NEC Debuts Its First Pocket PC

LAS VEGAS -- NEC will jump into the U.S. personal digital assistant market on Monday with the introduction of its first Pocket PC device, the MobilePro P300, based on Microsoft's Windows CE operating system.

The announcement is expected to take place at the Comdex exhibition, which is being held in Las Vegas from Sunday, November 11, through Friday, November 16.

The MobilePro P300 is targeted at the corporate market, although its hardware profile matches that of most other Pocket PC devices. It is based on Intel's 206-MHz StrongARM processor, has 32MB of main memory, 32MB of flash ROM, and a 3.8-inch, 65,000-color reflective TFT LCD. Other features include slots for both Compact Flash and Secure Digital memory cards.

While the hardware might be similar, NEC has tried to differentiate its PDA with software.

The company is preinstalling several third-party software applications on the device, including Insignia Solutions' Jeode Java plug-in, while a 32MB SD card that ships with the PDA comes loaded with Westtek's ClearVue software for displaying Excel and PowerPoint files, Adobe Systems' PhotoBase for viewing digital images, and Ruskin Software Technology's Voice Messenger Force instant messaging software.

NEC announced the PDA in Japan around a month ago and will begin selling it there on November 30 for around $500. In the U.S., the device will be available shortly at a price of $599.

NEC's launch of its PDA is expected to be one of many mobile computer-related announcements at the Comdex exhibition. In the PDA field, several companies are expected to be revealing new or upgraded models. Among them, South Korea's Gmate will unveil a folding-type PDA that runs the Linux operating system.

Some of the biggest mobile computing news, however, will be the detailed release of Microsoft's Tablet PC plans, complete with the unveiling of prototype devices. The computers are expected to ship sometime in 2002.