Royal unveils low-cost Linux PDA

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By Douglas F. Gray

(IDG) -- While Sharp's Zaurus got most of the attention in the field of Linux personal digital assistants (see "Delayed Yopy PDA shipping soon," link below) at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Royal Consumer Information Products quietly unveiled at the show its Royal Lin@x PDA, which is expected to hit the streets next quarter.

The Royal Lin@x is based on the same Intel 206-MHz StrongArm processor that powers devices such as Compaq Computer's iPaq (see "New pocket PCs cater to connected travelers," link below) and Hewlett-Packard's Jornada, as well as Sharp's Zaurus. The Lin@x features a color display, 16MB of flash ROM and 32MB of RAM, Royal says in a statement.

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When Royal's Lin@x launches next quarter, priced at $299, it will feature applications including an Internet browser, address book, calendar, and schedule applications, as well as handwriting recognition, a virtual keyboard, and an MP3 player, Royal says.

The Lin@x includes a serial port, a USB port, and a CompactFlash Type II slot for peripherals such as a dial-up modem and a wireless LAN card, the company says. The Lin@x uses embedded hardware from Applied Data Systems and the Microwindows user interface from Century Embedded Technologies, Royal says.

Sharp's Zaurus (see "Sharp adds options to Zaurus handheld," link below), which is expected to launch early this year, features a color display, 16MB of flash ROM, and 64MB of RAM. The device is currently available to developers for $399, but the consumer version is expected to sell for between $500 and $650, according to Sharp.