Apple Newton takes down the Samsung Q1 UMPC?

'Twas a bloody battle between the cult-classic Apple Newton MessagePad 2000 and the flashy Samsung Q1 UMPC, but in a 10 round bout, the Newton threw two big blows which left the Q1 reeling. The punches started flying on the issues of networking, screen beauty, and application support, where the Q1 stunned the Newton with its high-resolution LCD and Windows-based OS. When it came to usability and synchronization, the two were deemed evenly matched, rendering these two categories a draw. The Newton stole the glory on design, size, and reliability, as CNET UK editors were quite annoyed at the "crashability" of the Q1,and crowned the Newton's OS champion of stability. Although there wasn't a unanimous decision made based on these brawls alone, the Newton pulled out all the stops by landing a mean 30 hours of battery life, while the Q1 waved the white flag at 2.5 hours. To add insult to injury, the Samsung costs well over $1,000 (if you can manage to find one), while the Newton can be acquired for substantially less on the used market. While we realize it may be hard to comprehend that a portable from nearly 10 years ago could best a UMPC, there's no denying that even the most ingenious handheld in the world won't do you much good after the battery craps out, and maybe these results are just the Apple needs needs to make good on all these tablet patents, right Steve?

[Via Slashdot]

[Bazza @ Jul 30th 2006 3:23PM]

So does that mean i should dump my Nokia N91 for one of those 1980s "mobile" phones? Those had oodles of battery life and were simple to use.

Hell, we been wasting our time all these years developing anything new.

We should all dump our 100GB drives and go back to the good ol' 500mb.

Ah! those were the days!! The cavemen had it good, for sure.

[Callum @ Jul 30th 2006 3:32PM]

Bazza, 'we' (i'll take it you mean the hardware companies?) haven't developed anything new for a good long time, and they will fail to develop this UMPC in the time it takes you to say "Windows Tablet Edition".

We are all living a sad, sad lie of upgrades and higher-numbers... 500mb was overkill. :D

[Jesse @ Jul 30th 2006 3:36PM]

I saw this on digg a few days ago and read it. It's complete crap except for battery life.

[Eric @ Jul 30th 2006 3:41PM]

Basically another apple > ms article by Cnet.
Can anyone please be objective these days.

[Shaun @ Jul 30th 2006 4:41PM]

I guess it depends what's important but certainly 30 hours battery life, an interface centred on portable use and less weight are pretty important things to have in a portable.

The conclusion is right. 2.5 hours battery and Windows' bodged in pen input is just stupid for a portable and doesn't take the format forward at all.

[Eli @ Jul 30th 2006 4:46PM]

If the only thing we're using to measure the value of electronics is battery life, then my old Sony Minidisc player with a 36 hour battery life is way better than my iPod.

Unfortunately, there are a few other things in play. Like that my iPod can also play videos, and has a better interface and screen. The Minidisc player also crashed less.

UMPCs are crap, and will continue to be crap for awhile until someone comes up with a good one, but I don't think tha was really a good comparison. You're comparing basically a tablet with a small screen to a PDA. The tablet can do things that the Newton will never be able to do, no matter how much fan-hacking goes into it. Yet another Apple-centric pointless fluff piece by the always-useless technology media.

[Scott @ Jul 30th 2006 4:47PM]

You're over-simplifying. This article just states the tried and true Newton, ahead of it's time in most accounts is better than a 1,000 dollar Ultra Mobile Personal Computer.

[Paul @ Jul 30th 2006 5:11PM]

I consider myself to be an Apple Fanboy - but even I think that article was stupid. By the same token you could compare an Apple //e to the newest Windows PC and it would probably win.

The Newton was far advanced and ahead of its time to be sure - but I would hazard to find even one person that would rather have it than its contender.

[icruise @ Jul 30th 2006 5:26PM]

The real point of the article is that the while the UMPC may be a very capable computer, it doesn't have most of the features that you would actually want in a portable device -- things that the newton had a decade ago. Even I, a fan of the Newton, wouldn't seriously pick the Newton over a UMPC, but the fact remains that it's a flawed platform.

For the people saying that CNET is pro-Apple, I think you'd be surprised that in Mac circles, CNET is considered to be pretty anti-Mac. I guess it depends on your point of view.

[expodition @ Jul 30th 2006 5:42PM]

I still use my Newton MP2100 on a regular basis. Not every day, but certainly multiple times per week.

It's great for keeping track of things and my thoughts/ideas and doing what it was desined to do: keeping me organised.

I've come close to replacing it over the years with various Palms/Windows CE/Pocket PC type devices but they never had that certain something that I see in my Newton. In terms of the way I use my portable device, nothing comes close! I can hardly believe that this thing is almost 10 years old.

So - if I had the choice of either machine, I would certainly choose my Newton :o)

Rod.
www.expodition.com

[Ihar `Philips` Filipau @ Jul 30th 2006 7:15PM]

I think most people here has to read the article before commenting.

C|Net rightfully slapped the "portable" Q1 with "unportable" sticker. Making PC small, adding touch screen doesn't make it into portable device. Newton was made from ground zero to be PDA - "portable digital assitant" - so obviously it has an edge over generic PC with touch screen bundled.

My list of requirements for PDA is pretty short: good screen to read books, calendar, mp3 player & battery life 8+ hours. Why would I want to use full (over)blown OS like WinXP for such simple tasks?

P.S. I wonder what would the outcome if the Q1 run under WinCE. I think it would have pared much better. Couple of PocketPCs my friends have already can be customized into pretty decent PalmOS ;-)

P.P.S. Short battery life of most PC notebooks is actually how I end up using Apple's iBook: battery is sufficient to read PDF file for about 8 hours. As much I was tuning my older Acer, it couldn't even hit 4 hours of continuous work.

[Kim @ Jul 30th 2006 7:16PM]

I use a solar powered pocket calculator for all my mobile computing - it's very small and light, with no battery issues. Never crashes either…

[ACD @ Jul 30th 2006 8:15PM]

Why hasn't anybody mentioned the one thing the Newton 2000 series had that everyone is too sissy to add, 2 Type II PCMCIA Slots. I mean come on a portable device with 2 Type II PCMCIA Slots. My ancient PowerBook G4 12" doesn't even have one PCMCIA slot of any kind, except maybe one internally somewhere that holds my AirPort card.

Someone please add a real expansion slot to these toys people call UMPC. I do realize that with either FireWire or USB 2.0 the need for a built-in expansion slot is less necessary. However, that creates a mess of it's own because then you have to have stupid wires sticking out of your so-called ultra mobile computer. The only wire I will maybe allow sticking out of my UMPC is an external battery system.

[Matt S. @ Jul 30th 2006 9:49PM]

Newton vs. Paper

'Twas a bloody battle between the cult-classic Apple Newton MessagePad 2000 and the flashy "paperback book, pen & notepad" combo, but in a 10 round bout, the pen & paper threw two big blows which left the Newton reeling... Paper took the lead with unlimited battery life, and the less than $10 cost sealed the deal!

[Daniel @ Jul 30th 2006 10:23PM]

Heh, Matt S: I LOVE IT!

Seriously though, the pen/notepad combo device was WAY ahead of its time. The precision of its handwriting recognition technology has yet to be replicated by its successors.

[Robert @ Jul 30th 2006 10:28PM]

I think there was a certain tongue and cheek to te whole article that some take a little too seriously. i tink the point of the article is where is the progress in 10 years?

I actually want a UMPC, but i would prefer if it was bild on the very successful WinCE/Windows Mobile platform. I use my Dell Axim x50v with the Stowaway Bluetooth keybooard and it rocks, but i would love a large display.

[andrew @ Jul 30th 2006 10:52PM]

I hoppe this publicity stunt makes MS sit up and take notice. The entire UMPC platform is completely broken and will never be fixed until MS comes up with a real crossover OS between CE and XP. XP is simply too bloated to be usable for mobile applications, and CE obviously doesn't have the functionality Microsoft's product designers are looking for.

I'm not an Apple fanboy, but someone needs to pay attention to these results and come up with a product that is flexible on both the hardware and software end. At this point, I think Apple is more capable then MS of creating something like this, but I really hope some unknown system integrator will customize a Linux-based OS to work with a more portable form factor than the Q1.

[Agimat @ Jul 30th 2006 11:09PM]

What a stupid comparison.

I have an abacus that was built to be portable from the start, eco-friendly, works forever, weather proof, shock proof, so tough that it will outlive an elephant AND painted ipod white to give it an Apple feel. In CNET's hands it will beat any portable computing device out there.

[Dave @ Jul 31st 2006 12:23AM]

The point remains elusive to most readers. Microsoft has missed the mark with UMPC. Imagine what Apple could do if they entered this market...

[Dan Gentleman @ Jul 31st 2006 12:45AM]

My TabletKiosk eo UMPC shows up on Tuesday. Expect a head-to-head showdown between the Nokia 770 and the UMPC in my blogs later this week.
Nokia 770 blog: http://thoughtfix.blogspot.com
TabletKiosk eo blog: http://www.ultramobilegeek.com

[Fett101 @ Jul 31st 2006 12:57AM]

You would want a full blown OS, `Philips` Filipau, because it is not a PDA. It's a ultra mobile PC. They are not intended for the same purposes, and this article is comparing 10 year old apples to oranges (no pun intended)

[Riley Sheehan @ Jul 31st 2006 12:20PM]

Well of course it wins in size and battery life, the Q1 is running a totally full-fledged Windows OS, while the Newton is running its own, less-excruciating operating system. I personally think you can't compare them. That's not me saying that i think the Q1 was an excellent device, of course.

[Choco Puff @ Jul 31st 2006 12:45PM]

My TI-89 can perform symbolic integration, solving differential equation... I never worried about the battery.
Newton?

[Justin @ Jul 31st 2006 5:36PM]

Really, Choco Puff? I've gone through at least a dozen AAAs in my TI-89...

[Miles @ Aug 3rd 2006 12:59PM]

Please stop with the Apple BS, do not review the over-priced UMPC's any longer. Please review some of the UMPC's on the same hardware priced closer to $600, it took me 5-10 mins of serching to find them, please hone your skills and quit pimping Apples.

The Newton cannot run x86 code or DirectX, I want a handheld capable of both of those.

[Knowledge Navigator @ Aug 13th 2006 2:05PM]

This article proves what I (and many others) have been saying all along. If you are desiging a PDA you do not need a color screen, you do not need the ability to run full versions of windoze, MS Office and outlook. The Apple Newton 2000 & Apple Newton 2100 (and to a lesser extent the eMate 300) are the pinnicles of PDA development. Palm started up after the Newton and got some things right but where is their market share now? I have been in Apple Newton 2000 and Apple Newton 2100 Sales for the past 5 years. Every week more and more people either upgrade their units through my website (www.newtonsales.com), repair their existing units or start new to the platform. If you want to BUY APPLE NEWTON 2100 Units and Accessories and want to be sure your going to get something that works, we can provide this for you. This combined with the Dongle Destroyer (internal serial board), backlight, speed boost, and recelled battery upgrades give you the ultimate of PDA's. Show me another PDA on the market today that can run for 40+ hrs of usage! The newton is perfect for writing your comments, doesnt require any special input method and YES the HW recognition has been improved substantially since the first generagion 1XX units that were rushed to market. The ultimate unit which was demonstrated in a special video short by the request of John Scully was the KnowledgeNavigator. It was a unit that would do everything through just voice command. An intelligent unit with enough AI to anticipated your wants and needs. It is truly unfortunate that Steve Jobs discontinued Newton development when he came back to apple. Its leaps ahead of anything else on the market.

[cDub @ Sep 16th 2006 1:14PM]

next comparison: lynx vs PSP

[bill ritchey @ Apr 9th 2007 7:08PM]

yes, but I have always liked the Newton because I can pick it up and write & draw on it or record to it and the stuff won't get lost. I can check my email on it and sometimes stream live radio. For me, its better than a lap top which is just too big to carry around. I would like the Newt better if it had a modern color screen for the web. I might get a Nokia 770 someday for that and better radio streaming and if I do I'll trade my big 2100 for a smaller 130 to use as a pda because the newts are just so fast easy to use usually I've got the data & am putting my 2100 away while eveyone else is fumbling around with their whatevers. Newton had it right with the 5X7 note card, the size of your hand.