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Sharp has announced its first Linux-based Zaurus PDA for the corporate market.

The SL-6000 is available in three models and features a portrait orientation display and small QWERTY keyboard that is normally hidden away under a sliding panel beneath the display. The design is similar to the SL-B500 model that was announced for the consumer market earlier this year, although there are several differences.

All models in the new range have a larger 4-inch screen with 480-pixel by 640-pixel resolution (VGA) that Sharp said is also clearer than that on previous models. They are based on the 400-MHz version of Intel's PXA255 microprocessor and come with 64MB of RAM and 64MB of flash memory, of which 25MB is available to users for storage.

Metrowerks' Open PDA variant of the Linux operating system forms the software base for the series. Each device is supplied with the Opera Web browser, mail software, an address book, and personal information manager application, Hanacom Mobile Word and Mobile Sheet applications, imaging and presentation software, Java, and other applications.

The device has also been constructed to be tougher and can withstand a drop from a height of one meter, said Sharp.

Distinguishing Features

The different between the three models comes in their networking capabilities. The SL-6000N has no built-in wireless networking; the SL-6000L has built-in IEEE802.11b wireless LAN; and the SL-6000W has both wireless LAN and Bluetooth support. This makes the latter two models the first Linux-based Zaurus PDAs from Sharp to have built-in wireless network support.

Each model measures 3.2 inches by 6.2 inches by .8 inches. Weight depends on the model and ranges from 8.9 ounces to 9.3 ounces.

The launch of sales of the three models in the SL-6000 range will take place over about one and a half months in Japan and be available through Sharp's corporate sales channel.

The basic SL-6000N will be launched on December 10 and cost around $845; the SL-6000L will go on sale on December 24 and cost around $920; and the SL-6000W will be available from January 23, 2004 and cost around $1010, said Sharp.

There are no plans to put the PDAs on sale overseas at present.