Honeywell's most compact mobile computer
(by Conrad H. Blickenstorfer)

The Dolphin 7600 was introduced by Hand Held Products, Inc. in early 2007 as second generation 7200. In late 2007, Hand Held Products became Honeywell Imaging and Mobility, a Honeywell Automation & Control Solutions Business that as of July 2008 also incorporates Metrologic.

The Dolphin 7200 comes in two versions. One of them include Bluetooth or Bluetooth and WiFi and runs either Windows CE 5.0 or Windows Mobile 6 Classic. Another is configured as a GSM device and runs Windows Mobile 6 Professional. The 7600 is billed as Honeywell's most compact mobile computer, measuring just 2.7 x 7.0 x 1.7 inches and weighing just 12 ounces, with the GSM version being a tad thicker and heavier.

On the hardware side, the device is powered by a 400MHz Samsung 2440, comes with 128MB of RAM and ROM each, and has a 2.8-inch 240 x 320 pixel touch screen. The Bluetooh/WiFi version has a SD card slot whereas the GSM version has a microSD slot.

For data entry, users have a choice of either of a backlit 29-key numeric keypad with shifted alpha and six programmable keys, or a backlight 38-key alpha keyboard with shifted numeric and two programmable keys. For scanning, there is an integrated 5300SR VGA area imager with High-Vis bracket aimer that can read and decode a large number of 1D/2D symbologies as well as composite and postal codes and OCR. These are:

1D symbologies read include Codabar, Code 3 of 9, Code 11, Code 32 Pharmaceutical (PARAF), Code 93, Code 128, EAN with Add-On and EAN with Extended Coupon Code, EAN-13, Interleaved 2 or 5, Matrix 2 of 5, Plessey, PosiCode, GS1 Databar, Straight 2 of 5 IATA, Straight 2 of 5 Industrial, Telepen, Trioptic Code, UCC/EAN-128, UPC & UPC-A. 2D Symbologies include Aztec, Code 16K, Composite, Data Matrix, MaxiCode, OCR, PDF417, QR Code, GS1 Databar Composite and OCR Codes: Aztec Mesa, Codablock F, EAN·UCC, GS1 Databar-14 and OCR-A and OCR-B. Postal Codes include Postnet, Australian, British, Canadian, China, Japanese, KIX (Netherlands), and Korea Post, Planet Code.

Communication is via a connector that supports USB 1.1 and RS-232. There is also an IR port. On the wireless side, the BT/WiFi version includes Bluetooth Class II version 1.2 and 802.11b/g WiFi, whereas the GSM version has quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE.

Featuring a high impact resistant PC/ABS housing with magnesium alloy internal chassis and component shock mounts, the 7600 Series carries an IP54 ingress protection rating and a 5-foot-onto-concrete drop spec. The very wide operating temperature range of 14 to 122 degrees Fahrenheit means the device can be used in freezers.

Since terminals are tools for jobs, their batteries need to last through a full shift, and the 7600 Series can handle that with the standard 8.1 watt-hur battery or an optioanl extended 12 watt-hour battery.

Overall, the new Dolphin 9900 Mobile Computer is a rugged productivity-enhancing handheld computer designed for maximum reliability and ease of use in frontline applications.