TECH WATCH

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Tech Strategies for 2003

Best buys abound for enhancing your technology equipment this year.

REPORTED BY MICHAEL ANTONIAK

Want to get the most from your technology budget in 2003? With the year still unfolding, now’s the best time to assess all your options for buying or upgrading your existing hardware and software.

The tech sector is emerging from a tough year and an especially tough fourth quarter, making for a buyer’s market in most products. Even in digital cameras, one of last year’s standout sellers, you’ll be impressed with how much camera your money can buy. If you mostly use digital images to post on your Web site, you’ll be able to get an adequate camera for less than $200.

For many real estate practitioners, 2003 may be the year to focus on upgrading their wireless communications. Computers are certainly a requisite for today’s real estate practitioner, but wireless is even more fundamental to the way most salespeople work. Of course, you probably have a cell phone, but is that still enough? People e-mail as much as they call these days, so instant e-mail access away from the office can prove an advantage. This might be the year to upgrade your phone and service plan to handle wireless e-mail. With so many new phones and so much competition among wireless vendors, your service provider could be in a bargaining mood to keep your business.

The big question is deciding whether you’re better off with a basic cell phone with new features, an all-in one smart phone that combines the features of a phone and PDA, or something in between. Decide first if you really want one device for all your needs or feel more confident carrying some combination of mobile equipment with complementary features. For all the convenience of any all-in-one device, if it breaks, you can lose all functions until it’s fixed.

Even today’s basic cell phones feature calendar and contact information management functions, which may be all the data you need in the field. Many also offer e-mail send/receive capabilities. As you step up to a higher-priced phone, you’ll even found a few that can double as digital cameras. For those who sell in a highly competitive market where it’s critical to get pictures of property to clients without delay, the snap-on camera module may be an accessory worth having. If you think you’d like the convenience of having everything in one handheld device, now is a good time to consider stepping up to an all-in-one smart phone. There’s a growing selection of devices that can offer phone, e-mail, camera, and PDA functions at prices less than all these devices would cost you individually.

Another alternative is a PDA, especially those models that offer e-mail and calling options. PDAs should be one of the most hotly contested and thus competitively priced product categories this year. With some Pocket PC and Palm PDAs available for between $200 and $300, literally weigh your choices and decide whether you’ll require a true handheld computer like a Pocket PC or can get along with the less robust processing power of one of the more compact Palm devices.

Also look to your local MLS for guidance on which platform it supports for wireless MLS data, so you’ll be able to easily access that information when it becomes available. And no matter what PDA you buy, you’ll want to back up your data on your primary PC.

If you bought your desktop or laptop computer more than two years ago, 2003 is probably also the time to re-enter this market. Technology has advanced as prices have fallen, so you’ll be well-served stepping up to this year’s models. Desktop systems remain the best buys, some even priced at less than $1,000. Advances in portable processors and LCD screen make the notebook practical as your main system, too. Prices start around $1,000 and run roughly twice the cost of a desktop system with comparable specs. If you’re looking for versatility in your computer, consider a Tablet PC. Starting around $1,500, it can function both as a standard PC and as a true electronic notepad: what you write on the tablet screen is stored as data and text you can search, sort, and use as needed in applications.

If you have a favorite real estate or generic software application, you may need to upgrade your hardware system or your operating system to use the latest version.

Before you buy an upgrade, check to see if the publisher offers a Web-based software option. Web-based applications give you anywhere/anytime access to software features and your data with a standard Web browser. The downside: you’re committing yourself to monthly subscription fees and the possibility that you can’t get to your data if your IPS is having a server problem. If subscribing to a Web-based application sounds appealing, it’s also a good idea to read the contract's fine print. You want to be sure that you’ll be able to take your data with you if you ever decide to switch to a different Web-based application.

Deciding to use Web-based applications, as well as increasingly sophisticated Web content, may warrant a faster Internet connection in 2003. If you’re still in dial-up mode, your Web experience will only get more frustrating. Look into broadband options, be it DSL, ISDN, cable modem, or a satellite link. Expect to pay at least two or three times your current dial-up costs if you switch to broadband, plus additional hardware costs. But broadband offers speed and convenience that make it well worth the added expense if you regularly send and receive images and other large files.

Wireless networking is another convenience whose time has come. The pricing on the hubs and cards required to connect devices at your home office or brokerage without the bother of cabling continues to fall, and much new hardware comes already equipped for wireless connectivity.

With all the ways you can spend your tech dollars this year, it’s not easy to decide, even with all the bargains available. But before you start shopping, take time to identify which tools will really help you do a better job selling property and serving buyers and sellers this year. Remember the key to smart investing in technology: pay for only the features and performance you will actually use. And keep reading “Tech Watch” to stay abreast of the relevant trends, tools, and technology that can enhance how you work and the services you provide.

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More Resources:
A Technology Candy Store , Michael Antoniak, January 2002.
Buyer’s Guide: Smart Phones , Michael Antoniak, November 2002
Time to Invest in a Wireless PDA? , Michael Antoniak, March 2001

Previously by Antoniak:
A Quick Fix for E-Mailing Photos
Improve Your Web Response
Redefining Portable Computing
Sidekick Offers a New All-in-One Mobile Option

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Do you have technology you’d like to learn more about or a new user twist that you’d like to share with your peers? Let me know about it by e-mailing antoniak@dtccom.net, and I’ll do my best to give it the coverage it deserves.


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