PDA and WIRELESS

Devices

As information technology evolves, the trend is to

provide greater functionality using smaller
computers.

Desktop vs Smartphone

Notebook vs Tablet

Continuum of Physical Characteristics

Weight, Screen size, Processing power and
Memory decreases from non-mobile, mobile to
handheld
Battery life increases from larger to smaller
devices

Portable, Mobile, Handheld

Any computer system that can be hand carried
or rolled around is ________
Computers that are lightweight and small
enough to be hand-carried is _________

Portable, Mobile, Handheld

A computer that can be held in the palm of one
hand and used with the other hand is a
______________.

Quiz
Answer yes or no
Portability

Portable

Mobile
Handheld

Desktop

Notebook/Lapto
p

Tablet

PDA

Smartphon
e

Type of connection to a network

Hardwire
Wireless

IrDA
Bluetooth
Wi-Fi
WiMAX
Cellular
New (LTE)

Type of Network Connection

Most mobile devices uses wireless connections.
An exception are notebooks/laptops which still
has hardwire ports.

Personal Digital Assistant

Personal Digital Assistant

Personal Digital Assistant

PDA
The main purpose of a personal digital assistant
(PDA) is to act as an electronic organizer or day
planner that is portable, easy to use and capable
of sharing information with your PC. It's
supposed to be an extension of the PC, not a
replacement.

PDA
PDAs, also called handhelds or palmtops, have
definitely evolved over the years. Not only can
they manage your personal information, such as
contacts, appointments, and to-do lists, today's
devices can also connect to the Internet, act as
global positioning system (GPS) devices, and run
multimedia software.

PDA
What's more, manufacturers have combined PDAs
with cell phones, multimedia players and other
electronic gadgetry.

The Birth of PDA

Late 1980s- Psion Organiser
Sharp Wizard

Early PDAs

Early PDAs
Sharp Wizard

Early PDAs
1993 - Apple introduced the Newton MessagePad
Newton's innovations have become standard
PDA features, including: pressure-sensitive
display with stylus, handwriting recognition
capabilities, an infrared port and an expansion
slot.
However, it was too big, expensive and
complicated, and its handwriting recognition
program was poor.

Apple Newton Messagepad

Apple Newton Messagepad

Early PDAs
March, 1996 Palmpilot by Palm Computing
ran on its own Palm operating system, fit in a shirt
pocket and synchronized with consumers' PC.
Ran on AAA batteries
Part of its small size was due to the lack of a
keyboard. Users used a stylus

Early PDAs
November 1996 Penwindows and Windows CE
OS for mobile.
Windows introduced its PDA as handheld PC.

Windows CE - 1998

WINDOWS handheld PC Terminology

Changes name to Palm-sized PC then to Pocket
PC

Windows CE is now known as Windows mobile

Windows CE 3.0- 2000

Windows Mobile

Early Tablet PC

TYPES of PDA
Traditional
Today's traditional PDAs are descendents of the
original PalmPilot and Microsoft Handheld PC
devices. Palm devices run the Palm OS
(operating system), and Microsoft Pocket PCs run
Windows Mobile. The differences between the
two systems are fewer than in the past.

TYPES of PDA
PALM PDAs
Most Palm devices are made by palmOne, which
offers the Zire and Tungsten product lines. The
company formed in 2003 when Palm Computing
acquired Handspring, Inc.

TYPES of PDA
Known for their ease of use, Palm OS PDAs have:
A vast library of third-party applications (more
than 20,000) that you can add to the system
An updated version of the Graffiti handwritingrecognition application
Synchronization with both Windows and
Macintosh
Smaller displays than Pocket PCs to
accommodate a dedicated Graffiti area on the
device

TYPES of PDA
Pocket PCs
Pocket PC is the generic name for Windows Mobile
PDAs. Their standard features include:

Pocket PC
Their standard features include:

Pocket versions of Microsoft applications

Synchronization with Microsoft Outlook on a
Windows PC
Three handwriting-recognition applications:
Transcriber, Letter Recognizer (similar to the new
version of Graffiti), and Block Recognizer (similar
to the original Graffiti)
A virtual writing area, which maximizes the
display size
Windows Media Player for multimedia content

TYPES of PDA
Smartphone
A smartphone is either a cell phone with PDA
capabilities or a traditional PDA with added cell
phone capabilities, depending on the form factor
(style) and manufacturer.

SMARTPHONES
Characteristics of these devices include:
A cellular service provider to handle phone service
(As with cell phones, you typically purchase a
cellular plan and smart phone from the service
provider.)
Internet access through cellular data networks

SMARTPHONES
Various combinations of cell phone and PDA
features, depending on the device (for example,
not all smart phones offer handwritingrecognition capabilities)
A number of different operating systems,
including Windows Mobile Pocket PC Phone
Edition, the Palm OS, the Blackberry OS for
Blackberry smart phones, and the Symbian OS
for smart phones from Panasonic, Nokia,
Samsung and others.

SMARTPHONES

SMARTPHONES
Samsung and Panasonic

SMARTPHONES
Samsung and Panasonic

PDA vs SMARTPHONES
SAVE MONEY with PDA
PDAs are bought at higher price than
smartphones but PDAs are cheaper than
smartphones over the life of the device.

PDA vs SMARTPHONES
CONNECTIVITY
PDAs does not have cellular capabilities to
connect to the internet
Both PDAs and SMARTPHONEs uses WI-FI and
BLUETOOTH for Internet connectivity

PDA vs SMARTPHONES
PDAs are carrier independent
Smartphones are often tied to a wireless carriers
network.
PDAs does not have issues on changing wireless
networks

PDA vs SMARTPHONES
Converged Devices often require Sacrifices
With a smartphone, youre putting all of your
eggs in a single basket. Should the smartphone
break or become lost or stolen, all of the
information youve stored on it is also gone.

PDA vs SMARTPHONES
Converged Devices often require Sacrifices
a PDA may offer a larger screen than some
smartphones, which is very helpful for users who
want to review spreadsheets or other documents
without excess scrolling

PDA features
Handle Standard PIM Functions
Store contact information (names, addresses,
phone numbers, e-mail addresses)
Make to-do lists
Take notes
Track appointments (date book, calendar)
Remind you of appointments (clock, alarm
functions)
Perform calculations

PDA features
Run Application Software
Windows Mobile devices come with Pocket versions
of Word, Excel, Internet Explorer and Outlook
(includes e-mail and PIM functions), along with
Windows Media Player and voice memo recording.

PDA features
Run Application Software
Most Palm OS devices include applications such as
DataViz Documents to Go (compatible with
Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint), palmOne
Media (for photos and video), VersaMail e-mail
software and web-browsing software.
All types of devices can run other kinds of software
including games, multimedia, expense, diet and
exercise, travel, medical, time and billing, and
reference.

PDA features
Synchronize With PCs
Because PDAs are designed to complement your PC,
they need to work with the same information in
both places. If you make an appointment on your
desktop computer, you need to transfer it to your
PDA; if you jot down a phone number on your PDA,
you should upload it later to your PC.

PDA features
Synchronize With PCs
The beauty of synchronization is that you always have
a backup copy of your data, which can be a lifesaver
if your PDA is broken, stolen, or completely out of
power.

PDA features
Synchronize With PCs
To sync, you should have the companion software
running in your PC
Sync using USB cables and ports or thru Bluetooth
devices.

COMMON PDA functions

Short-range wireless connectivity using Infrared
(IR) or Bluetooth technology
IR is found on most PDAs and requires a clear
line of sight.
Bluetooth wirelessly connects (it's a radio
frequency technology that doesn't require a clear
line of sight) to other Bluetooth-enabled devices,
such as a headset or a printer.

COMMON PDA functions

Internet and corporate network connectivity
through Wi-Fi and wireless access points

COMMON PDA functions

Support for Wireless WAN (Wide Area
Networks); the cellular data networks that
provide Internet connectivity for smart phone
devices

COMMON PDA functions

A memory card slot that accepts flash media
such as CompactFlash, MultiMediaCard, and
Secure Digital cards (Media cards act as
additional storage for files and applications.)

COMMON PDA functions

Audio support for MP3 files and a microphone,
speaker jack and headphone jack

COMMON PDA functions

Bells and Whistles
A Secure Digital Input/Output (SDIO) card slot
for add-on peripherals contained in an SDIO card,
for example, a Bluetooth card, a Wi-Fi card, or a
GPS (global positioning system) card

COMMON PDA functions

Bells and Whistles
Built-in GPS capabilities
A built-in digital camera for snapping digital
images and capturing short videos
Integrated security features such as a biometric
fingerprint reader

How it works?
Microprocessor & Memory
Like standard desktop and laptop computers,
PDAs are powered by microprocessors. The
microprocessor is the brain of the PDA, and it
coordinates all of the functions according to
programmed instructions.

PDA
Unlike desktop PCs and laptops, PDAs use
smaller, cheaper microprocessors. Although
these microprocessors tend to be slower than
their PC counterparts, they're adequate for the
tasks that PDAs perform. The benefits of small
size and price outweigh the cost of slow speeds.

PDA
A PDA doesn't have a hard disk. It stores basic
programs (address book, calendar, memo pad
and operating system) in a read-only memory
(ROM) chip, which remains intact even when the
machine shuts down. Your data and any
programs you add later are stored in the device's
random-access memory (RAM).

PDA
Information in RAM
is only available
when the device is on.
Due to their design,
PDAs keep data in RAM safe because they
continue to draw a small amount of power from
the batteries even when you turn the device off.

PDA
Less powerful PDAs have lower amounts of
RAM. However, many application programs take
up significant memory space, so most models
have more memory.

PDA
Also, Pocket PC devices generally require more
resources and have even more RAM. To provide
additional memory, many PDAs accept
removable flash media add-on cards. These are
handy for storing large files or multimedia
content, such as digital photos.

PDA
Operating System

PDA
operating system contains the pre-programmed
instructions that tell the microprocessor what to
do.
operating systems used by PDAs are not as
complex as those used by PCs
have fewer instructions, which require less
memory.

PDA
PDAs and smartphones typically have one of two
types of operating systems: Palm OS or Windows
Mobile. However, RIM makes a specific OS for
its BlackBerry devices, and the Symbian OS
operates some smartphones.

PDA /SMARTPHONE OS

iPAD / iOS

PDA battery
Some models use alkaline (AAA) batteries, while
others use rechargeable batteries (lithium, nickelcadmium or nickel-metal hydride).

PDA battery
The battery life depends on what kind of PDA you
have and how you use it. Here are some of the
things that can drain batteries:
Operating system (PocketPC requires more power
by virtue of its increased memory requirements)
More memory
Wireless connections, such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
Backlighting on the display

PDA display
PDAs use an LCD (liquid-crystal display) screen.
PDAs use their screens for output and input. The
LCD screens of PDAs are smaller than laptop
screens, but vary in size. Almost all PDAs now
offer color displays.

Input Methods
Some devices use a stylus and touch screen
exclusively in combination with a handwriting
recognition program
Using a plastic stylus, you draw characters on the
device's display or dedicated writing area.
Software inside the PDA converts the characters
to letters and numbers.

Input Methods

Input Methods
On Palm devices, the software that recognizes
these letters is called Graffiti.
Pocket PC PDAs offer three handwritingrecognition applications: Transcriber, Letter
Recognizer and Block Recognizer

Input Methods
use a miniature onscreen keyboard. It looks just
like a regular keyboard, except you tap on the
letters with the stylus. In addition, many devices
now include a small (and usually cramped)
QWERTY keyboard.

Input Methods
And you can use a full-size keyboard by
connecting it to the PDA via Bluetooth or a USB
port.

The Future of PDAs

Traditional PDAs appear to be less popular than
they have been in the past. Several
manufacturers have exited the PDA market,
including Sony and Toshiba.

The Future of PDAs

For the future, PDAs need to continue to add to
their core PIM functions in order to survive. The
emergence and gaining popularity of smart
phones and devices that combine other features
such as wireless Internet, GPS and multimedia
capabilities seem to back this trend.

PDA vs Tablet PC

Terms
Tablet PCs are the portable computers that you
might hold with one hand (much as you might
hold a clipboard) while you tap away on it with
the other, possibly using a stylus to write onto
the screen.

Terms
For the past 10 or so years, various manufacturers
have been developing tablet PCs of different shapes
and sizes for various purposes; for instance a
particularly expensive range of tablet PCs with plenty
of rubberization and shock proofing is intended for
warzone and extreme environments, whereas the
more recent explosion of tablets are a mix of Windows
7, iPad and Android devices are intended mainly for
office tasks and gaming.

Terms
PDAs are best described as the smaller,
handheld devices used by waiters and couriers
when you sign for parcels, and these have in fact
been around for a number of years.

Terms
Generally smaller than tablet PCs, PDAs portable
digital assistants first came to prominence in the
1990s, and have been used ever since for various tasks
that require a small, portable computer with a means
of collating and recorded data, such as taking bets at a
racetrack. Usually PDAs run a version of Windows CE
or the Windows Mobile operating system, and as such
there are often applications that will run on both,
making PDAs ideal for office tasks.

Differences
Size PDAs are almost all handheld devices,
whereas tablets are larger can be held with one
hand or across the forearm.

Smaller Tablets

Differences
User interface Generally you cannot use
your fingers with a PDA; instead a stylus should
be used. In contrast tablet PCs are optimised for
use of fingers rather than a mouse.

Differences
Build PDAs are lightweight (although Palm
supplied a variety of high-end devices) whereas
tablet devices can range from lightweight and
flimsy (some cheaper Android tablets) to heavy
and sturdy (some Windows tablet PCs).

Differences
Operating system A tablet PC version of
Windows 7 is available for suitable devices, although
the most common tablet operating systems
currently are Android and iOS, the operating system
used on the iPad.

Differences
Purpose Youre limited with what you can achieve
with a PDA, whereas the various types of tablet PCs
have software available to assist you in performing
almost any task.

Discuss
Uses of Wireless,Handheld devices in Nursing
Practice, Education, Administration and
Research.
Look for articles, videos, etc.

PDA in Healthcare
Sample Smartphone epocrates
Skyscape for Nursing
PDA in healthcare
Palm PDA