Hands-on with ASUS and Founder UMPCs

Now that the cat's out of the bag, we got a chance to lay flesh to gadget and conduct a quick hands-on with both the new ASUS and Founder UMPCs. As opposed to the Samsung Q1, these devices look and feel solid wtih the ASUS throwing down a sleek, brushed alluminum case and 1.3-megapixel front mounted cam for WiFi video conferencing. Oh, and the UMPC from Founder also slaps in a 1GHz Pentium M processor compared to the 900MHz Celeron M in the Samsung and ASUS. Expect these to sport optional, built-in GPS and mobile digital TV adapters too once they hit the streets, with premium price tags to match. Mums the word on exact pricing or availability but at least one of these three will drop this month for consumption. Lots more pics of the ASUS and Founder after the break.

First up, the ASUS. Note front mounted camera. That's brushed metal, folks though it's tough to tell in the moody Intel booth lighting.




SDIO up top.




Spec'd just like the Samsung Q1.


Next up, the UMPC from Founder sporting the Touch Pack.


Ahh, those new  DialKeys, er, keys feel good. It's actually an effective way to enter text.


There's the Pentium M pushing 1GHz. Half the RAM of the others though.

[mbaudis @ Mar 9th 2006 2:08PM]

"brushed metal" - but only some thin front cover? thick? color coded audio connectors? windows? no GSM built in?

well, this is typical for MS pushing something in the market by defining new need for "features". will "take off" like tablets (means: being used for specialty applications and by pseudo geeks who realize that their 19in athlon laptop is not really luggable...).

[Camperton @ Mar 9th 2006 2:26PM]

so can these be used as a phone with bluetooth headset?

[MrFloppy @ Mar 9th 2006 2:26PM]

The ASUS is pretty. The rest... meh----

[DC @ Mar 9th 2006 2:31PM]

#48, I agree completely with everything you have to say.

I'll probably hold out for a second or third generation version, but so far this thing is looking great. I'll gladly trade in my Archos for one.

[Camperton @ Mar 9th 2006 2:51PM]

to those saying these are useless to professionals, judging by that 'origami' promo video aren't these being positioned more as lifestyle devices... or has that changed.

for a launch it seems they are being a bit vague on their intent.

[thatoneguy @ Mar 9th 2006 3:25PM]

I smile whenever I read "1 Ghz is way too slow!"

What I'm reading is: "What! This can't play teh Counter-strike!!? What a useless pile of junk!"

1 Ghz, is plenty fast for almost every single day to day task you'll participate in. And with millions of applications which can run on it right now, plus an almost inifite number which could be written, the question should be what can't this thing do? People always cheer when they get linux booted on a toaster, well here you go, a full functional x86 pc ready to boot linux out of the box. With a 1ghz processor and 512 MBs of RAM, make it do whatever you want.

I've been sort of shopping around for a laptop, but there is never any that I want. If I bought a laptop, it would be essentially a desktop replacement for me. However, if that's the case I need a laptop which offers me the punch of my desktop for my 3D and Video workstation apps. Maybe a boxx laptop coming in at 3,000 would fill that role, but I don't want to carry around something that heavy, but still underpowered in comparison to my desktop.

These aren't designed as desktop replacements for people who use high performance applications (3d modeling, video editing, number crunching, games.) This is something different all together, a little computer which can do 99% of the day to day tasks I do on the computer, only now, anywhere. If they can eventually bring down the price point to about $800, it'll be the missing link in computing, what do you do on the street when you want to run "XYZ application".

The brilliance of this little device is people don't have to develop new applications for it. "What you want to run that old dos application which has never let you down? No problem. What you want to use some piece of freeware which you use every day? No problem."

Microsoft has always built its reputation (for better or for worse) on building platforms for developers. They recognize that the strength of the platform is in the available content, and with windows XP installed, and linux optional, that available content comprises almost the entire library of software known to man. All in the palm of your hand. Now that's a cool gadget.

[AM @ Mar 9th 2006 3:28PM]

Not sure what the big deal is.
OQO model 01+ products which have been around for a while and are much cooler than these.
Pricey but a lot better and smaller than any of these.

http://www.oqo.com/hardware/photos/photo01.html

[MacroEQ @ Mar 9th 2006 3:39PM]

I am amazed that these products got made. What market
are they aiming this for?

It's too small and not powerful enough to be a laptop. No keyboard or vga adaptor. And it's too big to be a PDA or phone. This niche product will be the biggest flop for Microsoft in recent years and the small pda/phone/camera is where the market will eventually go.

[jfb3 @ Mar 9th 2006 3:59PM]

I think everyone is missing who is the real target are for these devices:
Corporate Middle Management

It's a corporate meeting machine.

It's small enough to carry from meeting to meeting (nobody wants to lug a laptop around, even a Vaio).

It can run Outlook (welcome to the corporation!).

It has a screen large enough so that all these 45 year old guys with Presbyopia can still read their email.

It can run Excel (corporate!).

It runs Windows. This means the corporate IT staff already has business processes in place to handle licensing, help desk, upgrades, patches, etc. (This is important in the corp.)

The corporate managers for whom I consult would trade a junior minion for one of these gadgets.

[bufbarnaby @ Mar 9th 2006 4:10PM]

I`m ready to buy the next generation of this device that will have VISTA pre-installed and have more power-efficient processors on board.This device really can do it all...wifi,bluetooth,GPS ,dual mics and speakers,VOIP and on and on.I`m sure they will also eventually be flash-based storage since SAMSUNG is the world leader in FLASH output.And the lowly JOBS-POD can only support compressed music and low-rez video!

[Endeavour @ Mar 9th 2006 4:10PM]

Bah, those are total rip-offs of Sony VAIO U50/U70...

They had a 1 GHz Pentium M, 512 MB RAM, 20 GB HD, 800x600 touchscreen, Wireless 802.11b and battery life of 2.5h / 4h with extended battery.

So this is 3-year old tech.

[Christopher M. @ Mar 9th 2006 4:23PM]

#60 -

And that U70 cost how much? $1800? Now $500 - $1000? Yeah, three-year-old tech, and the only benefit is they save you $1000+ bucks.

There was also a school of thought that said people will buy a music enclosure for a 10gig 1.8" drive, once it cost just a few hundred bucks.

You prob said at the time "How stupid, I've had a 10gig drive in my home machine for three years!"

[Razor @ Mar 9th 2006 4:34PM]

I teach at a University and I forsee 75% of my students buying the first or second generation.

[Ladderless @ Mar 9th 2006 4:44PM]

OK.... Where the devil are these?

For everyone who is complaining about the form of these devices, go to here:
http://www.intel.com/design/mobile/platform/umpc.htm

And look under "product information" -- Click on "watch the video of possible useages"

They show some pretty AMAZING forms -- I can't believe that they aren't showing those -- Although it would KILL the sales of the Samsung and Asus units coming out.

[GeneMack @ Mar 9th 2006 5:30PM]

It has become quite obvious that most people that read Engadget do not have the ability to think outside their own experiences. And it seems they don't leave the house very often either.

That said, I like these new products. I use my Axim X50 at work as a PDA, organizer and other general computing tasks (holds passwords, etc...), then go to grad school at night and take all my notes, including voice recording, on it using a folding keyboard. When I travel, it is my MP3 player and video player. I can walk through the airport and stand in line at the gate while holding and watching it.

Now, my laptop is overkill for PDA work. I can take notes at school with the laptop, but some classrooms have very small desks the laptop is too big. And with the Axim, I can also draw out sketchs and graphs in my notes. And a laptop is basically useless to pull out in an airport. Too much time to boot, burnt legs, and try to stand in line with your boarding pass while still watching your movie!

So what would be the perfect device for me? Something smaller and quicker booting than a laptop, something I can take hand written notes on, but also attach a keyboard to take full notes. Something that can act as my media device. To date, the PPC was my perfect device, but the screen size is still a little too small.

This is the perfect device for me. How many people actually carry their PPCs on their person anyway? I know mine is always in my laptop case, but gets pulled out way more often then my laptop. And a fully loaded Axim will cost you $500+ now!

Oh, one more thing I do with with my Axim is pair it to a bluetooth GPS reciever and run Intelligolf - A golfer's best friend! Now you couldn't carry this in your back pocket when you are walking the course, like I sometimes do with my Axim. But it would definitly be great in the cart and allow the software makers to improve the graphics on the maps.

And I am sure there are thousands of people that could use these things in thousands of different ways.

Oragmi was a good codename - take a blank piece of paper and make it into whatever you want. Take the basic hardware and software package and use it however you want.

[Ian @ Mar 9th 2006 5:36PM]

I think many people are missing the point. (Which is Microsoft's fault for not getting it across well enough)

Microsoft has actually surprised me here. Way back when the buzz and speculation started (a full two weeks ago), my concern was that the user interface would be completely over-looked.

To my surprise, Microsoft has done exactly what I think they should.

First, they have (apparently) addressed the major issue of making a full featured OS function as quickly and easily as a PDA. Depending of course on boot-up time.

What I mean by that, is the Touch Pack gives the ability to turn it on and get directly to the application you need, based on a functionality decision, similar to the way you can quickly pull up the email or calendar functions on a PDA.

That way, you can load as many apps as you like, but when you first turn it on, you will have direct access to the things you use most often. This, all with the touch of a finger. No need to reach for a stylus, mouse or keyboard. Yes, I know you could accomplish a similar feat by placing big icons for your favorite apps on the desktop. But.. in reality, if it's going to take off in a consumer environment, the default setup has to already do it for you. Not to mention the Touch Pack user interface provides a much nicer look and feel.

It also appears that the on-screen thumb keyboard will be a huge user adoption win. The user gets a decent way to type, navigate and hold the unit without having to move their hands from the position they used to pick it up. Seems like that may be a better system than the keyboard/mouse combination I have on my desktop. Yup, I'm used to it, but I still hate having to take my hand off the keyboard to reach for the mouse.

Second, they are sticking to being (primarily) a software company. It's what they know, and also where the profit margins are the best. Not to mention the huge consumer advantage of having competition at the hardware level. Just look at how much power you can get for your dollar in the PC world vs. the Apple world. Yes, I know Apple is getting closer price wise, and you get much more refined design, but ultimately the consumer benefits from competition. Not only will there be price competition, there will also be big competition based on functionality and the variety of form factors that can be crammed into this niche computing platform.

There is already talk about the second generation having full day battery power, and a much lower price, within about a year. So�. I know I�ll be waiting for the second or third generation when these things will also likely be running the new Vista OS.

At that point we won�t have to worry about the current complaints regarding battery life, connectivity options, input options or hopefully even price.

So, thanks Microsoft, Intel, Asus, Samsung, Founder et al, for helping push the mobile computing platform in the right direction.

The best is yet to come.

[Dennis @ Mar 9th 2006 5:42PM]

There is a market for this device, but it's not just one demographic: corporate, educational, medical, commercial sales, shipping and warehousing, databasing and record keeping, automotive, entertainment. Many of these markets are going to do absolutely nothing interesting with these: specialized database entry, usb scanner hardware and software, processing sales on the floor, GPS tracking of employees or for real-time re-routing of shipments, VOIP with the main office from the warehouse or with a dictation fileserver, etc. Sorry it's dull, but it's a big big big market.

Also, it would work well for pre-teens (you can load it with Disney child-complacency-generating content, block all but a few websites, and get some educational software going). The utility for groups of people packing wireless networked battery-powered tablets is going to depend on the software. Sure all of this stuff can be done on tablet pc's, and a lot of it is already done on tablets pc's (since the UPMC is a tablet PC), but they have been very expensive for an enterprise solution. You can buy twice to three times as many UPMCs as tablet PCs at current pricing.

I think of Intel announcing the UPMC as being similar to Intel announcing the Centrino platform, which was really just a collection of components that would go into a laptop, or Microsoft placing hardware requirements around MCE, and keeping MCE OEM to ensure that consumer MCE systems would meet the hardware requirements. I don't know if anyone was really really disappointed with the Centrino announcement, but the Centrino platform was Intel's saving grace when AMD beat them to 64 bit computing. Also, if you want real tech news, the new Intel CPU is it, not the UPMC.

For those who are underwhelmed by the UPMC and are fans of tablet PCs, small laptops, and devices like the oqo, the best part about the UPMC will be the competition it will bring to product design and the effect on prices for all of these devices. The oqo was updated with slightly better hardware and Tablet OS and the price dropped $200 around the time the dualcor cPc was announced to come in at $1500 running both Tablet OS and WM5.0. The $500 retail price goal set out by this project will be the best thing for anyone who hates the UPMC but wants to get what is now a $2500 tablet PC.

This is the PC side of the market taking the lead, instead of following Apple's lead as with the iPod. I expect that it will yield a lot of crap, but it will be cheaper and cheaper crap. And that's why we can now get a crap laptop for $500 at Walmart. Yay.

[Scott @ Mar 9th 2006 5:53PM]

@29 There is a video on Channel 9: http://channel9.msdn.com/showpost.aspx?postid=169962

They showed 1Ghz CPU and 800x480 native resolution. But you can plug in external that goes as high as the driver will allow (up to manufacturer).

[GeneMack @ Mar 9th 2006 5:54PM]

I'd like to modify a comment I made in my earlier post. I said "most people that read Engadget". That was wrong. It should say "most people that post comments on Engadget."

I apologize to all readers I may have offended with that blanket statement about them.

[thatoneguy @ Mar 9th 2006 6:13PM]

New UMPC form factor:

http://www.oaktreeent.com/web_photos/Telephones/US-West_Old-School_Cell_Phone_Horiz_Tan_web.jpg

"Why would anybody want that thing?"
"It's such a terrible size! It's too big to fit in your pocket, and if I really wanted to make a call, I could just go to one of a billion phone booths."
"Once again, they've created a product that looks like ass."
"Please... change my life? It's just a phone, talk about over hyped."
"The quality is so much worse than a land line."
"The battery life is terrible!"
"Maybe it if it was a lot cheaper, but at that price range, come on."
"The interface is terrible."
"Looks like it'll only really appeal to a niche market."
"Anyone who has used buttons will know that you'll be constantly breaking that keypad."
"Just another example of a company trying to jump in and create a need that doesn't exist."

Apple is so risk averse now, they haven't even released a cell phone. I wouldn't expect Apple to touch the tablet, let alone UMPC, market for a couple years, until they can learn from everyone elses mistakes and release a mainstream product. So all of you waiting for the great fruit response, are going to be waiting a while. This is still front lines, cutting edge gadgetry here, which is going to create a whole new market, not just exploit an existing one.

[Jeff Bridges @ Mar 9th 2006 6:25PM]

What kinds and numbers of ports do these guys have?

[Dennis @ Mar 9th 2006 6:33PM]

With these small screened devices, Windows really needs to re-address the whole UI/text size/screen resolution thing. They scale up in size okay but they scale down terribly.

[Yoshi Likes Boys @ Mar 9th 2006 6:33PM]

They've come up with the perfect device for what *I* have a laptop for, that is, an ability to be at the computer when I don't want to be at the computer. If you haven't noticed, even the smallest most convenient laptops are an incredibly non-ideal form factor for having on the couch, laying in bed with, and so on. Also, it's usability as a portable notepad computer is limitless.

This is something that you can keep everywhere, for all of the eight million things we rely on computers and the web for nowadays. I will buy one of these models at launch as long as the price isn't outrageous, and I'm sure I won't be the only one.

[Endeavour @ Mar 9th 2006 6:34PM]

#61 - The 10gb drive isn't a fair comparison. The U70 and "UMPCs" have the same form factor.

VAIO U70 had the price handicap (but cheaper than OQO!), 'cause it wasn't backed by Wintel... and the ULV Pentium-M was a pricey novelty back then.

The question is, these devices don't deserve all this hype.

Oh, for the record, VAIO U50/70 failed because 2.5h of battery life is **it. And the extended battery (4h) was bulky & heavy.

[William P. @ Mar 9th 2006 7:35PM]

This may sound funny but I want to be able to enjoy my time on a porcelain thrown... FOrge newspapers and magazines...
This is the answer!

[jnewbold @ Mar 9th 2006 9:27PM]

Why all the fuss? Really.

It seems that Motion Computing has had this figured out in their LS800 for quite a while.

Check it out:
http://www.motioncomputing.com/products/tablet_pc_ls.asp

[john b @ Mar 10th 2006 12:36AM]

I love all you folks saying oqo is already here, whats all the fuss!
oqo cost 2 grand!
these will cost one grand or less
Hello??????

[neg2led @ Mar 10th 2006 4:25AM]

come on apple, make with the MacBook Mini!

if only....

--neg

[Moose @ Mar 10th 2006 12:50PM]

Anyone know if the stylus input is pressure sensitive at all? As an artist, that would sell this device to me no questions asked.

[Betty @ Mar 10th 2006 1:09PM]

Hmmm... looks just like the Dauphin I had over 10 years ago. Maybe they slapped a few new chips inside the old shells that they couldn't sell back then...

[Peter Hogenkamp @ Mar 10th 2006 1:33PM]

>> Ahh, those new DialKeys, er, keys feel good.
>> It's actually an effective way to enter text.

You gotta be kidding. How many characters did you enter? More than 5?

At CeBIT, using the Samsung Q1, I logged on to Gmail and "typed" an message containing 285 characters. Took me 9 minutes, i.e 30 characters/minute. Now, I'm not saying that you cannot significally increase that speed. But entering that same text on my laptop keyboard takes me 65 seconds, so we're talking factor 9 here -- way to climb on the learning curve. Plus, you need to shift the DialKeys to get to the komma and other important keys which cannot be compensated by experience, I guess.

Details and 22 shots of all DialKeys aspects at
http://neuerdings.com/2006/03/10/origami-umpc-q1-touchpack-dialkeys-usability/ (text German, pics international).

[doug Petrosky @ Mar 10th 2006 2:50PM]

Why am I the only one who gets it? Tablet PC's will never succeed. The only thing that will happen is that laptops will gradually get some of the features that tablet PC's are touting (touch screens and alternate input).

WHAT WE NEED IS JUST A TABLET! Forget the PC part.

That's not to say that we don't need CPU or an OS but it needs to be much more directed. We learned this 10 years ago with newton vs Palm. The device needs to be larger than current PDA's an about a third of the size of these bricks. We are talking iPod thickness and far less border around the screen. It needs to sync with my desktop for email, calendar, contacts, photos, music, movies and key documents (I'm not talking about Word or Excel I'm more talking RTF or PDF).

I should be able to handwrite notes on it, receive email and surf the net. There may be room for some gaming on these devices but I'm still skeptical about the viability because this device with a 7 inch screen needs to sell for about $500 with a min 60-80GB HD and enough memory to run the applications I already mentioned. Battery life should be around 6 hours so you can use it through out the work day and just charge it at night.

It should not try to be a general PC, it should try to be a peripheral with some PC abilities.

[Spottyfuzz @ Mar 10th 2006 4:47PM]

Regarding 'Wah! It doesn't have Vista!':

According to the MS website, *all* devices running Tablet XP 2003 and 2005 (this includes UMPCs) will get a free upgrade to Vista Home Premium Edition when Vista is released.

Just like how Tablet XP 2003 users got a free upgrade to 2005 (and still can get said upgrade).

[Spottyfuzz @ Mar 10th 2006 4:55PM]

Also, Re: #57

"No keyboard and no VGA"? Huh-what?

Erm. I suppose that means the DVI/VGA (depending on manufacturer) ports and the two USB2.0 ports on the current UMPCs are just for show...

[Forrest Dietrich @ Mar 10th 2006 5:15PM]

The first manufacturer to bulid in an international cell phone and give instant on with at least 24 hour standby will be able to see a bunch of these. Personally, I would consider to replace my cell phone and my laptop with one of these for traveling, but not if I cannot eliminate a device and all the extra cables, chargers, etc. that go with that one device. What are the specs for external monitor support on these?

[Ceejames @ Mar 11th 2006 11:04PM]

First off I want one. Ties into my needs perfectly in both functionality and form factor. If they were available today I would already own one, waiting patiently for someone to put them up for ordering.

Not from early adopter fever, simply that it will meet my needs. From portable PC at work for note taking (OneNote and TexNotesPro), keeping reference works handy (quick and easy .pdf viewing). For home ebook reading via Ubook and comic reading with Cdisply. Using Maxvista to connect with main pc and use as an auxillary display or control of my pc. And as a carputer between to two.

Would like to see one using 1.5 mhz processor (via?) a GB of memory and the largest notebook hard drive available. Sounds like several are going to be customizable. Would not bat an eyelash to have those specs and spend maybe 1500 still cheaper than most full sized tablets, OQO, and other form factors giving me something that would truly incorporate itself into my lifestyle not the other way around.

Think someone will use a flash drive to boot from with the operating system on it leaving the hard drive for data and media.

[Joe @ Mar 16th 2006 8:38PM]

At last a replacement for my HP200lx. It only took 20 years.

[Tony @ Mar 21st 2006 2:27AM]

Jake in comment #50 I think your spot on with your line of thought. I have laptops, desktops and Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC with Verizon that gives me access anywhere, no hotspot needed and it's great. Some tasks are better served on each and each has it's purpose for sure in my life at least. Going from ultra small, to medium portable to big and stationary and having these basis covered I don't directly see a need for an inbetween ultra small and medium portable yet as a priority in my list of needs.

Functionality is certainly going to seem to be the reasoning for such a device. So the key is going to be up to software and hardware development that supports this for it to be able to live or die. It's a catch 22 though, no one is going to take the time to develop anything for it if it doesn't sell.

Myself, I may be very interested in buying one say 2 years from now. I do see it as a device that would be very handy tossed in the car. It would be perfect for that. Add in some GPS functionality to it and it would be perfect for finding directions or weather info while traveling across country or just in town. Battery life wouldn't be a big issue plugged into a car charger. My Pocket PC device is currently too small to realisticly use for this purpose, and my smallest laptop is still a little too cumbersome to use as a in car practical device. The stupid steering wheel always seems to get in the way.

A device this size would however be just perfect, development 2 years from now could lead it into being a built in feature on new cars. There's a definate potential for it in thought of that market place. No more 8 track player in the dash. Instead it's replaced by a UMPC built into the steering wheel, and integrated into your cars onboard computer system. From this angle of marketing for such a device the possibilities could certainly take it's "need" over the top. Dump the 8 track tape player for a device instead operating Windows Media Player with WiFi so when you pull in the garage you can auto sync all your mp3's to download into the car and be stored for your listening enjoyment while on the road.

Mounting it in the steering wheel may not be the best location, but that spot in your dash where the current car audio system is located could be a good location.

It has a huge potential in the automotive industry. Levers and buttons for car climate control could be replaced by a touch screen with changeable and customizeable skins. Just touch a menu button and go from the Windows Media Player car audio system to climate control options or automotive diagnostics telling you your next oil change is due or the amperage output of your alternator is low and needs to be serviced. "OnStar" is currently trying to do this with email notifications to your home PC, why not just email them directly to you in your car?

If it had GPS functionality built into it the benefits there would be obvious enough for mapping and location information, as well as real time traffic information, you could also use that functionality for other Satellite types of functionality like satellite radio broadcasts or even connecting to dish network to be able to watch all your favorite TV shows on it anytime anywhere.

Pull into airport long term parking and just detach the UMPC out of your dash and take it on the plane with you to complete or update that presentation your flying out to present to your clients.

Some people have said, this is an idea that's been tried before, and with obvious little success or there would be no need to mention these past attempts, we'd all already know about them wiothout mention.

Marketing is certainly going to be the key and clearly without a good reason to need such a device marketing is going to struggle.

So why not tie in with all the other markets already trying to struggle and get their product out there, or markets that have already spent millions getting their products known.

This one device could tie in everything alot of other markets are already attempting to do on their own, and by pooling in all these other markets this could certainly be a concept to do it with. There's a huge potential for a device of this exact size and portability and it's not currently being marketed in a way to aim at any of this potential. Instead it's being marketed towards persons like myself who have a Pocket PC and a Laptop and little need for this device as a stand alone unit.

There's a huge potential to make a device like this the one size fits all device everyone will have to have if they market it to fit everyones needs that way. With WiFi functionality and fingerprint recognition it could change the world as we know it and do everything. Pull up to your house and change screens to your garage door opener remote screen and have the option to through WiFi open garage door operator 1, 2, or 3. Unlock the door to your house, warm up the oven, turn on the AC, turn the front lights on, arm disarm your security system. Carry it into the house and use it to control your home audio video system replacing the current 10 remotes all just by changing to a different "window" or application. Program your sprinkler system, order a pizza.

This one device in everything I see isn't even considering all these other marketing possibilities, yet it is the one size fits all perfect device to handle all of this and if it did, people not only would buy it, they'd see a need to have to have it.

So Dave, gadgets are way cool, but they are even cooler when they actually serve a true purpose. The marketing department for this device needs to all be fired before they even half heartedly get started in their failed attempts and they need to get some real thinkers in there that can look at all the potential a device of this potential and size could carry. The list I can think of for manufacturers that you could easily bring into this market is almost endless. The more of those manufacturers you bring in the better the functionality goes, the more features everyone has to sell to their customers (with an ability to have a new edge on all the markets). For us the gadget consumers we could finally get a true latest and greatest gadget with massive potential, the true "Arch of the Covenant" of all gadgets ever known to man.

Myself, I've been around since long before even the 386's and Commadore 64's were the hot items to have. I use Windows, Linux and BSD and when I purchase new major hardware items I do so when Microsoft comes out with a new major operating system and only after that. Buying new hardware between Microsoft OS's is foolish and stupid, you always end up with something that won't run the latest and greatest others try to follow. Let the new Microsoft OS come out, let the hardware manufacturers catch up to it (which also means the initial cost comes down for us the consumers), then buy.

The delivery of this device was a poor planned, poorly researched marketing disaster. The development came either too late or too early depending on how you want to look at it. Aimed to handle XP I'd say the marketing and development came too late. Sure, some fool will buy this, but there aren't enough fools to make it just storm the market like it could if the development would have aimed towards a better potential and future adaptability towards the newest Windows OS.

[Keith @ Mar 25th 2006 1:02AM]

When these devices will become commercially available there will be a ready market of software available to these machines. Users of these mobile PCs will be able to run whatever Windows applications they're using today on their desktop PC.

The most common objection I've seen to this new type of PC is that it's too big to be a PDA. I'd agree. It is too big to be a PDA.

But it's not supposed to be a PDA.

Don't get me wrong, it can certainly do everything a PDA can... in fact it'd do it better - no more "pocket" versions of Outlook, Word, IE, Excel, and so on! If you want a PDA, go buy a PDA. If you want a device that's a little bigger than a PDA, but can do so much more... get one of these UMPCs!

[Steve Savage @ May 17th 2006 10:09AM]

It won't be popular until it can play good video games. They won't sell many of these by simply slapping crappy unichrome video chips inside.

[Matthew Artero @ Nov 11th 2006 4:14PM]

These are all old technologies. Matthew Artero User Interface has a new top secret hand-operated-user interface that makes it possible for one hand to enter AND EDIT text in a cell phone faster than typing with two hands on a full size desktop keyboard. The same hand that holds the cell phone operates the interface so only one hand is required. The company states the cell phone will replace the desktop keyboard. When the qwerty keyboard hit the market it displaced the alphabetical keyboard and put over 50 typewriter companies out of business. This new interface holds the same threat for smartphones, PDAs, notebooks, ultra portables, and so on. Handheld and mobile devices that do not offer Mobile Users this new level of productivity will sit on store shelves remaining unsold, while manufacturers and service providers who are first to offer this new technology to Mobile Users will become market leaders. http://www.matthewarterouserinterface.com

[pete @ Mar 22nd 2007 8:14AM]

doesn't anybody notice that neither of these devices can even display the system properties dialog completely? the ok/cancel buttons at the bottom are cropped... even this tiny dialog is already too big for this display.
that's already a good reason _not_ to get one. would be even worse with word/excel etc...

[hohums @ Jul 8th 2007 4:07AM]

I want something that fits into my pocket / belt pouch, runs vista well, has at least 8 hours battery life. Works like a normal phone an feels like a normal phone yet is also useable as a laptop with all the modern chips (quad band, edge, 3g, HDSD card slot, bluetooth, wifi n/g/b/i, GPS, multi-touch, 3.0 pixel camera, 60gb hd, usb).

Realistically it would probably have a 3.5" screen and have all the buttons on the side, back and slide out keyboard to make maximum use of the space.

I don't want to carry a laptop everywhere but I do always carry my phone on my belt. It will be particularly useful for long commutes. It would simply make sense to create this universal device.

Now ARM has a 1ghz processor for mobile phone, I think phone companies are almost here but not quite, it so frustrating because I know I'm going to buy a new phone soon and 2 months later this ultimate device will appear.