Jon Westfall
02-07-2005, 11:32 PM
<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.thestandard.com/internetnews/000913.php' target='_blank'>http://www.thestandard.com/internetnews/000913.php</a><br /><br /></div><i>"Hewlett-Packard Co.'s (HP's) "digital pen" technology is going on the road with a little help from Nokia Corp. The digital pen is a real ink pen that takes 100 pictures per second to digitally record what the user is writing. A new model from Nokia can send that information via Bluetooth to a Nokia phone and from there to a server over a standard mobile data network..."</i><br /><br />While we uber-techies may sometimes forget, some people actually still use slices of trees and pigment-filled cylinders! Now with the help of Nokia, HP is hoping their existing digital pens can become a new option for some users on the go. Targeting such niche markets as healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, and the government, this Nokia / HP combo allows users to fill out a paper form and send the digital pen's recorded scrawling to a server via GPRS. The article even spells out the rather interesting and complex method the software uses to identify each form and understand the information the pen sends it.<br /><br />And when will this be available? Now - if you have the $$$ (Or euros, or legal currency of your choosing). The pen runs around $199, with starter packages (pens, server, etc...) running around $150K. A bit on the pricey side as an initial investment, but according to HP, It can save $0.75 per page processed.