Audiovox
PPC 5050

The Audiovox PPC 5050, codenamed Falcon, was a variant of the HTC Wallaby. This hybrid PDA-and-mobile-phone platform is best known as the O2 XDA and the T-Mobile MDA. It was unveiled at the 2004 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The PPC 5050 was notable as the first 1xEV-DO device in North America. 1xEV-DO was a CDMA standard that offered extremely high wireless data speeds, averaging around 300-500 kbps, many times faster than the earlier generation of technology, 1xRTT, and GSM-based GPRS and EDGE data networks typically found elsewhere in the world at the time. Unlike other devices built on the Wallaby platform, it had a built-in stubby antenna that supported “tower-based location” and GPS support. The announcement was particularly significant because it coincided with news that US carrier Verizon would deploy EV-DO nationwide starting in the summer of 2004. Commenting at the time, Audiovox Vice President Daniel McGuire described the PPC 5050 as “the ultimate wireless tool for business travellers”, offering “a portable computer, a wireless phone and a personal music device all in one compact unit.”