01> 0 74470 79746 3 Table Of Contents Volume 5 • Issue 1 January 2007 www.pctoday.com Featured Articles Handheld devices have obviously come a long way since the early PalmPilot days. But when traveling for business can you really leave the notebook behind and rely solely on a smartphone to maintain your productivity? As we discovered in putting together this month’s featured arti- cles, the answer isn’t cut-and-dried. 36 Ditch Your Notebook For A Smartphone? Yes! No! Maybe . . . 40 Revenge Of The Notebook Why You Can’t Leave It Behind Just Yet Copyright 2007 by Sandhills Publishing Company. PC Todayis a registered trademark of Sandhills Publishing Company. All rights reserved. Reproduction of material appearing in PC Todayis strictly prohibited without written permission. Printed in the U.S.A. GST # 123482788RT0001 (ISSN 1040-6484). PC TodayUSPS 022541 is published monthly for $29 per year by Sandhills Publishing Company, 131 West Grand Drive, P.O. Box 85380, Lincoln, NE 68501-5380. 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Multitasking Make Windows Mobile More Productive......................48 Launchers, Web Browsers, Talk Applications & More 34 WIRELESS Cut Some Corners................................................50 Use Palm Shortcuts To Save Time & Taps EVERYWHERE Mobile Software New & Updated Mobile Software..............................52 Stay Ahead Of The Mobile Curve With Current Software Portable Gear Serious Cases For Your Laptop.................................55 Just Bag It Travel Stay Where You Land............................................58 Hotels Are Finding New Homes In Airports Logbook We’ve Got Your Numbers.........................................6 The Web Noteworthy..........................................................8 K.I.S.S.: Keep It Simple Syndication..........................61 The Best In RSS . . . & Dangers To Avoid Columnists Block The Bad Stuff...............................................64 The Hot Spot.......................................................28 GreenBorder Pro Protects While You Surf The Latest Wireless News Scot’s Take........................................................30 Vista Crossroads The Well-Tuned PC...............................................32 Battery Tune-Ups Unwired What Will They Think Of Next?.................................34 World Wide Wireless PC Today Online Plan Your Next Trip Through PCToday.com..................44 Check Out PCToday.com’s Services 46 3G, 4G Communications & BEYOND 3G, 4G & Beyond.................................................46 Cellular Jargon Demystified CCuussttoommeerr SSeerrvviiccee Toll Free: (800) 733-3809 Fax: (402) 479-2193 www.pctoday.com FFoorr qquueessttiioonnss aabboouutt yyoouurr ssuubbssccrriippttiioonn,, oorr ttoo ppllaaccee aann oorrddeerr oorr cchhaannggee aann aaddddrreessss: [email protected] 58 STAY FFoorr qquueessttiioonnss aabboouutt oouurr WWeebb ssiittee:: [email protected] WHERE YOU LAND PPCC TTooddaayy P.O. 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Kobler / Calvin Clinchard / Raejean Brooks / Nate Hoppe / Corey Russman / SPRINT PALM TREO 700WX 11 Rod Scher / Christopher Trumble / Katie Sommer NOKIA E70 12 / Katie Dolan / Sally Curran / Michael Sweet / DOBSON CELLULAR SYSTEMS BLACKBERRY 7130G 13 Trista Kunce / Sheila Allen / Joy Martin / Linné Ourada / Vince Cogley / Ashley Finter / Tara RADIAN TECHNOLOGIES SKYTONE RST501 14 Simmons / Leah Houchin / Patrick Kean/ Marty RISSLER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT MOE BUSINESS 15 Sems / Blaine Flamig / Kylee Dickey / Josh Gulick / MVOX MV900 SPEAKER PHONE 16 Andrew Leibman / Jennifer Johnson / Nathan Lake / Holly Zach / Barbara Ball BOXWAVE FLEXISKIN 17 WWeebb SSttaaffff::Dorene Krausnick / Laura Curry / LENOVO THINKPAD T60 WITH CINGULAR WIRELESS 18 Kristen Miller / Jessie Danekas SANDISK SANSA C240 & C250 19 SSuubbssccrriippttiioonn RReenneewwaallss:: Connie Beatty / Charmaine Vondra / Miden Ebert / Kathy DeCoito / Stephanie ROK VIPER 20 Contreras KENSINGTON MICROSAVER DS NOTEBOOK LOCK 21 AArrtt && DDeessiiggnn:: Lesa Call / Ginger Falldorf / Carrie Benes / Aaron Weston / Fred Schneider / Sonja TRILOGY TOTAL TECHNOLOGY T3 SECURITY SUITE 22 Warner / Aaron D. Clark / Lori Garris / Jason Codr / SAGE TV PLACESHIFTER 23 Andria Cogley / Erin Rodriguez / Lindsay Anker VONAGE/D-LINK VWR WIRELESS-B/G BROADBAND ROUTER 24 SSaalleess &&MMaarrkkeettiinngg:: Mark Peery / Grant Ossenkop / Bob Chester / Marcy Kremer / Kelly Richardson / OTTER PRODUCTS OTTERBOX FOR IPOD 25 Matt Bolling / Eric Cobb / Jen Clausen / Scot Banks SPRINT NOVATEL WIRELESS S720 SPRINT MOBILE BROADBAND CARD 26 / Travis Brock / Lindsay Albers / Lana Matic / Jeff ZAGAT SURVEY ZAGAT TO GO V5.0 27 Ashelford / Brynn Burtwistle / Toni Hinn Logbook Compiled by Linné Ourada NuWe’ve mGot Your bers 1 130 In the past six months, the number of HSDPA(High- NEWS 8 Speed Downlink Packet Access) products entering the -AR UL market has increased by 130%. A total of 58 HSDPA-enabled CELL devices have been launched by 18 suppliers. : URCE O S 1,200 Thailand’s new international airport has report- edly encountered persistent problems with its computerized luggage system since opening Sept. 28. A total of 1,200 pieces of luggage were lostduring the second weekend of operation, which affected more than 25 flights. The new airport, Suvarnabhumi, is located in Bangkok and is capable of handling 45 million passengers per year. It’s clear that the op- SOURCE: USA TODAY tion for employees to work from home or other locationsis becoming a standard 13 The average airfare paid by busi- procedure for many companies. A re- ness travelers in the United States cent study indicates that 81% of compa- jumped by 13% in Q2 2006. nies already have remote work AmEx’s quarterly Business Travel policiesin place. Furthermore, IDC Monitor reveals that the average predicts that by 2009, mobile workers one-way ticket increased to $247 in the United States will account for from $218 in Q2 2005, meaning more than 70% of the total workforce. that business travelers paid more SOURCE: YOH for airfare during this time than at any other time since 2001. SOURCE: USA TODAY Among the Top 10 gen- eral news Web sites, a recent survey shows that Yahoo! News is No. 1. Following the Mobile TVis not just for teens anymore. A popular Yahoo! News report from Telephia reveals that 50% of mobile are MSNBC and AOL TV users fall between the ages of 25 to 36, and News as the No. 2 and of those, 70% are male. No. 3 choices. SOURCE: TELEPHIA SOURCE: EMARKETER 6 January2007 /www.pctoday.com Logbook Noteworthy Compiled by Nate Hoppe Bye-Bye, Hotel Phone Hotel phone service is singing its swan song, thanks in no small part to the proliferation of cell phones and other mobile devices. According to a recent USA Todaystudy, most customers find that their handset provides a far cheaper alternative to the traditionally high charges incurred when using hotel phones. Similarly, most hotel customers turn to their Internet-capable mobile devices in the absence of free Internet service. SOURCE: USA TODAY The Future Of West Coast Rules In-Flight Calling When it comes to cellular etiquette, citizens from the West Handset users Coast edge out the other regions of the United States. A recent who have eagerly study shows that 65% of westerners agree that it’s wrong to anticipated cellular answer a call in a questionable setting, compared to 60% access on their next of southerners and 56% of folks from both the northeast flight may have to and the Midwest. Somewhat unsurprisingly, the wait a while longer. study also revealed that teens were the most likely As always, it comes to answer a call during a movie at the theater, down to money. Recent TMF Associates research with 9% replying that that was acceptable behavior. reveals that many airlines may not see a sufficient SOURCE: SAMSUNGTELECOMMUNICATIONS return on investment, should they choose to deploy in-flight cellular service. According to the study, What’s The Attraction? such service could provide annual revenues of approximately $600 million, but the high cost of Bangkok, Thailand’s attractive new international airport, Suvarnabhumi, has equipment and the limited number of customers received many welcome visitors, as well as more than a few unwelcome ones. willing to pay for the premium-priced service could The airport accommodates as many as 90,000 travelers per day. But on top of cut profits by over $400 million. that, over 100,000 excited Thai tourists are dropping in to picnic and take pic- SOURCE: TMF ASSOCIATES tures each day, despite the end of the visiting period Suvarnabhumi held prior to opening. As a result, the amount of litter has become unacceptable, and there aren’t enough restrooms to accommodate the actual Beware Solar Flares travelers. That’s not the only problem airport officials We all know how inclement weather can turn an have had to endure, though: Because of a computer average flight into a precarious venture. But don’t glitch, over 1,200 pieces of luggage failed to reach their write off a bright, sunny day as cause for letting destinations during one weekend in early October. your guard down just yet. An accidental discovery SOURCE: ASSOCIATEDPRESS& USA TODAY in 2005 revealed that solar flare activity, tracked on two separate occasions, weakened GPS signals by as much as 50% throughout the duration of the flare. JetBlue To Land In Chicago? Obviously, such failure would not bode well for services that de- Frequent fliers out of Chicago’s O’Hare pend on GPS, such as aircraft International Airport searching for cheaper flights navigation and search-and- may have found a ray of hope. The discount- rescue. To make matters friendly JetBlue Airlines recently sought permis- worse, solar flare activity is sion from the Federal Aviation Administration to begin limited service out expected to reach peak of the notoriously congested airport. JetBlue faces an uphill battle, though, as levels during 2011 and 2012. competing airlines United and American dominate flights out of O’Hare. SOURCE: CELLULAR-NEWS SOURCE: USA TODAY 8 January2007 /www.pctoday.com