Introducing Pocketables Products: Your gadget pocket's new best friend
In honor and celebration of Cyber Monday, I’d like to announce the launch of a brand new feature here at Pocketables that should make your shopping decisions a little easier and your gadget pockets a little fuller.
Pocketables Products is a portable gadget database and comparison engine that includes UMPCs, MIDs, consumer internet devices, digital media players (DAPs/PMPs), and netbooks. Whether you’re torn between several devices, overwhelmed by the massive amount of choices, or just curious about which gadget is "better" than the other, Pocketables Products is here to help. Thanks to a partnership with UMPCPortal, you can use the database to pit an unlimited amount of electronics against one another, search for specific brands/products/specs, and view detailed gadget specs.
For example, let’s say you’re in the market for a new 32GB digital media player.
Simply type "32GB" in the Search field and select "Digital Media Players" from the drop-down Category menu. In seconds, every single 32GB media player in the database appears in a list organized by popularity (i.e., most viewed products).
If you’d like to compare them in greater detail, tick each product’s Compare check box and hit the "Compare checked products" button at the top. A new window with additional information (screen resolution, audio/video battery life, memory card slot, etc.) will open.
Here’s a look at the comparison window containing all of the known 32GB digital media players:
For complete details on a particular product, click on the image, model name, or datasheet link in the "Info" column. Check out the 32GB Cowon S9 datasheet for an example. Note: Each storage capacity is listed separately for search purposes.
You can search for any product by model/brand name and any specification listed in the default view (model, operating system, CPU, screen size, Flash, HDD, dimensions, weight). You can also sort a specific spec in ascending/descending order by clicking its respective column header. For example, if you’ve searched for "Intel Atom" and would like to sort the results by weight, just click the "Weight" column header.
Speaking of columns, depending on the category you’re viewing, the inclusion of some of them may occasionally seem out of place. For example, operating system and CPU aren’t typical concerns for DAP shoppers; likewise, audio battery life isn’t exactly a deciding factor for potential UMPC and netbook owners. The reason for this is that the database was originally designed for UMPCs and the columns are fixed across all categories.
Since it is only because of Steve Paine’s generosity and patience that Pocketables is able to offer not just the products found at UMPCPortal (and partner sites jkkmobile and Liliputing) but also a comprehensive digital media player database, I needed to come up with an optimized list that would serve all the products equally well. There are certainly a few compromises (e.g., the memory card slot column, viewable in the comparison window, is only correctly populated for digital media players; the audio and video battery lives are listed as "0 hrs" for all computers), but I believe that they are outweighed by the benefits of having such a wide range of portable gadgets listed in one place.
Steve and I have been working on Pocketables Products in various capacities for about six months now, so being able to cut the ribbon and officially open the doors today is an indescribable feeling. And to top it off, a major server upgrade is already planned for this week!
Pocketables Products will always be accessible through a dedicated button on the silver toolbar beneath the site banner. I hope you find it useful.
