PhoneMan
Using a Psion Series 5 with an Ericsson SH888 as a two box communicator is simple. All you need do is define your internet connection as going through a infrared, which you can do in the Modems control panel. It is important to use the latest version of Message Suite (1.52 at the time of writing), make sure that your phone account is activated for data, and active IR in the phone's menu system. The SH888 can be used on both GSM and PCN (Orange and One-2-One) networks; apparently a tri-band model, the I888, is due out next year, which will support American GSM frequencies as well.
Support for IR phones is a big boost for Psion. Omitting PC Card slots from the Series 5 was a risky move, as the add-on hip flask PC Card adaptor meant that it was far less convenient to use the Series 5 for communications that Windows CE HPCs, or even the PalmPilot. However, used with one of the growing band of IrDA supporting mobile phones, the field is rebalanced. Psion has a weaker web browser than the latest, 2.11, version of Windows CE in the Jupiter machines, but as strong as earlier versions, and has a slightly stronger email client.
A long SMS message
The SMS in-box
With the Pilot, you can use HandPhone from SmartCode Software to send SMS or edit phone books, but this is outclassed by the new PhoneMan for Psion Series 5. PhoneMan is still in beta, but will be available from S G Software. As well as exchanging phone books with mobile phones, and sending and receiving SMS messages, PhoneMan can update other phone settings, including rings and the welcome message. Long SMS messages can be split into suitable chunks, and will be recombined if received by another copy of PhoneMan at the other end. Editing phone books is made simpler by commands to convert the case of names, and to convert numbers to an internationalised format. I used PhoneMan to download a phone book from my Orange SIM, and load it into a couple of other SIMs (VodaPhone and Orange) that I could fit into my SH888. Lots of thought has clearly gone into this product, and it is highly recommended.
Words and design by:
Paul Lynch
Last updated: March 2, 1999