Mobile Computing: The Best Of Today

What skills does a solution provider need to succeed in today's mobile-computing market? To provide the best solution, a complete technical education. To cope with competing claims, a thorough knowledge of the vendors and their products. And to deal with fickle customers, a minor in user psychology.

But resellers also need help from their vendors. Their transformational products and programs--from handheld Treos to fully empowered tablet PCs--can make all the difference for channel providers.

Presented here, then, is a roundup of what VARBusiness deems as today's best mobile-computing products and programs--and a description of how these products and programs help channel partners succeed.

Training Gains

Mobile-computing vendors rely on the channel not only to deliver hardware, but also to add value and provide customer support. Consider Amrel Systems, which manufactures rugged portables and handheld devices. The vendor, based in El Monte, Calif., has developed strategic alliances with VARs and integrators in key verticals, including law enforcement and the military.

"Our emphasis is on customer relationships, developing a solution and the long-term support relationship," says Linda Talcott, Amrel's director of marketing. "It's beneficial all the way around."

Another vendor, Sony Electronics, provides the channel with extensive training and information. Sony's IT products division, based in San Diego, has established what it calls a Solution Provider Resource Center to provide online information about all Sony products, including technical specifications, photographs and marketing collateral. Sony also gives its channel members access to service packs for extended warranties, demo programs and market development funds (MDFs).

"We've enhanced our resellers' ability to gain information on Sony's products," says Greg Taylor, Sony's senior vice president of channel sales.

Toshiba Digital Products, an Irvine, Calif.-based vendor of mobile systems, runs a dedicated Web site where channel partners can view service programs, marketing materials, product tours, price lists and training manuals. Toshiba offers channel partners both online and in-person training for its products.

Toshiba Preferred Partner resellers also can participate in the company's trade-in program. Toshiba resellers earn MDFs for every sale they make. They can then use these funds to subsidize a variety of marketing efforts, including advertising, direct mail, event marketing and custom-printed sales literature. The Preferred Partner Program also offers volume rebates and a sales-rep loyalty program.

"It's an especially useful weapon when trying to outmaneuver the competition," says Terry Cronin, Toshiba's director of product management.

Margin Mavens

that's fine, but the channel is also looking for nice, high margins. All things being equal, the more specialized a mobile-computing product is, the higher its margins. So, mobile-computing vendors and their channel partners can boost their bottom lines by providing solutions that meet specific needs, such as water-resistance, long battery life and fast connectivity speeds.

"VARs want profitability when selling hardware," says Sony's Taylor, noting that his company's resellers typically earn points of 10 percent to 12 percent.

Some mobile-computing vendors have also put in place deal-registration programs to help VARs protect their sales. These programs essentially prevent a vendor's solution providers from competing against each other for the same contract. For example, Panasonic's ToughBook Premier Partners program allows a VAR to register impending sales for preferred pricing. That's a big advantage: Many of Panasonic's VARs sell the vendor's ruggedized computers to government agencies, where the sales cycle can stretch as long as nine months. The program also lets VARs sell the hardware portion at about a 10 percent margin, explains Sheila O'Neil, Panasonic's channel sales director.

Do Drop the Notebook (Price)

as the price of entry-level notebooks continues to fall, solution providers are selling these portable devices as desktop replacements. Although notebooks once commanded list prices higher than those for comparable desktops, today the market boasts several sub-$1,000 models. For example, Dell recently began shipping its 6-pound Inspiron 2200 notebook for just $849. The unit is designed primarily for customers who want to access the Internet, send e-mail and use personal-productivity software. Users can also add a wireless networking card or upgrade to an Intel Celeron or Pentium M processor, boosting the system's power and communications capabilities--but, naturally, for an additional price.

Toshiba also offers a machine below the $1,000 price point. Its Satellite M35X-S163 notebook lists for $999, and it features a 15.4-inch wide-screen display, FireWire port, 1.4-GHz Intel Celeron M processor 360, three USB ports and a 60-GB hard drive.

Connecting Points

for consumers, notebooks that operate in standalone mode, or with, perhaps, a printer or photo-docking station, are usually sufficient. But for corporate customers, the channel must provide portable devices that connect seamlessly with projectors, cameras, LANs, WANs and other tools of the trade.

"Today, state-of-the-art is more about integration of the total package than any specific features," Cronin says. "It's not just about weight and size; it's also about being able to connect anywhere."

Sony works to provide that kind of connectivity, too. Its Vaio line of notebooks features both Bluetooth 2.0 and wireless LAN connectivity. And with double batteries, the machines also offer up to nine hours of power, Taylor notes.

Likewise, Apple Computer's PowerBooks feature a variety of approaches to connectivity. Earlier this year, the Cupertino, Calif.-based vendor introduced a series of PowerBooks that include integrated AirPort 802.11g wireless networking and Bluetooth 2.0 connectivity. When it's equipped with a 17-inch screen, a PowerBook retails for slightly less than $2,700.

On Display

Some manufacturers have accentuated their display technology. Sharp Electronics' Actius AL3DU notebook, for example, features a 15-inch XGA TFT 3-D LCD display that users can switch between 2-D and 3-D modes.

While the Actius notebooks are aimed primarily at medical, CAD/CAM, imaging and gaming users, Mahwah, N.J.-based Sharp expects the $3,499 notebook will also gain adherents in other vertical and horizontal markets, says Ian Matthew, Sharp's 3-D business-development manager. And because the Actius line has high-performance features--such as Intel's Pentium M P750 processor, Nvidia's GeForce Go 6600 graphics processor, Gigabit Ethernet and DVD Super Multidrive--Sharp expects it also will be a success with demanding corporate users in horizontal markets.

Sony is another vendor emphasizing its advanced displays. The company's XBrite display technology was designed to provide a crisp viewing LCD screen, even in the brightest ambient light. Sony has incorporated XBrite technology into its Vaio line, as well as in standalone monitors designed for the desktop.

Safe And Sound

by virtue of their portability, mobile computers are inherently less secure than desktop models. As a result, many customers tap VARs to help them protect their notebook hardware and software. To supply these VARs, vendors are offering antivirus software, firewalls and antispam solutions, as well as hardware devices that physically secure a notebook to a desk or individual. Some mobile vendors have also begun to add biometric-security components to their devices.

For example, IBM's ThinkPad T42 has a fingerprint reader designed to prevent unauthorized users from accessing data in the notebook. The computer, unveiled late last year, retails for about $1,700.

On a Mission

several vendors specialize in developing mobile computers that are either rugged--meaning they adhere to military specs--or "semi-rugged," which means they simply incorporate features aimed at increasing robustness. Either way, these computers have been designed to withstand water, being dropped and hostile environments.

One such vendor, Amrel, entered the U.S. notebook market in 1991 and now sells its machines to firefighters, law-enforcement agencies, the military and companies with field-service personnel. Amrel develops both PDAs and notebooks that feature water-resistance, fault-tolerant isolation and individually sealed chambers.

"The rugged unit is developed for a longer life span than nonrugged units," Amrel's Talcott says. "In the development and design, most of the emphasis is on its ruggedness--and keeping up, of course, with the latest technology."

Traditional notebook vendors, such as Panasonic and IBM, also offer notebooks designed for more rough-and-tumble settings, such as those encountered by airplane-hopping executives and outbound salespeople. IBM submits its ThinkPads to rigorous testing at various altitudes, temperatures and humidity levels. In fact, a recent IBM television and online advertising campaign highlights the ThinkPad's ability to drop from a desk without suffering any damage.

Likewise, Panasonic's ToughBooks are designed to resist shocks, spills, vibrations and dust, the vendor says. That's because a notebook's most vulnerable components are its display, case or outer casing, and keyboard, Panasonic's research finds.

Palm of the Hand

user demand for ever-increasing mobility shows no sign of letting up. To meet this need, vendors have been introducing and enhancing handheld computers. Today's handhelds can meet a wide range of needs, including viewing e-mail, surfing the Web and working remotely with data from an enterprise database.

To that end, Hewlett-Packard has been working to provide the maximum number of connectivity options. For example, HP's iPAQ h6315, which debuted last year, integrates GSM/ GPRS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and infrared connectivity to create a single device that can meet any mobile-communication need, says Ted Clark, senior vice president and general manager of HP's mobile computing unit.

"The ability to access and share corporate and personal information easily and safely while away from their desks--to essentially stay productive anywhere--can add up to a huge personal and business competitive advantage," he says.

At the other end of the spectrum, BlackBerry handhelds from Research in Motion (RIM) are chic and trendy. Actors refer to their BlackBerries in interviews. Politicians and hot-shot executives alike manage their schedules with them. When a hacker recently gained access to actress Paris Hilton's T-Mobile Sidekick device, celebrities suddenly found their phone numbers posted on the Internet. In one newspaper report, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush noted his preference for a BlackBerry as a management device. And in February, RIM upped the ante by offering its 7250 handheld, a model with Bluetooth connectivity, full-color screen, built-in phone, increased memory and full Web browsing.

Other computer vendors are teaming with wireless carriers to combine PDAs, phones, cameras and MP3 players in a single device that also can take advantage of new high-speed networks.

"Networks are getting faster and faster, and that is exciting from the device-maker's perspective," says Donna Dubinsky, a co-founder of Palm Inc. and now a trustee on the PalmOne board of directors. "Hopefully, we'll see sales volumes go up as these devices get cheaper and go to broader audiences."

As handhelds grow more sophisticated, corporate buyers are likely to rely increasingly on these devices to organize their businesses and improve communications with clients, colleagues and partners. Buyers also will depend on the channel to support, integrate and protect these portable devices.

On the Catwalk

wearable computers are the next step for mobile computing. Xybernaut, a Fairfax, Va.-based developer, offers a line of wearable computers that is intended for markets that include the military, law enforcement, retail, warehousing and distribution, and general corporate applications. At the recent CeBIT trade show in Germany, Xybernaut executives shared the stage with end users and solution providers to showcase their wearable computing systems.

Xybernaut has developed a range of products that also include more traditional tablet PCs. But its Mobile Assistant MA V Wearable Computer and Mobile Assistant TC are part of the burgeoning--and, the company hopes, booming--market for wearable PCs. According to market researcher Venture Development, the market for wearable PCs will generate sales of $563 million in 2006.

Other players in this space include Metrologic Instruments, Psion Teklogix, Symbol Technologies, ViA, Vocollect and Voxware, as well as better-known vendors Hitachi, HP and Panasonic.

The Road Ahead

looking ahead, mobile-computing vendors will continue to fine-tune their mobile products, while simultaneously researching and working on the next revolutions in connectivity and portability.

One next step will be to make connectivity even more widespread and effortless, HP's Clark says. "We see 3G wireless WANs as the next frontier to enable widespread growth," he says. "Converged networks--a single IP-based network for data, voice and media--is a significant trend, too." Such converged IP-based networks would enable new, integrated applications and services, Clark adds.

At Toshiba, an annual R&D investment of roughly $3 billion helps the company maintain its products at the forefront of new technologies. For example, Toshiba is now introducing the third generation of its tablet PC product, while many competitors have yet to introduce their first tablet system.

Vendors and their partners also continue to work on extending battery life, Sony's Taylor says. Eventually, he jokes, a notebook's battery will last for the length of a flight from the East to West Coast.

Also, since portable products can express a user's personality, their design and appearance can play a critical role, too.

"Sony's is an envy piece--it's not so much that the machine costs more than others, but it's not a basic PC," Taylor says. "While Sony has not been as successful at being an enterprise standard, we have done well in the executive suite."

With so many developers and solution providers involved in the vast world of mobile communications, there is no telling what devices of the future will hold. A glimpse back at the industry's past underscores how quickly technology advances--and how quickly our demands adapt to these steps.