UMPC v2 roundup: the dawn of Vistagami

The UMPC is a relative no-show here at CES compared to its viral, CeBIT 2006 origins. Still, we managed to track down and get up close and personal with devices like the Kohjinsha SA1F00A, Samsung PH-P9000, OQO Model 02, and Medion and even checked a preview of the new Origami Experience UI for Vista. HTC's UMPC, which may or not be the Athena, is absent but there's still hope for a formal announcement in March at the CTIA wireless show. In a surreal moment, we even witnessed a visibly shaken Intel exec demonstrating "Yahoo! Go for UMPC" to Yahoo's CFO while a VIA exec (Intel's biggest competition on this platform) quietly snaked through the crowd nearby. Only at CES, friends. We also managed to extract the UMPC v2 reference designs from the recessed bowels of Intel -- displayed almost as an afterthought, not a highlight. The verdict? Vista on these new UMPCs coupled with the new Origami Experience UI is a big step in the right direction. The "Yahoo UMPC" reference design we saw at Intel's IDF felt very solid in the hand, and features a well positioned thumbpad we found easy to use while holding the device two handed -- a design which might have a chance of success if picked up by an OEM. Intel also has a few new reference designs under glass: a chubby, slim-screened slider and another perched in a fat brown media dock with integrated DVD and AV outs. The Medion? Forget it, the keyboard is plain and simply, unusable and the device felt poorly engineered. Word is that Intel will have their new, ultra-low power mobile processor for these v2 UMPCs ready before the end of Q2. That, coupled with Vistagami might finally give the platform a fighting chance this summer. Check the gallery for plenty of UMPC action.

UMPC v2 roundup: the dawn of Vistagami

[Shawin @ Jan 11th 2007 5:07PM]

I waited long to see the Origami, and was deceived by it's stupidity. lollz.
Now there's no way I'm waiting for a Vistagami or whatever. I was "thrilled" by the iPhone yesterday, and I'd prefer to have one iPhone than five Origamithingies. Actually the iPhone is exactly what I was hoping the origami to be.... but now it's too late. m$ft is late as usual.

[Mycroft @ Jan 11th 2007 6:07PM]

The iPhone isn't a general purpose PC though, at the moment at least there's no 3rd party app development support.

They're still too chunky but there's potential, the ideal is the prototype shown by Gates, kind of like an iPhone with a larger screen

[Das @ Jan 11th 2007 8:50PM]

An iPhone is a smartphone, a wonderfully expensive smartphone, but a smartphone, a UMPC is a full fledged computer, and you're an idiot.

[boolean22 @ Jan 11th 2007 6:09PM]

Totally hear ya. Origami should be like an iPhone.

[boolean22 @ Jan 11th 2007 6:14PM]

There's no sense in cramming a full blown OS in a device that tiny, when all we do for our computers is to add giant 20" displays to do the same thing. I think that this thingies should be better suited for a consumer level of apps. And stop sayin' it runs Photoshop. I have troubles with MY photoshoppin' on a CORE 2 machine, y'feel me?

[A.Z. @ Jan 11th 2007 7:29PM]

Speaking of new UMPCs at CES, what ever happened to Averatec's UMPC? That actually looked promising, and sounded potentially more affordable. Any word?

[brian @ Jan 11th 2007 8:54PM]

that really stinks the medion keyboard is so bad. the oqo looks very nice, but outside my price range. maybe the asus or samsung models can be put into a case with a bluetooth keyboard for a setup similar to that ugly orange and white one.

[Soren @ Jan 12th 2007 7:16AM]

There seems to be different opinions regarding the keyboard...
http://jkontherun.blogs.com/jkontherun/2007/01/medion_umpc_bes.html#more
Guess we will have to wait for a thoural review of this thing. Hope the Keyboard holds up, as for me 2 the oqo is way to expensive.

[l4ces @ Jan 25th 2007 3:07PM]

"Actually the iPhone is exactly what I was hoping the origami to be.... but now it's too late. m$ft is late as usual."

IMHO the Origami devices are hideous and I
do not blame Microsoft for the device manufactures lack of the artistic talent. The iPhone is just a slim screen. How hard is it to do that?

[reg @ Jan 29th 2007 2:17PM]

OQO-2 with the Dock is what the iPhone and Mac Mini should be - integrated devices that complement each other. Add a Bluetooth headset to the OQO and chat over the internet -
Smart Cell Phones and Laptops are dinosaurs of the 1990s, the hand held computer communicator is coming of age. Look Out.

OQO-2 in the Docking Station hooked up to a nice 24" LCD Samsung Monitor - Sweet.

Time to leave the office - pop the OQO-2 in your pocket - and no one can snoop your PC while your gone. Do work while traveling or just enjoy watching a movie from iTunes on the OQO-2.

The Tiny OQO comes with the XXL price tag - but at some point the trickle down effect will drop prices on other devices.

Looking at the Specs of the VIA C7 CPU, and it's integrated solutions - makes me wonder if VIA will be delivering CPUs or whole circuit boards for the net OLPC (one laptop per child).
Ultra Low Power, with scaling power saving for squeezing hours of up time out of tiny batteries - just the cost savings people need.