You can take a handheld to places your PC can’t go — and now your Internet connection, email and Web sites can also come along. Xircom’s SpringPort Modem 56 slides into the Springboard slot on any Handspring Visor.
APC field tested the first of Xircom’s SpringPort products. In coming months, the group will grow to include an Ethernet adaptor, as well as wireless modules for 802.11b and Bluetooth.
The three AAA cells that power the Modem 56 make the module much heavier and thicker than the Visor. This, in tum, makes the handheld unwieldy for conventional use, so you’ll only want to fit the modem when it’s time to go online. At least the modem props the Visor at a 30° angle to your desk, so you can tap your way around the Net without having to hold the device in one hand.
The Visor recognises the Modem 56 module as soon as you slide it into the Springboard slot. After a brief automatic test of the modem and battery condition, icons for several applets that are preloaded into the module’s flash RAM appear on the menu screen.
Just plug a phone line directly into the RJ-11 jack, enter your ISP and mail settings, and hit the Connect button. This elegance evolves the Spring-Port modem from plug and play into smile and dial, but the manual could have been clearer about the steps involved.
Supplied software includes AvantGo for online and offline browsing, and MultiMail SE for POP3 and IMAP4-based email.
MultiMail SE allows you to download entire messages or just the headers. Attachments are stripped out and mails appear only in plain text. However, APCs test account contained a backlog of messages that froze MultiMail SE and the Visor in their tracks. Unless you log in often, APC suggests you keep a separate email account to be used only when you’re on the road.
The FileMover utility allows you to load additional programs into the module’s spare 188K of memory; you can even replace the included applications with your own suite of software. The Modem 56 also allows connection to a mobile phone using an optional cable, with versions available for the usual suspects — Nokia, Ericsson and Motorola.
APC found the unit to be quite robust, but the battery pack was fiddly. Xircom should also consider having the Modem 56 or the Visor emit a series of beeps or an onscreen alert once you’re online, as there’s no indication that your connection has been successful beyond the flashing green LEDs near the phone jack.

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