Epson Debuts a Slew of Products at COMDEX

Epson is perhaps best known for its impressive line of printers. However, the company that brought us the very innovative and practical EHT-30 MS-DOS-based handheld computer was out in force at COMDEX presenting a new line of mobile computing products and options.

These new products, ranging from PCMCIA cards to tiny motherboards, included:

• the EPSON CARDIO-486, a credit-card size motherboard featuring an Intel 486SL microprocessor with IBM PC/AT compatible functions.
• the Model EHDD260, a rugged 260 MB PCMCIA Type III hard disk.
• the Model EEN10BT, a PCMCIA Type II card that supports the popular Ethernet 10BASE-T configuration.
• the Model EEN10B2, a PCMCIA Type II card supporting Ethernet 10BASE-2.
• the EPSON ATA Flash memory cards, a set of PCMCIA Type I cards ranging in capacity from two to 20 MB using 5 V operation.
• the Model EFM144C, a PCMCIA Type II data/fax modem card, operating at 14.4 Kbps, and featuring a direct connection to any Motorola MC2 data-capable cellular phone, or standard phone line.
• the EFM144FXJ, a PCMCIA Type II 14.4 Kbps data/fax modem featuring Epson’s FAXPORT built-in connector, eliminating the need for extra cables.

Of these products, perhaps the CARDIO-486 proved most interesting. The credit-card sized board contains all the controllers, memory, and I/O interfaces needed by an OEM to create a handheld PC.

The board, measuring 85.6 x 54 x 5.5 mm, includes an Intel 486SL, along with support for up to 16 MB of RAM and 256 KB of ROM. The board connects to ISA-based peripherals using a 236-pin card connector.

Epson America, Inc.
Susie Mitchell
20770 Madrona Avenue
Torrance, CA 90503
310-782-5174