It is no secret that PDAs and smartphones do a lot with a small amount of space. Yet sometimes the limited amount of memory and diminutive size of these devices restrict their capabilities.

That's where expansion slots come in.

You see, most Palm, Pocket PC and, sometimes, Symbian handhelds feature Compact Flash, Secure Digital and—in the case of Sony—Memory Stick slots for peripheral and memory expansion cards. These cards greatly augment the capabilities, not to mention the fun, of mobile computing.

In part one of our two-part series on expansion cards, we check out some of the top reference and business tools available. Next month, we'll survey the best games these cards have to offer.

Reference Cards

Audio Translator, aka Speaking Language Translator
Compatible with Palm OS, Pocket PC, and Symbian OS

Frequent fliers will love Audio Translator, an electronic phrasebook that not only tells you foreign phrases; it pronounces them too. Start by selecting your language and the language for which you need translating. The program can translate to and from English, French, German, Spanish, and Italian. You can search in three ways: either browse through a list of all words and phrases, select from a list of categories, or look at a list of keywords.


Audio Translator helps you order in restaurants
abroad, no matter how rarified your tastes.

Select a phrase and you'll see it in your language and the translation language, with audio links beside each. If your handheld supports audio playback, a synthesized voice will pronounce the phrase for you. We love the program, although we wish the site listed which handhelds support audio playback, since many users probably won't be sure if their device does or doesn't.


Audio Translator groups words and phrases into categories,
so that you can quickly find what you're looking for.

$39.99, www.gomdm.com

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
Compatible with Palm OS, Pocket PC, and Symbian OS

While your parents probably had a weighty set of encyclopedias in the den; you can have a card the size of a postage stamp with the same amount of information. The Britannica Concise Encyclopedia contains a streamlined version of the famous encyclopedia, letting you look up essential facts anytime, anywhere.


Britannica Concise Encyclopedia includes a section
on images, so that you can see what you're studying.

There are two parts to the program: an alphabetical list of text entries and an alphabetical list of images. You can enter a search term to look for particular information or just browse and let your curiosity guide you. Entries are tightly written and informative, giving you essential information at a glance. We think it's a good gift for your favorite college student, letting him or her look up info quickly while working on projects.


Browsing through the entries in Britannica is
not only informative, but also a fun way to pass the time.

$29.99, www.gomdm.com