US-based CDMA handset provider Audiovox Corporation introduced its newest Pocket PC, ThEra, combining the ease of use and comprehensive functionality of Microsoft Windows Powered Pocket PC 2002 software with advanced CDMA2000 1X wireless voice and data communications capabilities in a single, compact, handheld device.





The Thera is built around a 206-MHz Intel StrongARM processor, 32MB of RAM, 32MB of flash ROM, and a Secure Digital expansion slot (a 32MB SD card is included). The 65,536-color reflective TFT display has good visibility indoors and outdoors, and the lithium ion battery is rated for 10 hours of PDA use, 3 hours of talk time, and 100 hours of standby time.

The device's phone has a vibration alert, speed dialing, Call Waiting, call forwarding, three-way calling, and a speakerphone that could be heard clearly from a distance of 40 feet. Like the RIM BlackBerry 5810, the Thera includes an earphone microphone to use for phone calls, a design we find less ideal than a traditional flip-phone setup. The phone-dialer phone book is only partially integrated with the Pocket PC Contacts application: You can't dial from Contacts, but the phone book displays the names and numbers listed in Contacts.