Symbol Earmarks Low-Cost Mobile Scanning System For SMBs

With the introduction of its MC1000 mobile computer, Symbol now has a $695 scanning and data-entry system that offers many of the same features of its closest kin, the $1,200 MC3000, said Mark Chellis, director of Go To Market For Symbol, a marketing arm of the Holtsville, N.Y.-based vendor.

Symbol launched the MC1000 in response to small and midsize businesses that said they found the company&'s price points prohibitive, according to Chellis. "We want SMBs to take advantage of our technology without crippling them with a tremendous investment," he said.

The MC1000 also will help Symbol fight back advances by Casio and Intermec, two vendors that have been exploiting Symbol's absence in the low-cost mobile scanning arena by coming out with their own mobile offerings, Chellis added.

Featuring an ergonomic design, the MC1000 helps users scan and enter data more accurately in inventory management, stock checking and order delivery, Chellis said. The Windows CE-based product sports a water-resistant casing and wireless capability, and its memory can be upgraded easily, he said.

Symbol plans to tie the MC1000 into its recently launched PartnerSelect ISV Program, which encourages software developers to wrap added functionality around Symbol's product line, according to Chellis.

Jason Lauder, business process manager at Blue Ivy Solutions, a Symbol partner and ISV in New Boston, N.H., said many of his Symbol customers got an early whiff of the MC1000 as it moved from the drawing board to the production line, and most were eager to get their hands on it.

"Many of these customers were already using some other Symbol device, and they were looking for a lower price-point, lighter device,” Lauder said.