How to Get the Most from Your PDA
We Look at Some of the Exciting Functionality of Handheld Devices
Make the most of your PDA or handheld device. Combined with a large memory card your Palm or Pocket PC will access the internet, allow you to read ebooks, play MP3's etc
The new generation PDA’s provide your own personal entertainment center, a mobile office, internet source, a photo album, book library, video collection, GPS system etc.
PDA’s available now have more CPU power and memory than we would have expected to see in even the most ‘powerful’ of laptops only a few years ago. 64 mb of RAM and 128 mb of ROM are now very much the norm and with most PDA’s coming with an expansion slot that will allow memory cards to be used to supplement the memory 2 or even 4gbs of memory is a very feasible option. These large memory or storage cards are highly recommended – as your PDA can do more, so it eats up the memory. Load a few pictures, books and videos loaded on your PDA and you’ll soon be looking for a larger card. However as the price of memory is currently so (relatively) cheap – this really is not a problem.
Although not all PDA’s and Smartphones will have all of the functionality listed below – most will do at least several of these functions depending on model and operating system (eg Palm, Windows Mobile / Pocket PC, Symbian etc). Upgrades and additional software are readily available.
Personal Entertainment Center
Most new PDA’s come with the facility to listen to MP3’s. Team this with a pair of headphones and turn your PDA into a sophisticated MP3 player. Most MP3’s will come preloaded with an MP3 player– however there is a wealth of other options available. It is possible to listen to audiobooks as well as your favorite music.
Mobile Office
Documents to Go is a fabulous facility and is widely acclaimed. This allows the user to transfer Microsoft Office documents to and from a desktop, to open Office documents attached to email etc. Documents can be written and sent back to a desktop or attached to an email. When inputting a lot of text into your PDA you may wish to consider a wireless PDA keyboard.
Internet
Most PDA’s now come with a wireless function which allows users to take advantage of the wide wireless internet coverage and access the internet from coffee shops, public buildings, home networks etc. The speed and reliability varies – but this is a fantastic facility. Imagine browsing for holiday deals whilst sat in a dreary railway station!
Photo Album.
Load up a few of your favorite pictures onto the PDA. Instead of fumbling through your wallet for a dog eared picture of your nearest and dearest – with just a couple of taps and you could be entertaining your colleagues with all of your many snaps.
Book Library.
No more carrying around large text books or best sellers. There are a massive number of books available now as e-books which can be read on your PDA using a reader such as eReader. Take a look at ebooks.com for an example of what is available,
Video Collection
Your own videos, other videos and even DVD’s can be played on your PDA. The high resolution screens make this a feasible option. The larger screens on some PDA's make the playing and watching of video a much more enjoyable experience.
GPS
Several PDA’s also double as a GPS system. This is a handy device and will talk you through your next journey. You can even pick and choose the voice you want – and even download celebrity voices to give you your directions.
These are just some of the functionality of a modern PDA. Of course it will hold your phone numbers for you – but it really will do so much more!
Read more about getting the most from your PDA at Mobile Technology at Suite101
