Mobility can change the way you do business by bringing computing power to where it’s needed. In a warehouse, for example, you can complete transactions right on the floor instead of having to retrieve data from a  central printer at another location.

If you are looking to add a mobile printer to your operation, then you should consider the following to get the right printer for your needs.

Environment. Where will the printer be used? A warehouse, office, or field each have different conditions, so select a printer that can withstand the environment. Mobile workers in a cold warehouse need printers that can operate in freezer-like conditions. Others who work outside need printers that can operate in demanding weather conditions. Consider the environment and choose a a device that can withstand dust, dirt, drops and any weather conditions that will occur.

Size. What type of output do you need? Mobile printers have a wide range of capabilities. Consider the type of printing output needed and choose a printer that is right for the job. There’s no need to purchase a printer with all the bells and whistles if you only need to print transaction receipts.

Ease of use. Look for printers that are easy to load, easy to read and easy to operate. Basic operation should be quick and straightforward so as not to lose time with tasks like loading paper. Consider who will be operating the printer and if their uniforms, attire, or safety gear used in outdoor work will impede their ability to use the buttons or read the LCD screen.

Costs. Mobile printers that operate in tough conditions have the built in ruggedness and durability that inexpensive printers cannot match. So consider this when examining the cost of ownership; although a ruggedized printer will have a higher acquisition cost, it will end up being less expensive over time because it won’t need to be replaced as often as a non-ruggedized version.

Accessories.  Mobile printers that are worn on a belt or carried in a shoulder harness provide the user with comfort and flexibility to print on demand. So outfit the mobile worker with the proper clips, straps and vehicle mounts so printing can be done with minimal effort or inconvenience.

For more on how mobile printing can help your business, contact us!

We often include a handheld RFID reader with our DoD labeling solutions.

Problem is that we have not had too many too choose from.

We started with offering the Symbol MC9060 which does a great job but is a huge overkill for the simple tasks most of our clients need to use it for. Looking for something lower in price, we tried the Intermec CK3, but this is poor solution for RFID – having two parts of the same device having to communicate over BlueToothis a horrible idea and there is no simple RFID capturing application included.

Our friends at Tharo helped a bit with a very low cost reader – you can see my review of it here The Tharo reader does do the simple job of making sure an RFID tag actually works and capturing the embedding number, but the build quality is poor and the ergonomics worse.

Enter the new MC3090Z  Motorola. This is based on the popular MC3000 range of mobile computers and it looks to bring just about everything I would want into a handheld RFID reader.

The MC3090 has the  ergonomics you’d expect in a Symbol/Motorola device as well as a level of robustness that means it won’t break when dropped. Unlike the Tharo reader, it has 802.11b/g wireless networking as well as an integrated barcode scanner.  I believe this is a 1D laser scanner and I wish a 2D imager was available since most of our DOD clients are using Datamatrix or PDF417 barcode.

The MC3090Z should be ready to ship sometime in the 1st quarter of 2010 – I’m not sure on pricing yet, but hoping it will be quite a bit less than the current MC9090 RFID reader.

In any case, the MC3090Z looks to be the best fit for our client’s needs and we will certainly be adding it to our Winco ID RFID labeling solutions.

The Symborola guys have been working hard on their line of mobile computers and scanners of late – we have been buying some for our own use.

For a long time, the Symbol P360/P370 has been one of my favorite scanners. As well as having one of the best barcode scan engines that Symbol ever produced, it also bridged the gap between scanners and mobile computers.

It has been getting somewhat dated looking for a while though, what with the poor display, clunky MCL programing and old style wireless connectivity. While the scanner was great, it was limited to linear barcodes only.

So it is great to see that Symborola has come out with a new device – the MT2000 Series – that seems to offer all the good things of the P370 along with Windows CE operating system and a decent display. As well as now being a Windows CE device, the MT2000 also comes with a built in MCL client.

The MT2000 is available with both linear and 2D scanners – I’ll be interested to try one to see if the linear scanner is as good as the old one, but the 2D addition is great; especially for all the DoD labeling we do.

Another great advance is the range of connectivity options. The MT2000 can be used tethered with serial or USB, connected to a base station via BlueTooth or can have 802.11 a/b/g interfacing for realtime use on wireless networks.

I always thought the P360/370 to be a somewhat unique product and I was always a fan. The new MT2000 builds on the strengths of the older device and really adds some great new features – this should be a great success for Symbol/Motorola. I just hope the scan engine is as good as the old one.

What do you think? Do you see a place for this hybrid scanner/mobile computer form factor? What would you use this device for?

Motorola VC6096, the Ultimate In-Vehicle Mobile Computer

Ever since Motorola acquired our friends at Symbol Technologies, it was clear that there would be a convergence of Symbol and Moto products.

The new VC6096 is a great example of this – an in-vehicle device that brings just about everything good from both companies into one product.

The VC6096 is intended for transportation and logistics providers and offers just about every communications technology that these companies are likely to need – including wireless WAN (WWAN), wireless LAN (WLAN), Bluetooth, GPS and advanced telematics support.

One good thing about the Moto takeover is that the new devices get an up to date version of Windows Mobile. Symbol always seemed to be lagging a couple of versions behind. No such problem with the VC6096, it comes with the latest and greatest WM 6.1.

Plenty of memory as well – 128MB of RAM and 256MB of Flash ROM. More memory is available via the SD Card slot, although SymboRola seem to limited to just 2GB here.

This new device should be available during Quarter 4 of 2008.

Check out the product page on the Symbol/Motorola site.