Motorola LI4278

I’ve traditionally pegged Motorola (really Symbol) as the company that makes great laser scanners. Their LS2208 has been selling a ton since the beginning of time, and it’s a great choice for a lot of retailers. However, with their creation of the Blockbuster 2D imager, and now their linear imager, they’re distancing themselves from the pack as a premier data capture manufacturer. Their first entry into the linear imager market, the Motorola LI4278, has a list of specs that make it a fantastic choice for cordless scanning.

The LI4278 looks very much like their LS4278, and is a cordless 1D barcode scanner. I do believe it will be supplanting the LS4278 eventually, so the transition should look pretty seamless. And it’s compatible with the LS4278 cradles, so if you have an old LS4278 and you want to upgrade, you just need the scanner. That is great forward thinking on Motorola’s part. There are plenty of LS4278′s in the wild, and if the LI4278′s spec sheet is any indication, upgrading is a no-brainer.

In terms of scanning, the LI4278 is a fantastic device. For standard UPC barcodes, you can get a read from an inch to 31 inches out. Most linear imagers out there can get reads from 18 inches back, some of the higher end ones make it to about 25-30 inches, so a retail scanner getting reads from that distance is going to be a boon to many businesses. Especially places like Costco, where maybe you can’t reach the barcode way up on the second or third shelf. High volume scanning should be no sweat for the LI4278. A maximum scan speed of 547 scans per second hangs in with even some presentation scanners, and the barcode scanner’s motion tolerance of 25″ per sec (1.4 mph) is pretty solid for a linear imager.

Bluetooth powers the wireless radio on the LI4278, Bluetooth v2.1 Class 2 to be exact. Most manufacturers run with this radio, as it can send data pretty quickly, and data transmissions are encrypted. Why you don’t want prying eyes to know you just scanned a case of Mountain Dew is a little beyond me, but I guess it’s important when you’re scanning like drivers license or customer data. With this radio, you get 330 feet of effective range, way beyond most cordless scanners and their paltry 33 feet of radio range. The Bluetooth radio also allows you to connect the LI4278 to a mobile computer or laptop, maybe even your iPhone or Motorola ET1 tablet. It runs in HID mode, so scanned data will be sent as keyboard input, making it really easy to integrate into a lot of mobility applications.

The LI4278′s battery provides more than a shift’s worth of scanning, eliminating nagging fears that the scanner’s just going to stop partway through a day. The replaceable battery with “green sustainability” can run for 72 hours on a full charge, or up to 57,000 scans. I can see why they’d put an either or. At the max scan rate, you can hit 57,000 scans in a little under two minutes. Or if you stayed at that scan rate for 72 hours, you’d read 141.7 million barcodes.

Motorola built the LI4278 for retail and maybe light industrial applications, and the durability matches up with those needs pretty well. The scanner sports an IP54 seal, though it’s advertised as a “gasket seal to protect from dust and water sprays.” It’s also built to withstand 100 consecutive 5-foot drops to concrete, so even a really clumsy person should be okay to use it.

I’m trying to get one in house to really put it through its paces, but so far the LI4278 is poised to be a fantastic scanner and a great release to start 2012. The 330-foot range and advanced scanning capabilities ensure that it’ll exceed most business’s needs for quite some time. And personally I’d rather have a product that does a lot more than I need, rather than a lot less.

Motorola MC2100

The MC2100 is Motorola’s recently announced mobile computer, looking to place itself between the MC1000 and MC3000, and I think it’s a great choice for retailers needing powerful inventory management at an affordable price. The low end mobile computer market has a lot of options, but many run a proprietary OS or cut out key features & functionality in an effort to make the price point more appealing. Thankfully, the MC2100 fits well into this price range without cutting out needed functionality.

The MC2100 runs Microsoft Embedded CE 6.0, which I guess is the next step in Windows CE. There’s been a pretty solid naming shakeup since Windows Mobile split into Windows Embedded for handhelds and Windows Phone, but it seems like everything is settled by now. Anyway, Microsoft Embedded CE 6.0 gives you support for legacy Windows Mobile/Windows CE software packages.

Windows CE is powered by a 624 MHz Marvell PXA320 processor with 128 MB of RAM and 256 MB of Flash. While it’s not the biggest and fastest mobile computer on the market, the MC2100 is going to make short work of database management for most businesses. For additional storage, a microSD slot supports up to 32 GB cards, for big databases, preformatted files, or 10,000 copies of Rebecca Black’s “Friday” in mp3 form. If you’re into that sort of thing.

For barcode scanning, the MC2100 gives you your choice of 1D laser scanner, linear imager, and 2D imager. The linear imager is a new addition from Motorola, and is pretty beefy. From what I’ve heard, you can get an effective scan range of 30″ on regular UPC barcodes with the linear imager. It should definitely cut down on having to haul products off shelves during inventory audits. The laser scanner and 2D imager are the same fantastic scanners Motorola’s been building since the dawn of time, so no matter which model you pick, you’ll have no trouble scanning barcodes.

Motorola really designed the MC2100 for retail inventory management, asset tracking, and receiving, not necessarily for heavy industrial environments. But for the 95% of us who don’t work in torrential downpours, sandstorms, or the arctic tundra, the MC2100 is still a tough product. The body is sealed to IP54 standards, meaning windblown dust & splashes of water won’t get in and harm sensitive electronics. It can also survive drops of about 4-feet to concrete, so it should be fine if it accidentally is knocked off a table or out of a pocket, but I definitely wouldn’t want to throw it to a coworker.

It does come in two flavors: the MC2100 and the MC2180. The MC2100 is the batch scanning device, and lacks a touchscreen interface and 2D imager option. The MC2180 is the more full-featured of the two, giving you Bluetooth and 802.11b/g/n WiFi, a resistive touchscreen, and greater data capture with 2D scanning.

Both are great options and definitely have different applications. The MC2100 would be a great fit for smaller retailers needing batch inventory counts but not doing shipping/receiving, more like simple data entry and management. If you need a bit more functionality, like up-to-the-minute inventory updates, or you’re scanning shipping labels or the PDF barcode on a state ID, the MC2180 is the product for you.

Honeywell Dolphin 7800

Honeywell is building out their mobile computer product library, spreading into previously untapped territory. The Honeywell Dolphin 7800 mobile computer is positioned as an economical Enterprise Digital Assistant, and has some great tools to make your work easier.

Enterprise Digital Assistant is a fancy way of saying “burlier than a smartphone,” and the Dolphin 7800 fits into this class pretty well. It looks a bit like a cross between their higher end Dolphin 9700 EDA and the Dolphin 6000, which if you average the two out you get 7850. So that’s pretty close.

The Dolphin 7800 runs Windows Embedded Handheld 6.5, giving you support for legacy Windows CE/Windows Mobile apps. A TI OMAP processor clocked at 800 MHz drives the software, along with 256 MB of RAM and 512 MB Flash, making the Dolphin 7800 no slouch when running demanding applications. There’s also a microSD slot in case you need to stuff even more storage in there, like route maps, large form databases, or the compiled works of Motley Crue. Home Sweet Home is great to play on a return trip.

A 3.5″ LCD display runs in full 640×480 VGA on the Dolphin 7800, which is awfully crisp and shiny. You also get your choice of 30-key numeric or 46-key QWERTY keypad layouts, depending on if you like T9 or tiny keys. Either way, it should be pretty easy to enter data manually.

Honeywell built the Dolphin 7800 with Adaptus 6.0 imaging technology, in either standard range with green beam or extended range with laser aimer configurations. The standard range imager should get you about 20″ of optimal scan range for a UPC barcode. I don’t have exact numbers for the extended range imager, but I assume it’s greater than 20″. Long range imaging is making a pretty solid surge, with multiple manufacturers releasing autoranging or extended range imagers in the past year or so.

All of the Dolphins come with Bluetooth and 802.11a/b/g/n radios standard, with optional models sporting the Gobi 3000 WWAN radio. Gobi is a fancy pants new radio style that allows you to switch between GSM and CDMA networks on the fly. I’m not sure how often you’ll need to swap from Verizon to AT&T, for instance, but it’s great to have multiple options in case you hit a dead zone for either cellular network.

As I mentioned earlier, Enterprise Digital Assistants are burly smartphones, and the Dolphin 7800 is no exception. A magnesium inner chassis and engineering grade plastic housing reinforces the device, so you can drop it a fair bit without breaking it too badly. According to specs, that’s good for a 5-foot to concrete drop resistance. I wouldn’t go throwing this across a warehouse, but it should be fine getting bumped off a table or dropped by a normal height person. The reinforcing also protects it from 1,600 1-meter tumbles, which is a high point for this class of device. The Dolphin 7800 is also built with an IP54 seal specification, meaning windblown dust and water splashes won’t harm the internal components.

Honeywell also offers the Dolphin 7800 as a healthcare-specific model. This one comes in hospital white, so it should match your healthcare provider of choice. I think it also makes it easier to spot like dirt & blood & junk on the device, letting you know when you should clean it. And the plastics are specially designed for these cleaning situations, being resistant to various cleaning solutions. Usually, cleaning agents will pit, etch, or otherwise damage plastics, thankfully these healthcare Dolphins are built to not succumb to such a fate.

With the small size and durable design, I could definitely see the Dolphin 7800 as a good choice for quick utility meter reading, mobile field crews, or anyone needing durable mobility but can’t carry around a gigantic industrial mobile computer. The healthcare-specific model should be fantastic for care providers, the device is small enough to fit in a pocket, easy to sanitize, and offers advanced scanning to ensure the right treatments get to the right patients.

Honeywell Voyager 1202g

Honeywell is continuing their transition away from legacy products, this time releasing the Voyager 1202g barcode scanner, a cordless laser scanner that should eventually replace the old VoyagerBT.

The Voyager 1202g uses the same scan engine as the Voyager 1200g, so you get a cordless scanner that doesn’t sacrifice scanning to maintain battery life. On retail barcodes, you get an optimal scan range of contact to about a foot out, which should make it easy to read products without searching for a sweet spot. Like the Voyager 1200g, the Voyager 1202g can also read pretty mangled barcodes, as Honeywell showed in a video a while back. It can also read barcodes with a minimum contrast of 10%, so faded barcodes shouldn’t be a problem at all.

The Bluetooth radio in the Voyager 1202g is pretty standard for the current generation of cordless scanners, giving you about 33 feet of radio range before interference can become a problem. Honeywell claims they’ve gotten 300 feet line-of-sight connectivity, which falls in line with the legacy VoyagerBT, but we won’t be able to test those claims until we get one in house.

Swapping batteries in a retail cordless scanner is pretty rare, but sometimes it’s needed. Thankfully, Honeywell’s built the Voyager 1202g to give you tool-less access to the battery compartment, a tremendous lifesaver when compared to competitors’ use of screws to lock compartments. The battery is an 1800 mAh Lithium Ion, which seems like a lot of milli-Amp hours. For this scanner, 1800 mAh translates to scanning 45,000 barcodes per charge, or 12 hours of work. That’s pretty solid, I don’t think I’d ever want to scan barcodes for that long, so I’d be set. And recharging takes about 4 hours, so you should be set for day to day scanning.

Durability is pretty vital for cordless scanners, as they seem more likely to be dropped than their cabled brethren. The Voyager 1202g is built to withstand 30 drops of 5 feet to concrete, shoulder height for an average person. Waist height for Yao Ming but I don’t see him getting into retail any time soon. The scanner also sports an IP42 environmental seal, so dirt & random water splashes shouldn’t get in to harm internal components. I wouldn’t put this out in a lumber yard, but it should be okay in most retail environments.

With the Voyager 1202g, you get a 3 year warranty standard. Honeywell offers Service Made Simple comprehensive coverage plans if you really want to protect your investment. In all, the Voyager 1202g is a great progression from the older VoyagerBT, and a fantastic upgrade for aging hardware.

Motorola ET1 Tablet

Motorola Solutions (not to be confused with Google property Motorola Mobility) has just announced an enterprise-class tablet, the ET1. I hope the codename for the project was Elliot. Anyway, the announcement is hitting major channels, including Twitter, so why not give it a rundown.

Unlike the rest of the Moto mobile computer line, the ET1 is powered by Android OS, so you can get your Angry Birds on while also providing line busting services. With 1 GB RAM and a dual-core 1GHz processor, the ET1 is actually more powerful than the PowerMac G4 I used in college. Progress is amazing.

For file/app storage, the ET1 comes with 4 GB of Flash, plus an SD-slot for additional storage. The SD slot supports 32 GB cards, or about 9 full-length, 720p HD movies. I guess the storage would be better served for inventory databases, delivery routes, or product catalogs, but sometimes you just gotta watch Anchorman. Motorola designed the ET1 to encrypt data both on the onboard flash and on expansion cards, ensuring sensitive data such as credit card numbers, birthday plans, and patient data can’t get into the wrong hands.

The 7″ LCD screen features a 1024 x 600 native resolution and capacitive touchscreen interface, a bit of a departure from the traditional resistive touchscreens seen on mobile computers. They used Gorilla Glass for the screen, so it should be pretty sturdy compared to plastic screens.

For data capture, you have a couple different methods. An 8-megapixel camera comes built-in on all models, and can double as a barcode scanner if needed. It might not be the most effective way to scan a lot of barcodes, but it should be good for line busting or quick product scans. The top of the unit also features a removable bay, exposing an expansion module area which allows you to plug on a barcode scanner, MSR, or even USB module. This is a good way to keep costs down at your business; retailers can opt for a scanner if needed, restaurants could choose the MSR, and either way they’re only paying for the functionality they need.

Initially, the ET1 will come with 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth, and GPS for wireless connectivity, definitely angling it at within-the-four-walls applications. A cell radio would be a fantastic addition, but if the product’s staying on-site, there’s no real need for it.

Motorola built the ET1 like any good enterprise device, making it a lot tougher than the consumer-grade products. An IP54 seal keeps out dust and water splashes,  I’d like to see it used as a serving tray at a restaurant. Maybe not all the time, but at least once. It’s also built to withstand drops of about 4-feet, which is standard for a durable but not super rugged device.

Motorola even made a video demo of the product, give it a look!

Honeywell Xenon 1900 Video Review

We’ve got a video review out for the Honeywell Xenon 1900 barcode scanner, the new 2D imager from Honeywell.

Motorola DS4208 Video Review

We’ve got another video up, this time for the Motorola DS4208 barcode scanner. It’s the lower-cost alternative to the DS6707/DS6708, and is a great fit for retailers looking to add 2D scanning at their checkstands.

Tastiest QR Code Ever, the QReo

Some fancy nerds over at Red Pepper have taken QR codes in a new and tasty direction, building one out of Oreos. Called QReo, it’s a cookie-representation of a QR code that should scan with most QR reader apps. I tried with my iPhone and the Motorola DS9208 at my desk but couldn’t get a read, it might be the contrast of the vanilla cookies to the white background. I have a feeling if they used lighter cookies as negative space it might work more easily.

Unitech PA690

A couple weeks ago, our rep from Unitech came by to show off some of their newer products, including the Unitech PA690 mobile computer. The PA690 is built for mobile field services, delivery, and route management, and has some great features to make life easier while on the road.

What I really like about the PA690 is the larger than normal screen. At 3.8″ diagonal, the screen is pretty big, giving you a native resolution of 800×480. So now if you’re checking turn-by-turn nav or an auto-updating map, you can see a little farther down the road without having to zoom out. Also, with signature capture apps for like delivery verification, you end up with more space, great for showing a fuller item breakdown or maybe a picture of Ted Danson.

Windows Embedded Handheld 6.5 (I think that’s Windows Mobile 6.5) runs on the PA690, so you get a modern looking phone OS plus compatibility with legacy Windows Mobile software. You might need to double check that the software’s designed to run on dynamically-sized resolutions, otherwise it may look chunky or weird. A lot of legacy mobile apps were built with QVGA (320×240) resolutions in mind, so they don’t necessarily scale properly. It’s a thing. It happens.

Not only did Unitech beef out the screen to unheard of proportions, but they kept the PA690 pretty sturdy, so even out in the field it’ll keep running strong. The rugged body is built to withstand drops of about 6 feet to concrete, so falling out of holster or off the hood of a truck won’t slow it down. An IP65 seal keeps out dust and low pressure jets of water, and the unit is built to operate in temperatures from 14° to 122° F so neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night will keep the PA690 from fulfilling its data management duty.

The PA690 is powered by a Marvell PXA320 processor rated at 806 MHz with 256 MB RAM and 512 MB of flash storage. There’s also a microSD slot in case you need to load larger inventories, route schedules, or the complete works of Foghat. Slow Ride is pretty great to listen to on road trips.

There are two major designs for the PA690, one for general data management, and another with an emphasis on mobility. Both come with Wifi and Bluetooth, fantastic for shipping/picking or ensuring employees have the most current data at their fingertips. There is also a version of the PA690 ideal for use outside the four walls, adding in a GPS radio and 3.5G GSM/GPRS communications.

Aldelo in Curb Your Enthusiasm

So on the August 21st episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, Larry David gets in a protracted discussion about bowing with a restaurant owner. Standard fare for the show; take an insignificant social interaction and mine it for tremendous hilarity:

But what’s that? Between LD and the restaurant owner. It looks familiar. Let us zoom, and enhance:

It looks like restaurant software on a random POS computer. Still not big enough. Let us zoom and enhance once more!

I’ve got it! Aldelo Pro software is being used at that restaurant, on what appears to be a Posiflex pos computer. That’s some pretty solid placement, though I doubt many people would pick up on what it is unless they’re firmly ensconced in the POS industry. But hey, there it is.