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Pocket PC Forum / End Users / Pocket PC / July 2008ANN: REDFLY Mobile Companion Review
One of the challenges with using Windows Mobile devices, as with most mobile devices, is the size of the screen. It is great having Office Mobile on the latest and greatest device but doing a significant edit of a document on a 3.5" QVGA screen is, well... fun? Granted, on bigger devices that have VGA screens, the HTC Advantage comes to mind, it is a bit easier but you still end up doing a lot of side-to-side scrolling. Couple this with either a soft keyboard on the device or a small thumboard to type with and once again, doing big edits on a document is, well... fun? How then do you get around this quandry? With a colorful insect of course! The Celio REDFLY is designed to help resolve this difficulty for Windows Mobile users by allowing them to connect their device via a USB cable or Bluetooth to the REDFLY and gain an 8", 800x480 VGA display and full QWERTY keyboard. The REDFLY has no memory, storage or operating system itself. It is literally an extension of your device, utilizing the memory, storage and operating system of it. Even better, the REDFLY has a VGA output so you can display on an external monitor or projector straight from the device, something only a select few Windows Mobile devices can do natively. All of this in a package that is less than 2lbs. and 9" wide and under $500? If you a a true power user of your Windows Mobile device, you should seriously consider a REDFLY. It could save your eyes and thumbs! Read the full review at http://www.clintonfitch.com/reviews/redfly/default.asp  SignatureClinton Fitch, MVP-Mobile Devices Clinton Fitch (Dot) Com! & HPC:Factor http://www.clintonfitch.com http://www.hpcfactor.com > One of the challenges with using Windows Mobile devices, as with most > mobile devices, is the size of the screen. It is great having Office [quoted text clipped - 24 lines] > Read the full review at > http://www.clintonfitch.com/reviews/redfly/default.asp Sorry- I just don't see the point of it- for _less_ money, I can tote around a similar size/weight ASUS EEE PC that has a large display and keyboard like the Redfly, but also has a full PC OS, memory, storage, and doesn't require my WinMo device to be it's "brains"- just it's modem- if WiFi isn't around. The Redfly is a cute concept that would work if it was less money than a micro-laptop, not more. I suspect it will sell well only when some close- out discounter like Geeks.com or TigerDirect finally dumps them at $199. This is more a "for each his need..." During my travel days (and before checked bag charges ;-) I partitioned luggage into "carry" and "luggage" so, this can be looked at as a windows mobile "docking station" with additional attributes such as allowing a road warrior to hook up to a vga projector and giving a presentation he/she was able to work with on the plane. While the price is high, it's relative to what the user reaps from using it... for example the full keyboard and mouse when you have a place to sit down for a few hours work would have high repeating value and you can factor in the cost of a portable ppc keyboard with that. This is obviously for those who's ppc's are their primary computing device, and, it significantly narrows the gap between the two when a pc is not available nor needed. Beverly Howard [MS MVP-Mobile Devices] Agree Bev. > This is more a "for each his need..." > [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > > Beverly Howard [MS MVP-Mobile Devices] Todd, As I said in the review, it isn't for everyone. The aim of the REDFLY is clearly at the business segment and business traveler. If you are a power user of your WinMo device, this could be a thumb and eye saver for sure. Having used both the Advantage and the REDFLY, I can see the benefits of both. It really depends on your needs. Regards, SignatureClinton Fitch, MVP-Mobile Devices Clinton Fitch (Dot) Com! & HPC:Factor http://www.clintonfitch.com http://www.hpcfactor.com >> One of the challenges with using Windows Mobile devices, as with most >> mobile devices, is the size of the screen. It is great having Office [quoted text clipped - 35 lines] > micro-laptop, not more. I suspect it will sell well only when some close- > out discounter like Geeks.com or TigerDirect finally dumps them at $199. > Todd, > > As I said in the review, it isn't for everyone. The aim of the REDFLY is > clearly at the business segment and business traveler. If you are a power > user of your WinMo device, this could be a thumb and eye saver for sure. I do consider myself a ower user", but still don't see the advantage of a PPC extention with the roughly the same form factor and higher price as an XP mini-laptop. I love WinMo as much as the next guy, but if someone magically created a way to cram XP or Vista onto my Kaiser, I'd use it instead! > Having used both the Advantage and the REDFLY, I can see the benefits of > both. It really depends on your needs. Fair enough! I'll conceed that point to you. ;-) >> Todd, >> [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > > Fair enough! I'll conceed that point to you. ;-) Todd, I was able to get a very short demonstration of the REDFLY Clinton was testing and I found it to have some potential benefits over my Sony TX850 which is about the same size and weight and runs XP Pro. Thats not to say the REDFLY is "equal" to the laptop but in some circumstances a good alternative. The Sony is slow to boot up, so it's not available to use as quickly as the "instant on" REDFLY. My phone synchronizes OTA with my Exchange Server, so REDFLY ( is always up to date with contacts, email, and calendar as well as with the notes, files and programs I keep on my phone. It's not another device to keep synchronized. To use my phone as a modem for the Sony I would have to step up to a conserably higher "tethering" data plan. It looks to me like the REDFLY wouldn't require that since it's using the same resources as the phone without the REDFLY. Using a USB flash drive I can add MUCH more storage than I could with the phone alone. I don't pretend to be on the same level as you and Clinton, but as an enthusiastic WM user, I can see some reasons to use the REDFLY rather than my laptop on many occasions. I haven't made the purchase yet, but I haven't ruled it out. I understand your skepticism, but if you get a chance to test-drive a REDFLY take the opportunity. It's a pretty interesting device (depending on your needs). Bob |
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