Symbol's invincible MC70 Pocket PC phone

by Chris Ziegler, posted Aug 10th 2006 at 3:51PM

She may not be pretty or pocketable (and "invincible" might be going a bit far), but unlike your typical consumer-grade Windows Mobile device, Symbol's beefy MC70 is probably going to handle the occasional drop, dunk, toss, or burn. The quad-band GSM / EDGE handheld comes equipped with your choice of Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC Premium or Phone Edition, 802.11a / b / g plus "comprehensive VoIP support," Class II Bluetooth 1.2, and -- being that this is a Symbol device and all -- the obligatory barcode scanner, all sitting atop a crazy fast 624MHz PXA270. Of course, we're suspecting everything-proof smartphoning doesn't come cheap, but for the accident prone among us, it does have a certain strange appeal.

[Thanks, Cristian P.]

Filed under: Handsets, Others, Windows Mobile, GSM, GPRS, EDGE

Tags: mc70, pocket pc, PocketPc, rugged, ruggedized, scanner, symbol, windows mobile, windows mobile 5, WindowsMobile, WindowsMobile5, wm5

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

ocelot67 @ Aug 10th 2006 5:37PM

Too bad there's no lil' joystick. With that processor speed, MAME would run quite nicely.

Neutral

Baron @ Aug 11th 2006 9:31AM

Don't know about the cost of this devices but some of the Symbol devices we've gotten in the past run will into the 2~3k range.

Neutral

nutzareus @ Aug 11th 2006 7:15PM

I have one, and yes it costs $2,000+ but well worth it when used in harsh environments where dust, dirt, and drops on concrete are common.

Neutral

Ron @ Aug 14th 2006 9:39AM

Or for $399 (sans the cost of the handset) you could deploy MobileCharge on your PDA of choice (RIM BlackBerry, Palm TREO or Windows Mobile Pocket PC). The $1,600 out-of-pocket savings could go a long way to help customize the solution to whatever backend system you desire...

Neutral

HTS @ Aug 14th 2006 3:53PM

We use these units in our company and they're great! We're a beer distributor and the ruggedness and barcode scanner in combination with the EDGE data transfer are the main selling points for this unit. MobileCharge is great but in our business we use the barcode scanner to scan product barcodes for sales and delivery not for charging credit cards. Plus unlike the PALM SPT1800 that are the current PALM equivelent, these units have the abilty to be used as a phone, easy integration into an Exchange network setup, and have the option of a number keypad that the salesmen love. Sometimes it's the simple things :) So, yes, completely worth the 1,200 dollars we spent on each unit.

Highly Ranked

Ron @ Sep 5th 2006 2:32PM

Just to clarify, MobileCharge is not an action it is software. Through MobileCharge, you can also scan a barcode, capture a signature, fill out an electronic form, get directions, etc... I'm sure the ruggedness is great (worth $1,200?) for your style of work. But, for $399 you get everything above, plus: email, voice and internet capability because you are able to use a BlackBerry, Palm treo or Windows Mobile Pocket PC.

Neutral

HTS @ Oct 23rd 2006 3:59PM

Not flaming just clarifying... MobileCharge + PDA = more than $399. $399 for the software plus say a Pocket PC like the HP Ipaq with close to equivelent specs,no number keypad though :( ends up running up to $700 or more.

So now ruggedness is only costing you $500 - and that's not bad when you're in an industry that is as dirty as ours.

Neutral

Melissa @ Jan 22nd 2007 11:56AM

i need a lot of your help with all kinds of shit.... i need help with money and love

Neutral

Rocky @ May 8th 2008 2:28AM

I am looking for a Serial/Bluetooth Keyboard attachment for our MC70s.

We already have Vehicle Cradles for them to support Serial input.

I have tried standard Bluetooth Keyboards but they don’t support the Bluetooth stack on the MC70(StoneStreet).

Any help would be much appreciated.

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