Psion Plc used PCExpo in New York as a platform to demonstrate two Java-based prototype devices and to give an American audience a taste of its new Series 5mx. The London, UK-based mobile computer manufacturer, one of the founders of Symbian Plc, has been very successful with its Organizer series of palmtops in Europe but has yet to make much of an impact on the US market.
Psion had prototypes of its ‘Jedi’ mini-notebook PC and ‘Quantum’ Palm PC-style device on display. Both machines will run the EPOC operating system and offer full enterprise Java support. The Jedi has a keyboard and pen-based entry system and runs on a 133-MHz StrongARM processor with 32Mb of RAM. The machine can link with a desktop via an infrared IrDa connection, although an internal GSM modem is planned for the next version of the device. The Jedi is expected to be released in October, at a price of about $1,000. Psion sees the Quantum device as its challenger to the Palm Pilot in industrial applications. The pen-based system will be launched in variety of versions with a 190-MHz StrongARM CPU and 32Mb. The devices are scheduled for a November release, priced at $1,000.
The 16Mb Series 5mx Organizer is an upgrade of the Psion Series 5 with a faster 36-MHz ARM710T processor. The device has 16Mb of memory and runs the EPOC operating system. The device features a cut-down Java browser and PsiWin palmtop to Windows synchronization. It also offers limited remote wireless access, connecting to a network via a mobile phone with an IrDa adapter, such as LM Ericsson AB’s 770 GSM phone. The Series 5mx is available now.
