Business card-sized PDA
Very stripped-down PDA from Citizen with a couple of interesting features. Looks rather like their PC-card data reader of yore, but this has an SDIO slot that'll take a PHS, wLAN or Bluetooth card, an IrDA infrared port, and USB (looks like a USB cradle) for synchronising with a PC. No web browser, but it supports TCP/IP, SMTP/POP, and PPP for mail. Citizen envisages initially selling it to corporate users for about 20-30,000 yen a unit, with a more general release possible later on. Wonder if they could be persuaded to take the innards of this and repackage them into something with, say, a mini-keyboard attached (there's an intriguing PDA in that vein from last year on their site that seems never to have been released), and wa-hey, you could have Japan's answer to the Blackberry.
Via K-Tai Watch
Posted by aragoto at October 28, 2003 04:56 PM | TrackBackI want almost the complement to this device, but in similar form factor. I don't want e-mail, I want contacts and calendar in a small form factor, and the little speaker can be used as a DTMF phone dialer (anyone remember those?). The thinner the better, too.
Posted by: Tim on October 30, 2003 04:10 AMCould this be the successor to the Rex6000, which was also actually made by Citizen, right? Many of us still use our Rex PC-card size PDAs and love them. My Rex along with credit cards and money fits in a Micro-vault wallet smaller than a Palm V in a leather case! But now it's time for more speed, power, and a phone dialer! Go Citizen!
Posted by: Aaron G on October 30, 2003 06:13 AMone more comment - maybe this device could have simple scrolling and selecting "buttons" near the cordners, rather than having to use a stylus? Some kind of 'touch it and it causes action' buttons. I can picture 4? two to scroll up/down through lists or whatever; one to select an item; the fourth the power button?
Posted by: Tim on October 30, 2003 01:49 PMIf you remember the Rex6000 had the required buttons. 5 small buttons, the same credit card size.. this is basically a RexNNNN with more powerful CPU and more robust O/S.
Posted by: Gabor on October 30, 2003 09:26 PMI had a Rexx for a while, but went back to Palm...it was just to hard to make casual notes, though the form factor was wonderful.
Posted by: Kirk on November 1, 2003 11:29 PMI still use my Rex 6000, very trustworthy, useful and small. Runs months on its batteries, although no backlight. Intel bought Xircom, under which the Rex was marketed, and I always wondered why Intel didn't pursue it. Great place to keep calendar and contacts. Ahead of its time in some ways. I plan on replacing it with a smartphone sometime next year
Posted by: Tyrone Heade on December 9, 2003 08:20 AM