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One of the issues associated with the internet 'revolution' has been affordability and universal access. We've all heard the government expound on the value of everyone getting connected, but the hard fact is that vast swathes of the UK population have neither the money nor the technical inclination to get online.
Enter, stage left, Amstrad with its £99 Em@iler Plus. It's a standalone device aimed squarely at those who want to have email and internet access, but don't want to spend a fortune on kit.
The Em@iler Plus is what Amstrad calls a personal communications centre. Its footprint measures 18 x 22cm, or about the size of an open A5 address book, so it fits well on a hall table, kitchen counter or even a desk corner.
It comes with a 480 x 320 pixel monochrome LCD and, aside from the usual phone functions, has a 56K modem for web access.
Installation is simple, but even before you remove the packaging you're presented with a stark warning: 'You have no chance of operating this unit unless you refer to the user instruction book.' And good advice it is too, as the unit will not operate if you fail to follow the manual to the letter.
The Em@iler's user interface is not intuitive, so you need to read the manual. Luckily, it's one of the most clearly written manuals we've come across, with detailed, illustrated step-by-step instructions.
It has all the advanced telephone functions you'd expect: hands-free speakerphone, answering machine, and a 700-name digital address book. It's also PABX compatible, so it can be used in an office environment.
The email facility allows for up to eight users, each with their own email address and access PINs. Composing email, or typing of any sort, requires nimble fingers on the small, pullout Qwerty keyboard.
Typing is strictly a two-finger affair, which was slow and cumbersome when we tried to type anything longer than a normal paragraph. It has all the basic functions you'd expect, such as forward and reply, and can handle basic graphic attachments such as gif, jpeg and Windows bmp files.
You can also attach wav files using the handset. However, there is a 200Kb size limit on received attachments. Sadly, it can only cope with plain text messages, so Word or Excel documents are not recognised. You can set the Em@iler to automatically poll for email daily, set custom times, or default to a weekly collection.
Surfing the web was challenging too. The Em@iler uses Microsoft Mobile Explorer. Normally found on mobile phones and some PDAs, it limits you to Wap-enabled and basic internet sites.
The size and nature of the display means viewing the full layout of most websites isn't possible, but it shows all the information you need, albeit on one long page you'll need to scroll through.
Picture quality of web images is adequate, but not outstanding. All navigation is done via the keyboard, so long internet sessions could be tedious.
Included on the side of the device is a smart card reader. In the future this will allow you to use smart-chipped credit cards to pay for items you buy over the internet. However, this service is not yet up and running.
One handy feature is the ability to send text messages direct from the unit. You are limited to sending one SMS per session, and you can't receive a reply, but we liked the facility and found it easy to use.
However, at a minimum of 12p per go, plus your line rental, it is a little more expensive than most mobile phone operator costs. The Em@iler also features a fax function that allows you to compose and send faxes, or forward emails as a fax, but there is no fax receiving capability.
In terms of additional costs Amstrad charges 12p for every dialup session plus the local call rate per minute. A session can consist of one email or as many as you have stored for sending, or an internet surfing session, so it can get pricey if you find yourself logging on a lot.
All in all, the Em@iler Plus is an adequate device for those more prone to occasional, short emailing and surfing sessions who want uncomplicated, non-technical net access, but nothing more.
Price: £99 (£84.26 ex VAT)
Contract: Amstrad 0906 681 6816
www.amstrad.com
See also:
Amstrad's Em@iler is back for another go at bringing email into every home. 14 Mar 2002All Gadgets
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