Two New PDA Accessories-One Worth it, One Not By: Hans Hansson – Starboard/TCN Worldwide Real Estate

San Francisco, CA -- (April 29, 2002) -- Unlike the desktop and laptop computer that probably is now as good as it gets for the average user, the handheld personal organizer is still loaded with potential new uses and design changes to accommodate them. It is also still “not quite right” in its ease of use. The Palm type organizer is clearly simple to use, but writing on a small pad or pecking at letters on a small screen is certainly not as efficient as it could be until now.

A mini keypad system has just been introduced for the palm and handspring devices. A similar version for Pocket PC devices should also be out shortly. This keypad simply snaps on at the base of the organizer and you can begin typing immediately. Unlike the full keypad that is meant to operate in a stationary position, this mini keypad allows you to be truly mobile. I usually have a phone in one ear and my palm in one hand. I can now easily punch in information with my thumb while talking. Also it is very easy to use as a keypad with two hands. Priced between $29.00 and $39.00 it is also less than half the cost of the previous full keypads currently available. I highly recommend it.

The thought that you can get the web and your mail on a Palm was what I was dreaming about for my hand-held device. Several years ago a product called Omnisky offered to revolutionize the usage of the palm by introducing full web and mail access. As an early beta tester, I saw tremendous potential in this device for my real estate business. I began using Omnisky not only to retrieve mail but through my “V-vault” account, I was able to receive and send Co-Star reports, pictures, Word and Excel files through this service. It truly allowed me to be mobile. Last year Omnisky went bankrupt only to be purchased by Earthlink. In my upgrade to a Palm 505 color organizer, Omnisky had not kept up with modem upgrades for new model palms and I was forced to cancel my service early last year. With Earthlink I was once again excited that I could get these services back.

Earthlink last month introduced Earthlink 1.0 as its first upgrade since the purchase of Omnisky. It advertises easy and faster use. Your mail service now allows you to open attachments, which previous mail versions did not allow you to do. It also introduced a modem to support new Palm devices such as the 505 and 515 series. The first problem was with the way that Earthlink charges for these services. You are forced to prepay one year’s services as well as buy the modem. At $33.95 per month plus a modem at around $260.00 this gets pricey in a hurry. Of course being impulsive as I am towards gadgets, I went ahead and purchased the service.

7 hours of tech support and 12 calls later I still do not have my mail service working. The modem kicks off regularly and a “serial port in use” error message seems to be a common occurrence, which forces me to have to reset the organizer. Earthlink tech supporters are nice but useless. After calling for the 7th time at 6:00 pm PST, one tech supporter indicated that I was lucky to get someone after hours since most other services end at 5:00. I pointed out that they are offering 24-hour tech support. What they don’t mention is that no one after 5:00 pm has a clue how to fix anything. This product does have large-scale potential and I hope they can “clean up the bugs” but I certainly cannot recommend it now.

Hans Hansson is President of Starboard TCN Worldwide Real Estate Services (http://www.starboardnet.com) as well as Western Regional Vice President for TCN Worldwide Real Estate (http://www.tcnworldwide.com). Hans has been an active broker for over 17 years in the San Francisco Bay Area and specializes in office leasing and investments. If you have any questions or comments please reply to: hans@starboardnet.com or 415.765.6897. You can also check out his website (http://www.hanshansson.com).

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