A Mobile Device for Everyone
With so many mobile devices on the market, you might wonder "Which one's right for me?" That's up to you, of course, but we've noticed that you can draw a one-to-one correlation between a person's careers and hobbies and the kind of mobile device they'll like best. Take a look-see over our list and maybe you'll get an ideas or two, whether you're shopping for yourself or for a gift.
Bloggers
Assuming that bloggers actually will be typing text - not always a given! - you'll want a full-sized laptop or a netbook at the least. It stands to reason that if typing text is what you'll be doing the most, especially for a career, then you'll want the largest and most comfortable keyboard available. Also, it's almost a guarantee that you'll want to work with video and audio on the side at some point, along with of course web access, so you want a full-powered device as well.
Graphics Artist
May we suggest a tablet PC? Tablets have really come into their own; they can run full operating systems and installed software suites. Tablets use a stylus a lot, which is the closest thing to an artist's brush anyway. Using a classic desktop PC mouse to draw has always felt clumsy and awkward, so a stylus is a vast improvement, since it can also be used as a mouse pointer. The possible exception is the power-user 3D rendering artist. Many 3D functions, such as meshing a full human figure or ray-tracing a foggy ocean-scape, require huge amounts of processing power, but even here tablet PCs are catching up.
Manager
Two recommendations. If you're a floor manager, you'd want to stick with PDAs. PDAs are becoming sophisticated enough to do it all. They combine mobile connectivity (roam a lot), texting and email (read messages from the troops), database and business application support (viewing a spreadsheet), and still have smartphone capabilities. Something bigger than a phone is called for, to have that extra screen size to watch your business run. The other way is if you're more of a desk and office manager. You don't need to be so mobile, so maybe a UMPC, where you have a little more screen real estate and a full keyboard for rattling off memos. Perhaps with a built-in GPS system, so you can find your way to the new warehouse they just opened.
Student
Netbooks are just the thing for the scholar on the go. Comfortable on the lap for taking notes in lecture hall, capable of running almost any software out there, and plenty of memory space and screen size to store and view all of your study materials. In a pinch, a UMPC at the large end of the screen-size spectrum might work, but even then you may want a netbook for the heavier computing and a smartphone for social use, rather than trying to combine both into one with a UMPC.
Programmers
The other end of the development spectrum is the software engineer. For a programmer, you'd want a laptop. You'll want the power tools, the high-tech toys, and the machine that can do it all. Sure, for typing raw code all you need is a keyboard and a text editor or an IDE. But for testing it, it might be an AJAX application, a Flash game, a first-person shooter, or even a compiler - who knows what you're making? Also, who knows what hot new languages and platforms are going to come out in the next few years? You'll want to be ready to adapt to that, too.
Filed Under: Mobile Internet • PDAs
