Mobile Computing: Shopping at SkyMall

We evaluate the high-tech offerings in this catalog, found on most airlines.

James A. Martin

Feature: Shopping in the Sky

If humans were meant to fly, we would have been given wings, as my late travel-phobic grandmother used to say. So imagine what Grandma Sissie would have thought if she had seen me recently on a Delta flight flipping through the pages of SkyMall, picking up the seat-back phone, and placing an order with my credit card.

The SkyMall concept is beautifully simple. The catalog, found in the seat-back pockets on many planes, entices a bored, captive audience with innovative and outlandish products, some of which are aimed at mobile executives. Based on my SkyMall experiences, however, I suggest you enjoy its glossy pages but keep your feet on the ground before placing an order. Of four SkyMall-featured products I've evaluated or tried to test, only two met my expectations. So do your homework before you buy. Contact the vendor directly and ask tough questions. If you're still intrigued, go for it--SkyMall allows you to return most merchandise for a refund within 60 days (with a few exceptions, including some software).

Read on for a look at the intriguing products I've researched or tried, and the more ridiculous ones I've been amused by, in the SkyMall catalog.

Intriguing (But Sometimes Disappointing)

E-mail for mobile phones. The E-Scriptor ($140), from a company called AirLynx, is billed as a new wireless device that provides "easy, instant access" to e-mail. Just connect it to a selected Verizon Wireless or Sprint PCS phone and use the PDA-like touch screen to dial in to your POP3 e-mail account.

Curious for more details, after my trip I found the AirLynx Web site and called the listed phone numbers--but they've all been disconnected. Directory assistance had no listing, and an e-mail message sent to the company has thus far gone unanswered. The SkyMall representative I spoke with knew nothing about the company's health and said the product was still in stock. Despite my initial enthusiasm, I declined to order.

PC-to-phone synchronizing. DataPilot allows you to transfer phone numbers from Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Express, Act, or Palm contact databases to a variety of mobile phones, according to the SkyMall description. The product includes PC software and, depending upon the phone, a USB or serial cable for connectivity.

DataPilot's maker, Susteen, sent me the product to test on my Nokia 8260 phone. Unfortunately, despite several calls to the company's helpful tech support staff, all attempts to connect my phone to the DataPilot software on my notebook were unsuccessful. The culprit was either the connection cable's pins (they were slightly bent upon arrival) or my computer's COM ports. But a second cable the company sent didn't help matters; neither did my COM port adjustments.

A company spokesperson said the Nokia 8260, because of its small size and Nokia's proprietary design, was the most challenging mobile phone to design a third-party product for, such as their connection cable. I was assured that DataPilot works well with other mobile phones, though I was unable to test that claim myself. So if you use another cell phone, maybe you'll have better luck than I did. (A SkyMall spokeperson confirmed that the catalog's 60-day refund policy applies to DataPilot.)

Hands-free calls on the road. The FM Navigator phone cradle plugs into your car's cigarette lighter or power outlet. Tune in your radio, and your caller's voice is heard on the car stereo speakers. You speak into a microphone attached to the cradle. I could hear callers on the line fairly well, though I was told several times that I sounded like I was in a tunnel. Also, the cradle wobbled a bit, particularly when I traveled over uneven roads. Overall, it's a decent product if you need a hands-free phone option for the car. But for occasional users, an ear bud for your mobile phone is probably a better solution. To test SkyMall's return policy, I sent the $80 FM Navigator back and received a prompt refund.

Combo CD player/thermometer. As its name implies, the Portable CD/Radio Sound Soother ($230), from the overactive minds of Sharper Image, plays CDs, radio, and built-in sounds (such as streams, distant car traffic, and my least favorite, a heartbeat). If that weren't enough, you can also get the temperature. I've traveled with this gadget many times. Though it's a bit bulky and overengineered (setting the alarm can be confusing), the CD Soother runs on AC or batteries and produces rich, high-quality stereo.

By the way, Sharper Image offers brand-new Sound Soothers (and other products) for auction online from time to time. I've saved nearly 50 percent on other Sharper Image products this way.

Wacky Technology

A hat with a story. The Message Hat ($20) is a cotton fisherman's hat with an LCD panel in front that displays up to ten different scrolling messages, each one as long as 250 characters. That's enough space to convey important requests to the flight attendant, such as "Please wake me for meals" or "Don't forget my change."

Combo radio/surveillance device. The hidden camera in an otherwise ordinary looking alarm clock-radio is said to wirelessly transmit video signals up to 300 feet away to your TV or VCR. The idea is to keep an unobtrusive eye out for sleeping babies and cat burglars. But imagine the fun you could have furtively watching houseguests grope for the ringing alarm at six in the morning. The black-and-white version of the Wireless Guardian Eye is a mere $399; a color version is $499.

Portable lie detector. Here's the perfect accessory to have on sales calls or when interviewing prospective job candidates. The person in question holds the device while answering your pointed questions--sort of like Robert DeNiro quizzing Ben Stiller in "Meet the Parents." The device measures stress and displays its findings on an LCD. It comes in three versions: a basic model for $70; a version that detects lies in person and over the phone for $100; and a deluxe edition that includes a Mickey Mouse-like hand that, when a falsehood is detected, reaches out and slaps the liar's face. (Okay, I admit it; I made up that last one.)

Notebooks & Accessories

News: Hot Notebooks From Toshiba

Toshiba recently announced a new multimedia notebook and two desktop replacement portables. The multimedia maven's Satellite 5205-S503 features a modular bay that can accommodate an additional hard drive, battery, or optical media drive. The notebook uses Intel's 2-GHz Mobile Pentium 4-M chip, comes with NVidia's 32MB GeForce4 460 Go graphics card, gets up to three hours of battery life, and weighs 7.7 pounds.

The Satellite 1905-S303 and Satellite 1955-S803 weigh 8.3 pounds and 9.6 pounds, respectively, and use desktop Pentium 4 processors. Some Toshiba notebooks with desktop processors have come under fire (literally) for generating excess heat, but the company said that will not be a problem with these new units.

For more information on all three portables, read "Toshiba Unveils Three Notebooks."

News: Back to Bluetooth Basics

Whoops. Amidst all the hype surrounding Bluetooth, which promises to wirelessly connect devices such as modem-enabled cell phones and notebooks, someone forgot to make the technology easy to use. Hoping to rectify the situation, BVRP Software Group has announced Mobile PhoneTools ($60), which employs a wizard to help notebook users connect to and configure a mobile phone for wireless Internet access over 2.5G and 3G networks, according to the company. Now available, the software is distributed through network service carriers or licensed to enterprise customers.

News: Recycle Old Drives Into New Portable Storage

Here's something you might not have thought of: converting an internal drive into an external storage device. For about $100, Belkin's Hi-Speed USB 2.0 External Drive Enclosure Kit lets you transform nearly any internal drive, such as a hard drive or an optical drive, into an external model that plugs into a USB port. You can squeeze new life out of an old drive and save money, too--USB external drives often cost $50 to $90 more than equivalent internal models. The enclosure comes with a built-in fan and power supply. At 10 by 6.5 by 2 inches and weighing nearly two pounds before you insert a drive, though, your new external drive will be a bit more luggable than portable.

Handhelds

News: Software for Chubby Digits

What's the politically correct way to tell someone they have fat fingers? Do you call their fingers Rubenesque? Weight-challenged? Obviously it's not a problem for Avaion, the maker of FatFinger 2.0. The $15 utility allows Palm OS device users to bypass Graffiti, a stylus, and external keyboards and type on the PDA screen using their, uh, ample digits. FatFinger displays large keys on the screen; you type by touching them. The on-screen keyboards are customizable and work with any Palm OS application. Just make sure to wash your fat fingers before typing. The software can be downloaded for a free 14-day trial at Avaion.com.

News: Toshiba Recalls PDAs

As if the problems Toshiba's had with its overheating notebooks weren't enough (see the Notebooks & Accessories section), now comes word that the company has recalled some Pocket PC E740 PDAs because of a flaw that could cause data loss. The voluntary recall affects units with serial numbers between 7201461L and 92041620L. So far, no one's complained about the problem, which emerged during a routine quality check, the company said.

Tip: E-Mail Address Shortcuts

If you're using a Palm I705 for e-mail, here's a quick way to avoid looking up addresses in the Datebook or typing them into the I705's e-mail software. Tap the Home icon to go to the main screen, select Preferences, then select ShortCuts. Tap New and create a shortcut for the desired e-mail address. In the address field of a new message in your Palm OS e-mail program, use the ShortCut Graffiti stroke and your shortcut, and boom, there's the e-mail address.

Wireless

News: Music to Your Ears

Is that Madonna calling? It might be, if you subscribe to AT&T's wireless MMode data service. The service now allows customers to preview music, download artists' images, and buy CDs and new ring tones using their mobile phones. AT&T has also announced a deal with Yahoo that lets customers use Yahoo Messenger on their phones and an agreement with Sega of America to offer games via mobile phones. And yes, you can still use your AT&T wireless service to talk, too.

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