May 1st, 2008
Celio REDFLY Mobile Companion now available for pre-order
I’ve posted a couple of times on the REDFLY Mobile Companion device (here and here) and was very impressed with the build quality, ease-of-use, and functionality of the device during my evaluation period. I sent the device back a couple weeks after I received it to for evaluation and have been considering a purchase upon availability.
I recently found out that you can now pre-order the REDFLY that should start shipping very soon, if not already. These initial units are labeled REDFLY evaluation/demo unit pre-orders and by placing an order you agree to be contacted by Celio to qualify the sales opportunity. This sounds like they may have a limited initial availability and want to make sure you have a compatible Windows Mobile device to actually use the Mobile Companion. As initially stated at CES, the REDFLY Mobile Companion will be available for US$499. There are 5 and 10 unit packs, but the pricing remains the same.
I also just found out that Celio announced they are updating the driver for Windows Mobile 6.1 and will be supporting several more Windows Mobile devices.
I have a Fujitsu U810 UMPC that I was thinking about selling to buy the REDFLY unit, but I really do like the long battery life, Tablet PC functionality, and ultra mobile aspect (weighs just 1.5 pounds) of the Fujitsu U810. The small keyboard limits my writing a bit and the REDFLY solves that issue with its wonderful keyboard that I really enjoyed using (same size as the Asus EeePC). The REDFLY weighs 2 pounds and has a battery life of about 8 hours. I always have a mobile phone with me so the REDFLY would always have a companion in my bag. If I knew for sure that Celio Corporation would eventually release drivers for S60 or the iPhone then I would have no hesitancy at all in buying the REDFLY.
After laying it all out, I decided to get rid of a couple devices that aren’t seeing much use (BlackBerry Pearl and Dell Axim X51v to start with) to build up my mobile device fund and just ordered a REDFLY for myself. I look forward to using the release version and latest driver software with the T-Mobile Shadow and HTC Advantage (both devices I tested with the earlier beta) and you never know, my Fujitsu U810 may be up on ebay soon afterwards too.
Matthew Miller is an avid mobile device enthusiast who works during the day as a professional naval architect in Seattle. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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