The Samsung BlackJack is simply the best Windows Mobile Smartphone I have ever used.

The Backjack sold by Cingular Wireless now the new at&t brings UMTS/HSDPA to the table...basically DSL/Broadband speeds to you and me. What I have found is that I really don’t use my laptop as much since the BackJack has live push mail, large display, and a QWERTY keyboard. I tossed in a 2 Gig MicroSD Card and sync up my music and TV shows from my Media Center so I can take them with me. Even the 2MP camera gets some use and with all this heavy lifting the BlackJack maintains its sleek super model-esque profile.

What really makes the unit shine is the thoughtful list of applications Samsung and Cingular Wireless now the new at&t included with the BackJack. They didn’t opt for the regular Microsoft Mobile Smartphone app load, they went much further and included a slew of productive tools that really rounds out the phone with just about everything you could ever need.

--Bill Landon

In today’s work environment it has become increasingly necessary to bring work typically done at the office out into the field. More and more technology has been brought to the fields of construction, surveying, manufacturing, telecom, etc. This brings an interesting issue to light; how do you work in an unfriendly and potentially harsh environment while not burning through laptops and PDA’s weekly? There are a couple of industrial grade ruggedized laptops available, however they approach close to $4000 fully equipped and may simply be overkill and too bulky to be practical.

Enter the ruggedized PDA. They are small, lightweight and efficient compared their laptop cousins, not to mention they have a longer battery life and are cute as a bug’s ear. We have looked at a rugged PDA in the past from TDS (Tripod Data Systems) Recon 400. That device proved to be a formidable challenger to the elements and stood up well to the abuse we threw at it. TDS has brought out their follow up to the Recon 400 in the form of the new Recon X-Series.

Read our full review of the TDS Recon X-Series Rugged PDA

The notion is very attractive:  You’ve got a PDA.  Wouldn’t it be great to have a way to use it as a GPS in your car?  There are a number of devices out there that clip on, transmit by Bluetooth, plug in by USB or card slot - surely something works. 

If you could find something that could hold your PDA, charge it up and add GPS functionality as well, wouldn’t that be just cool?

I thought it would, and so when I got an opportunity to try out an Arkon Powered GPS Docking cradle and their MobiNavigator software for my Axim V50x, I jumped at the chance. 

Read our full review of the Arkon Powered GPS Docking Cradle and MobiNavigator Software

There has been plethora of PMP (portable media players) flooding the market since CES last January. Most are a one trick pony that plays media, period. Well that’s cool since probably why you bought the device for to begin with right? What if your shiny new PMP could do a few extra tricks? That’s what dream’eo asked when they designed their flagship offering the dream’eo Solo.

The Solo is a typical looking PMP device with a 3.5” 320x240 screen, video out, headphone jack, built in microphone, hard drive, and a media slot. So the engineers at dream’eo asked when and where do your use a PMP? The answer came back as on the road or going from place to place. Then the light came on...how about adding a GPS to the design so when people are traveling about they can find their way easier. Brilliant!

To make this a reality the Solo team added a docking port for expansion that allows you to plug in an external GPS puck. Neat add-on for a PMP device. It makes sense too, if I am going on a trip I will want to listen to music or watch a show, but I also might want to get directions along the way or find interesting points of interest.

Read our full review of the dream’eo SOLO PMP w/GPS

Retro-gaming continues to be very popular and the simple play style of many older games makes them a good fit for mobile phones.  Ba-Boom! is based on the classic ?columns? style games made popular by Sega and others.  The game starts with a basic set of colored stones at the bottom of the playfield.  Columns of colored stones fall from the top of the screen and pile up on the bottom.  The player?s goal is to keep the stones from reaching the top of the screen.  By grouping the same colored stones in straight line sets of four or more, the sets will disappear.

Sometimes you want a game that you can finish while waiting in line to get that cup of coffee.  Simple to play and easy to learn.  Drive-Thru Poker is just that type of game.  Based on video poker rules and game play, Drive-Thru Poker is easy to play.  However, it is designed as a quick game to finish and not for people who want a Las Vegas video poker experience.

We see a lot of Bluetooth headsets come our way for review here at PDAToday. Most are not very sexy and with the proliferation of these types of headsets recently they can tend to be a ho-hum accessory that gets ignored by the larger gadget websites who focus on trendy MP3 players and the like. We gladly pick up the slack to cover even daily use consumer electronics because when you spend that hard earned money it’s nice to know what’s of value and what’s not; besides who likes to sit in the return line at (insert favorite shopping place) all day.

In this review we will look at the Bluetake BT400 G5, their new flagship offering Bluetooth headset. Bluetake has managed to package a headset that borders on exciting and creative in the world of boring Bluetooth headsets. The BT400 G5 Bluetooth headset is stylish and is finished in a very nice tactile rubber coating surrounded with a snazzy plastic shell. They have opted to go with a marine theme to this line of products...mmm fish. The front is adorned by rubber ridges that disguise the two front buttons to create a scaled look. Weighing in at a scant minnow like 20 grams its light on the ear and features a moldable turntable ear hook. Bluetake uses a hard molded ear bud that rests in your ear canal. If you have abnormally small or large ear canals this may pose a potential problem. I found the unit to fit comfortably and to be easily adjustable. Volume was never a problem.

Read our full review of the Bluetake BT500 G5 Bluetooth Headset...

Bluetooth headset are great for giving a wireless, hands-free connection to your mobile phone, but when I am in the car or office I want a speakerphone.  I want the ability to talk without something in my ear.  I want to talk comfortably without any physical obstruction to my work or driving.  A few mobile phones offer a speakerphone feature, but they almost always have poor performance, weak speaker volume, and poor microphones.  Jabra’s latest SP500 Bluetooth Speakerphone brings true hands-free functionality to your car, office, or home.

The SP500 is the latest update of the original SP100 product.  The SP500 is a 6 ounce, 4.9” x 2.9” x 1.3”, rechargeable Bluetooth speakerphone with a pivoting microphone that gives excellent audio quality and voice pickup.  Most people that I have talked to with the SP500 said that they could hear me clearly.  A couple of people complained about not hearing me clearly or hearing static.  Moving the microphone seemed to fix the problem.  The SP500 now features a noise canceling microphone, which was not available in the original model.  The volume levels from the 2 Watt, 96 db speaker are good, but I wish it had more amplification since I drive a noisy sports car.  The volume levels should be fine for most cars and environments.  The microphone pivots on a soft, flexible arm for optimum voice pickup.

Read our full review of the Jabra SP500 Bluetooth Speakerphone

When Bluetooth (short range, radio frequency communication standard for wireless connectivity) first became available, one of the first devices to take advantage of this new protocol was the cellular phone.  The protocol was perfect for short range use such as synchronizing the phone to your computer, using the phone as a modem, or wireless, hands-free headsets.  I have always been a fan of hands-free headsets.  You could talk on the phone while keeping both hands on the car steering wheel and the earpiece made it easier to hear the person you were talking with.  Not to mention reducing the radiation dangers from holding the phone to your head.

However, I hated the design of the older wired headsets.  I would have to wrap it up after using it, unwrap it while a call is waiting, and it would get tangled up with the keys in my pocket.  When Jabra released their EarGel products, I immediately bought one.  The comfortable EarGels made the headset easier to use for long periods of time, but there was still the issue of keeping it untangled in my pocket.  When they released the EarBoom Winder, I bought it and it became my standard headset.  It was small, compact and the cord auto-winds when I am not using it.  But it still had a cord.

Bluetooth headsets promised to be the ultimate answer to the hassle of using a wired headset with a cellular phone.  But would it be everything that we could hope for?  One of the first companies to produce a Bluetooth headset was Jabra.  By combining a sleek headset design with their comfortable EarGel technology, Jabra introduced the FreeSpeak Bluetooth headset.  Now Jabra has updated the former “FreeSpeak” product line with the new BT500, the latest model in their original line of Bluetooth headsets.

Read our full review of the Jabra BT500 Bluetooth Headset...

With the wide array of mobile device that can play MP3 music and / or video, the one thing that almost every one of them lacks is good sound output. From MP3 / MP4 players to PDAs and mobile phones, most devices have a tiny mono speaker at best. Even many notebook computers have a very basic pair of small speakers that are incapable of producing quality, high-fidelity sound. All of these devices are design to use a pair of stereo headphones for listening to music or watching videos, but what if you want to enjoy quality sound without being tied to a set of headphones?

The Boomtube H2O1 from Think Outside, creators of the Stowaway Keyboard, is a portable speaker system designed to be easily stored and transported, but still able to deliver a quality, audio experience. Whether in your home, office, hotel room, boat, or any location, you can have great sound from your mobile device.

Read our full review of the Think Outside Boomtube H2O1 Portable Speakers with bass tube

I love using PDA’s and Smartphones however they just don’t offer all the convenience of a PC like large file storage, native Windows XP apps, etc. Wouldn’t it be nice to have access to all that while mobile?

For a while now I have been using a program on my home PC’s that allows me to remotely access and control any of my PC’s as well as transfers files to wherever I am at. I am referring to a neat app from 3am Labs called LogMeIn.

LogMeIn allows me to access and control a PC via a web browser from anywhere I have internet access using a Windows PC or a Pocket PC. When I log into my account from a Windows Pocket PC the service detects my device and asks me to download their control applet. So then what?

Read: Labs LogMeIn Remote Control Software for Windows Mobile Full Review

Cannons is yet another incarnation of the classic artillery duel game concept.  The game play remains simple.  You take turns with your opponent firing single shots at each others tanks.  Control is limited to ‘Angle’ and ‘Power’.  Terrain varies from round to round which may favor one tank position over the other.  Wind speed may vary from shot to shot increasing the difficulty aiming.  Damage is inflicted based on how close a shot lands near a tank.  Careful, the explosion doesn’t care which tank is near so you can blow yourself up.  Since a direct hit only appears to do about 45% of the damage it takes to finish off a tank, it will take at least three hits to end each round.

In single player mode, the game ends as soon as the player looses a single round of the duel.  While the player is given first shot every round, the variable terrain and wind speed almost always give the player a very difficult starting position to overcome at least every few rounds.  This means that most games are fairly short.  Unless you are very good, the random terrain is going to determine your score more than you are.

Read the full review of Cannons for Windows Mobile Smartphone by PDAMill

A large variety of Bluetooth headsets are now available for almost any mobile phone.  But as features become more advanced and “style” creates large, obtrusive models, it is nice to find a Bluetooth headset that is lightweight, easy to use, and comfortable.

The VIM is very lightweight and easy to wear.  The reversible ear hook makes it adaptable to left or right ears.  A small, rubber tip protrudes a little into the ear to project the sound and is comfortable for most users.  The sound quality is good, but would have been better with more amplification.  Good for most situations, I found the maximum volume to be a little low in noisy environments.

The VIM features:

Full review: Seecode VIM Bluetooth Headset Review

A number of portable, Bluetooth speakerphones are now on the market.  Offering hands-free convenience, ease of use, and portability, these products are a great accessory for the mobile phone user.  Especially a mobile phone user in the car.  With all the new laws concerning use of mobile phones while driving, many companies are bringing new products to the market to meet the demands of these new laws.  While using an earphone does help, a wired earphone can still be distracting and a Bluetooth earphone can be uncomfortable on a long trip.  Some law enforcement officers still discourage the use of any earphone or headphone while driving.  By using Bluetooth, the Speakerphone can be wirelessly connected to the mobile phone and allow the driver to keep both hands on the wheel and eyes focused on the road.

The VISOR Bluetooth Speakerphone is the latest product from the Korea-based Seecode Company.  With its rechargeable battery, compact size, LCD display, built-in dialing, and excellent speaker and microphone performance, it is a great accessory for your mobile phone, both in and out of the car.

Read the full review of the Seecode Visor Bluetooth Speakerphone with Dialer

While Pocket PC’s have the stylus and touch screen, wouldn’t it be great to have the functionality of a mouse, especially if you are using a keyboard for text entry?  Now Think Outside, the creators of the original foldable keyboard for Palm, has released the first mouse for both PDAs and computers.  The Stowaway Travel Mouse is an easy to use Bluetooth mouse compatible with any Bluetooth capable Pocket PC or computer.

The Travel Mouse is easy to use.  With a Power Switch and Bluetooth Pairing button on the bottom, the Travel Mouse has two mouse buttons and a scroll wheel / button.  Once paired with a compatible Bluetooth PDA or computer, it functions like any normal optical mouse.  It is small, but very ergonomic.  Comfortable to use for most people, the Travel Mouse may be a little too small for users with large hands.

Read the full Think Outside Bluetooth Mouse Review