Fusion Garage has finally
come clean with its side of the story in regards to the
CrunchPad debacle, and just unveiled its new Arrington-free version of the device: the Joojoo. The way Fusion Garage tells it, the device was already in the works at the time of the original TechCrunch post about the idea, and that Michael Arrington and co. made zero contributions to the development of the device -- and apparently don't have any sort of contract to prove otherwise. The device is much along the lines of what we'd been hearing: it runs a UNIX-based OS, boots straight to a web browser (otherwise no apps at all), weighs about 2.4 pounds and features a 12.1-inch capacitive touchscreen. There are no physical buttons on the slate outside of the on-off switch, which taps into a 9 second boot time. Under the hood there's a 4GB SSD, WiFi (no 3G), an accelerometer and about 5 hours of battery life. Pre-orders start on December 11th, with a dream-shattering $499 pricetag bringing this thing back into the realm of reality. We're supposed to see demos of the Joojoo in the wild this week, and another shot of the device can be found after the break.
posted December 7th 2009 12:50PM
They have to have done their research........ How confirmed is all of this? This company and their buddies seem to like to do things without legally and actually thinking it through...... An internet tablet that large for $500 in this economy?!?!?!?! Whats scary though is that the Peek device seemed pretty insane but found its niche....... This thing might find it..... You never know......
good luck selling the browser-based tablet to places where the internet is shite. oh wait, sounds like most places.
Is like the Foleo, all over again !
Hope someones releases a more polished version, as it happened with netbooks
The name of the device explains the price...
$500? Only WiFi? Uh I think I'll pass.
Wait. so it's just a browser? doesn't have 3g? can only use wifi? 500 dollars? This device is useless! Why does this exist?
Even at 499 I can see a market for this. in medical offices for emedical records, if it has a means to connect to a Small business server or a simple domain access. if win7 pro could be loaded to it i think i would want to carry it in my store. I know I could sell them for 799 if the had win7 pro included.
PS. I agree about the name JooJoo is just bad, I mean serious the could just call it like "Fusion Slatepad" or something to that effect, joojoo just sound childish like a kids toy not something that would be used in a professional setting
@Justcofx
Good luck installing Win7 (not to mention apps) on a 4GB SSD...
I refer to urban dictionary...this is bad juju.
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bad%20juju
Christmas money say hello to crunchpad :)
this only for 499$ ? it wil fail big atleast the nvidia one runs windows ce (but like this thats a fail to)
Archos 9 any one ?
Better wait for the ARM smartbooks/tablets early 2010.
They will likely cost half as much as this and come with a decent Linux.
Shame on people who are writing this thing off before seeing it. I think Pete Rojas likes to start new web sites cause as they get more popular, they also get douchier fans..
I dont read TechCrunch or know of Mike Arrington. But it sounds like he has been taking credit for other peoples work for a while now. Its like if someone read Josh's post about the perfect smart-phone, and said, "Hey Josh, I'm making that." Josh: "Really, Can i give in insight and feedback along the way." "Sure we would love that, your well respected." Josh's next engadget post: "I'm making a phone. I will have it soon. Its gonna be free with no contract and uses white noise."
yeah there's probably going to be some dual core arm cortex 9 tablets with oled or pixel qi screens that are going to blow our minds. definitely should wait til at least february before buying a tablet/ereader
This thread is hilarious. It's like a combination highlight reel of past discussions about the Macbook Air and iPhone, and look forward at what people will say when Apple releases a $1500 tablet. Right before we all go out and buy it anyway. As for this thing, it's not a terrible idea, it may just be a little ahead of its time. You cannot buy a 12" capacitive touchscreen on any other currently-shipping device for anywhere near $500, if you can even find one. Hell, show me a netbook with a touchscreen of any kind for under $500.
Congratulations! You're the most expensive CrapGadget on the market!
At $200, 3G enabled, better battery life, apps ánd some less weight I'd hit $500 is waay overpriced tho.
LOL! @ 499$
screw this tablet.
499 and no 3G its a total waste and if arrington is telling the truth then these guys are douche bags.
The thing about these tablets and niche products is that they feel like they're trying to force a product on me. I don't sit at home on my couch or sit in my kitchen "wishing" I had a tablet. If I need to run a quick search, I use my phone. If I need to do something a bit more substantial, I walk to my computer. There's no in between. Stop trying to create a product for a market that doesn't exist!!!
I'm no fan of Mr. Arrington but Fusion Garage's decision to kick him to the curb instantly made this product a lame duck from the gate!
Hmmmm Crunchgear seems to be skipping this story.
@(Unverified)
I think it's likely their lawyers will respond. What's the point of Arrington responding any further at this stage?
thank god the times roman got the boot
Anyone who puts down there $500 for one of these next week is going to lose $500...so you might as well send it to me. These will never ship.
This is getting extremely weird: why would Arrington just claim he 'owned' a part of this venture when, according to Fusion Garage, it was their idea and investment all this time? I'm hoping this issue gets cleared up and we learn the truth behind this.
Their new product name "JooJoo" is incredibly stupid and potentially offensive. Did nobody think this through at all? I can't imagine how this got through review. If you walk up to the average American and say "Look at my JooJoo", it sounds and awful lot like JewJew and I don't think you really want your new product to put people in the uncomfortable position of having to explain that it's just a name and not to be associated with antisemitism. Bonehead research at it's finest.
@montex
"Jews" is widely accepted to be a non-offensive term.
Crunchpad to Joo Joo to not available till spring of 2006, Oh wait, 2007, 2008, 2009.......... Don't waste your time on this one. another piece of vaporware that was consumed by egos and the endless loop of engineering free fall known as "were not quite ready for release" syndrome. Hold out for the Apple pad.
you know what
I think it looks like a nice product even if its $500. This really is the start of tablet wars and for a no name company to offer something at $500 is a start. Lets face it Mike has no case here, no contract and verbal agreements = nothing.
the name should be interpad
apple is coming up with itablet with lower specs and higher price. I am sure nobody is going to complain.
500? Good luck guys your gonna need it
USD500.... you can a very compact Laptop which come with 3G access. Yes you can boot up the thing in 9sec. but come on...does that worth USD500?
It show this is another example of some startup who don't plan their product properly.
I love this thing and will most likely buy it to sit on the couch and use. I travel constantly so having this going through security will be a dream instead of my 17" macbook pro!
New hands on with the JooJoo:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-19882_3-10410960-250.html
First off I would like to second the assertion of N. Patel that Arrington is the worst lawyer in the world. You do not do international business without contracts aplenty. That said Fusion Garage looks rather odd in saying that Arrington did nothing. Usually when someone says they are my BFF and I don't know them, I tend to call them out on it (that is actually some gross simplications of legal concepts that might actually give Arrington a let to stand on) Leaving aside the fact that its underspeced, overpriced and apparently named by the marketing team Steve Jobs would be assigned to if he were dammed to Hell. Not just the name but what Asian company in its right mind would schedule a presser on Pearl Harbor day in the US? Amid assertions of sneaky dealings by said company? Which leads to my final thought. Do you want to send your coin to a company that, at the very least, took advantage of someone else to the very last minute and at the end of the day might never be able to effectively develop the device due to lawsuits and reluntance of the players to deal with it?
Ok, my cat is lousy proofreader who stepped on my keyboard before I could spell check. I apologize to the spelling purists in advance. :)
Except one as a gift, absolutely; buy one with my own money, no thank you.
$500 for a web browsing device with WiFi? Why not buy a HP notebook?
Rip Off. I like the idea of a tablet but I want a full OS like win7 and a decent size HD so I can watch movies and download photos from my camera.
This looks like an interesting device, but 2.4 lbs and $499 isn't all that impressive for a 12" tablet. The other day, I bought a full-fledged 13.3" thin-and-light notebook with dual cores for $549, which is only $50 more, 1 lb. heavier, and far more useful than the gadget depicted here.
A compiled collection about Joo Joo (Interviews, announcements and etc) http://www.tinkrbox.com/tb/box.jsp?b=GC9K9tvshncy
Does anyone know that joojoo in Chinese is a slang for 'dick'?