Handheld Device Review for Mobile Computing Research
The three main considerations in evaluation of handhelds for use with the Mobile Computing Usability project are, in order of importance,
1. development environment;
2. hardware specifications; and
3. form factor.
We will examine each criterion independently.
Regarding development environments, it should be noted that Java Virtual Machines exist for most mobile platforms. This allows any Java Micro Edition application to run on almost all handhelds. While we certainly intend to utilize the portability of this platform, our activities will not be strictly confined to Java. As such, a simple and robust native development environment is necessary.
There exists essentially two operating systems for handhelds, PalmSource’s PalmOS and Microsoft’s Windows Mobile. Both vendors offer free developer suites. The PalmOS Development Suite is a standalone environment. The Microsoft Mobile Application Development Toolkit, however, integrates with Microsoft Visual Studio. While some may see this integration as a drawback, it is desirable for our purposes as it means easy porting of Microsoft .NET applications to Windows Mobile handhelds. This, combined with the fading popularity of PalmOS, leads us to consider exclusively Windows Mobile devices.
The next evaluation criterion is hardware specifications. While higher processor speeds and more memory are obviously desirable for most users, this is not necessarily true of our requirements. As we intend to develop software for the average user, we will necessarily require a mid-range model as well as a state-of-the-art model. This will allow rapid prototyping on the faster model, as well as performance testing on the slower model. Regardless of processor speed and memory requirements, Wi-Fi wireless capability and microphone connectivity are necessary.
The final evaluation criterion is form factor. Research regarding the human-computer interaction aspects of mobile computing necessitates experimentation with a variety of form factors and input devices. At minimum, we require one handheld with stylus-only input and one with a keyboard.
With these criteria, we form the following requirements list for our prototype handhelds:
Windows Mobile 2003 or Windows Mobile 5 operating system.
300 MHz processor for mid-range models – 600 MHz processor for high-end models.
64 Mb of main memory.
Integrated Wi-Fi.
Integrated Microphone/Headset jack
Handhelds meeting such requirements are:
• HP iPAQ rx1950 Pocket PC (low end model, no keyboard).
• HP iPAQ hx2700 Pocket PC (high end model, no keyboard).
• HP iPAQ h4350/h4355 Pocket PC (high end model, built-in keyboard).
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