Sharp Introduces PDA

Those people who find the screens of current PDAs too restrictive, yet loath the idea of carrying a notebook computer around for a full day of meetings, may be encouraged to see a middle ground starting to form around Sharp’s new PT-9000 pen-based computer.

The PT-9000, which Sharp has dubbed a Personal Information Assistant (PIA), features a very workable 7.4″ diagonal screen, housed in a grey case measuring 9.2″ x 6.4″ x 1.4″. At 2.4 lbs. including the 6 AA batteries, the PT-9000 has a comfortable feel when held or carried in a variety of ways.

The PT-9000 is based on the GEOS operating system and, as such, it comes with a full complement of productivity applications built-in. These include the GeoWrite word processor, the GeoCalc spreadsheet, and the GeoFile database.

America Online is pre-installed on each PT-9000, giving users a ready means to access electronic mail and online data. The PT-9000 also includes Palm Computing’s personal information manager, Palm Organizer.

The device is powered by a Vadem VG230 processor which integrates control of the peripherals, including PCMCIA cards on a single chip. The processor, which is Intel 8086 compatible, operates at a switchable rate of 16 or 8 MHz. In terms of memory, the device comes with 6 MB of ROM and 2 MB of PSRAM.

One factor in Sharp’s decision to use GEOS together with a relatively low-power processor certainly has to be the expected life from a single set of batteries. For the PT-9000, Sharp estimates that a user can operate the device up to 22 hours using six replaceable AA batteries. Lithium batteries back up data between battery changes. However, preliminary use suggests that the trade-off may cause the device to run a bit slow, especially when switching applications.

Overall, the PT-9000 carries very well and strikes a very comfortable balance between PDA and notebook class devices. With the operational keyboard attached, it is both ergonomic and attractive.