December 1994 / Reviews / Simonizing the PDA
`
`Page 1 of 4
`
`http://www.byte.com/art/9412/sec11/art3.htm
`
`Go
`
`34 captures
`20 Dec 96 - 2 Dec 13
`
`Simonizing the PDA
`
`NOV DEC JU
`
`20
`
`1995 1996 19
`
`BellSouth's communicative Simon is a milestone in the evolution of the PDA
`
`Chris O'Malley
`
`When computer makers say, ``PDA'' (personal digital assistant), they're referring to a small, pen-operated computer that
`might be able to wirelessly send or receive data, but not voice calls. But telephone companies, understandably, are apt to
`take a different view, which is why Simon says, ``Talk.''
`
`Simon is BellSouth Cellular's intriguing new so-called personal communicator. Developed largely by IBM, Simon is
`essentially a cellular phone with the electronic innards and LCD face of a PDA. As such, Simon can not only serve as your
`portable phone, but it can also ply the cellular airwaves with data. Simon can send and receive E-mail, faxes, and pages. And
`while each of these avenues has its limits, Simon is easily the most communicative PDA to appear thus far.
`
`Simon may also be one of the most expensive PDAs to appear thus far--or one of the least costly, depending on your point
`of view. Simon lists for $899 with cellular-service activation from authorized dealers (in a BellSouth Cellular market) or
`$1099 without service direct from BellSouth. In an age when cellular phones are sometimes given away to lure customers,
`and they rarely sell for more than $500 in any case, that's a lot to pay for a phone. But Simon is more than a phone, and
`rigging a PDA (or any portable PC) with two-way wireless data features costs a lot more--and still doesn't give you voice
`capability.
`
`Vintage Hardware
`
`At first glance, Simon appears to be a throwback rather than a trendsetter. Its brick-like shape (8 by 2 1/2 by 1 1/2 inches)
`and heft (18 ounces with battery) give it the look and feel of a vintage cellular phone from the 1980s. But instead of a dial
`pad, Simon has a narrow, backlit LCD screen--the only visual clue that it may be something other than a cellular phone (see
`the photo).
`
`But this is merely a clue at first, since the opening screen depicts a dial pad, a signal-strength gauge, and familiar cellular
```buttons,'' such as Send and Quick Dial. Once you begin to peruse its menus and peer into its cavities, it finally becomes
`apparent that this is as much a PDA-like organizer and data communicator as it is a phone. This mild deception may be
`Simon's most striking quality: It looks and feels like a product you already know how to use, rather than a new religion you
`must immerse yourself in.
`
`There is familiarity in Simon's components, too. Inside, Simon is basically a miniaturized DOS computer joined with a
`modem and a cellular transmitter/receiver. The CPU is a 16-bit x86-compatible processor running at 16 MHz, a single-chip
`design manufactured by Vadem. Simon runs a version of DOS called ROM-DOS, from Datalight, and has 32 KB of ROM
`dedicated to the system's BIOS. There's 2 MB of flash memory that stores Simon's built-in applications (from 1 MB, using
`Stacker compression), and another 1 MB of pseudo-static RAM for running the programs and storing user data. Roughly
`640 KB of this memory is actually available for your use.
`
`Many of the unit's hardware features are less than exotic, too. There's a 2400-bps Hayes-compatible modem inside that uses
`the MNP 5 protocol to help stream data through the often-turbulent cellular airwaves. Simon also has 9600-bps send-and-
`receive fax functions. At 4 1/2 inches tall by a mere 1.4 inches wide, its backlit monochrome LCD is small; it has an all-
`points-addressable touch overlay that you can electronically write on with either the included stylus or your finger. The
`display is otherwise unremarkable, although the very fact that it's backlit makes it stand out among PDAs and palmtops.
`Even Simon's expansion port is in the form of the now-commonplace Type II PCMCIA slot.
`
`http://web.archive.org/web/19961220131445/http://www.byte.com/art/9412/sec11/art3.htm
`
`4/7/2015
`
`TCL EXHIBIT 1020
`Page 1 of 4
`
`

`
`December 1994 / Reviews / Simonizing the PDA
`
`Page 2 of 4
`
`http://www.byte.com/art/9412/sec11/art3.htm
`
`Go
`
`34 captures
`20 Dec 96 - 2 Dec 13
`
`NOV DEC JU
`
`20
`
`1995 1996 19
`
`Simon uses a rechargeable nickel-cadmium battery pack that slides onto the back of the unit. The included slim battery pack
`provides about 1 hour of talk time (for conversation or data transmission) and 8 to 12 hours of standby time (i.e., the amount
`of time you can leave the phone on so it can receive calls).
`
`A thicker, high-capacity pack can deliver roughly double these figures. But battery life varies, depending on how much you
`are using Simon to do other things, such as entering names and appointments into its organizing utilities. A lithium coin
`battery inside the unit provides up to 2 1/2 days of backup power for your data if the main battery is drained or removed.
`
`Simon's Software
`
`Although Simon's hardware is largely a condensed compilation of proven performers, its software is another story. The user
`interface and applications were designed from scratch by IBM to fit Simon's narrow screen and make good use of its phone
`functions. Only one of its applications, cc:Mail, exists outside the Simon. (BellSouth says it intends to select third-party
`publishers to develop additional applications for Simon, but none had been announced by the time this went to press.)
`
`The software is broken down into two main areas: phone (i.e., voice) functions, and what BellSouth calls ``mobile-office''
`functions. You access the phone functions through the simulated dial-pad screen and a handful of accompanying menus,
`such as a list of one-button Quick Dial numbers or a list of direct-dial buttons showing the last 10 numbers you've called. It's
`as simple to use as any cellular phone, and a telephone icon at the bottom of the screen lets you get to the dial pad quickly,
`regardless of which application you're in.
`
`Simon has a few features that you don't find in every cellular phone. It simplifies calling while out of your home area
`(known as roaming) by reducing the necessary steps to just pressing a few preference buttons. It also supports multiple
`cellular phone numbers, or NAMs (numerical assignment numbers), and it can answer your calls automatically.
`
`But perhaps Simon's biggest phone perk is that it can act like a pager. When a call comes in and goes unanswered, the caller
`can leave a phone number, which is recorded in Simon's pager menu. Simon then beeps and darkens the Phone Pager button.
`It can store up to nine numbers, which you call back with a one-touch selection.
`
`The mobile-office functions consist largely of the usual PDA/organizer fare (see the box above): address book, appointment
`calendar, notepad, sketchpad, calculator, and to-do programs, plus utilities for setting system preferences and a password,
`managing data files, and changing the time and date. But because Simon has built-in communications gear, it adds fax and
`E-mail functions to the mix. The fax program allows you to use either the notepad or the sketchpad to create faxes, and you
`can view and annotate (as well as resend) the faxes you receive. The E-mail program is based on cc:Mail Remote and works
`with any cc:Mail host that supports remote users.
`
`All these programs share a clean design and are so easy to use that you'll rarely need to poke your nose inside Simon's
`skinny user's manual. They are also fairly well integrated. You can call, fax, or send E-mail to someone from the address
`book, for example. You can also dial a number contained in an E-mail message and forward an E-mail message as a fax.
`
`The Bad with the Good
`
`Even with all its good points, there's no shortage of frustrations with using Simon; many of them are minor, but a few are
`major. While you can operate Simon with a pen, it doesn't do handwriting recognition. Thus, you're left to enter data with
`either a tiny on-screen QWERTY keyboard or the PredictaKey keyboard, which automatically displays the next six
`characters most likely to be used (and lets you page through the alphabet six letters at a time according to this probability
`formula). You can also flip to a numeric keypad.
`
`The PredictaKey works better than I expected it would. It seems to get the correct next letter among its first six about 75
`percent of the time. But entering names into the address book or tapping out fax and E-mail messages are tedious chores.
`Simon needs either an adjunct keyboard (a palmtop-style one would do) for data-entry sessions or a desktop-linking kit that
`would enable you to transfer data from your PC. BellSouth says it intends to provide the latter soon; there's already a Link
`PC button for this function in the file-managing program.
`
`Faxing with a device of this small size can be frustrating, too. You can scribble handwritten messages for creating quick
`faxes, but Simon's narrow screen and relatively poor pen tracking ensure that the results are usually quite atrocious. Simon is
`
`http://web.archive.org/web/19961220131445/http://www.byte.com/art/9412/sec11/art3.htm
`
`4/7/2015
`
`TCL EXHIBIT 1020
`Page 2 of 4
`
`

`
`December 1994 / Reviews / Simonizing the PDA
`
`Page 3 of 4
`
`http://www.byte.com/art/9412/sec11/art3.htm
`
`Go
`
`34 captures
`20 Dec 96 - 2 Dec 13
`
`Simon Does
`
`NOV DEC JU
`
`20
`
`1995 1996 19
`
`As cellular phones go, Simon doesn't have much staying power. Even the smallest flip phones typically have more talk and
`standby time than Simon, and portable phones that approach Simon's size give you much more. That's not necessarily a fair
`comparison, but realistically, Simon's competition will include cellular phones as well as PDAs. Another power peeve:
`There's no battery gauge, either on the unit or in the software, so you're never sure when Simon is going to quit (although
`you won't lose data when it does, thanks to the backup battery).
`
`Merging a phone and a PDA has another bad side effect: You can't take notes or use Simon's other features while
`conversing, since the screen is up next to your ear. The more you depend on Simon, the more irksome that drawback
`becomes, since you'll want to enter all your appointments, phone numbers, and the like into it.
`
`Regardless, Simon has a full range of communications options, and, most important, they work. Simon is no less fickle than
`other cellular phones for voice calls; it's clearer in some areas than others, depending on local signal strength, and it usually
`works better outdoors. But it completed reasonably clear calls made from inside airports between West Palm Beach and San
`Diego on one recent trip I took, and it also consistently performed well in my car.
`
`But data transmissions are dicier, with Simon dropping the cellular connection 10 percent to 20 percent of the time in my
`experience. But an 80 percent to 90 percent success rate is nothing to complain about for sending data in analog fashion over
`the cellular system (Simon doesn't support the emerging CDPD [Cellular Digital Packet Data] digital cellular service).
`
`PDA Progress
`
`In addition to the high-capacity battery ($78) and RJ-11 phone connector ($119), Simon's other options include 1-MB and
`1.8-MB PCMCIA memory cards ($224 and $279, respectively) and a travel charger (no price had been set at press time) that
`lets you recharge Simon's batteries directly from an AC outlet so you don't have to carry the recharger base with you. In
`addition, BellSouth has plans to offer a cigarette lighter adapter as well as an alphanumeric paging card similar to the one
`that the company's MobileComm division offers for Apple's Newton. The paging card will let you receive pager messages
`and E-mail from public services.
`
`Whether or not Simon is your idea of the ultimate (for now) personal communicator depends on how appealing you find the
`combination of voice calls and E-mail--and maybe on how little you need a laptop. Clearly, Simon won't replace portable
`PCs, but it's equally clear that it represents a milestone in the evolution of the PDA.
`
`The Facts
`
`Simon $899
`(in BellSouth Cellular service areas; otherwise, $1099)
`BellSouth Cellular Corp.
`1100 Peachtree St. NE
`Atlanta, GA 30309
`(800) 746-6672
`fax: (404) 717-2111
`
`Selected Simon Features
`
`ADDRESS BOOK
` Auto-dialing
` Search
`APPOINTMENT CALENDAR
` Alarms
` Periodic meetings
` One- or three-month view
`
`http://web.archive.org/web/19961220131445/http://www.byte.com/art/9412/sec11/art3.htm
`
`4/7/2015
`
`TCL EXHIBIT 1020
`Page 3 of 4
`
`

`
`December 1994 / Reviews / Simonizing the PDA
`
`Page 4 of 4
`
`NOV DEC JU
`
`20
`
`1995 1996 19
`
`http://www.byte.com/art/9412/sec11/art3.htm
`
`Go
`
`34 captures
`20 Dec 96 - 2 Dec 13
`
`CELLULAR NUMERIC PAGER
` Stores nine numbers
`CELLULAR PHONE
` Last 10 numbers
` Quick-dial list (16 numbers)
` Call timing
` Vox (voice-activated transmitter)
`DIAGNOSTICS
`E-MAIL
` Lotus cc:Mail Remote
` Can limit to short messages
`FAX (9600-BPS GROUP 3)
` Viewing with zoom
` Busy retries
` Fax storage
`FILER
` System memory or PC Card storage (optional)
` Copy, rename, delete, back up, and restore
`HELP (SCREEN-SPECIFIC)
`NOTEPAD
`SKETCHPAD
`SYSTEM SETUP
` Password locking
` Power management settings
`TO-DO LIST
`WORLD CLOCK
` World-map view
` Alarm
`
`Photograph: Simon looks like a large cellular phone except for its replacement of the dialing keypad with an LCD look-
`alike (right inset). Through the touchscreen, you operate the phone functions and a group of small PDA applications, such
`as the E-mail program shown (a small-screen version of Lotus cc:Mail).
`
`Chris O'Malley is a Florida-based freelance writer who covers telecommunications, among other topics. You can contact
`him on the Internet or BIX at editors@bix.com.
`
` Copyright © 1994-1996
`
`http://web.archive.org/web/19961220131445/http://www.byte.com/art/9412/sec11/art3.htm
`
`4/7/2015
`
`TCL EXHIBIT 1020
`Page 4 of 4