Socket SoMo 650

By Carlos A. Soto

Connecting state and local government leaders

| April 23, 2008

GCN Lab review: If you need a workhorse ' particularly for inventory ' look no further than the Socket SoMo 650.

The Socket SoMmo 650 is new to the GCN Lab enterprise PDA roundups. This device is a top performer when it comes to sales force automation, patient care, inventory management, merchandising, asset management and mobile point-of-sale because it is semi-rugged and can be tailored to fit a wireless scanner for inventory control or bar code reading.Despite its semi-rugged form, which includes dust-and moisture-resistant caps on all exposed interfaces, the 5-inch by 2.9-inch by 0.8- inch, 6.3-ounce SoMo is surprisingly light and small. It's not much bigger than the HP iPaq 210 and comes with built-in drivers for modems and bar code collection. Bluetooth and wireless local-area network functionality come standard and are easy to set up and use.One negative with the SoMo is that it uses an older version of Microsoft Windows Mobile, Version 5. But features such as the 624 MHz Intel PXA270 and clear, bright 3.5-inch, 16- bit touch screen capable of 240 x 320 resolution make the outdated operating system a moot point.Surprisingly, we found the battery life excellent for the size and specs of the device. We used it periodically for about seven days before we had to recharge the batteries. There's an optional 3.7-volt, 2600 mAh lithium-ion battery that would boost longevity for jobs that require around-the-clock attention.Despite missing the finesse and extras associated with many of its peers and having some issues such as a whopping $695 price tag, if you need a workhorse ' particularly for inventory ' look no further than the Socket SoMo 650.

GCN Lab review: If you need a workhorse ' particularly for inventory ' look no further than the Socket SoMo 650.

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