Mobile - Microsoft chums boost Pegasus

Microsoft unveiled its operating system for handhelds last month, holding hands with a number of supportive hardware suppliers. Pegasus, officially called Windows CE, will be formally introduced at Comdex in November. Five systems suppliers are already committed to implementing it: Casio, Hewlett-Packard, LG Electronics, NEC and Philips. A notable absentee is Compaq, which recently said it would launch a personal digital assistant based on the operating system in the fourth quarter. It was one of the original hardware manufacturers involved in the Windows CE initiative. Steve Ballmer, Executive President of Microsoft's Sales and Support Group, said: "The handheld PCs based on Windows CE will contain a low-powered, cheap Hitachi processor. We expect them to retail for around $500 (#300). This is a little more than we originally hoped for, but it will eventually come down."