Wireless Internet and PDAs

1
Wireless Internet and PDAs

• Joshua Ward
• Jward8402_at_yahoo.com
• MIS 1100 Class

2
Table of Contents

• History of the PDA p. 3
• History of the Internet p. 5
• The PDA meets the Internet p. 6
• WiFi Internet Access p. 8
• Bluetooth Internet Access p. 9
• Bluetooth or WiFi? P. 11
• What Consumers Look For? P. 12
• Top 3 Competitors p. 13
• The Future of the PDA p. 14
• Conclusion p. 18
• Endnotes p. 19
• Bibliography p. 20

3
The History of PDAs

• The Personal Data Assistant, also known as the
  PDA was first launched by PSION Corporation in
  1984, the handheld was called the Psion 1.
• 1993- Apple tried to launch their Newton
  MessagePad, it was a failure.
• 1995- US Robotics acquired Palm Computing
  Company, leading to the creation of the Palm
  Pilot.
• 1997- Apple tries to reenter market with the
  eMate, it was also unsuccessful.
• 1997- US Robotics bought by 3Com, and PalmPilots
  became major competitors.
• 1999- Palm leading market with Palm V
• Wireless Internet was added in the Palm VII, Palm
  remains the market leader. 1

4
Past Uses of the PDA

• Calendar
• Address Book
• Keep Appointments
• Memos
• Tasks
• Personal Notes

5
The History of the Internet

• First Created by the US Department of Defense in
  1962, it was called ARPANET.
• Designed to provide a communications network that
  would survive even if some parts suffered a
  nuclear attack.
• 1986- National Science Foundation founded NSFNet,
  a cross country system that served as the
  backbone of the modern internet.
• 1989- Scientists at CERN developed the World Wide
  Web.
• In 1995, AOL, Prodigy, and CompuServe became
  available online, making it user friendly and
  easy to use. 2

6
The PDA Meets the Internet

• Palm developed the first PDA that was capable of
  Wireless Internet connection.
• The Palm VII, released in 1999 by Palm (3Com)
  added wireless internet access to the PDA market.
  3
• The Palm VII

7
The Wireless Internet and the PDA

• Contrary to popular belief, PDAs do not have
  continuous internet connection like computers. 4
• There are currently two different ways that
  capable PDAs can connect to the internet
• WiFi internet access
• Bluetooth internet access 5

8
WiFi Internet Access

• PDAs that use a WiFi (wireless fidelity)
  connection connect to internet differently than
  those that use a bluetooth connection.
• Using a WiFi connection, the user must find a
  hotspot where the connection will work.
• hot spot - a specific part of an access point's
  range in which the general public can walk up and
  use the network. The service may be available
  only for a fee, and the hot spot's range is
  usually short to control the physical proximity
  of the user. 6
• These hotspots are usually found in airports,
  Starbucks, and some other restaurants.
• WiFi connections are also very popular among home
  users. People who use DSL or cable connections
  are buying WiFi devices to connect other home
  computers to the one with the internet access,
  virtually turning their personal home into a
  hotspot. 7

9
Bluetooth Internet Access

• Bluetooth is the second path to wireless internet
  connectivity.
• Bluetooth technology is most popular because of
  its line of wireless earpieces for cell phones
  that was recently released and has become
  synonymous with the name.
• Bluetooth technology, however, is much more than
  a way to connect your earpiece to your cell
  phone, it is a way to connect two devices, using
  a PAN. 8

10
PAN vs. LAN Networks

• A Personal Area Network, also known as a PAN is
  the way that a bluetooth enabled PDA connects to
  the internet.
• A PAN is used to connect devices (a handheld and
  a computer, for example) within a small space,
  such as a room. 9

• A Local Area Network is better known as a LAN.
• The most common use of LAN connections is to
  create a network of computers within an office
  building or a dormitory, that are connected to
  the internet. 10

11
Bluetooth or WiFi?

• Both Bluetooth and WiFi technologies accomplish
  the same thing, they allow one device to
  wirelessly connect to another.
• But, is one method more efficient than the other.
  Looking at 5 categories, it would appear that
  bluetooth is more efficient at connecting devices
  to one another, however, when it comes to
  wireless internet connection, WiFi is much more
  efficient, mainly because it is faster, and has a
  higher bandwidth when transferring data. 11

12
What makes one PDA better than the next?

• PDAs range in price from 100 to 650 12
• Almost all of the PDAs above the 300 range are
  capable of wireless internet connection.
• The highest selling PDA at one Office Depot
  location is Palms Tungsten E.
• They sell the model for 199
• It is not internet ready, in order to connect,
  you need a data enabled mobile phone and an ISP
  account.
• The reason it sells the most is because it is
  cheaper than others, and comes with a free
  protective holster.
• A worker at the store said People are most
  interested in the price of these devices, sure
  some of them have more features than others, but
  most people just want an affordable, efficient
  PDA. 13

13
The Top 3 PDAs in the current Market (according
to www.cnet.com) 14
14
The future of PDAs

• Many people believe that PDAs are becoming
  extinct, and will be obsolete in the near future.
• While many others believe that PDAs are still
  needed, and will continue to have their own niche
  in the market of consumer electronics.

15
PDAs are Finished! Give Them Up!

• Single function PDAs are no longer useful
  because of
• Smart phones
• Notebooks (laptops)
• Portable Media players 15
• Looking at Japanese technology, people can do
  everything with new smartphones
• Everything a PDA can do (calendar, address book,
  sync with computer, internet connection)
• Plus, make phone calls, function as a credit card
  at a vending machine, control home alarm system,
  turn on sprinklers, etc.
• Smart phones do not use wifi or bluetooth
  technology for internet access, they use gprs
  technology, which allows you to connect to the
  internet as long as you are in an area with
  cellular coverage. Meaning that you do not need
  to be in a hotspot, or connected to another
  device, making it much easier to connect. 16

16
PDAs are still very useful, Hold on to them!

• 1)      Screens are large enough and easy enough
  to use for maps. Great from driving directions,
  and hiking use (GPS navigation system).
• 2)      Quick to turn on and off, not like
  notebook where you must wait five minutes to
  turn on and off.
• 3)      Easy to carry in pocket, impossible to do
  with notebook.
• 4)      Smart phones cannot be used in airplanes
  because they are cell phones. Business
  travelers lose out on a lot of valuable time to
  do work in airplane because smart phones cannot
  be used.
• 5)      Smart phone keyboards and screens are too
  small to use easily. 17

17
Possible Future Directions of PDAs

• One direction that PDA manufacturers may take,
  is to make them smaller, and easier to carry,
  such as Fossils Wrist PDA FX2008. The design,
  however, got poor reviews because of its
  difficulty in use. 18
• Another obvious direction, that PalmOne has
  already begun, is to manufacture smartphones.
  RIM was one of the pioneers in this, with its
  BlackBerry models, partnered mainly with T
  Mobile. PalmOne has begun with its line of
  Treos, partnered mainly with Cingular Wireless.
  
• Another possible direction is to make them better
  media players (mp3, video, etc.) Many models of
  PDAs are capable of playing media files, but do
  not have much space, and the quality is
  oftentimes poor.

18
Conclusion

• PDAs offer two different types of wireless
  internet access WiFi access, and Bluetooth
  access.
• The price of the handheld is the major factor
  driving its sales, most of them have many extra
  features (internet, media players, games, etc.),
  but the average person does not need one device
  that does everything.
• PDAs must continue to evolve add easier and
  more widely available internet access, add better
  media players, contract with cellular service
  providers, etc. or they will become extinct!
• In the future, I believe that PDA manufacturers
  will either contract with cellular service
  providers, or develop new technology that
  improves the availability and ease of internet
  access, in order to stay in the consumer
  electronic market.

19
Endnotes

• History of PDAs. cctr.umkc.edu/jblong/hist.htm
  
• A Brief History of the Internet.
  www.walthowe.com/navnet/histor... 
• History of PDAs. cctr.umkc.edu/jblong/hist.htm
• Personal Interview. Christopher, Office Depot.
  [phone]
• Bluetooth vs. WiFi Why its not a death match.
  David Coursey. May 30, 2002. http//reviews-zdnet.
  com.com/4520-6033_16-4207317.html
• http//www.cnet.com/4520-7364_1-105323-9.html?tag
  gloss
• Personal Interview
• www.cnet.com
• www.cnet.com
• www.cnet.com
• Coursey. http//reviews-zdnet.com.com/4520-6033_16
  -4207317.html
• www.cnet.com
• Personal Interview
• www.cnet.com
• Molly to Handhelds just die already. Molly Wood.
  February 24, 2005. http//www.cnet.com/4520-6033_1
  -5690219-1.html?tagprmo1
• Personal Interview
• www.cnet.com
• www.cnet.com

20
Bibliography

• History of PDAs. cctr.umkc.edu/jblong/hist.htm
• A Brief History of the Internet.
  www.walthowe.com/navnet/histor... 
• A Personal Interview with Christopher. Office
  Depot Employee. March 17, 2005. 151 14th Street,
  Atlanta, GA. [phone]
• Bluetooth vs. WiFi Why its not a death match.
  David Coursey. May 30, 2002. http//reviews-zdnet.
  com.com/4520-6033_16-4207317.html
• http//www.cnet.com/4520-7364_1-105323-9.html?tag
  gloss
• www.cnet.com
• Molly to Handhelds just die already. Molly Wood.
  February 24, 2005. http//www.cnet.com/4520-6033_1
  -5690219-1.html?tagprmo1