Personal digital assistant

A personal digital assistant (PDA), also known as a handheld PC,^[1]^[2] is a multi-purpose mobile device which functions as a personal information manager. PDAs have been mostly displaced by the widespread adoption of highly capable smartphones, in particular those based on iOS and Android, and thus saw a rapid decline in use after 2007.^[3]^[4]

Not to be confused with Virtual assistant.

A PDA has an electronic visual display. Most models also have audio capabilities, allowing usage as a portable media player, and also enabling many of them to be used as telephones. By the early 2000s, nearly all PDA models had the ability to access the Internet, intranets or extranets via Wi-Fi or Wireless WANs, and since that time PDAs generally include a web browser. Sometimes, instead of buttons, PDAs employ touchscreen technology.

A , where a keyboard is shown on the touchscreen. Text is entered by tapping the on-screen keyboard with a finger or stylus.

virtual keyboard

An external connected via USB, Infrared port, or Bluetooth. Some users may choose a chorded keyboard for one-handed use.

keyboard

where letters or words are written on the touchscreen, often with a stylus, and the PDA converts the input to text. Recognition and computation of handwritten horizontal and vertical formulas, such as "1 + 2 =", may also be a feature.

Handwriting recognition

Stroke recognition allows the user to make a predefined set of strokes on the touchscreen, sometimes in a special input area, representing the various characters to be input. The strokes are often simplified character shapes, making them easier for the device to recognize. One widely known stroke recognition system is Palm's .

Graffiti

Palm OS

Microsoft (Pocket PC) with a Windows CE kernel

Windows Mobile

The most common operating systems pre-installed on PDAs are:

Other, rarely used operating systems:

Automobile navigation[edit]

Some PDAs include Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers; this is particularly true of smartphones. Other PDAs are compatible with external GPS-receiver add-ons that use the PDA's processor and screen to display location information.^[19] PDAs with GPS functionality can be used for automotive navigation. PDAs are increasingly being fitted as standard on new cars. PDA-based GPS can also display traffic conditions, perform dynamic routing, and show known locations of roadside mobile radar guns. TomTom, Garmin, and iGO offer GPS navigation software for PDAs.

Access control and security

maintenance

Capital asset

Facilities maintenance and management

Infection control audit and surveillance within healthcare environments

Medical treatment and recordkeeping in hospitals

Meter reading by utilities

Military (U.S. Army, Pakistan Army)

Package delivery

Park and wildlife rangers

Parking enforcement

Route accounting

Supply chain management in warehouses

Taxicab allocation and routing

Waiter and waitress applications in restaurants and hospitality venues

Wildlife biologists

Some businesses and government organizations rely upon rugged PDAs, sometimes known as enterprise digital assistants (EDAs) or mobile computers, for mobile data applications. These PDAs have features that make them more robust and able to handle inclement weather, jolts, and moisture. EDAs often have extra features for data capture, such as barcode readers, radio-frequency identification (RFID) readers, magnetic stripe card readers, or smart card readers. These features are designed to facilitate the use of these devices to scan product or item codes.

Typical applications include: