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To: DaveMG who wrote (19400)	12/9/1998 9:17:00 AM
From: DaveMG	Respond to of 152472

December 07, 1998, Issue: 744 Section: Reviews -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Device Lets You Snap-On To Web Alyson Behr 3Com PalmPilot owners have had good reason to smile for some time. But now, Option International Inc.'s Snap-On GSM Adapter for the PalmPilot can make life even more productive-and make being productive downright entertaining. The Snap-On is a small modem that lets you connect to the Internet using your PalmPilot and a digital cellular phone, and do things such as download and upload e-mail, browse the Web and send faxes. Because it supports Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) technology, you can use it anywhere in the world if your service provider has a roaming agreement with a local provider, and you have a multiband cellular phone. This may sound like a tall order, but it's not. GSM technology has been in use throughout most of Europe and Asia since 1994, and many U.S. carriers now offer compatible networks. What You Get Option International ships the Snap-On with an attach cable, two AAA batteries, a floppy disk that contains Handphone SMS messaging software, very limited de- monstration versions of Smartcode Software Inc.'s e-mail client HandStamp, HandWeb Internet Web browser and HandFax, as well as user guides. The Snap-On attaches to the base of most PalmPilot organizers, including the Palm III. A small cable connects the unit to your digital cellular phone. The product supports several cell phone brands, including Bosch, Nokia, Siemens and Sony. For this test, we used an Ericsson 788, provided by Omnipoint Communications Inc., with an Omnipoint GSM Subscriber Identification Module card. We began testing by downloading fully functioning versions of the bundled software to our PC using the Install PalmPilot application found in Starfish Software Inc.'s TrueSync. We then performed a Hot Synchronization, which automatically installed the software onto our Palm III organizer. If you haven't already configured your PalmPilot's network preferences to connect to your ISP or dial-up account, you can do this either from the Palm's preference directory or in the Smartcode software. To draft, send and retrieve your e-mail via HandStamp, just tap on the PalmPilot Menu icon and access HandStamp's mail pulldown menu. The option menu provides a means of setting POP3 for up to five mailboxes. You also can set SMTP, network, filters and signature preferences. The HandWeb Internet browser offers a list of useful sites that you can add to, as well as history and page save features. It also provides a means of configuring proxy, cache and network general preferences under its options pulldown menu. The maximum speed for GSM networks is currently 9,600 Kbps, which is acceptable for basic e-mail and text transfer. Just don't plan on handling anything more than 50 Kbps using this product anytime soon. Speed notwithstanding, we were impressed with how simple and easy to use both the Snap-On device and the Smartcode applications were. Smartcode sells fully functioning versions of these two products for $69.95 each, but some carriers, such as Omnipoint, offer it bundled with the Snap-On for $199. If you spend a fair amount of time traveling and don't always need your laptop, this product and its new technology can definitely lighten your load and provide you with a very helpful connectivity solution. Alyson Behr is the founder of Behr Communications, a Web development company. She can be reached at alyson@behrcomm.com. Snap-On GSM Adapter for 3Com PalmPilot Option International Inc. techweb.com