Email and File Transfer Solutions for your Mobile Phone
Nokia Communicator - A PCS Phone that thinks it's a computer
Product: Nokia Communicator (see http://www.nokia.com/ for more info)
From: Microcell Solutions (www.fido.ca)
Version tested: 1900 GSM (for use in Canada and US)
Price: about C$1500 (US$999). Nokia says the 9000il model costs about $100 more. There's also a color version.
Pros: An astonishing number of features packed into this digital mobile phone. Good audio quality and battery life.
Cons: Some functions, such as viewing received faxes, are not yet functional. Tiny keyboard. Silent (virbrating) ring requires third-party add-on. Phone crashed occasionally during our tests.
Summary: This is a phone that tries to do it all: it's a wireless modem that connects to your PC laptop via an IR link; it's a web browser; it's an email retriever and much more. You can beam messages or transfer files to other phone users, you can beam calendar appointments to people or use it to keep notes. There's a full alphanumeric keypad. There's even a speakerphone that allows you to type notes while you talk. Not enough yet? A CD-ROM included with the phone includes a demo version of INNOLINK software for creating spreadsheets for storing, analyzing and presenting data, import forms, graphs, etc.
Remarkably, all this functionality doesn't make the phone hard to use. It uses GEOS 3.0 and a series of navigation buttons to move through the various menus that control the functions. No pointing device is required. A cursor pad (two of them actually -- one on the keypad and another next to the screen) controls the cursor position.
Outwardly, the unit looks like a standard, albeit unusually thick, mobile phone. However, its clamshell design reveals a second LCD screen and a full alphanumeric keyboad inside. Unlike the 5-line LCD on the front, the one inside is not backlit. To address this issue, Nokia on May 4, 1998 announced the Communicator 9000il, a model with a backlit PDA screen and additional memory available for longer for text messages. The company says the 9000il model costs about $100 more. Details at http://www.nokia.com/news/news_htmls/nmp_980504.html
In Nov. 2000, Nokia followed this unit with announcement of a colour version, dubbed the 9210 Communicator. The colour screen may be its most obvious enhancement, but its performance improvements are perhaps the most significant. The 9210 boosts data transfer to 43.2 kbps (kilobits per second). The 9110 transmitted data at only 14.4 kbps. Look for the 9210 to hit the streets during the first half of 2001.
A Short Glossary of Digital Telephony Terms:
CDPD: cellular digital packet data.
AMPS: Advanced Mobile phone service. The current cellular technology offered by Cantel AT&T and Mobility Canada, AMPS is an analog system that lacks data capabilities, the shortest battery life and the lowest sound quality.
D-AMPS: See TDMA
CDMA: code division multiple access, also known as IS-95. Sprint PCS uses this system, as do Mobility Canada and ClearNET. CDMA offers greater capacity than its competitors TDMA or GSM. To consumers, this means potentially lower rates. CDMA also offers slightly better voice quality than TDMA or GSM. CDMA is popular in Hong Kong, South Korea and parts of the US and Canada. Like other digital systems, it offers data capabilities.
GSM – the cellular system most common in Europe, supported in at least 109 countries. GSM is technically a variant of TDMA. GSM and CDMA are completely incompatible, unless you have a not-yet-available dual-mode phone. GSM currently has the widest selection of phones, but fewer roaming options than CDMA.
850MHz: this part of the microwave spectrum is the cellular band, although AT&T runs some (but not all) of its PCS operations in this range. Analog services use 800 MHz in North America and 900 MHz in Europe, Asia and Australia.
TDMA: Also known as D-AMPS, TDMA has data capabilities and moderate sound quality. It is offered in North America by Cantel AT&T. TDMA isn’t considered a very robust technology compared to the digital alternatives.
1800 MHz range - the 1800 MHz GSM standard is used in Europe. This unfortunately means that 1900 MHz phones sold in North America can't be used in Europe.
1900MHz - The portion of the microwave spectrum allocated in North America for PCS. The 1900 band (also referred to as 1.9 GHz) is called "DCS" in Europe and "PCS" in North America.
Fido Pro email with your phone
Microcell Solutions has announced an upgrade to its Fido phone service that adds long-promised email capabilities to its wireless PCS (Personal Communication System) phones. Dubbed Fido Pro, the new service was rolled out across Canada as an additional cost service to existing Fido customers, although new accounts will have the opportunity to try it out for a free trial period. Fido had lagged behind other PCS providers, some of which have offered a variety of wireless email and text messaging services for almost two years.
Product: Fido and Fidomatic PCS phones & services
From: Fido (service by Microcell)
Phone tested: Nokia 5190 (not including "dual-mode" analog option).
Price: Nokia 5190, $75; Fido Pro carries an additional charge.
Pros: Email can be sent to or from phone.
Cons: Not compatible with the company's "Fidomatic" service.
Glossary
See Part 2: Keeping in Touch with Internet Telephony
For Further Reading
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