FIC Wireless

Taking it Wireless

Wireless technology, be it cell phones, PDAs, or wireless home control, was definitely a theme this year at COMDEX. It seemed that almost everyone was touting some new way to go wireless, and FIC was no exception. After receiving a briefing on their upcoming motherboard line, we were pleasantly surprised to see FIC's innovative new web tablet, the Aqua 3400, codenamed Surf.

Ready to Surf?

This one is thin too

In a nutshell, the Surf is a light, 2lb tablet that offers web access anywhere in the home. Running off Linux, Windows CE, or BeOS, the Surf offers full-featured versions of Netscape, Realplayer, and Winamp. Beyond simple web browsing, support for Macromedia Flash, Streaming Video, and MP3 playback is also available. Thanks to the Surf's crystal clear 8.4'' TFT LCD, video playback looks fantastic, and text is very easy to read.

In addition to web surfing, the Surf allows users to type emails using a virtual keyboard and the Surf's stylus. However, as you would expect, typing out an email by punching each key individually with a pen can be rather tedious. To account for this, the Surf has the option to zoom in on the virtual keyboard to the point where its keys are full size and can be typed on with your fingers, something that we have yet to see in the ultra-compact market.

Tech Specs

A 400Mhz Transmeta CPU backed by 64mb of SDRAM powers the Surf. For storage, the Surf offers a 16/32mb Compact Flash port. Additionally, the tablet also features a USB port which offers various upgrade options, including the possibility for a full-size keyboard. On average, the Surf should get four hours of battery life.

The Surf connects to the Internet via a BlueTooth (802.11b) transmitter hooked into a home Internet connection. On the road, the Surf can connect via BlueTooth to a cell phone for Internet access. The Surf should natively support both BlueTooth and 802.11b, although 802.11b will be primarily used in the home simply because of BlueTooth's distance limitation of 10 meters.

FIC is licensing out the Surf design to OEMs, so we won't see a FIC Surf product per se, although it is very likely that initial OEM units will mirror the unit we saw at COMDEX. OEMs are expected to ship products based upon the Surf in a December to January timeframe for around $700-800.

Keyboard

Bigger keys!

Real World Use

Aside from just being a neat new gadget, the Surf actually has several practical uses. For one, it would work very well in the medical sector, allowing doctors to take a dynamic medical chart around, simply swapping in a memory card for each patient. Furthermore, the Surf has promise in the educational market, as an in-expensive way to provide for a computer-run classroom.

Thanks to built-in expansion options, FIC is looking to expand the Surf's capabilities in the near future. While they were rather quiet on their plans, they did mention the possibility to adding a DVD drive to the bottom of the unit, which would create a perfect setup for watching movies on an airplane.

Web TV Part Two

FIC has designed its Genesis IA line for those looking for Internet access in the home but aren't willing to cough up the price of a full PC or Surf unit. Coming in at $200, the Genesis offers an Internet in-a-box experience via an onboard Ethernet port, or an optional modem. Two versions are available: the Tivoli, which hooks up to any TV, and the Venus, which hooks up to an LCD or CRT.

Tivoli	That's what the sign says
266Mhz of browsing power	BeOS

Since they are low-end units, the Tivoli and Venus won't offer a complete audio-visual experience. Internet surfing and MP3 playback will work just fine, but streaming video probably won't be possible due to the low CPU power in the unit. Both units will ship with a wireless keyboard, and reliability should be high thanks to their use of Compact Flash Memory (no moving parts).

Venus

The Venus unit