REX 6000
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The Rex 6000 is an ultra-thin PDA produced by Xircom, then Intel, from about 2000 to 2001. Its primary claim to fame is as “The world's smallest full-function PDA”, due to its unusual physical configuration as a PCMCIA Type-II card (8.57 x 5.40 x .5 cm; 40 g). The REX may be synchronized by inserting it in a host PC's PCMCIA/PC-card slot. Docking stations were manufactured for connection to hosts without PCMCIA Type-II slots, which allows the REX to be connected via a USB or serial connection.
The Rex 6000 is the successor to the Franklin REX 5000, with a notable difference being the addition of a touch screen. In addition, it is possible to remove and install executable code (including both custom applications and the operating system itself). As with the earlier Reges, the Rex 6000 was initially developed by the Citizen Watch Company of Japan, marketed as the "DataSlim-2."
The Rex 6000 does not support handwriting recognition and to enter data, a pop-up keyboard is used. The standard Rex 6000 has an American keyboard layout, although third-party software allows for other keyboard layouts. The pre-installed software for the Rex consists of the following:
- Calendar
- Address book
- Todo list
- Notebook
- World clock
- Calculator
Third-party software ("addins") include games, painting programs, spreadsheets and replacements for the pre-installed software. Most third-party software has been developed using customized versions of the Z88DK compiler or the Small Device C Compiler (SDCC).
The earliest release of the Rex 6000 had 1 MB of flash memory, while later releases doubled this to 2 MB. (Earlier Reges had used RAM with the operating system in ROM.) The Rex has 32 KB of RAM memory, but only 12KB is available for application developers. It uses a 4.3 MHz Toshiba microprocessor compatible to the Zilog Z80, has a 240 by 120 pixel monochrome LCD, and is powered by two button-type lithium cells.
As of 2006, the Rex 6000 retains a devoted group of users and developers.
