Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.
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TIPS & TRICKS E 5 Hardware Tools that Mean Business For Small Businesses Even with all the talk about the pro- ductivity-boosting eff ects of going to the cloud … and SaaS this, and web-based that, technology hardware remains an essential component of any modern business. Yet, while the obvious core components of desktops, laptops, monitors, printers and even phones may immediately come to many people's minds when they hear the term hardware, there are many specialty gadgets that can help businesses maximize their mobile mojo, empower their productivity, energize their effi ciency and boost their bot om line. MOBILE MONITOR TECHNOLOGIES — FIELD MONITOR PRO www.mmt2.com Many professionals have got en used to the advantages of multiple monitors on their desktops. Whether two, three or even more, research shows that multiple monitors help increase productivity. For professionals whose work oſt en takes them on the road, having to even tem- porarily work from a single (smaller) monitor can be more than an inconve- nience; it can actually cause a decrease in effi ciency. Lugging around an extra monitor isn't an option, though. Or is it? T e Field Monitor Pro was created for accountants and designed to be mobile-friendly and easily portable. It includes a pivoting base that looks like a notebook PC but actually offers a full-size 10-key, a USB video connector, extra USB connections and a compact, built-in stand that allows for landscape or portrait confi guration. For on-the-go professionals who oſt en fi nd themselves in the netherworld of single-screen, cramped-keyboard purgatory, especially auditors in the fi eld, the Field Monitor Pro off ers a well-deserved reprieve. T e 15.4-inch monitors cost $289, can work with PCs and Macs, weigh only four pounds, and easily fi t alongside laptops in travel bags. Isaac M. O'Bannon, Technology Editor Isaac is the Technology Editor for CPA Practice Advisor, having joined the publication in September 2002. Through his experience in the areas of consumer and professional- level software and peripherals, as well as knowledge of the public accounting fi eld, he provides reviews of technologies used by accountants and their business clients as well as contributing a regular column that provides helpful information that ranges from improving search techniques, when to upgrade a computer and computing security issues. FUJITSU — SCANSNAP S1100 ht p://scanners.fcpa.fujitsu.com/ scansnap11/s1100.html For professional accountants, scanning documents has become an essential component of the concepts of the paperless offi ce and optimized workfl ow, and many firms have successfully implemented scanning processes into the front end of most of their engagements. When workers are mobile, they can even take the convenient and very portable ScanSnap S1100 with them. T e smallest, fully featured scanner on the market, the S1100 off ers optical char- acter recogni- tion to create searchable 10 September 2011 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com and interactive PDFs, and to pull informa- tion from documents and business cards. It then synchs that data into Outlook and other contact management systems. T e pocked-sized S1100 (11"x2" and only 12 ounces) off ers continuous feed detection, full-color scanning and a 7.5 second scan speed. It costs $199 and can be used with Macs or PCs. NOVATEL WIRELESS — MiFi www.novatelwireless.com/mifi Even in an age when almost everything is web-enabled, not everything has built-in connectivity, which means you still may need a wire- less network to use or have ful l internet access with your laptop, iPad or other Wi-Fi capable devices. T at's fi ne when you're around the offi ce or in an urban setting where there's always a network to be found, but when you're in the middle of nowhere on a road trip with colleagues, friends or family, that just isn't an option, and adding 3G/4G packages to each of those items can get pricey. That's where the MiFi can be an essential tool that lets you share a personal wireless hotspot with up to fi ve devices, with a range of up to 30 feet. Smaller than an iPhone, the MiFi works like a mobile USB broadband card, with a four-hour active use bat ery life and up to 40 hours when on standby. T e MiFi also off ers a memory card slot that allows it to hold up to 32GB of data. T e MiFi is off ered by the major wireless providers, ranging in price from as low as $50 with a two-year plan. SQUARE INC. — SQUARE CREDIT CARD READER www.squareup.com For service-based companies, mobile workers can present a challenge when it comes to accepting the preferred manner of payment these days: credit and debit cards. Unfortunately, many small businesses think of credit card processing and mer- chant account services as diffi cult and expensive. T e good news is, it's neither. With a simple gadget- and-app combination called Square, all the business owner or staff member has to do is swipe a customer's card and enter in some pricing and cardholder details. T e transaction is instantly pro- cessed, and the funds are transferred into the business' bank account. Simply create an account on Square's secure servers and at ach the quarter-sized swipe card reader to an iPhone, iPad or Android device. Pricing for the system is based on use, with each transaction processed by swipe having a 2.7% fee. If credit card numbers are entered manually, the charge is 3.5% plus 15 cents per transaction. T e swipe card reader gadget and the app are free, and there are no setup or management fees. SUTUS, INC. — SUTUS BUSINESS CENTRAL www.sutus.com Every business has varying needs when it comes to their phone systems, data servers, email servers, routers and wireless networking. T e Sutus Business Central system integrates all of these parts of a business' data, production and communication needs, including firewalls and other security protocols, to help ensure maxi- mized productivity. T e systems can also tie into point-of-sale systems, accounting programs, and scanners and printers, and supports users across multiple offi ces and remote locations. Even more con- venient, the Business Central system combines all of these needs into a single IT appliance that simplifi es managing these systems and helps reduce the total cost of ownership, from purchase and training, through maintenance and support.