999 by the 5 largest recording industry companies), which is strongly supported by Sony to try to decrease illegal music copying (also supported in SDCs). The data transfer rate of up to 2.5 MB per second is reportedly to increase to up to 20 MB per second, and the capacity to 1 GB [5 and 20].
The springboard module is a proprietary expansion module from Handspring for those devices only. These are the largest expansion modules described here, but also have the highest data transfer rate, because the cards connect directly to the processor bus, and the large size can allow for a battery pack to be included in the module. There are currently over 70 modules available, including adapters for the SDC, MMC and Sony Memory Stick, as well as cellular phone, GPS, advanced calculators, MP3 cameras and basic digital cameras [5 and 21].
The expansion capabilities of the PDA devices has evolved from the first Palm Pilot 1000 really only accepting proprietary memory units attachable in the back, to current Palm units accepting SDC and MMC, as well as a Universal Connector, allowing use of digital cameras, keyboards, and GPS devices. The early Windows CE devices included support for PCMCIA and CF cards. Modern Pocket PC 2002 devices include support for SDC, MMC and CF cards [7 and 22].
PDA Accessories
There is a huge variety of accessories for PDAs. Some of the most popular include the portable keyboards, a veritable plethora of hard and soft cases, attachable keyboards similar to the RIM devices, digital camera attachments, innumerable different types of styli, portable printers and scanners, and many network and cellular phone connection devices.
There is much argument as to the best OS for a PDA. The three most commonly used OSs for PDAs are the Palm OS, Pocket PC 2002 (PPC), and EPOC/Psion OS. The EPOC OS is not as widely used as the other two, and current rumors are the Psion is leaving the PDA hardware field altogether, so this discussion will focus on the later two. In some ways, Microsoft’s entry into the PDA arena was unusual, since previously there had really been only hardware companies creating PDAs. Palm has licensed its OS to Handspring (Visor), Sony (Clié), and HandEra (as well as Acer, and Samsung, and rumors of Apple):
Microsoft was attempting to port the Windows desktop platform to a PDA device, and using some muscle to convince others to create the hardware required for it. The Pocket PC 2002 units were required by Microsoft to move to the StrongARM processors, and to use Flash ROM, to increase ease of future upgrades, and required reflective displays.
There are several specific areas where there are differences between the 2 OSs. In general, the Palm OS has been more stable, with a cleaner GUI, which hasn’t changed much since its first inception in 1996. The handwriting recognition Graffiti is relatively easy to learn, and only takes about 15 minutes to master. This has been described as some to be the Apple of PDAs, with a simple interface that anyone can pick up and quickly get around in and start inputting data. Palm itself has been relatively slow to incorporate multimedia, but Sony is obviously closing this gap quickly.
The original Windows CE devices had many problems including a complicated GUI, instability and fast battery depletion. These problems have been largely overcome with the faster StrongARM processors from Intel, and the much improved PPC new OS, successfully incorporating multimedia and wireless communications to their PDA. Some of the negative feedback to the PPC units has been their size (about twice as big as Palm OS units) and the higher cost in comparison to Palm units, approaching that of a much more powerful laptop computer. The PPC devices sales have grown significantly, in part secondary to support from the business sectors, decreasing the Palm OS market share from 71% in 2000, to 58% in 2001 [23].
Some of the important points to most users are the expected use and budget, with that in mind, here are a few direct comparison of the two OSs:
The GUI of the Palm OS has been much easier to navigate than earlier versions of Windows CE. The Open Launcher on the Palm OS allows programs to be categorized and opened by tapping. The PPC OS allows users to open applications through the Start menu, similar to the desktop windows systems. Both OSs allow for character recognition, with the Palm OS Graffiti and the PPC Block Recognizer, but the PPC users can also use a virtual keyboard, Transcriber, and a letter recognizer, similar to the original Apple Newton handwriting recognition system that attempts to interpret the user’s natural handwriting. Both systems have a Flashing light and noise alarm, and the Palm OS also has a vibration alarm feature.
The ActiveSync PPC units continuously synchronizes the data with the desktop folder, automatically detecting changes on one or the other while the unit is in the cradle. The Palm OS units use the HotSync, which requires the user to initiate synchronization.
The exchange of data with Palm and PPC units allows for infrared port beaming of applications and data. Current OSs on both sides can beam to the other OS (Palm to PPC, or PPC to Palm). Both systems have basic security functions preinstalled, and the Palm OS can assign passwords to only certain data.
Both OS units come with preinstalled applications for basic PIM, calculators, games, mail, security, etc. The Palm Desktop certainly has the advantage of having a great GUI. The PPC devices also have Pocket Internet Explorer, a Voice Recorder, Pocket Word and Excel, and Windows Media Player, as well as MSN messenger, for instant messaging. Palm users rely on third party software, such as Documents To Go (included with new units) to view Microsoft Word and Excel files.
Palm users can use devices with Internet abilities to view Web Clipping sites, and programs such as iSilo (http://www.isilo.com/ ) to view HyperText Markup Language (HTML) files, while PPC users can use Pocket Internet Explorer to connect to sites with HTML or Wireless Application Protocol (WAP). The PPC units have Virtual Private Network (VPN) integrated support, while Palm users must obtain third-party software for such connections.
Both OSs support up to 65,000 (16-bit) colors in their display systems, although the larger PPC units have a brighter display. The PPC units have integrated multimedia support, with Windows Media Player, while Palm OS users must rely on third party software and hardware (aside from Sony Clié users). Both OSs can function with Windows based desktop systems, while only the Palm OS has native Macintosh support [24, 25, 26, 27, and 28].
PDA Comparison Chart
| Feature |
Palm Tungsten m550 |
Sony Clié PEG-NX60 |
HP iPaq H3870 |
| Size |
4” X 3” X 0.6” |
5.5" x 2.9" x 0.94" |
5.3" x 3.3" x 0.62" |
| Weight |
5.6 oz. |
8.0 oz. |
6.5 oz. |
| Display |
320x320 Color Screen |
320x480 Color |
240x320 Color Screen |
| CPU |
144 Texas Instruments OMAP1510 |
200Mhz Intel ARM |
206Mhz Intel StrongARM |
| ROM |
8 MB |
16 MB |
32 MB |
| RAM |
16 MB |
16 MB |
64 MB |
| Operating
System |
Palm OS 5.0 |
Palm OS 5.0 |
PocketPC 2002 |
| Expansion
capabilities |
Via Palm™ Expansion Card Slot for
SD/MultiMediaCard and Palm™ Universal Connector |
Via Memory Stick and proprietary CF slot |
Via SD/MultiMediaCard and iPAQ Expansion Pack |
| Battery
Life |
Approximately 1 week |
10 days |
14 hours |
PDA OS Comparison Chart
| Feature |
Palm
OS |
Pocket
PC 2002 OS |
| Software
Titles available |
13,000 |
1,600 |
| CPU
Compatibility |
Almost
all Palm OS applications are compatible across all Palm OS products. |
Applications
written for earlier non-ARM Pocket PC systems were made obsolete by new Pocket PC
2002 |
| Macintosh
Support |
Native
Macintosh support |
None |
| Software
developers |
Over
200,000 registered developers |
Microsoft |
[34].
My own PDA History began with the Casio Databank 50 Watch:
It was amazing (in 1991). It could hold 50 pages of memos or schedule items, and had a stop watch, world time zones, a countdown alarm, 8 digit calculator, and daily alarm. And after only a few weeks, I was able to push the tiny buttons with my fingernail to actually use it!
As it would happen to turn out, the Databank wasn’t very waterproof, so two years later, in 1993, I upgraded to the Casio Databank 100:
Twice as big! Except for the buttons, which were still very small. But fun to play with and I instantly had all my phone numbers, addresses, important dates, right there on my wrist!
The initial reports of the Apple Newton were of high price, and poor character recognition, so I graduated to the Texas Instruments (TI) PS-6600 Personal organizer in 1996:
This had small button that were actually organized like a keyboard, and could not only store lots of name, numbers, address, memos and dates. This amazing PDA could even link with an IBM-DOS PC, to backup the data, complete with a 51/4 floppy diskette! The communication window for the DOS interface allowed me to backup, restore, send, or receive files. Plus it had 64 kB RAM of memory! In a space easily 1/10 the size of my Commodore 64:
Technology was really moving now!
There was even a grace period where I could save all my data with the smaller lithium battery until I replaced the 2 AAA batteries required for actual use of the device. The guidebook for the 6600 actually said “It is a good idea to keep a written record of the entries stored in your Organizer.” Those guys at TI, what a bunch of cards!
It wasn’t until 1999 that I first purchased my first Palm PDA, the Vx:
This took a day getting used to the graffiti writing, but an impressive device, with 8 MB memory, and the ability to add applications. I quickly transferred the data from my PS-6600 to the Vx, and then started looking at third-party applications to keep track of procedures, interesting cases, etc. The Vx has the DragonBall 20 MHz EZ chip processor, with Palm OS 3.5, with infrared support, and the Palm Desktop gave an amazingly easy way to add and edit data on the desktop. The Film compensative Super Twisted Nematic (FSTN) 80% reflective display was great, especially with the backlight, and the lithium ion batteries lasted for days without recharging [7]!
In 2001, I upgraded to the Palm m505 color unit:
The m505 has a faster DragonBall 33 MHz VZ chip, and the same 8 MB memory, with Palm OS 4.0. It also has the expansion slot for MMCs or SDCs, and the Universal Connector for Wireless Internet connections, camera interfaces, GPS, etc. I now use my m505 daily, for PIM and more. The color is great, and the Thin Film Transistor (TFT) reflective 16-bit display is certainly bright enough for everything I do [7]. There is a difference when I hold the unit next to the Sony Clié, or the Compaq Pocket PC device, but the display looks great on its own, fine for bragging JPEG or TIFF files of the kids. I can synchronize the addresses and dates with the GroupWise calendar and email services I use at work with Intellisync (from Pumatech: http://www.pumatech.com/index.html). I can beam data to others with MRS data, interesting cases, etc. With a 64 MB SDC, I can store loads of apps and files (with my 256 MB SDC). I also now have a Grade 1 Titanium case from Rhinoskin (http://www.rhinoskin.com):
Just in case I accidentally drive over my Palm! With my m505, news and sports update receiving pager, and cell phone, I am about as connected as I can imagine, without an always on Internet connection, that is….which brings us to:
Palm has now released the i705 wireless handheld, that works with the popular Palm.Net
wireless service:
Which was very attractive, and I almost got one before the new Palm Tungsten m550 was
released, and I got one:
with the new Palm OS 5.0, a much brighter 320 X 320 screen, and some multimedia
capabilities with a small speaker (that actually sounds pretty good playing MP3 files),
headphone jack, a microphone for voice recording, 16 MB RAM, and a neat folding design to
hide the character input screen when not in use. This also has built in
Bluetooth. I have not played with the Bluetooth abilities yet, but am anxiously
awaiting the release of the secure digital cards with WiFi capabilities, to surf the net
during boring meetings. I hope that no one in my department will actually read
this. If anyone does read this, please send me an email and let me know, I am
suspicious….
The Neuroradiology section has now purchased m505 units for the Neuroradiology fellows at the University of Utah, and use a HanDBase database (from DDH Software: http://www.ddhsoftware.com/). I made to keep track of their procedures, and beam each other relevant information about cases, etc.
PDA Future
Palm has reportedly been contemplating moving to the StrongARM processors used with PPC units, and announced that the new version of wireless Palm OS devices will work with the Open Media Applications Platform (OMAP) processors from TI, with Palm OS 5.The i705 wireless device uses the Motorola DragonBall processor used in earlier Palm devices, with Palm OS 4. OMAP reportedly will let the new wireless PDAs take advantage of the coming high speed wireless networks, and Palm OS 5 is expected to allow multitasking of applications. Palm has also already begun beta testing a Bluetooth Software Developer’s Kit (SDK), which is the wireless short-range networking technology, that allows a data transfer rate of 11Mbps (802.11b). Bluetooth technology deployment, however, has been somewhat hindered secondary to poor specifications (expected from the Bluetooth Special Interest Group) [12]. The PPC OS will continue to evolve, and the rapidly increasing technology advances with smaller processors that are faster, and have less power requirements will make increasing multimedia and wireless communications easier to use.
In general, this technology will continue to advance. It is obviously difficult to determine which OS will ultimately win out the field, and it is likely that they will all exist in 5 years, and there will be a market for each. These technologies will be combined, so that a PDA, cellular phone and pager can be contained easily within a small unit. The cellular phone is clearly the most ubiquitous mobile electronic device in the world, probably followed closely by the pager, and then the PDA (which will pass the laptop in the next few years, if it hasn’t already). Security will obviously become an important area. Several reports have been surfacing of unsecured wireless networks in operation. In an effort to adopt new technology that could assist businesses, some companies have adopted 802.11b and Local Area Network (LAN) wireless networks without any type of firewall, that others can access simply by being within a certain distance of the network. The wireless networking technology will increase in speed and decrease in price, similar to computer technology, finally making the worldwide wireless networks a reality.
In a further effort to increase the multimedia capabilities of the Palm OS, Sony released the PEG-NR70, which incorporates a mini QWERTY keyboard, as well as a small digital camera and MP3 player:
This unit is reported to have a 320 X 480 16-bit color TFT display, using the Motorola
66 MHz DragonBall SuperVZ processor, with 16 MB RAM and 10 MB Flash ROM [24]. Sony is now
releasing the PEG-NZ90, with a 2 Mega Pixel camera, built-in Bluetooth, a Wireless LAN
slot, a 320 X 480 color display, and basic multimedia functions, running the new
ARM-compliant 200 MHz CPU:
Nokia has a similar product planed with the Symbian OS, with the new Nokia 7650:
This device is rumored to use the Symbian OS and incorporate cellular phone with the
PDA and an integrated digital camera with a 640 X 480 VGA color display, using the General
Packet Radio Service (GPRS), which is a wireless communications standard up to 115 KB per
second [30].
Palm is also continuing the development of wireless devices with the new Tungsten
Wireless device with the QWERTY keyboard, which sounded great, until I found out that it
was going to run the old Palm OS:
PDA sales will increase significantly over the next decade. IT has been estimated that the worldwide PDA market will increase from the 13 million units sold in 2000, to over 63 million units in 2004, creating a $26 billion market overall [31].
The PDA that is perfect for one individual is not the perfect one for another. The intended use of the PDA device will vary greatly between users. Just like when looking at laptop computers, it is easy to get confused with all the varied features, options, display differences, and technology. Since technology is advancing so rapidly, it is difficult even to keep up to date with the models and options. Similar circumstances no exist for PDAs as do with desktop computers, once you get it unpacked, there is probably a new model out, or at least soon to be released. The user should really consider the intended use for the device, and then look at devices with those options to decide which unit to purchase.
The general description is that the Palm OS units are smaller, faster, cheaper, more
stable, and have an easier to use GUI, better third party support, much easier to search,
and easily twice as many applications available. The Palm OS devices, however, do
not have the ActiveSync available in PPC units, and there are relatively limited
multimedia capabilities available. The PPC units have an interface similar to
Windows desktop systems, and is therefore easier for those familiar with Windows and
looking for a similar GUI in their PDA, and there are more ways to input data with the
voice recognition options in some units and increased VPN support (albeit a Windows VPN
only support). There is no way to synchronize a PPC OS unit with a Macintosh
computer, thereby limiting those users’ options, without Virtual PC or similar
software, such as the Pocket Mac [32]. With over 20 million Palm OS sold, and a 90%
US and 72% worldwide market share, the Palm OS will remain the market leader for the next
few years, but the PPC units are closing in fast [33].
There are estimated to be over 13,000 applications available for the Palm OS, while there are only about 1,600 for the Pocket PC 2002 OS. This is likely secondary to the over 200,000 developers registered with Palm, as opposed to the closed nature of Microsoft with releasing code for developers to the Pocket PC 2002 OS [34].
Copyright © 2004 American Society of Neuroradiology, www.asnr.org