Sony Breaks Ground With New PDA
Sony's next handheld computer promises to break new ground in September, but even impressed analysts think its price tag may outweigh its benefits.
The miniature computer does it all: helps customers manage their schedules, records and plays back hours of video, takes pictures, sends and receives e-mail, and surfs the Web wirelessly. Sony has even developed its own Handheld Engine to ensure that the device does it all without taxing the battery life.
Sony is so confident Americans will want this sleek new product -- which folds into a convenient 4.2-by-3.5-inch box and has an eye-catching high-resolution flip-and-rotate screen -- that the company plans to charge $700 for it. The new PEG-UX50 Clié will appear in retail stores in September.
"This UX50 is a revolutionary product going beyond the evolutionary," said Masanobu Yoshida, president of the handheld computing division of Sony. "The UX50 is so small and compact. But we never sacrifice on the experience."
No matter how eye-grabbing and easy to use the device is, analysts doubt people will shell out $700 for it. Nonetheless, they are impressed.
"It's an amazing job at integration -- a heck of a job in engineering," said Todd Kort, an analyst with market research firm Gartner Dataquest. "This will be one of the three most notable products of the year, even if it's not one of the best-selling."
