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Wednesday, May 14, 2008

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GBM InkShow: Celio REDFLY

- Sierra Modro

InkShow I've wanted to get my hands on a REDFLY by Celio Corp since I saw their booth at CES. My chance has finally arrived! I've been really impressed with the overall build quality and general usefulness of the Redfly. In the video you can see how easy it really is to attach a Windows Mobile phone to the Redfly, both via USB and via Bluetooth, and surf the web or edit docs. Since these are the primary tasks that many mobile users have for a full laptop, I love having the ability to harness the power of my Windows Mobile phone to do it instead of using a full laptop.

While the Redfly is squarely targeted at enterprise IT departments, it's an attractive device that could have much broader utility once the price point comes down to consumer range. By adding 2 USB ports and a VGA port to the overall Windows Mobile phone package, Celio has created a compelling platform combination that will fill many mobile users requirements. For companies that already deploy WinMo phones, the lower total cost of ownership versus a full laptop will make many IT managers very happy indeed - no additional software, limited additional support, and no additional security holes.

  • Download the high res InkShow ( WMV, 21 min, 160 mb ) 
  • Watch the embedded video below
  • Visit Celio for more information
  • Priced at $499 from selected system integrators and from Celio

     

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  • 5/14/2008 5:09 PM MST  

    GBM InkShow: Celio REDFLY     Comments [4]  |  Digg This |  del.icio.us |  Citations 
    Wednesday, May 14, 2008 6:20:07 PM (Mountain Daylight Time, UTC-06:00)
    It's a great first look at the Celio Redfly but will GBM provide a more in depth review of the device. Yeah I can see it's shine through email, mobile office, web browsing, but what about the fun stuff. Can I use it to watch a movie or a video? Can I stream video content to watch from Youtube, etc.? And what about other functionality on the phone, like a VGA camera for video conferencing or using the 2MP camera on my phone? Can I still use those functions just as efficiently on the Redfly? It would be awesome if I could do video conferencing through skype just like I would on a regular laptop, assuming that there might be a mobile skype version that support video conf.

    It would be awesome to see the price tag go below the Asus EeePC. It would be a killer product! I mean it's a companion device, i.e. an accessory, why should it cost the same as the smartphone or more? It's like buying a laptop and the external monitor for it costs more than the laptop....though that is a possibility.
    George
    Wednesday, May 14, 2008 11:57:35 PM (Mountain Daylight Time, UTC-06:00)
    A very good InkShow I must say.

    Honestly, I do not believe that you can order videos. I think about how well the device to the PDA access. There could be any kind of RDP client.

    That would mean that the bandwidth through Bluetooth is restricted. What in turn means that the bandwidth is limited.

    What I generel in InkShows miss. Is one for me ever more important question:

    How do the devices in sunlight?

    Is it still legible if one day is, for example, in the Park or even in the car.
    siberia21
    Thursday, May 15, 2008 7:04:44 AM (Mountain Daylight Time, UTC-06:00)
    Thanks for the video; helped me to see the possibilities better. But I thought the phone was slow! Loading Word was taking a long time; I wanted to see Sierra run something like TextMaker, which I run on my 8525, and while a larger program that Pocket Word, it loads mush faster than she was seeing. One issue I would then have is perception. When users employ a full size device (albeit a small one), they expect a certain speed; but when using a phone, they do not have the same expectation in general. That may be frustrating to them.
    David Howard
    Thursday, May 15, 2008 5:24:21 PM (Mountain Daylight Time, UTC-06:00)
    I do hope to get out another InkShow next week on the Redfly that shows some of the more advanced features of the unit. Stay tuned...

    As for the phone being slow, it is. I have an 8525 and I swear it seems faster than the Tilt. I was very surprised. But that's not a problem with the Redfly, just another confirmation that WinMo phones need some help.
    Comments are closed.


           





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