[0] Symbol Technologies Introduces Wireless Wide Area Network Family of Mobile Computing Products.

Business & Technology Editors

Frontline Solutions 2000

HOLTSVILLE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 3, 2000

First in Industry to Offer Palm and Pocket PC WWAN-Enabled

Mobile Computing Devices

Products to Provide New Market Opportunities; Extend Existing

Markets

Symbol Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:SBL) is the first company in the mobile computing industry to offer both Palm(R) and Pocket PC handheld computing products integrated with wireless wide area network (WWAN).

Symbol announced today at Frontline Solutions Expo 2000 that it has extended its family of mobile computing devices to support WWAN communications, enabling mobile workers to obtain anytime-anywhere connectivity to a company's enterprise system at the point of activity.

The new WWAN enabled products, including Symbol's SPT 1700 Palm OS(R)-based devices, Symbol's PPT 2700 Pocket PC-based devices, and Symbol's PDT 7500 Windows(R) CE or DOS devices, equip mobile workers with the tools they need to stay productive while working remotely. The unique form factors and features of these WWAN-enabled devices include rugged durability for harsh environments, an ergonomic design, Internet access and bar code scanning.

"These new WWAN-enabled products offer a flexible, one-piece solution for markets that require rugged mobile computing devices that offer anytime-anywhere access to the information needed to get the job done," said Vinny Luciano, vice president of product management, mobile computing systems, Symbol Technologies.

Market Opportunities

The innovative form factors and features of Symbol's WWAN-enabled mobile computing handheld products bring connectivity at the point of activity to many different markets, including sales and service automation, government and military, postal delivery and healthcare.

"With so much valuable activity taking place outside of the traditional enterprise, mobile workers need to stay connected, regardless of the type of environment they encounter everyday," said Luciano.

For instance, in the important and growing market of field service automation, workers can provide maximum customer service using Symbol WWAN-enabled mobile computing devices for tasks such as data management, parts ordering and scheduling of appointments all without having to synch up or phone-in at the end of the day.

Two Networks: GSM and CDPD 

In addition to offering flexibility among operating systems, the new WWAN-enabled mobile computing products from Symbol offer the option of two networks: GSM and CDPD. GSM, the ubiquitous European-standard network that allows users to roam outside of a country's boundaries, is available on the SPT 1734, PPT 2734 and the PDT 7534 WWAN-enabled devices. The CDPD network, available on the SPT 1733, PPT 2733 and PDT 7533 WWAN-enabled devices, is available in the United States. Other networks will be brought on-line in the future.

"By extending our product family to include wireless wide area network capabilities, we build on our vision of pervasive mobile computing and total mobility," said Tomo Razmilovic, President and CEO, Symbol Technologies. "We anticipate an increased demand for our mobile computing products."

The SPT 1700 Series is a pen-based family of products designed for use in a variety of industries. The rugged housing and integrated scanner, coupled with its ergonomic design, makes the SPT 1700 series ideal for mobile sales force workers to transmit orders, confirm shipments and check inventory levels while visiting clients and traveling en route to their next customer visit.

Symbol's PPT 2700 series is a family of pen-based mobile data management devices that combines rugged durability and bar-code scanning on the Microsoft(R) Pocket PC platform, allowing users to capture and communicate data. Mobile public safety professionals, such as police officers, can use the PPT 2700 to scan drivers' licenses or research a license plate, anytime-anywhere.

The PDT 7500 series features power and performance for extreme environments. This lightweight, key-based hand-held terminal with advanced bar code scanning, data processing and communications features, is ideal for field workers who are responsible for delivery and tracking in a variety of climates and conditions.

Symbol Technologies, Inc., winner of this year's National Medal of Technology, is a global leader in mobile data transaction systems, providing innovative customer solutions based on wireless local area networking for data and voice, application-specific mobile computing and bar code data capture. Symbol's wireless information appliances connect the physical world of people on the move, packages, paper and shipping pallets, to information systems and the Internet. Today, some 10 million Symbol bar code scanners, mobile computers and wireless LANs are utilized worldwide in markets ranging from retailing to transportation and distribution logistics, manufacturing, parcel and postal delivery, government, healthcare and education. Symbol's systems and products are used to increase productivity from the factory floor to the retail store, to the enterprise and out to the home. Information about Symbol is available at www.symbol.com and 1-800-722-6234.