Word: ce
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When it comes to notebook PCs, thin usually means expensive. But a new line of sub-$1,000, 3-lb. notebooks running the Windows CE operating system is both svelte and affordable. Hewlett-Packard's Jornada, Sharp's Mobilon Pro and Vadem's Clio feature built-in modems, word-processing and spreadsheet programs, and offer up to 12 hours of battery life. The screens on the Mobilon Pro and Clio rotate on a hinge and can lie flat, tablet-style. But none have a floppy drive, making file transfers a bit awkward...
Unlike Psion, which produced the first digital organizer in the 1980s, Microsoft's entry into the world of palmtop computing began only three years ago, when the company rolled out Windows CE, a relative of the company's ubiquitous operating system now found on more than 90% of personal computers. Microsoft then signed up 10 manufacturers, including Hewlett-Packard, Sharp and Philips, to make hand-held computers to its specifications. Following the huge success of the Palm Pilot, the tiny organizer that uses a plastic pen instead of a keyboard, Microsoft enlisted another eight manufacturers to make a competing version...
...only Philips Electronics has actually licensed Psion's software for use in a smart phone, but the software has a compelling advantage: Symbian is charging just $5 a phone, while Microsoft charges computer makers $25 for each device that uses Windows CE, according to analysts. Jan Ahrenbring, an Ericsson vice president, adds that Microsoft's operating system "really wasn't applicable for mobile," but Microsoft maintains that the software is modular and can be customized to suit customers needs. South Korean manufacturer Samsung has produced the prototype of a Windows CE phone that it plans to market next year...
...then, the battle between Microsoft and Symbian may have been resolved by the marketplace. Hand-held-computer makers could offer machines with Symbian's software in hopes of making them more appealing to consumers with mobile phones. Or the mobile-phone industry could beat a retreat and adopt Windows CE to ensure that their devices link up easily with existing desktop PCs. Either way, it's likely that the nations of Europe will be communicating with a single standard-- even if they are not yet talking with a unified voice...
Also at "E3" this week, Sega stages a comeback in console gaming with Dreamcast, a system due for U.S. release in the fall of 1999 (November '98 in Japan). The unit, designed with a version of the Windows CE operating system used in handheld PCs, is said to be visually richer and more precise than anything else on the market (128 bit, as opposed to the 64-bit Nintendo machine). Lackluster titles put Sega, onetime king of the consoles, far behind Sony PlayStation and Nintendo 64. Is Dreamcast the answer? Let's see the software first. REAL TEAM PLAYERS...