Vision - January/February 2009 - (Page 10) c4 trends viewpoints on Ce evolution ] • [ by susan sChreiner There are anywhere from two million to as many as 40 million workers who telecommute for at least part of their work week. Telework on the Rise lthough fuel and energy costs have come down, the uptick last fall caused companies and individuals to reevaluate how they run their lives. Americans still track the price of gas on a daily basis, and many changed their driving patterns as they carpool more and combine multiple trips into one. The trend also is helping to further the telework trend. There are anywhere from two million to as many as 40 million workers who telecommute for at least part of their work week. IDC estimates that by 2011, one billion workers around the world will be classified as mobile, including close to 75 percent of the U.S. workforce. Gartner Dataquest estimates that nearly 12 million employees telework more than eight hours per week, up from about six million in 2000. It expects that these workers will hit nearly 14 million by 2009. The U.S. worker will become a mixture of office inhabitant and work—anywhere. A Eye-Candy for Changing Workstyles and Lifestyles Within the portability trend, the uptake rate on relevant products and services that enable mobility, remote access and convenience form the core of alternative ways to work. Plus computers and related devices with broadband connections in homes, retail and other locations, have converged to create the perfect storm for telecommuting. Several products are ideally suited for these flexible workstyles. GPS is very much in style. If a GPS device is not built into a car, add-on devices like Magellan’s Maestro 4250 is an important addition to an energy efficient workstyle. If working at Starbucks is your style, consider a mobile broadband device for your computer. Hunting “hot-spots” is not needed if you have Novatel’s Mac/PC USB modem, model U727 or other styles of modem datacards. For a nomad, a hotspot locator is a must-have device, and in the event of travel, it enables you to make your time more productive. I.R.I.S. offers an interesting line of scanners ranging from PC/Mac card scanners and pens to its IRIScan 2 Executive 2 Desktop Scanner. Weighing less than .08 lbs. and measuring a slim 10.8-inch by 1.9-inches, it’s perfect for taking on the road and its slim design with a USB cradle can sit in a vertical position on your desk. Plus it comes with a PC/Mac software suite that enables scanning documents and business cards to Outlook, Notes or Act! and a translation application enables instant translation of text documents into 11 languages. If you’re working in your home office, Canon’s recently introduced MP480 multi-function inkjet printer copies, scans and prints paper documents, however Canon’s expertise in the camera business comes home when this model is used as a photo printer. Several features differentiate the MP480 from other printers: its 1.8-inch TFT display screen enables preview of an image and its Auto Photo Fix feature enables red-eye correction and other image enhancement functions with or without a computer. Need to mail letters or proposals as an alternative to e-mailing and don’t want to drive to the post office? Consider Dymo’s multi-function Desktop Mailing Solution with software. This integrated PC/Mac USB mailing solution produces labels as well as everything necessary for printing an address and weighing precise postage. The stamp software and scale indicates exactly how much postage is required to mail. To keep the conversation going, contact Susan at susan@c4trends.com. • www.ce.org 10 January/February 2009 image100/Alamy http://www.ce.org
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