PCs pocket PCs-to-go

Policemen can now fight crime and excess paperwork simultaneously thanks to a Glasgow University spin-off company.

Lothian and Borders Police, as part of a four-month trial, have issued 300 officers with personal digital assistants developed by Kelvin Connect Ltd, a company that emerged from Glasgow's computing science department.

Replacing the traditional police notebook, the PDAs will log information at the scene of an incident and create reports at the click of a button. The force estimates that they will save £800,000 and work hours equivalent to 30 officers.