Most Palm OS devices don’t integrate Wi-Fi. And there are very few solutions
to add this capability to these devices. One such solution is the Enfora WP802b
portfolio for palmOne handhelds, which has the benefits of its own battery, but
is bulky. A more attractive solution would be a Wi-Fi-enabled SDIO card that
would fit into the Secure Digital slots found in most Palm PDAs.
The problem is, while there are Wi-Fi SD cards available, there are no
drivers to support them on the Palm platform, making them only useful to Pocket
PC users. SanDisk has promised such a driver for a while now, but nothing has
come to pass.
Well it looks like a company called C-Guys in
Japan, which currently offers a Wi-Fi SD card for Pocket PCs, will release a
driver to allow the SD Card to be used on Palm OS devices sometime in May.
According to Palm
Infocenter, drivers are slated to be released for Palm OS 4 and Palm OS
Garnet, formally known as Palm OS 5.
The low power Wi-Fi SD card measures 2.17 x 0.9 x 0.8 in (5.5 x 2.4 x 0.21
cm) and weighs about 0.35 oz (10 g). It is supposed to run at 260 mAh when
active, 10mAH when saving power, and a mere 1.5mAH when running at Ultra Low
Power.
There’s now word on pricing or what markets the C-Guys Wi-Fi SD card for the
Palm OS will be distributed.
Reprinted from Palm Boulevard.
