PC has risen from a starting point of under 10 percent market share to over 50 percent in Western Europe, in the space of 4 years," noted the MDA. "The product is now synonymous with mobile computing and has revolutionised what we think of when it comes to a PDA."
Earlier this month Gartner Dataquest
reported that during the third quarter of this year, for the first time, more PDAs shipped with Microsoft's Windows CE and Pocket PC OSes than with Palm OS. Windows CE based devices captured 48.1 percent of the more than 2.8 million PDAs shipped, according to Gartner.
A quick scan of WindowsForDevices.com's Quick Reference Guide to
Windows powered handheld devices shows that 50 of the 77 devices listed run some version of the Pocket PC operating system. And, many of these Pocket PCs are merging with
smartphone functions, to become all-in-one devices. Recent models boast
megapixel cameras,
VoIP capability, and
GPS. Over a year ago, IDC
predicted the death of the "unconnected PDA."
Novel applications keep popping up such as
automotive engine diagnosis and
remote video surveilance, and Pocket PCs are used to control
robots and
houses. There's even a Pocket PC based
supercomputer.
Product of the decade? Sure, why not? Congratulations, Pocket PC -- keep up the good work!
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