Top Communications, Information Manager, and Text Reference Software

From the Judges of the <EM>Pocket PC</EM> magazine Best Software Awards 2003

Table of ContentsJuly 2004

Our expert judges for the Pocket PC magazine Best Software Awards 2003 had plenty to say about the products they judged. In this issue we are publishing their comments about the communications, information manager, and text reference programs they looked at (winners, finalists, and nominees). The purpose of publishing these experts’ comments is to give insights about a variety of products, not necessarily to show how the judges voted. The winners and finalists of the 2003 Best Software Awards can be found on our Web site (http://www.PocketPCmag.com/awards/main.asp). For the sake of brevity, we’ve included only one judge’s comment per product and edited each down to its essence.

Communications

Phone and Fax

Saar Avigour

(http://www.pocket.co.il)

mPhone (http://www.mobem.com) is easy to install, learn, and use, and works on both Pocket PC 2002 and Windows Mobile 2003 devices. mPhone is easy on resources, has an uncomplicated GUI, and includes a comprehensive database of cell phones to simplify the process of allowing auto pairing with a Bluetooth phone. mPhone offers out-of-the-box Unicode support, a quality not found on some competing products. It is one of my must-have applications that I install on each new Pocket PC I get.

mPhone provides a simple phone interface for Pocket PCs linked to Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones.

IP Dashboard Network Monitor (http://www.hudsonmobile.com) is the most robust and detailed network connection and traffic monitor there is for Windows Mobile 2003. IP Dashboard does too many chores to count: metering traffic, showing DHCP, DNS, WINS and IP, metering the time on-line and the data rate, and more. I wish that it placed an icon in the title bar, visible in all applications, that indicated your connection status. Nothing’s perfect, but IP Dashboard comes close.

KSE TrueFax (http://www.ksesoftware.com)

Combined with a cell phone that has an on-board modem and IR or BT communication, TrueFax transforms the Pocket PC into a pocket-sized fax machine, always available, regardless of location or time.

Helio Diamant (http://www.pocketpcfreak.com)

Pocket Phone Tools 4 Pro (http://www.bvrp.com) has good fax capabilities. The program is stable, clean, has a good user interface, and can be installed on a storage card. The combination of managing fax, SMS, and SIM in the same program makes of it a very strong option to whoever wants a all-in-one solution.

PhoneTools lets make phone calls and send fax and SMS messages from a Pocket PC connected to a mobile phone.

Arne Hess (http://www.ppcw.net)

Spb GPRS Monitor (http://www.softspb.com) is one of the most essential GPRS-related Pocket PC products for me because it helps me track GPRS access and keep costs down. Already approved for Windows Mobile 2003, this one is a real must-have for every GPRS user.