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Wednesday January 17, 2007
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One thing I didn't get to write about at CES (too much iPhonage) was this interesting, oddball device: the Edge, a little portable Internet access gadget. Yes, it looks like a laptop, but all it does - all it does! - is show Web pages and let you navigate through them using a little virtual mouse. It doesn't do voice calling or let you install other applications, though voice-over-IP and MP3 streaming capabilities will come later this year. The full QWERTY keyboard and wide screen give you as "desktop-like" an experience as possible.
The Edge connects to the Internet through a tri-band, GPRS cellular modem (yes, the Edge lacks EDGE technology); you drop an existing T-Mobile or Cingular SIM card in there when you're not using your primary phone. More after the jump.
The Edge is based on the DataWind PocketSurfer platform, but where the PocketSurfer needed to pair with a cell phone to connect to the Net, the Edge can do it all by its lonesome. It's really thin, at only .6 inches thick, so it slips into a bag easily. And if it works like the PocketSurfer, you won't know you're on GPRS: server-side compression technology makes pages load really quickly. "The Edge is a stand-alone unit intended for people who need the interent with the delivery speed of DSL," a spokesman said. DSL over GPRS? Aside from the acronym overload, that would be amazing: giving you the effect of a 700-plus-kilobit connection over a 25-kilobit connection. I'll have to see it in person.
Still, I'm having trouble figuring out who will carry this 6.1-ounce device, given its expensive service plans - $49.99/month and $250 for the device with a one-year contract, $44.99/month and $199 with a two-year contract, and $39.99/month and $159 with a three-year commitment. EdgeTech tells me they've sold 5,000 already, so apparently there's a draw. What do you think?
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