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2.3 MC 218 Design
The Ericsson Mobile Companion MC 218 has a sleek, oblong design. The sophisticated outer
casing is made of dark grey plastic, with a lid of bluish grey plastic with the Ericsson logo placed
on the front in an indentation within the plastic.
At the back of the unit there is a connection for RS 232 cables, an infrared port, a main battery
compartment covered by the battery cover and a small speaker. On the left-hand side of the MC 218
you can find a plug for the mains cable and a slot for the 3-volt CR2032 backup battery. A touch
pen slides into the right side of the unit. Located just beside the pen there is a slot for a compact
flash card and a microphone. On the front of the MC 218 there are three buttons (record, stop and
play) for the Voice note function.
The unit has two hinges covered with a piece of dark grey plastic at the back, allowing it to be
easily opened and closed.
The MC 218 has a sizeable keyboard with large, dark grey keys and white letters. Several extra
functions on certain keys are operated in conjunction with the Fn key. The extra functions are
printed on the keys below the letter, digit or main function. By pressing the Fn key at the same
time as the space key the backlight is switched on.
The black and white screen of the MC 218 has ½ VGA width, 640 x 240 pixels, 16:1 contrast, 16
greyscales and a bright backlight. Below the screen quick launch icons are located for some of the
most important applications (Desktop, Contacts, Calendar, My Phone, Message, Internet, Word,
Sheet and Extras).
2.5 Accessories
Accessories for the MC 218 are already on the market but they are not Ericsson branded. A mains
adaptor and compact flash memory disks are also available.
2.6 Interfaces
2.6.1 Power Supply
The MC 218 can be powered either through batteries or a DC adaptor. Included in the MC 218
package are two LR6 alkaline batteries and a 3V backup battery. The backup battery is placed in
the holder located underneath the MC 218 and the two alkaline batteries are placed in the holder
at the back of the MC 218. You can also use an external power supply, a 6V DC power adaptor.
Important!
Only use an adaptor, which has the positive connector in the centre and the ground
connector in the shield.
2.6.2 RS 232 Serial Port
The RS 232 port is located at the back of the MC 218. This port is used for serial communication
with a PC to synchronize files. The RS 232 is a serial protocol and the MC 218 supports the
standard RS 232 protocol.
2.6.3 Infrared Modem
The built-in infrared modem is located at the back of the MC218, next to the RS232 serial port.
The modem has been developed according to the IrDA standards (Infrared Data Association). The
IrDA Infrared data link is compatible with most Ericsson GSM 900/1800/1900 Phones (see the
chapter about compatibility). IrDA 1.0 allows data to be transmitted at the speed of 115.2 kbps
but currently the GSM system can transfer data at a speed of 9.6 kbps.
For the best performance, place the Ericsson Mobile Phone and infrared modem no more than a
metre away from and at a 30
°
angle to the Ericsson Mobile Companion’s infrared port.
