April/May 2007

Gotive seems to have come up with something truly distinctive in its new handheld computer, the SQ31.

It looks a bit like a mobile phone, and though it isn't, it certainly bristles with appealing features, which include 802.11b/g wireless connectivity, along with the wherewithal to make the device suitable for working as a VoIP phone.

The processor is a fast Intel XScale PXA 270 running at 520 MHz, which is backed by 256MB of flash memory and 128MB of RAM. The touch screen is a 240 by 320 pixel quarter VGA unit, and there is an integrated Intermec CMOS imager for barcode reading. Expansion is provided by a mini-SD card slot.

The operating system is Windows CE 5.0, and Gotive offers a software development kit for applications in Visual Studio .NET.

 

The company is pitching the SQ31 primarily at applications in static environments such as warehouses, shops and healthcare locations, though in theory it could have a mobile role too. Rather remarkably, there are just three programmable keys on the fascia and four more on the sides, plus a reset key, which makes it appear deceptively simple. What you make of them, of course, is up to you.

Gotive talks about what it calls the unit's 'emotional added value', by which it means the combination of power, small form factor and distinctive orange colour. And it weighs just 235g including battery. Can you resist?