The laptop unplugged

By 2005, about four-fifths of all notebook computers sold will be wireless-enabled, according to analysts at Gartner. Understanding the cost implications of this trend will be important for IT managers and other business executives.

“Rapid end-user adoption is happening – with or without the consent of enterprises – because the ability to get quick, easy connections to the Internet or remote access to enterprise network facilities is too compelling to ignore,” says Leslie Fiering, a Gartner vice president. “Enterprises need to understand the cost elements of using WiFi in notebooks so they can budget realistically and apply best practices to manage the TCO [total cost of ownership].”

He believes that growing WiFi use is raising a notebook’s TCO by about 3% to 4% annually – that means an additional cost to the enterprise of $197 per user per year (making a TCO per user of $325 per year).

The notebook operating system and the type of user have the greatest impact on TCO. Microsoft’s Windows XP operating system tends to have the lowest TCO, says Fiering, because of its easier connection set-up, ability to detect WiFi access points and greater robustness than Windows 2000. “The result is fewer calls to the service desk, lower end-user operations costs and less downtime,” he adds. Similarly, users who tend to travel less and use their notebooks at home at night tend to have a lower TCO than travelling workers or road warriors.

Planning a WiFi rollout

Operator strategies

Competition and regulation have combined to force ever lower a mobile network operator’s revenue from conventional voice services. This long-term downward trend is compelling operators to seek new sources of revenue growth. The key strand of this new strategy is the delivery of value-added data services to corporate clients over 3G, 2.5G and WiFi networks.

Business benefits

Increased flexibility for users to work how, when and where they want. This flexibility includes mobility within their office, at home or at a public hotspot

Faster decision-making because of anytime, anywhere access to information Higher employee satisfaction owing to increased flexibility and access to the latest technology

Greater accuracy of information through the ability to instantly input and transmit data from the field

Increased productivity of workers through the automation of tasks such as job scheduling and worksheet generation

PDA projections

Over a fifth of all companies in the UK now have PDAs on their IT strategy agenda, according to a recent survey by the National Computing Centre (NCC).

But the 21% that currently equip sections of their workforce with devices is about to be joined by a host of other companies. While PDAs are being used in some capacity at three quarters of all organisations, in most cases they have been brought into the organisation by individuals. In the next few years, that is all about to change.

The NCC research says 65% of organisations expect that PDAs will be part of their IT strategy within two years. A year ago, just over half made that same forecast. “PDAs are coming increasingly into the corporate fold,” observes the NCC. ________________________________________________________________________

Speaking mobile

802.11b Most prevalent version of the WiFi standard

802.11i Forthcoming, security-hardened version of the WiFi standard

GPRS General packet radio services (2.5G cellular technology)

GSM General system of mobile communications (2G cellular technology)

MAC Media access control

VBN Visitor based network

VPN Virtual private network

WAP Wireless application protocol

WEP Wireless encryption protocol

WML Wireless mark-up language

WiFi Wireless fidelity (wireless local area networking technology)

WCDMA Wideband code-division multiple access (Europe’s 3G cellular technology)

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Leading voices

Bill Gates, Microsoft’s chairman and chief software architect “Probably the most exciting thing in computing today is all the things happening around mobile.”

Paul Otellini, Intel’s chief operating officer “The vision of a billion connected phones and a billion connected handsets is happening.”

Jorma Ollila, Nokia’s chairman and CEO “The commercial benefits that mobile communications bring pale into insignificance when compared to the overall good they bring to the global community.”

Washington Post columnist “I would sooner discuss my salary, tax return or sex life on a cellular phone in a crowded restaurant than transmit that data over a WiFi network.”