Apple is on the hunt for a new handwriting recognition engineer; Tablet Mac in the works?

All the true believers who have been pining away for a Tablet Mac will be happy to hear that Apple is looking to hire a new "Handwriting Recognition Engineer" who is "passionate about providing handwriting solutions to end customers" and who strongly believes that "using a stylus and a tablet is the way to interact with computers." Translation: If you can decode Stevie J.'s chicken scrawl, you're hired.

We should probably resist the temptation to read too much into this (OS X does already offer handwriting recognition courtesy of Inkwell), but then again Apple did receive a patent for a tablet-style computer earlier this year and so we wouldn't be surprised if it turns out that one of the reasons they switched to Intel was so they could build an ultralight, ultrathin Tablet Mac.

[Via MacRumors]

[brickballs @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

I wish Palm hadn't lost graffiti. I still use that on my old palm.. when i use it.

[James @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

seems a logical product for apple to come out with - though I'm sure it's at least a year away if they're only just hiring software developers for it.

[Steven Schrab @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

I'm still hoping this is a smaller unit (if it's real). Something with a screen about half the size of a piece of paper. Tablet PCs are too big, but PDAs are to small. A true "notebook" sized computer. It'd be a nice portable movie watcher too. Heck put a nice redesigned iPod-esque controller on it, and you might even be able to play some games on it. Portable Dashboard widgets would be great too. I'd buy one.

[The Jeremy @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

The Mac Tablet could still be years away. Think about it. Apple has a patent on computer cases changing color. Have we seen any Macs yet that take advantage of that patent? I'd rather Apple worked with Palm to shore them up in the meantime. Use Palm as a pawn to chip away at PocketPC. Seems Apple has that idea in mind with the collaboration with Motorola on the iTunes Phone and Nokia with porting the Safari browser.

[Jeff L. @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

what ever happened to Inkwell?

[Tom @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

Maybe its just me, but since Google actually did release a Jabber based chat client I'm inclined to believe every Apple or Google rumor that comes my way.

[Cupocoffee @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

Why wouldn't they just buy ritePen? Its just as good as MS HWR.
BTW... this is the last missing piece for me to believe Apple is going to do something with tablet. Inkwell is not even close to being good enough, so they will have to replace it. (But I think they can buy it rather than build it)

[gnome @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

All bow before our new Newton II overlords!

[strider_mt2k @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

Is that the sound of Ewoks chanting?

[Navras @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

if apple likes to make a tablet to join to the other merchandise i hope the mass market acepts that,because now we have the macs,the ipods,now the motorolas E790,the new mices and i hope new hardware comes on to i put my hands on it!

[pete @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

Or we could just install OSx86 on our TabletPCs and not wait for Apple to design hardware that already exists...
Mmmm kinda like I'm doing here -

http://www.tabletpcbuzz.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=27117

Older model, hardware is a little under-powered...

[aprodite @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

#3 Steven Schrab
"half the size of a piece of paper"

What size pice of paper do you want it to be half the size of?

I work in a Print Shop, so a pices of paper can be anything from A0 (841.0mm x 1189.0 mm == 33.11 in. x 46.81 in.) to a postage stamp.
/rant

Back on topic, an ultrathin mac tablet would be lovely. If it came in at about the same size of the 12inch screens on the ibooks and powerbooks I'd be a very happy camper

[xVariable @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

Too late Steve, you've lost a customer (me).

See, I began looking for an ultra portable laptop about, oh, 4-6 months ago. I had *seriously* considered the 12" iBook, until I saw how far tablets have progressed. Then I began to hear rumours that an Apple Tablet reease was imminent.

"Excellent!", I thought. "I'll just wait for that, and I'll be sitting pretty." 6-odd months later nothing and, in the mean time, Apple announced their move to Intel. I've now pretty much settled on the 10.4" HP tablet, which I will be getting cum January-ish, and Tiger is running on beige boxes. Indeed, I'm multi-booting it with XP, Vista, and Fedora Core 4.

Do you suppose Steve will have rolled something out by january? No? Hell, I'll even wait till February. Still no? Hm...

Given all that I've said, what do yo think the chances are that I'll buy what Apple's selling when it's released? Furthermore, given the quality of the hardware I'm buying (and the fact that drivers *will* be available), do you suppose my "end-user experience" will suffer? I think not. Sorry, Steve. You know, if you sold the OS at retail f/generic HW, I'd buy it.

[Chris @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

'Something with a screen about half the size of a piece of paper' ... 'A true "notebook" sized computer.'

Um... so.. paper comes in a notebook. You want your screen half the size of a piece of paper from said notebook. But... being half the size of a piece of paper from a physical notebook makes something truly notebook sized? /bleeds from eyesockets

[Jon Shipman @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

So I really want a tablet.

Like now. Right now I'm forced to use a Wacom tablet, but built into the screen would rule 10x. Hopefully they'll have one in 2007

[Tomas @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

Eat up Martha.

[Shafiq @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

I hope they decide to make it natively support southpaws, or something like that for us sinister lot :(

[lajocaab @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

The technology is available to provide consumers with a product like "iSlate". Of course only Apple could really do it right, although several other companies are attempting to create some variation of this device. Unfortunately many are too focused on video playback only, & not creating a true multi-function device that could be used at home, at the office, or on the road. This product would integrate well into the "Digital Lifestyle" philosophy & compliment existing Apple products.

It would provide a screen large enough to actually watch video & view photos, while still being small enough to be portable. It needs to be smaller than a notebook computer, but larger than a PDA. Granted, you can not put a device the size of a DVD case in your pocket, but something doesn't have to fit in a pocket to be portable. This device could be used in so many different situations that it would have broad appeal in the market. I only pray that Apple is working on such a device & will release it in 2004. They have an opportunity to impact the industry with the iSlate & iVideo media Store as much as the iPod & iTMS will.

iSlate

New Apple mini-tablet �> PMA (portable media appliance)

Designed not to be a creative device like a desktop or laptop, but rather a sophisticated display device that communicates seamlessly with other devices via Rendezvous & 802.11, BT, GPRS, FireWire, etc.


Device Size:
8� x 5.0� x .65� (�15oz)
� 1/2 size of a 17� PowerBook
� 2x size of a Palm T5 or an iPod
� size of a DVD movie case
small enough to hold with one hand by the bezel (.5� bezel on the sides)

Screen:
�8� LCD (16:9 ratio) -> 800 x 480 pixels minimum (1024 x 600 ideally)
� 1/2 size of 17� PowerBook screen
� 2x size of a Palm T5 screen
able to display �640 x 480 material� & DVD (720x480) quality video natively

Battery:
6-9 hour Li-Ion battery (or some new battery technology)

Storage:
1.8� 40GB or 60GB hard drive (additional capacity can come from external devices)
256MB or 512MB RAM - fixed
SD slot (w/ adapter for xD & Smart Media)

Processor & OS ?:
Motorola 800 MHz G4 mobile w/ Mac OS X lite or
Intel 500 MHz XScale PXA270 w/ Mac OS Mobile?

Connectivity:
802.11 �> Desktop or Laptop, Stereo, Internet via Wi-Fi hotspots
Bluetooth �> Keyboard, Mouse, PDA, Wireless Headphones, Internet via GSM Phone
FireWire �> iPod, Computer, Hard Drive, DVD/CD writer, Video Camera, iSight
USB 2.0 �> Printer, PDA, Digital Still Camera
mini-DVI w/adapter for:
-> ADC & VGA for larger monitor
-> DVI for video projector or HDTV
-> S-Video for video projector or TV
-> Composite for video projector or TV
Stereo mini out
Stereo mini in
Rendezvous for seamless connectivity to other devices

Input:
Inkwell via touch screen &/or stylus
Keyboard & mouse via Bluetooth or USB
Microphone
Remote control via Bluetooth

Applications:
inkwell, iPhoto, iTunes, iMovie, Safari, QuickTime, iSync, Rendezvous
Preview, Mail, iCal, Address Book, Sherlock, iChat AV
Keynote, FileMaker, Quicken, etc.

A/V Formats:
Pixlet, MPEG-4, MPEG-2, MPEG-1, AAC, MP3, WAV, AIFF, Audible, JPEG, TIFF, GIF

Accessories:
Charger, External Battery, Stand, clip for iSight, Portable folding BT keyboard, BT mouse
Headphone w/Microphone boom, quality stereo headphones

Price ??:
$699 to $999


Create a device that is bigger that the largest PDA or Archos type device, yet smaller than the average notebook or tablet computer. Imagine if you will, holding a device (about the size of a DVD case) away from you anywhere from 12" to 18". Obviously a 4" screen would be inadequate, but a 7" to 9" diagonal widescreen would be more than acceptable. It could still be small enough to fit in a stack of books, a briefcase, a large purse, of any number of other carrying cases. It would be something that could be viewed in an office, at home, in a coffee shop, on an airplane or train, or even in the backseat of a car.

The idea is not to see how much visual information one can cram into a small space (3" to 4" screens) or replace existing devices like the TV or Video Projector. The idea is to create a device that is a reasonable compromise between portability & "acceptable or pleasurable" viewing for multiple applications & that also complements existing devices.

Although a 4 lb, 12" notebook computer displays video beautifully (I use one everyday), it is too big for the situations I have described. Beyond the innumerable business applications it could fulfill, it could display video & photos on a screen that is much bigger than an Archos type device or PDA, & yet smaller than a notebook computer. It doesn�t need to carry everything all the time, so it doesn�t require a massive hard drive. The internal HD needs only to be large enough for the OS, applications & enough storage to carry material while you away from any connectivity to other devices or the internet.

From a strictly �video perspective�, a large part of its success would hinge upon Apple's ability to distribute video clips through an online store much like iTMS. This store could provide educational content, business content, news content, & entertainment content beyond just movies. To be truly successful, it must integrate into Apple's "Digital Lifestyle" strategy, & be truly portable (ubiquitous wireless connectivity & good battery life).

Originally Posted by: lajocaab on Feb 11, 04 | 11:05 pm

[ZSX @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

I've been a convert to tablets ever since I bought my Fujitsu LT running Windows 98 SE. Thin tablets about A5 in size are definitely the way forward - ref the U750 and the UMPC at the WinHEC keynote. Looks like this kind of PC will only be available from 2007 though. At the moment only Windows and Linux seem to be getting in on the tablet action, it would be great to see more competition.

http://jkontherun.blogs.com/jkontherun/2005/04/comparing_gates.html

[mike @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

What size pice of paper do you want it to be half the size of?

I work in a Print Shop, so a pices of paper can be anything from A0 (841.0mm x 1189.0 mm == 33.11 in. x 46.81 in.) to a postage stamp.
/rant

--------------------

Print Shop geek.. how about 8x11?

[IK @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

This would be kickass if they were thinking about a tablet version of the iBook.

think about it, a 6" tablet ibook and a 17" Powerbook. Perfect.

[Charles Hockensmith @ Dec 19th 2005 12:19AM]

Tablet pc�s have plodded along as an extremely expensive alternative to creativity catering to the least creative segments of society with the deepest of pockets.
Leaving the engineers who dare call themselves "architects" to scratch their heads in disbelief why the tablets haven�t taken off. There are some creative engineers as there are technically minded design architects.


Lets see...The basic primal urge to Physically scribe a depiction recording our present state.

Shure...It would be nice if voice reconition software would be more intutive but in this quest to attain every "beck an'call" (see the "beck" is foremost).
Think "personal" computer that you can write/draw on (i.e cave walls and clay tablets) might be on the cutting edge (a picture is worth...)
Hummm... You think it might be a progressive thought to make this tool:

A. Lighter (thus more mobile)
B. Size Specific(to encompass expressional needs)
C. Utilitarian(desk top replacement)

Add to this recipe: An all-Environment viewable screen,acceptable extreme conditions durability and customizable componets to allow personal user specific expansion needs.
toss in: High-quality stereo mic, Wi/fi (of course),GPS, Bluetooth,integral Cell connection, and perhaps serve with a decient camera(w/flash), Home/car/solar cell recharging thingamajigger and...
Hold the presses! we got a Winner!