Real Pocket Sized Computers That You Still Can't Buy
from the yes,-but-when-can-I-GET-one? dept
For years, we've been hearing about companies working on truly small handheld computers. These are full powered machines running real desktop operating systems on devices just a bit larger than a standard PDA. The Guardian has written up an article comparing the three major players in the space - and all I can say is, that I'll believe it when I can buy one. OQO has received the most hype, with the least to show until just recently. They've definitely modified their design from the original plans (and doubled their expected price...) so that their device is more like a giant Danger Hiptop with a pop out keyboard tucked under the screen. The folks at Tiqit are great, and once took the time to show me around their offices and let me test out their devices (which worked great). Their device is more like a giant Handspring Treo, with a small screen and a keyboard on the front of the device below the screen. Finally, Antelope is a spin-off from IBM who came up with this sort of concept in the first place, and are forging ahead with the original concept that OQO pitched and abandoned (and Tiqit toyed with, and abandoned) of created a "core" with a variety of different shells. This is still the idea that appeals to me the most. If you need your computer to be a desktop, you pop the core into your desktop docking station. Need it to be a laptop, you pop it into your laptop shell. If you need it to control your car, you pop it into the car docking station. To be honest, they all sound wonderful - but none of them are on the market yet. The article says they're all planning to release versions on the market soon, which would be great if they haven't been saying that for years. No doubt that these are all very cool. I definitely wouldn't mind having one around. However, until there's a way to actually buy one, you have to be a bit skeptical of their ability to come to market.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
ridiculous
CPU power is one of the trade offs, like a large screen, that make the difference between a desktop system and a portable system.
The real core of a system like this should be your DATA.
I'd build something like a Clie that was also a USB/FireWire drive. Now that would make a good core unit.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: ridiculous
Because it is.
The real core of a system like this should be your DATA.
Let's substitute a couple of words for CPU and data here, and tweak it to fit the scenario. You tell me if it makes sense :
"I have never understood why the [stomach] is the 'core' of your [digestive system]."
What the fuck are YOU smoking?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]