Wibrain's B1 UMPC unboxed, still mystifying from all angles

We've already seen Wibrain's inscrutably-designed B1 showcased on video, but there's just nothing that sparks up conversation like a gallery full of unboxing photos. Thankfully, The Boy Genius has done the honors and tediously photographed the entire unpacking process for your enjoyment, and yes, we're still not sure if we appreciate or abhor the design. Enough jabber, click on to the read link and take a gander for yourself -- she's a real eye-turner, for better or worse.

[CUBSWILLWIN @ Dec 3rd 2007 8:01AM]

not that bad looking

[Andrew Gallop @ Dec 3rd 2007 8:06AM]

Wow, that's fugly.

[jtc970 @ Dec 3rd 2007 8:22AM]

Ugly, but in an attractive way

[Ron @ Dec 3rd 2007 8:22AM]

I like it... It looks nerdy, which it should, in my opinion...

[superfresh @ Dec 3rd 2007 8:36AM]

Engadget should have posted the shot with the finger. I originally thought this thing was enormous. Good price.

[Mike @ Dec 3rd 2007 9:09AM]

I don't care if it looks good, it looks extremely functional. I'll take function over form in the case of a UMPC.

[superfresh @ Dec 3rd 2007 9:27AM]

UPMCs by their very nature are form over function

[tif @ Dec 3rd 2007 9:37AM]

I've tried using one of those nokia phones with a screen smack in the middle of the keyboard and they suck. It's not like a real keyboard so you can't touch type, and since it's split, you are continuously bobbing your head back and forth, like a ping-pong match, to look at the keys.

[Christopher M. @ Dec 3rd 2007 1:48PM]

Well you may have 'tried', but I *have* that phone, and after just a few days, I was thumb-typing (yes, touchtyping, without looking) way faster than blackberry-style -- typing faster than Symbian could process my presses, actually.

And I can def recommend this keypad style to anyone - it allows the device's center of gravity to take a lot of pressure off the wrists, balancing it naturally (leading to, yes, faster thumb-typing speeds).

[Constable Odo @ Dec 3rd 2007 9:55AM]

Not bad for something most likely useless. At least it's not running Vista. If it was under $500, I might consider buying it to watch videos on the go.

[john @ Dec 3rd 2007 11:03AM]

Too bad it runs windows.

[OddManOut @ Dec 3rd 2007 11:34AM]

Yeah, I has hoping for OS/2 as well...Narf!

[Evan @ Dec 3rd 2007 11:48AM]

Can probably put OS2 / Linux with some hacking.

[John Rudd @ Dec 3rd 2007 1:58PM]

If it requires hacking, it's not worth doing for a device I'd want to be actually using for real work (as opposed to a device I'd use for hobby work). I'm not interested in buying a MID/UMPC for hacking/hobby-work. I want one for real work.

(actually, I have one for real work; my Nokia N800; but I still keep track of what's out there)

If there's a version of Linux that will run on it out of the box, taking advantage of all of the device's hardware, great. Even better if there's one that wibrain directly supports (documentation, etc.). Even better if they _officially_ support it.

Without one of those 3, I wouldn't consider that to actually be a usable, real work, linux solution.

[Evan @ Dec 3rd 2007 11:50AM]

This is a much more attractive image of it.

http://www.engadget.com/2007/11/01/wibrains-b1-upmc-gets-redesigned-retargeted/

[john @ Dec 3rd 2007 12:53PM]

I've been thinking about the wibrain since early this year. I wonder if I'd prefer the Samsung Q1's original keyboard solution: Make the touchscreen take up the entire front of the device, and have virtual/translucent/floating keyboard inputs that appear on the screen when you want them.

So, imagine the split qwerty keyboard, the dpad, and the trackpad all being translucent windows that pop-up when you need them... and the screen goes the full length of the wibrain.

The good:
I think it would look less busy and ugly, and it would be more flexible in capabilities (customized pop-up inputs; ability to use that screen area for things other than dedicated input).

The bad:
Even with proposed technology tactile feedback in touch screens, I have a feeling it wouldn't be as comfortable and fast to use as physical keys. And some people wouldn't want to use it no matter how good the tactile feedback got.

I just think it's an interesting thing to experiment with. I also wonder if that's going to be what the rumored newton2 is going to be like.

[Benson @ Dec 3rd 2007 1:19PM]

Regarding the device:
It's on fire!
I really like it.
I just need UNIX (In all probability, that means Linux). Cyg/NT5 is OK, but awkwardly slow on a low-end desktop, much less on this.

@John
I think that'd be nice, but:
Nokia's internet tablets (770, N800, N810) have (practically) full-panel touchscreens, and the on-screen keyboard's not translucent, despite major user feedback that it should be.
The iPhone and iPod touch both have full-panel touchscreens, and they don't have translucent keyboards.
The Q1 had a full-panel touch screen, and translucent keypads, and they changed it.
I haven't used a Q1, so IDK, but maybe this idea has been tested and found to just not work as well as it looks? (Then again, maybe this just shows that concept testers are out of touch with real users. Or maybe that keyboard production costs of keypads are lower than touchscreens per square inch.)

[Wolf3d @ Feb 26th 2008 1:04PM]

I want to ask, if engadget could send it to Lithuania (Eastern Europe)