By Issie Rabinovitch
Tech products seem to be appearing on the market faster than a 2.2-GHz Pentium 4 can compute data. Some are more for entertainment than for work, but many have features you might find useful. CAmagazine has asked technology writer Issie Rabinovitch to test new products and write regular assessments for this column. Issie has been working with CAs in the technology field for years and, in choosing the products, he has your needs in mind. Issie rates each on a scale of one to three stars.
 good product strong product exceptional product
 PalmOne Treo 650 Smartphone
No This Palm handheld computer has strong multimedia features and de- livers secure e-mail and Web access over the Rogers Edge network. It’s also a no-compromise speakerphone with built-in Bluetooth.
The Treo 650 is an upgraded version of the popular Treo 600. The QWERTY keyboard is improved, although it’s still just for two-thumb typing. The display is the same size as before but has more colours and does a better job on colour images. This is useful on a device with a camera that takes VGA photos and videos. Watching a video on the Treo 650 is actually enjoyable.
The 650 has the latest version of the Palm operating system but the most important new feature is the nonvolatile memory — which, in the event of battery failure, protects all stored data, including data that has been added since the last synchronization with your desktop or notebook computer. The built-in Bluetooth will most likely be used to add a wireless headphone but the speakerphone can also be used comfortably in several modes.
The Treo ships with several e-mail solutions for personal and business users, including built-in support for Ex- change Server Activesync, VersaMail and Rogers’ new MyMail, which also synchronizes calendar and contact data. Web access is much faster than with other phones I have used.
Price: $550 plus, depending on the service contract.
 Logitech DiNovo Cordless Desktop
This is a premium three-piece cordless desktop at a premium price. In addition to a stylish keyboard and mouse, there’s a component of particular interest to accountants: a numeric keypad.
The three pieces, which use two AA batteries each, must be installed separately, although this is quick and easy to do. Logitech’s wireless technology addresses security concerns by creating a secure channel between the keyboard, numeric pad, mouse and receiver (a small device connected to a USB port).
The diNovo cordless is also appropriate for use with notebooks. The keyboard is ultra-flat with full-size typing layout and full-travel keys. It’s comparable to other premium keyboards and is much more comfortable to use than any notebook keyboard. The mouse is a two-button scrolling model that is slightly smaller than most desktop mice. The numeric pad can be placed anywhere on a desk, and can be used independently of the computer, giving the date and time while functioning as a smart calculator and thermometer.
Any combination of the three components can be used, allowing for flexibility when traveling.
Price: $229.95.
 Sandisk 512 MB Titanium Flash Drive
USB flash drives have become a commodity. Sandisk has responded by producing the deluxe Titanium model, which is stylish, fast, durable and comes with useful software.
Like a cellphone, a flash drive is most useful if it is close at hand, so the Titanium comes with a pocket clip, keychain ring and a lanyard — and fits in any pocket. As for speed, it will operate at up to 13 MB/sec on write operations and 15 MB/sec on reads, which is much faster than other flash drives. And its titanium-coated metal casing makes the device more resistant to damage.
Since a 512 MB drive can contain a lot of sensitive data, security is paramount. Sandisk loads each Titanium with an easy-to-use encryption utility called CruzerLock 2, which protects sensitive files from unauthorized viewing.
Another included application, Cruzer PocketCache, enables you to perform regular backups of PC files and folders to your Titanium flash drive. No matter what happens to your desktop or notebook, your most important files will be with you at all times. Also useful is CruzerSync, which lets you synchronize all your Outlook information and send e-mail from any computer.
Price: $80.  |
