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NEW YORK -- Maybe they should have called it PDA Expo. If booth activity at PC Expo/TechXNY means anything, wireless add-ons for personal digital assistants are clearly poised for takeoff.

With a few notable exceptions from Sony and Casio, new PDAs themselves weren't especially apparent on the showroom floor.

A couple of new Clie models from Sony and Casio are among the standouts. The PEG-N610C, like its recently launched sibling, the PEG-N710C, has a striking 65,000-color screen and 320-by-320 resolution--double that of other devices based on the Palm operating system. However the N610C does not have a built-in MP3 player, and when it ships in August priced at $400, it will be about $100 cheaper than the N710C. Also due in August is the PEG-S320, an upgrade to the original monochrome Clie that will go for $200.

The other newcomer at the convention center was Casio's Cassiopeia Pocket Manager BE-300. A palm-sized PDA, the BE-300 is based on Windows CE 3.0, the OS at the core of the increasingly popular Pocket PC for Windows system that powers such devices as Compaq's Ipaq PDAs and the HP Jornada 520/540 series.

The BE-300 is a simpler device than most Windows CE devices and doesn't include the pocket Microsoft Office apps (stripped down versions of Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Word, and so forth) you get with Pocket PCs. The BE-300 also has a more basic browser and less memory than most Pocket PCs--but its screen is as handsome and, at $299, its price tag is less daunting than the $425 and up commanded by even the cheapest color Pocket PC's.

Ready for Next-Generation Wireless Nets

But while new PDAs might be in short supply, new add-ons for today's most popular models aren't. Both Palm and Handspring sponsored large booths where vendors of third-party accessories and software showed off their wares at small kiosk-like tables. And while Microsoft's presence at the show was understated, extras for various Pocket PCs are plentiful.

Among the more intriguing displays are the first next-generation wireless modems for handhelds. Novatel Wireless, for example, showed its Merlin G100, a PC Card that supports GSM networks and their new, higher-speed GPRS replacements. On a GPRS network, the G100 can move data at up to 53.6-kbps, much faster than the 14.4-kbps maximum supported by GSM and other current digital phone networks.

The G100 also includes a slot for a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card, a tiny card that basically contains the information required to identify a digital cellular phone to the network. SIM technology allows users to change devices simply by dropping the card into a slot in the device--which is much easier than the current system where phone vendors must configure devices for customers.

The G100 is scheduled to begin shipping in mid-summer to GSM/GPRS carriers such as AT&T Wireless, VoiceStream, and Cingular. Novatel expects it to retail for somewhere between the $289 cost of a slower CDPD modem and the $389 cost of a faster Ricochet wireless modem.

Novatel arch-rival Sierra Wireless, meanwhile, has a prototype of a modem for next-generation CDMA networks, called CDMA 2000/1xRTT. These networks will support data speeds of up to 153.6 kbps. Sierra Wireless expects to start producing these cards later this year.

Wireless for the Here and Now

Both Novatel Wireless and Sierra Wireless have products that are ready for today's networks as well. Novatel's Minstrel m500 CDPD modem for Palm's m500 and m505 is basically a sled that connects via the bottom port of these new, super-thin models. Sierra Wireless' AirPath 300 is a Springboard module that delivers CDPD network access to Handspring Visors. Both these units can be used for CDPD-based services such as Omnisky.

Omnisky, meanwhile, demonstrated its service for the Casio E-125 Pocket PC. This brings to three the number of Pocket PC lines Omnisky supports, the other two being the Compaq IPaq and the HP Jornada 520 and 540 series.

Over at the Handspring partner booth, AirPrime was showing its much-anticipated Springboard module that turns a Visor into a CDMA voice and data phone. With this module, you can either use a Visor as a phone (taking advantage of its built-in microphone or hooking up an earbud headset) or send and receive data at up to 14 kbps. The device will be software-upgradeable to support the faster CDMA 2000/1xRTT networks.

Sony is partnering with the wireless ISP GoAmerica on a new Internet service specifically designed for its Clie handhelds and VAIO notebooks. Called Mylo, the new service at launch runs on CDPD networks, so its speed will be limited to about 19 kbps. GoAmerica will offer subscribers a Clie adapter that holds a Sierra Wireless PC Card CDPD modem, which can also be used in a notebook. Unlimited access to Mylo will cost $40 monthly for Clie users, $60 monthly for users of VAIO notebooks, and $80 monthly for those who use both.

For those who want to piggyback wireless Internet access for PDAs onto a wireless LAN, Intel's new Xircom Mobile Communications Division (created following Intel's acquisition of Xircom) showed the first wireless 802.11b adapter for the Palm m500s and m505s. Like Novatel Wireless's CDPD modems for the same Palm models, the Xircom Wireless LAN Module for the Palm m500 is a sled that snaps on via the bottom connector. The Palm model is due in mid-July for a list price of $299, the same price as Xircom's recently shipped Springboard module for Handspring Visors.

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