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WINNER
IBM
ThinkPad X40
IBMs ThinkPad X40 blends portability, usability and power in a feature-rich package that was impressive enough to win in the Desktop & Mobile Hardware category.
Judges praised the X40 for delivering exactly what road warriors—and their IT managers—are looking for. Weighing in at only 2.7 pounds, this ultraportable computer has impressive battery life; has a full-size keyboard; and offers a choice of wireless technologies, including Intel Corp.s 802.11b chip set or IBMs 802.11b/g or 802.11a/b/g chip set. Competitively priced starting at $1,499, the laptop also has Bluetooth capabilities.
Judges liked the software that came with the X40 as much as the hardware. IBM (www.ibm.com) won praise for the X40s Rescue and Recovery tools, which enable users to recover data during a system failure. Judges also singled out IBMs Active Protection System, which temporarily “parks” the hard drives read/write head in the event of a fall.
The X40, which earned an eWEEK Analysts Choice Award in tests, is the second consecutive ThinkPad to win this category. As one judge said, “The X40 exemplifies what weve come to expect from IBM.”
FINALISTS
Research In Motion Ltd.
BlackBerry 7100t
For companies looking to outfit mobile workers with all-in-one devices, RIMs BlackBerry 7100t sports an exceptional combination of portability and functionality.
The 7100t wowed Excellence Awards judges with its slick SureType input mechanism, which gives the unit a phonelike form factor.
“The BlackBerry is very popular among corporate users and with good reason: The size is right,” said one eWEEK Corporate Partner and Excellence Awards judge.
Paired with RIMs BlackBerry Enterprise Server for access to corporate data, the 7100t is powerful enough to persuade even the most die-hard road warriors to leave their laptops behind.
More information is available at www.blackberry.com.
Hewlett-Packard Co.
iPaq h6315 Pocket PC
The iPaq h6315 impressed Excellence judges by combining PDA, cell phone and e-mail capabilities in one device. With so much innovation packed into the first consumer-oriented Wi-Fi cell phone, the iPaq h6315 distinguished itself from a range of products in its category.
Whether the iPaq h6315 is connecting via Wi-Fi, a GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) network or Bluetooth, this combination device ensures that its user is connected almost anytime, anywhere.
As with many other products on the cutting edge, however, the iPaq h6315 has experienced problems—namely, performance degradation when its many connections are used in tandem. HP (www.hp.com) released a ROM update shortly after users reported the problems.
Excellence Awards Winners and Finalists:
- Analytics & Reporting
- Application Development
- Business Integration Systems
- Business Relationship Management
- Desktop & Mobile Hardware
- E-Business Foundations
- E-Mail Management & Security
- Enterprise Collaboration & Messaging
- Enterprise Storage Hardware
- Enterprise Storage Software
- IT Quality Assurance Tools
- Productivity Applications
- Server Hardware
- Networking & Management Tools
- Networking Infrastructure
- System & Application Management
- Authentication & User Management
- Network Data-Stream Protection
- Vulnerability Assessment & Remediation