November 2002

It's always on, it comes with its own pda, and there's a flat fee

The Grapevine mobile email and Internet access system, which went live this autumn, adds a whole new dimension to the mobile data market, writes Peter Rowlands.

It's the brainchild of Transcomm, one of Britain's leading specialist mobile data network providers, and harnesses Transcomm's existing wireless network to handle data transfer. It's is accessed via a proprietary PDA-style handheld device called a WDA ("Wireless PDA").

The company is hoping it will give a shot in the arm to its existing data network service, as well as attracting new users looking for an alternative way of communicating with drivers and staff in the field.

 

The service is aimed primarily at corporate users, although it can also be bought online from one of Transcomm's resellers, Infosystems (www.istore.co.uk). Transcomm marketing director Adrian Noad says users could include individual professionals as well as mobile work forces.

Transcomm uses its own Mobitex-based narrow-band wireless network for the transmissions, which effectively allows a lot of data to be compressed into a narrow 12.5KHz band (compared with 30KHz, for example, for mobile phones).

Significantly, the "packet-switched" technology behind this has allowed Transcomm to make Grapevine an "always-on" system in much the same vein as rival technologies such as GPRS. Yet unlike those, it is being charged for at a flat fee of £29.95 a month, however much data is transferred. Data can also be "pushed" to individual units by the user's control centre, without having to be requested ­ something not offered with standard GPRS data transfer ­ although there is an extra cost for this.

By consumer standards the PDA is modest in specification, having a monochrome screen and just 4MB of Flash memory and 2MB of DRAM. It uses an ARM 32-bit RISC processor. It runs under a proprietary icon-driven multi-tasking operating system called Nucleus PLUS, which was developed in the US by Accelerated Technology and was originally used for embedded applications.

Transcomm says the Grapevine doesn't need a higher spec because it is dealing mainly with text, and most data will be held on corporate servers, not locally. It can for instance store 50 emails at a time. It can also handle some file attachments

On the plus side, the unit price of £299 (less for volume orders) includes a very neat plug-in thumb-operated QWERTY keyboard, as well as a package of peripherals including charger, spare stylus, cables and carrying case.

Battery life is said to be a respectable four days in normal use. The WDA can use standard AAA batteries as an alternative to rechargeable Li-ion ones. The unit's weight is just 154g.

Supplied software includes basic personal information management applications, plus Xsync, an application allowing synchronisation with existing Outlook Contacts, Tasks, Notes and Calendar data via a docking station.

The Web access feature means field users can access any business data that is accessible through corporate Web servers. The recommended approach to running applications locally on the WDA is to use a customised browser interface adhering to the WAP 1.2 standard, but a software development kit is also available to allow users to create their own full applications.

Local connectivity is provided by an RS-232 serial port, although the company admits this currently supports only a subset of full RS-232 capability. This is one of various aspects that are likely to be enhanced as the service is rolled out.

Transcomm has set up its own Grapevine Email Gateway to provide access to mainstream "POP3" email, and uses the established SMTP system for sending emails. Users can also integrate the service with their Microsoft Exchange or Lotus Notes email servers. Various security options are also offered, including a leased-line system that bypasses the Internet to connects the user directly to the Grapevine server.

Grapevine is a bold venture in a market that already has several well-established rival technologies, including the GSM/GPRS mobile networks and two flavours of mainstream PDA, plus the specialised Blackberry mobile email system. However, it offers price advantages over many systems, and squeezes further value from the existing Mobitex network. Because it is relatively task-specific, the PDA is also less likely than consumer models to be stolen or used for non-work purposes.

All in all, it's a package many in the mobile market could find compelling.