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Hardware

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

By matthewmiller March 18, 2008, 5:32 PM PDT

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redflycompanion8.jpg
redflycompanion8.jpg
Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

REDFLY logo

REDFLY logo

By Matt Miller

A couple challenges facing Windows Mobile smartphone users is the small displays and small keyboards that limit productivity. Celio Corporation is getting ready to launch their REDFLY Windows Mobile Smartphone Companion and we have an early beta model to evaluate for a couple of weeks.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Burgundy REDFLY Windows Mobile Smartphone Companion

Burgundy REDFLY Windows Mobile Smartphone Companion

The Burgundy color is professional looking and attractive. The finish on the device is the soft touch rubber we have seen on all the latest devices and feels great in your hand.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Bottom of the REDFLY

Bottom of the REDFLY

The bottom is fairly plain and a nice warning sticker makes sure this beta model isn’t sold 🙂

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

The back contains all the ports

The back contains all the ports

There are several attachment points on the back of the REDFLY.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

VGA out port

VGA out port

You can hook up a VGA cable and give presentations using your Windows Mobile device and the REDFLY.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Two USB 2.0 ports

Two USB 2.0 ports

One port is generally used to connect to your device and you can use the other for external drives, a mouse, or USB flash drive. The USB ports are powered so you can charge your Windows Mobile device as you use it with the Companion.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

A/C adapter port

A/C adapter port

The device comes with an A/C adapter so you can charge it. Battery life is stated as 8 hours and I’ll get a chance to test this over the next couple of weeks.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Opening up the REDFLY

Opening up the REDFLY

There is no clasp or magnet that holds the cover closed, but the strong, stiff hinges keep it closed well.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Touchpad and left/right buttons

Touchpad and left/right buttons

The touchpad has some texture to it and is colored the same as the outer casing. The left and right mouse buttons are large so they are easy to press.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Close-up of the left side

Close-up of the left side

The keyboard design is fantastic.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

There are customizable quick launch buttons

There are customizable quick launch buttons

By default these three buttons are set for the Today screen, Messaging application, and default web browser. I made sure the browser button was set to Opera Mobile since that is a much better browser than Internet Explorer Mobile.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Upper right keyboard

Upper right keyboard

You can control settings like brightness from the keyboard too.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Eight inch display

Eight inch display

The display is quite large, but it is not a touch screen and I kept touching it since I was used to using Windows Mobile this way.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Hinge

Hinge

There are two strong hinges that allow you to open the display up in a clamshell form factor.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Turning on the display with no device connected

Turning on the display with no device connected

The REDFLY logo appears on a white display. There is no OS on the device itself so nothing can be done without a Windows Mobile device.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Keyboard compared to an older, but goodie

Keyboard compared to an older, but goodie

Yes, that is my Apple Newton keyboard accessory shown below the REDFLY.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

REDFLY and Fujitsu U810 UMPC

REDFLY and Fujitsu U810 UMPC

Boy, that U810 keyboard seems so much smaller in this picture.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Fujitsu U810 on the REDFLY

Fujitsu U810 on the REDFLY

The U810 really is a small device.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

U810 keyboard and REDFLY keyboard

U810 keyboard and REDFLY keyboard

Checking out the keyboard sizes.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

REDFLY and HTC Advantage

REDFLY and HTC Advantage

The REDFLY may serve as a good companion to the Advantage, especially with the larger keyboard.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Advantage keyboard on the REDFLY

Advantage keyboard on the REDFLY

The Advantage keyboard is quite small.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

AT&T Tilt and the REDFLY

AT&T Tilt and the REDFLY

The Tilt is one of the certified models that work with the REDFLY.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Tilt and REDFLY keyboards

Tilt and REDFLY keyboards

The REDFLY makes a good companion for the Tilt.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Sample Today screen on the REDFLY

Sample Today screen on the REDFLY

Your device is mirrored on the REDFLY and the resolution is bumped up automatically.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Alt-Tab is a handy feature

Alt-Tab is a handy feature

You can quickly switch between apps using the Alt-Tab keys on the keyboard of the REDFLY.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Programs icons from a VGA Advantage

Programs icons from a VGA Advantage

This is a view with the standard Windows Mobile resolution.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Program icons with a true VGA hack

Program icons with a true VGA hack

I am running RealVGA here and as you can see a lot more appears on the display.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Now this is how spreadsheets should be used

Now this is how spreadsheets should be used

The screen real estate is valuable when working on spreadsheets and something like this is really not doable on the small Tilt display.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

PlanMaker can be rocking too

PlanMaker can be rocking too

This is a much more powerful application and with the large REDFLY display you may get a real desktop experience on your device.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Giving a presentation on the REDFLY

Giving a presentation on the REDFLY

Pack light on your next trip to give a presentation.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Look at those application shortcuts

Look at those application shortcuts

There is now plenty of room on your display for so much more.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Default Calendar month view

Default Calendar month view

Your calendar is more usable on the 8 inch display.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Agenda One is even more functional

Agenda One is even more functional

This integrated PIM application works great on the REDFLY.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Phone dialer needs a bit of work

Phone dialer needs a bit of work

The REDFLY is still in early beta so there are bound to be a few bugs still.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Bubble Breaker is broken

Bubble Breaker is broken

Another application that needs some work.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Lower res web page in Opera

Lower res web page in Opera

Not too bad of a view and much better than on a phone.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

High res utility brings you desktop browsing

High res utility brings you desktop browsing

Now this looks just like a UMPC browser, doesn’t it?

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

Google Maps is awesome

Google Maps is awesome

Look at how much you can see with Google Maps on an 8 inch display.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

PocketBible and maps appear quite useful

PocketBible and maps appear quite useful

You can definitely get by with viewing two translations side-by-side with this setup.

Image Gallery: REDFLY Mobile Smartphone Companion First Impressions

USB flash drives appear as remote storage

USB flash drives appear as remote storage

This wouldn’t work with the Advantage, probably because of the Microdrive and internal card slot (aka storage drive). It is nice to be able to use the device as a transfer mechanism though.

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