Audiovox Thera Pocket PC 2002/Phone

[BarrySDCA]

I learned (the hard way) that my Jornada 700 will not VPN. Ugh...the whole reason I got the thing was so I could administer our network w/out having to lug my laptop around anymore. I purchased the Verizon AirCard 555 (pcmcia) which plugs into my laptop and the Jornada. The AirCard is ok, not as fast as they advertise, but it does an ok job. Unfortunately, w/out VPN on the Jornada it's all a waste.

I'm looking for alternatives and saw the Audiovox Thera Pocket PC 2002/Phone at Verizon. I still have time to take back the AirCard 555 in favor of Audiovox Thera Pocket PC 2002/Phone.

Can anyone answer these questions about the Audiovox Thera Pocket PC
2002/Phone please?

How does Terminal Services work on such a small screen? Is it practical?
The desktop of our servers is 800x600.

If I take back the AirCard 555 and get the Thera, I will still need to get
access to my laptop from the road. Will the laptop get Internet access from the Thera if I plug them in together?

Any other comments about the Thera?

Thank you,

[Janak Parekh]

How does Terminal Services work on such a small screen? Is it practical?
The desktop of our servers is 800x600.
If you use a product like Nyditot Virtual Display (http://www.nyditot.com/home.htm), then it's somewhat useable. I wouldn't personally do it except during emergencies, as the display is not really designed for that - but at least it'll be navigable.

If I take back the AirCard 555 and get the Thera, I will still need to get access to my laptop from the road. Will the laptop get Internet access from the Thera if I plug them in together?
In theory, yes. I don't know if anyone has done this; since I don't own the device I can't really say myself.

Any other comments about the Thera?
Yes - it's not a real Phone Edition device; in fact, it's basically a Maestro with a Sierra 555 unit integrated into it, i.e., it uses the Sierra Wireless dialer software. Its big problem is the battery life: standby time is a measly 8 hours! The HTC PPC Phone Edition, on the other hand, has a standby life of days.

--janak