Benefits of Rugged PDA’s – Semi-rugged PDA’s

1 08 2011
Benefits Rugged PDA Classes

Benefits Rugged PDA Classes

We’re looking at the benefits of different sized Rugged PDA’s this week and today with a series of articles designed to show you the reasons there are a whole bunch of different classes of rugged handhelds.

We kick off with the bottom of the chain, semi rugged PDA’s today and take a look at the reasons your business would choose a semi-rugged PDA fto run its line of business application.  Semi rugged PDA’s are fast becoming the most popular class of rugged PDA that we sell here and there are some good reasons for this.  However beware the pitfalls as these devices can be the worst mistake you made if used in the wrong scenario.

Main benefits of Semi-rugged PDA’s

Cost

Although we feel that cost of devices is only a fraction of your overal cost, it can and does often boil down to how large your budget is and you’re not going to find anything of quality in the rugged market for less than £500 (some less than £400) unless you opt for a semi-rugged device.  You still benefit from better roadmaps, Windows Mobile or WEH OS’s and all the rugged service elements of their larger family of devices but at a far lesser cost. 

Spec

Motorola ES400 - Cased and Cradled

Motorola ES400 - Cased and Cradled

If you just need a PDA with or without a phone with no barcode scanner but with a well featured basic set of smartphone functionality like camera, CPU, RAM etc then this is the way to go.

Size / Weight

Semi rugged PDA’s are almost smartphone in size and weight so they’re not going to be a big brick to your users and they will offer a light more smartphone experienc efor them.  If the scenario is not very rugged and you need a smartphone capable device that can also run your line of business solutions then a semi-rugged handheld is the way to go.

Pidion's BM170 - Called the "rugged iPhone" for a reason

Pidion's BM170 - Called the "rugged iPhone" for a reason

Ruggedness

Or lack of it in this case!  All semi-rugged PDA’s (and don’t let motorola’s meaningless IP43 rating for its ES400 you) are not rugged.  They have a drop spec so they still have a toughness to them but they are far from dust and water proof.  If you need an all weather, dust prooft device then semi-rugged is not the way to go, if you don’t need this though, why pay for it and have the extra bulk?

Accessories

Because of their cost, they are becoming more popular and so the 3rd party accessories grows for these devices.  We typically carry 4 or 5 styles of cases, vehicla chargers and holders, screen protectors and all manner of different accessories all designed to keep you running.

Conclusion

If you don’t have a rugged need in terms of the sheer environment you are working in but you still want to reduce risks to your solution with service, device road maps and everything else that rugged PDA’s bring then a semi-rugged device just might be the answer for you.

Tomorrow we’ll look at the next class up “Small rugged PDA’s” and why you would opt for this class of device over the classic larger rugged PDA’s.

www.ruggedandmobile.com


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Categories : Top Tips

Top 5 Semi Rugged PDA Picks

15 03 2011
The Top 5 Semi Rugged PDA's

The Top 5 Semi Rugged PDA's

Yesterday we looked at Small Rugged PDA’s, today we give our top 5 Semi Rugged PDA picks. 

A semi rugged PDA usually forgoes it’s barcode scanner, its IP rating but keeps it’s drop spec so they tend to be as dropapple as lighter rugged PDA’s but in reality you have to take that with a pinch of salt.  The key here is that a Semi Rugged PDA will be a massively more risk free buy than a Smartphone.  it will out tough, out live, out roadmap and out support a Smartphone with it’s eyes closed and as such the Semi Rugged PDA has carved itself a niche in this ever growing Mobile hardware market.

Semi rugged PDA’s have to also be competitive on price with Smartphones and most of our top 5 you can have for almost, if not under smartphone money. Heres our current top 5 sellers:

1. Pidion BM170

The Pidion BM170 is growing in popularity fast and here it’s now out selling the ES400.  The main reasons are that is gives users what they want with a large 3.5″ screen, PDA format, multiple OS’s including WM6.5.1, WM6.5.3 and Android 2.1 and it’s superb XScale driven spec.  GSM/HSDPA versions and non WAN versions mean there’s a model for your needs.  We’re also testing Pidion’s new beta camera barcode scanner and have a video on here showing it holding it’s own against the ES400 so it’s fast becoming the complete article for our customers.

2. Motorola ES400

The Motorola  ES400 replaced the MC35 and for some this didn’t come soon enough.  However when the MC35 was launched everyone had Blackberry’s, the iPhone was launched since making the small, slightly awkward to use qwerty keyboard and small 3.2″ screen a “Marmite” decision for some customers.  It’s small though, well made and the extended battery version is a very competitively priced PDA at £430.  It’s still probably the most “smartphone” like device here in terms of picking it up and using it and it does come with a Datawedge driven camera based barcode scanner.  If you’re looking for a durable smartphone then this could be it, but it’s beaten into 2nd place as a semi rugged PDA for line of business solutions.

3. Pidion BM150R

This has been a stalwart, trusty device for many years and in my opinion it was ahead of it’s time when launched.  Like the BM170, it has a full spec, just a little aged now with a PXA270 heart but the GPS and 128MB ram still make this the choice for those on a budget and WM6.1 is welcomed by those not wanting to port to troublesome WM6.5.3 OS’s.  The BM150R also comes in PDA WAN-less versions right up to a choice of GPRS or HSDPA versions.  In this company it’s very affordable from £250 to £400, tried and tested and it’s still in many solutions world-wise.  Just be aware that we’re talking with Pidion about possible end of life dates for this now.

4. Partnertech OT-100 & OT-200

Hang on a minute, this is fully rugged I hear you say?  Well that may well be but we don’t think it’s quite designed for that kind of market.  The shiny almost iPhone-esq 4.3″ flush screen is really not going to fair that well if used by Engineers but it does have a place in hospitality, has a unique form factor and is semi-rugged priced at £450 and £550. As such is sits well as something where only data is needed (HSDPA for the OT-200, LAN only for OT-100), if you want something shiny, fairly inexpensive and it’s important that it looks a little bit special.  Well specified, if only this had GSM/voice on the OT-200 it would sell in far higher numbers.

5. Trimble Juno

This device whilst great on paper never really took off with us here.  It’s well specced, but it’s flaws were that it only had HSDPA data capability (No voice) on launch , it’s WM6.1 not WM6.5 and whilst Trimble are renown for rugged high quality PDA’s this just isn’t up to it in our view, feeling slightly tinny compared to the rest of the devices here.  The inclusion of voice now on the trimmed down SD only range is welcomed but its also still very expensive at at £800+ which would almost buy you 2 Pidions or Motorola’s in this list, or a fully rugged Intermec CS40.

That’s it for Semi-Rugged PDA’s there are new devices coming out all the time in this category, and we’;re especially eager to mention the new MH132 from Getac which is much anticipated so be sure to come talk to us if you want any more advice.

www.ruggedandmobile.com


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Categories : Opinion

Semi Rugged PDA with Camera Barcode Scanner

4 03 2011

We all know that the Semi Rugged Motorola ES400 has a camera based barcode scanner in it and you know, I have to be honest and say in my opinion it’s “OK” for some data catpure applications where very low or adhoc reading is needed.  In fact it’s far better than any of the consumer based scanners that you see on Android, iPhone or Windows Phone smartphones and this is l;argely due to it being a fukll Motorola Datawedge solution.  When we put it through our RAMCert test centre (Coming very soon now!!!) which is designed for proper barcode scanners, it failed miserably, but I can’t deny that for some the scanner will be just fine!

However there is a new Camera Barcode kid on the block, whilst the Pidion BM170 is actually an established semi rugged PDA it now has a Pidion built and certified Camera Barcode Scanner and we have a beta of this on test right now.  First results suggest it’s going to be at least comparable, if not better than the DataWedge solution in the ES400.  We haven;t tested the API yet or know what the SDK will be like for the software but the actual app works pretty well.

Test highlights are below, but also judge for yourself, and watch the actual video of us adhoc testing both of them, you’ll see at the end we use an Opticon OPN 2001  with a typical 1D Laser scanner, to give you and idea of just how poor camera based scanners still are right now (Sorry but I had to have a small dig, I am still truly rugged at heart!!!!)

Distance/Flexibility – Winner ES400

ES400: 8 to 17cm

BM170: 6 to 12cm

Aim Test – Winner BM170:

Es400: 1/5

BM170: 4/5 

Poor Barcode Reading - Tie

ES400: 3/5

BM170: 3/5

Reading Angle Test – Tie

ES400: 3/5

BM170: 3/5

www.ruggedandmobile.com


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Categories : New products and First Looks, Opinion, Test Centre

Motorola ES400 Review and Customer Questions

29 11 2010

So with the Motorola ES400 reviewed and now out, I thought it would be nice to spend this week looking closer at the ES400.  Here we start with a Q & A clear up a lot of questions we are getting about this semi rugged PDA and how it is being positioned by Motorola now that the dust has settled.  I’ve answered some of the key questions here as hoinestly as I can and becasue I am asked almost on a daily basis now.

Is the Motorola ES400 Rugged?

If I got a pound every time this was asked…  This is a symptom of how this device is being marketed and who is trying to sell it.  Firstly the ES400 IS NOT rugged, it is semi rugged.  Anyone telling you its rugged doesn’t know what they’re on about and this is a sympton of the channel Motorola have used to “Pump” this device out through.  It should not be used in environments where you need a rugged PDA as it will last 5 minutes.

Is the LCD screen really really small

Yes, it is and the qwerty keypad is very tight and certainly not capable of being used with gloves on.  There are far better devices that have 3.5″ screens and I am getting so fed up with seeing peoples faces drop when they see the LCD on this device!!  See alternatives below.

Does it have a barcode scanner?

The barcode scanner uses the camera, just like the MC35 did.  Like all Camera based barcode scanners, it is not great, not great at all and with some expertise and configuration that we can do here it is at best useful for adhoc scanning solutions.  It is especially difficult in changing or low light conditions and 1D barcodes are very susceptable to misreads which can your whole mobile solution at risk. 

Yes it does have a fancy red line that is projected from a light beneath the camera, its there to help aim only, its very faint and to me, it just clarifies who this device is being aimed at.

What about the Finger Print reader?

Works exactly as the old iPAQ one, in fact looking at the assembly it looks like the same part to me.  If you leave the device in the sun or anywhere remotely warm, like in front of heater grills in a vehicle then it bleeps incesantly at you until you switch it off.  I just forced myself to use it for a week as part of a blog series coming soon and I couldn’t wait to get rid of it!!

If you put your workers in the field relying on this then it places your security at greater risk not reduced risk.

Can you buy the device on contract with O2?

Of course I hate admitting this because they can offer the ES400 at a price no reseller can, at least up front.  See the next blog in the series about this.

Can you get the ES400 with WM6.5.1?

No you can’t.  For those of you who don’t know, WM6.5.1 is the stylus friendly version of WM6.5.  WM6.5.3 is the finger frinedly version.  A lot of applications including some market leading field mobility apps will not run on WM6.5.3.  Check before you buy with your reseller, if this is O2 then good luck with that!!

Can you get the ES400 with Android

No you can’t!  Try a Pidion BM170 instead which can come with certified Android 2.1, WM6.5.1 or WM6.5.3 on it.

Are there any Alternative devices with advice on them?

Absolutely.  The best semi rugged PDA we sell full stop is the Pidion BM170.  It goes toe to to with anything and is a superb device.  Want soemthing cheaper then the little Pidion BM150R is a lower specced version of the BM170 but still a very capable device for way less money.  More rugged?  The smallest fully rugged PDA at the same price is Ganedata’s GX8010.  Its a great little Rugged PDA with a few achilles heels that are being ironed out soon.  If you want something with a numeric keypad then Airo’s A25 works well too if a little bit large for some.

Read more later in the week. 

Why does my reseller sell the Motorola ES400 in a different manner to other Rugged PDA’s?

I’ve done another blog on this too and its here: The trouble with the Motorola ES400.  Basically its not a Rugged PDA, its a mobile phone and a s such it is a very different product with very different positioning.  Beware is all I can say at this point!!

I’ll be adding more questions soon.


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Motorola ES400 Revealed

21 06 2010

At last the Motorola es400 has been revealed and i’m hoping that i’m OK sharing a few key points and pics with you on the small rugged PDA from the pre-launch update I attended. In true rugged and mobile style I’m hoping to pick up on a few points that others will miss on the rugged PDA that is the successor of the recently discontinued MC35.

Some key points of the launch call are listed below.

It was described as iPhone sized but a bit slimmer and a bit thicker! I would say that it is probably very close to MC35 size but larger.

There will only be 1 configuration but with 3 different keyboard options. I’m assuming that these will be Qwerty, Azerty and something else because a numeric option is not available. There will be an extended battery option that will not be flush and require its own battery cover. There was mention that the stylus needs to be different depending on the battery being used. Not sure if I heard that right though.

The device is dual UDMA/HSDPA and the product is going to be an international one with all power adaptors and USB included in the box.

LCd is 3.0″, an odd size for a PDA . It’s 750 nits display, which is bright. A blackberry is about 550 nits, however power consumption remains the same through the use of its auto power mode.

Its got a resistive screen which is far better suited for more rugged/enterprise applications (EG using stylus’s for POD and using in gloves).

There’s a customisable user interface which you can see in the images above. Its like a cross between an iphone and HTC home screen and it looked pretty usable. There are also a lot of re-written areas of the UI like an enhanced phone dialer, camera sofwtare as well as lots more. THe UI looked pretty nice.

The camera is a 3.2MP AF with flash and whilst it was sold as a non-aggressive scanner, it will read all 1D and 2D barcodes and has illumination and a red-line to simulate 1D barcode scanning. The scan engine has been vastly improved from the MC35 and my feeling is that Motorola did not want to over boast at how good it might be.

A vehicle charging solution and desk charger solution were very briefly mentioned.

It has a stylus!

The device has a true 3 year life/roadmap.

Service from the start is available with comprehensive cover (not intentional damage).

IP42, take that as you want to. I think this is OK, it would have been nice to have seen maybe IPX4 but this is better than the MC35.

Drop spec is 1.2M to vinyl on concrete, which is about the same as the MC35 and everything else in this class.

The list price mentioned was $750, I would say that this will translate to a similiar RRP as the fully blown MC35. We’ll have to see but this looks like very good news on the price fornt.

Launch Dates

Mid June for a global launch, which has happened!! However the actual availability date will be September. I think we’ll be able to take orders about August onwards.

We’ll keep you posted as we know more and will do a more formal first look soon.


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Categories : Mobile Technology, New products and First Looks

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