HP puts fingerprint on PDA market

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://news.com.com/1601-2-975383.html' target='_blank'>http://news.com.com/1601-2-975383.html</a><br /><br /></div>If you want to see a little more of the new HP devices, check out this video. I didn't realize how slick the biometric authentication was on the 5450 - I thought you'd need to hold your finger over a sensor, but instead you "roll" it over the sensor. And look at the size of the 1910 - very tiny!<br /><br />"CNET Radio's Desmond Crisis looks at HP's new high - end handheld. The iPaq Pocket PC h5450 includes Bluetooth wireless capabilities -- and a fingerprint reader for owner authentication."<br /><br />On a side note, I find it a little sad that I couldn't stream the Cable/DSL version without it sputtering, but the IBM commercials came through crystal clear. :roll:

[emjay]

mmmm... nice! The 5450 is first ipaq I've really liked. All it needs now is a jog-wheel and an integrated cover. As for the 1910, I thought it only came with 16Mb or something like that? On the video they said 64Mb, which would make it a pretty good Palm replacement.

BTW, no problems with the video playback here. I used the realplayer version on 1Mb cable.

[heov]

actually, the 5450 kinda does have a jog wheel (more like the jornadas 560) where the record button is, but it serves to change the volume. I'm sure you could remapp it to UP and down, and then the rocrd button to ACTION, but then you lose a record button!

Anyway, the 1910 has 64 MB of RAM and 16MB of rom. Only 46 or so is user accessible RAM... but still better than 32... what really bugs me is the Pocket PC Professional (not premium like other devices) which skimps on media player, terminal services, reader, and money i think. But you can install those to ram. BUT you cannot install a spell checker for word... it's essentially just like the 3600 upgraded in a new case with less ram...

you also have a 2.5mm headphone jack... that sucks; it's not even a phone...
no sdio, and they even bother to flip the connecter on the bottom backwards, so things like the stowaway won't work with it...

I think the selling point for this model will be the design/size and the iPaq name. Oh, and the removable battery...

[Rirath]

"CNET Radio's Desmond Crisis looks at HP's new high - end handheld. The iPaq Pocket PC h5450 includes Bluetooth wireless capabilities -- and a fingerprint reader for owner authentication."

Desmond Crisis is still doing C|Net radio? Man I miss that program... maybe I should start listening again. Quality has gone down so far though.

[Janak Parekh]

BUT you cannot install a spell checker for word... it's essentially just like the 3600 upgraded in a new case with less ram...
BTW, this is debatable. The spec sheet on the 1910 explicitly mentions the spell-checker, so we'll have to see.

--bdj

[enemy2k2]

The way it reads heat signature between ridges of the print is quite nice. I think definitely a lot more secure than people were originaly thinking. No way to simply make a latex false finger print and scan it over. Might be able to cast one out of iron or something, heat it up to a decent temperature and get access that way. I wouldn't know. Any thoughts on the matter? I for one think that the fingerprint sensor idea is ingenious.

On a side note I was thinking it was going to be a miniature scanner type of device, that way you could drag the Ipaq (although awkwardly) over lines of type or pictures or almost anything for that matter and have it scanned into the system through a software hack perhaps.

Security wise though, the current method definitely seems better.

[mookie123]

The way it reads heat signature between ridges of the print is quite nice. I think definitely a lot more secure than people were originaly thinking. No way to simply make a latex false finger print and scan it over. Might be able to cast one out of iron or something, heat it up to a decent temperature and get access that way. I wouldn't know. Any thoughts on the matter? I for one think that the fingerprint sensor idea is ingenious.

On a side note I was thinking it was going to be a miniature scanner type of device, that way you could drag the Ipaq (although awkwardly) over lines of type or pictures or almost anything for that matter and have it scanned into the system through a software hack perhaps.

Security wise though, the current method definitely seems better.

Just use latex like material that has similar heat property as skin. I am sure the sensor is not THAT sensitive beyond recognizing heat differences in the ridges.

in fact, I think if you make the"latex jelly" thin enough it will pretty much have skin heat signiture.

this iPAQ with finger print is pretty stupid in my opinion. because YOUR finger print is all over the iPAQ metalic shiny body. it's like leaving scrap paper filled with computer password all over your desk and thinking your computer is protected by secure password.

........has somebody actually THINK of this single BIG flaw???? *lol*
I would think retina scan for handheld is that much more usefull.

this is going to be a big Homer Simpsonesque doh' moment in securing computer.

Contain research paper
http://cryptome.org/gummy.htm

article at extreme tech
http://www.extremetech.com/print_article/0,3428,a=27687,00.asp

[jizmo]

To my knowledge 5450 can be protected so, that in order to authorize the use, one must provice a correct fingerprint AND a password / pin code.

I'd feel pretty secured with this kind of method. It's much more than average operating system that has with just login name and password to protect one's data.

/jizmo

[st63z]

I'd like to see Desmond interview Cindy and the Dell Dude side by side showing off their respective PPCs :)

Anyways, I wish the cam would focus on visual side-by-side of the 5450 and 1910 from all angles instead of the people's faces...

And when they were talking about the 1910's low price, you could see Cindy's hesitation for a couple of secs before she blurted out "$299", I thought that was funny, some things must've been running through her mind then...

And maybe it's just me, watching Desmond often reminds me of watching Chris Pirillo for some reason...

[Stone]

Did anyone notice that WISbar was being used on the 54xx? Is that now included?

[mmidgley]

> this iPAQ with finger print is pretty stupid in my opinion.
> because YOUR finger print is all over the iPAQ metalic shiny body

it would take someone more time to take my iPAQ 5450, lift a fingerprint (assuming they lifted the right one since ALL my fingerprints are on the case), produce some type of latex replication with the appropriate heat signature than to just disassemble the device, tap the CPU, and read the contents of RAM/Flash.

the idea is not absolute perfect security--its to make it pointless to try to break in through the front door.

compare this with software piracy--the best defense is not to play stupid games that hackers will just bypass somehow, but rather to make the software cost less to begin with so hackers would be stupid to bother.


m.