Psion Says New Mobile Units Run Longer, Easier to Use
 
Microbytes Daily News Service
Copyright (c) 1989, McGraw-Hill, Inc.
Handheld-computer-maker Psion has a new family of "mobile"
computers that it says offer longer battery life, better data
storage, and an easier user interface than other "notebook"
computers. The three clamshell-style models each weigh 4.5 pounds
and are about the size of a ream of paper. All three use a
7.68-MHz 80C86 CPU, 8 AA batteries, and new Intel solid-state
flash EPROM memory cards for data storage. Psion says that the
matchbook-sized EPROM cards are more reliable and use less power
than disk media and don't need battery back-up like RAM cards.
 
Two of the models, the MC-200 and MC-400, employ a proprietary
multitasking "graphic" operating system that uses icons and
menus. Psion claims this interface will make the systems easier
to use, but it may also sharply limit the number of available
applications. The MC-200, priced at roughly $799, runs 75 hours
on a set of batteries, Psion says, and includes a 640 x 200
blue/white supertwist LCD display, 128K of RAM, and a touchpad
above the keyboard. It comes with a set of software programs,
including a word processor, diary, calculator, terminal emulator,
and "personal database."
 
The $1499 MC-400 comes with more RAM (256K) and a better display,
a 640 x 400 black-and-white retardation film LCD that Psion
claims offers superior contrast. It will run 60 hours on a set of
batteries, Psion says. Both the MC-200 and 400 include full
QWERTY keyboards and a voice processing capability for digitizing
and playing back speech through a built-in microphone and
speaker.
 
The MC-600 is a DOS-based machine with 768K of RAM, a 1-megabyte
RAM disk, flash card slots, and the same display as the MC-400,
operating in 640 x 200 CGA-compatible mode. Instead of the
touchpad it has a row of function keys at the top of the
keyboard, and it does not include the software programs shipped
with the other two systems. Psion says battery life is 30 hours.
The MC-600 will sell for roughly $2499. All three models are
expected to be available in February.
 
Contact: Psion Inc., 118 Echo Lake Rd, Watertown, CT 06795; (203)
274-7521.
 
                              --- Andy Reinhardt
 
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