With prices plummeting and the addition of new features, today's multimedia notebooks are among the must-have technologies for time-conscious Realtors. Technology trainer Stephen M. Canale, CRB, CRS, GRI, RAM, talks about his latest investment in the race to stay ahead of obsolescence:

THE "NEW BREED" OF MULTIMEDIA NOTEBOOKS

Many of today's technology-enabled professionals are still tied by an invisible cord to their office chairs, just waiting for the notebook computers to catch up to their the speed and convenience of their desktop units.

The wait is over.

Join me on a tour of my new machine: a Twinhead EX 233 TG multimedia notebook. While it's not the absolute fastest machine that money can buy, I think it is a great blend of the latest technology balanced with a reasonable price.

What's under the hood?

For power, this Twinhead runs with the Intel 233 Mhz "Tillamook" processor. Also known as the "Mobile Pentium" it is fully MMX-enabled (for faster graphics and multi-media performance), and runs fast, as well as cool!

Don't misunderstand. I don't mean "cool" as in the 1970s dance music that Intel uses in its current advertising campaign. What I mean is that it runs on only 1.8 volts. This not only draws less power from the battery than the machines of just six months ago, but generates less heat, as well. Less heat translates into less time running a cooling fan, which also draws power.

The bottom line? You get more speed with less power consumption, and that means a longer battery life. What a deal! The Twinhead (and most other brands) also comes with a 266 processor for those who want nothing less than the fastest notebook available.

Open the lid

When you flip up the active display panel, you notice that it's big. Really big! At 13.3 inches, it's just a tad smaller that my 15-inch desktop monitor! This makes portable computing much easier on the eyes, and therefore much more efficient.

The display is capable of XVGA display (1,024 x 768 pixels), which allows for more data on the screen at any one time. A real plus for surfing the Web, viewing databases or spreadsheets, or writing letters. Still want a bigger screen? The 14.2-inch displays are now commonly available, too.

How big is big enough?

While the Twinhead comes with a 2.1-gig hard drive standard, I chose the largest hard drive they had -- a whopping 4.2 gigabytes. Even after loading all of the software that I use for myself and for technology training, there's still more than half of the disk left over available for future use.

For RAM, you can buy a machine with anything from 32 to 128 megabytes. I chose 64 megs, enough to satisfy most users, but with room left over for future growth.

A particularly nice feature of this Twinhead line is its use of SO DIMM memory -- a new "standard" format. Forgetting the technobabble, this type of memory is much more readily available, and this means that when upgrading in the future, you won't be limited to buying from the original manufacturer -- and this saves money.

What about multimedia?

Just running a 233 Pentium MMX with lots of memory and a huge display isn't all you need for real multimedia. A standard 64 bit graphics controller and 4 megs of video RAM makes a real difference in the effective speed of the machine.

One of the greatest features of the Twinheads is their TV video output jacks. You can plug one of these units into any TV, VCR, or camcorder either to make tapes or give live presentations. That's great for a presenter, but also pretty effective for listing presentations or MLS searches in clients' living rooms, too.

Naturally, today's notebooks come with stereo sound and line in/out jacks, as well.

No king's ransom

The real shocker about the latest multi-media notebooks is the price. Depending on the options you want, $3,000 to $3,500 will pack one heck of a multimedia punch! This also means that the top-end notebooks of just six months ago, now sell for as little at $2,000.

If 1997 wasn't the year you started providing your clients with multimedia presentations, MLS searches, and virtual home tours in the convenience of their homes or anywhere else, then maybe 1998 is the time to start.

Published: April 7, 1998

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Editor's Note: This article reflects the opinions of Stephen Canale only and not necessarily the views of this or any other publication, organization or Website owner.