Origami mini PC

[r988]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology

Microsoft have launch their new mini PC thing, I'm not sure where it fits in though. It's a bit big to be truly pocket size like current handhelds and looks a bit too small to be as functional and some of those tiny laptops that are around. The killer is the price supposed to be £669! Seems a bit much really, you could get a reasonable laptop for that, probably even a top of the range handheld.

The specs are ok but not outstanding.

Intel Celeron 900mhz
40 GB hard drive
7 inch WGA screen
Weighs 779g
Bluetooth

I'm not sure it will be a success, but it will be interesting to see if it dies a miserable death or not. I usually like hitech gimmicky gadgets but this doesn't seem much like something I'd want to rush out and buy, not for that price anyway.

[billb]

was just about to post the same thing - whats so great about it

doesnt do any more than anything else on market at mo? looks chunky to me

[catretriever]

I think it's size will be it's downfall. If it's too big for your pocket then you need to carry it in a bag. If you have to have a bag, might as well have a laptop in there

[r988]

It's pretty much panned on the CNET tech news site
http://news.com.com/2001-1_3-0.html

Amusingly one of the comments calls it an Apple Newton

[billb]

r988 said:

It's pretty much panned on the CNET tech news site http://news.com.com/2001-1_3-0.html Amusingly one of the comments calls it an Apple Newton

the photos of it are hilarious - yes it can fit on your car dashboard and look play tv with this huuuuuge external connector! pile of poo and u can guarentee battery wont last teh lenght of a film after 1 month

[jamieboy]

Not for me at the minute - if I need portable I'll take my iPaq, if I need a PC I'll take my laptop, and so far these devices fall between two stools.

I can see a place for it in niche markets like maybe healthcare, but I'd be surprised if it's a mainstream success in this iteration.

[Don]

r988 said:

Amusingly one of the comments calls it an Apple Newton

Which were one of the most overrated hunks of junk ever...yes I had one...

[r988]

Don said:

r988 said: Amusingly one of the comments calls it an Apple Newton Which were one of the most overrated hunks of junk ever...yes I had one...

A product looking for a market

[mattley]

Don said:

r988 said: Amusingly one of the comments calls it an Apple Newton Which were one of the most overrated hunks of junk ever...yes I had one...

Ooh I'm not having that said. It was way ahead of the game.


I loved my Newton, it was the coolest thing on the planet in 1994.

[Don]

jamieboy said:

Not for me at the minute - if I need portable I'll take my iPaq, if I need a PC I'll take my laptop, and so far these devices fall between two stools. I can see a place for it in niche markets like maybe healthcare, but I'd be surprised if it's a mainstream success in this iteration.

I can see having one. But its got to fit in my coat. Back in the eighties I used to carry around a huge brick of a mobile phone. I can carry quite a big "thing" provided it does enough for me.

Needs to have inbuilt GPS,GPRS,3G,WiFi,Bluetooth and be my phone, be my laptop, be my Navigator, be my picture viewer/storage device, be my portable video-player, be a camera, be a video camera. Needs to be light/small enough to carry in my coat, be tough enough to go in my rucksack when I'm walking (Navigator) and the battery needs to last 48 hours, at least ten hours in use.

Don't want a lot do I?

[Don]

mattley said:

I loved my Newton, it was the coolest thing on the planet in 1994.

Technologically a marvel. Ergonomically a disater. Everyone I knew who had one got weed off in a week.

BUT ... and its a big but. I got one when they very, very first came out.

It was a totty magnet extraordinaire. My "demo" used to last ... however long was convenient...

[mattley]

Don said:

It was a totty magnet extraordinaire. My "demo" used to last ... however long was convenient...

Oh yeah, Wow whats that, well you write your name on it, here, Oh cool what else will it do? well you can write phone numbers too......



...he he to easy

[orgasmicliving!!]

Don said:

[quote=jamieboy]... Needs to have inbuilt GPS,GPRS,3G,WiFi,Bluetooth and be my phone, be my laptop, be my Navigator, be my picture viewer/storage device, be my portable video-player, be a camera, be a video camera. Needs to be light/small enough to carry in my coat, be tough enough to go in my rucksack when I'm walking (Navigator) and the battery needs to last 48 hours, at least ten hours in use. Don't want a lot do I?

Fully agree with your analysis. I want everything too, with an easy and quick input method as well as a pop-out/slide-out/fold-out screen for when I need more information displayed, or want to look at a bigger picture. Your basic media player, PC with web access, hi-res camera, GPS device, and smartphone combined, in a device that allows one-handed input (FITALY keyboard) and is no bigger than a modern mobile phone unless the screen is extended. Oh, all peripherals should be on retractable wires and "dock" into it too. 1 week battery life at full usage.

Since it will allow one-handed input, it should have some way of attaching to the other wrist, so it is truly "hands-free".

They already have media player, web access, camera, and smartphone covered. Just need to work on
- battery life
- form factor
- GPS integration (crap versions already available on smartphones)
- retractable and docking peripherals like headphone buds, GPS receivers, camera module (so you can remove it when going to places where photography is restricted).

I would not mind it being "ugly" to begin with, as long as the functionality is there. Same as Newton.

[timsta]

www.oqo.com

And it's the size of a dollar bill.

[anonymous-user]

timsta said:

www.oqo.com

I like that! But at half the price, maybe.

Interesting to see the Transmeta Crusoe chip is still being used.

[RobDickinson]

Cant see this as even aproaching a market success. M$ despratly trying to shove the tablet PC back down our throat yet again, this time they've made it smaller, whoopee, doesnt address its main problems.

This at a time when PDA's are dying, everythings going smartphone, with keyboards.

Twice the price of a laptop half the usefullness, most of the bulkiness. nah.

[orgasmicliving!!]

In your opinion, what are the main shortcomings of the Tablet PCs?

[RobDickinson]

Kacl of keyboard, lack of worthwhile software to run, but mostly lack of battery life.

You end up not being able to do any more real work on them than you can with a PDA except the PDA runs for longer & lighter.

[jamieboy]

RobDickinson said:

lack of worthwhile software to run

I think that's the sole advantage of this over a PDA though - it is a full PC running XP with tablet additions, so can run the exact same software as your laptop or desktop.

[Don]

LexSport said:

timsta said: www.oqo.com I like that! But at half the price, maybe. Interesting to see the Transmeta Crusoe chip is still being used.

Hmmm. Getting there! More integrated gear though. Its the right size and I like the "slip out" keyboard. The idea of using Voice Recognition is cool too - although unusable on the plane/train/tube etc.

Needs much more memory, and disk storage. Also not including integrated GPS location hardware and mobile data access (GPRS, 3G etc) is a mistake. I don't care if Bluetooth makes these easy to connect - I want them in the same box!

I does appear to be the right size though...like I say...it can be a bit larger than a phone if it does enough for you...

Basically I want the entire functionality of a desktop (and media) PC connected to a GPS reciever and Broadband internet in a highly portable package with a long battery life and ultra reliable standby. When it goes into standby it mustn't lose GPS location.