Wearable PCs: Ready for Prime Time?

Xybernaut introduced the company's MA4-TC wearable computer at a reception at the Comdex show in Las Vegas last week and pitched the device as a fully functioning, networked computer for mobile business applications.

Rather than calling it a futuristic gadget, analysts, industry partners IBM and Texas Instruments, and customers alike say that the MA4-TC represents the next major phase in computing, leaps ahead of today's personal digital assistants. (See "Excuse Me, Is That a Monitor on Your Head?")

Weighing in at just under 900 grams and the size of a clock radio, the MA4-TC is powered by a 400-MHz Intel Pentium III processor and memory configuration that can be removed from the system by way of a transferable core that can be inserted into another mobile device or even a PC or network docking station. Capable of running all standard operating systems, including Windows 95/98/2000, Windows NT, Unix, and Linux, the MA4-TC displays on a headset-mounted, full-color video console comparable to a 15-inch monitor when viewed at a distance of 18 inches.

Beyond the PDA

"This is something that's full-function. We're not talking about a Windows CE device; we're not talking about a PDA; we're talking about a product that literally will run anything your laptop or desktop will run with almost no change," says Ed Newman, chairman and chief executive officer of Xybernaut. "So all of the investments that IT managers and CTOs have made, those billions of dollars invested in systems, don't have to change one iota."

Bell Canada has ordered 6,000 of the Xybernaut units for its field service personnel. With its current features, the device will replace the laptops, cell phones, and GPS devices used by Bell Canada workers, says Brad Chitty, regional manager for mobile communication services and strategic business development at Montreal-based Bell Canada.

"We look at [Xybernaut] for its potential for growth. The reliability and effectiveness of the tool, all of the things we struggle with on a day-by-day basis, are now in a mobile environment with real-time data," Chitty says.

"With most PDAs, you may be able to bang out an e-mail, but you cannot do an inspection of a power station or check out a remote DSL installation. And with the patents owned by Xybernaut, companies like Palm will not be capable of turning their products into a wearable computer," says Robert Harow, senior vice president at Gerald Klauer Mattison & Co., a telecommunication analysis company based in New York. "[The MA4-TC] is a powerful device for business."

Already voice-activated, Xybernaut will add a wireless, Bluetooth-linked headset; speech-recognition technology from Texas Instruments; and a foreign-language translator to the device over the next two years.

IBM, an investor in Xybernaut, which was a dollar stock just a year ago, plans to aggressively push the MA4-TC to its accounts.