MGI, a creator of visual media software, just announced MGI PhotoSuite Mobile Edition, a new product that allows users to store, view, and share photo and video files on both color and grayscale Palm OS handhelds, and comes with a Windows desktop application for fixing photos and optimizing media files prior to transfer. Images can be panned and zoomed. Video can be played at 30 fps and both can even be beamed between handhelds.

MGI is debuting the new software at the Palm Pavilion, as part of CES 2001. It will be available in February. The price hasn't been revealed yet.

Cirque Corporation, a provider of alternative input products, today unveiled the Pocket Keyboard, a mini-keyboard for Palm and Handspring palmtop computers, based on Cirque's award-winning GlidePoint technology. It is 3.5-inch by 2.625-inch touch panel that connects to the serial port and allows users to type information using a finger rather than a stylus.

The Pocket Keyboard is scheduled to begin shipping early in the second quarter of 2001 for about $40.

Update: A photo is now available.

The Infrared Data Association (IrDA) along with Palm Inc., Visa, and several other financial transaction companies will demonstrate a new financial messaging standard at the Consumer Electronics Show. They will show credit, debit, or checking data going from a Palm handheld via the Palm's infrared port to a Point-of-Sales (POS) terminal. The authorization request is then sent to a processing center and after verification, a payment authorization message is sent back to the terminal to finalize the transaction and transfer a receipt to the Palm. The process is complete in a matter of seconds.

OmniSky, the wireless ISP, is going to buy NomadIQ, a developer of location-based applications and services for handhelds. OmniSky said this purchase will let it deliver location services to its subscribers including next generation services to its subscribers -- including location-sensitive mobile commerce and user-to-user communications.

“NomadIQ has developed what we believe to be the most robust and comprehensive product for location-based applications and services,” said Patrick McVeigh, chairman and CEO of OmniSky.

Cnet has weighed in with their list of expected developments at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, which kicks of on Friday. Palm's CEO Carl Yankowski will use part of his keynote to show off a slightly mysterious service that will "allow Palm owners to use the handheld's infrared port to perform new tasks," though exactly what those tasks are wasn't revealed.

Sony is going to demonstrate a prototype of a wireless modem for the Clié, though it won't ship until the middle of this year. It is expected to cost around $300 and use GoAmerica as its ISP. Despite hints to the contrary, they aren't expected to begin offering the color version of the Clié in the United States at this show.

Sprint PCS and Palm, Inc. have just announced an agreement that will give Palm devices access to Sprint's all-digital voice and data CDMA network. They also plan to offer a co-branded version of the MyPalm portal. Additionally, this deal will allow enterprise customers to access their corporate e-mail, sales tool applications and corporate directories as part of the Sprint PCS Wireless Web for Business suite and Palm's wireless enterprise solutions.

Update: Data and voice use will be billed identically. Users will be charged a fee for a certain amount of airtime to use for either making calls or accessing data. All airtime beyond that will be charged on a minute-by-minute basis.

After a couple of weeks of public beta, Blue Nomad has released WordSmith 1.0. This word processor is the first on the Palm platform to support basic text formatting like as bold, italics, underline plus paragraph formatting, justification, and font selection. It has built-in support for the Stowaway folding keyboard and includes a conduit for syncing files with MS Windows. It is available now for $30. At the end of this month the price will jump up to $40. A 200 use trial version is available, too.

In a follow-up to the article we ran last month on refurbished devices being sold by Palm Inc., their website actually now has a few for sale. They are offering the Palm III for $100 and the Palm VII for $280. Neither are available new.

They are sold with a 90-day warranty and come in a white box with all the usual stuff: manual, CD, cradle, etc. They also come with Palm's reassurance that "Reconditioned handhelds are as good as new, cosmetically and electronically."

As they head into office this week, U.S. Senators and key staff members will benefit from instant access to key policy papers, daily agendas, press deployments and more from the Republican Party intranet and website on their handhelds with AvantGo Enterprise.

"We conducted a survey and found that 7 to 10 employees in each of the Senate Republican offices were using their personal digital assistants and a PC to synchronize their calendars. When we discovered AvantGo, we knew immediately that its enterprise solution could deliver more compelling content and bring it directly into the hands of those who needed information -- reliably and importantly, securely,'' said Tim Petty, director of Information Resources for the Technology Department of the Republican Conference.

The 2001 Consumer Electronics Show will kick off this Friday in Las Vegas and last through the weekend. In the old days, the CES was the poor stepchild of Comdex but in recent years, the CES has grown in importance as high end computers and other gadgets made the jump from the office into the home.

In the handheld arena, we can expect another round of product announcements, though the number of new items debuted at last month's PalmSource has surely reduced the pool of available new products. Hopefully, we'll get our first glimpse at a lot of new hardware, as software was the star at PalmSource. There are rumors that Palm will show a prototype of the smaller, color Palm V with the SD slot, though this may be wishful thinking.

PDAHealthWare, a new Palm OS software development company focusing on personal health software, has released it's first application, Health Empowerment Tools 1.0. The software allows something for all members of the family, including screening guidelines, medication reminders, and more. It costs $18 and a free 10 day demo is available.