PCWorld pitches MID against laptop and mobile phone. (Bzzzt!)

Posted on 12 February 2009, Last updated on 11 November 2019 by

Michael Gartenberg puts an argument forward against MIDs  in an article over at PCWorld today but I’ve read his article through at least three times now and I dont get it. Michael says that consumers are willing to carry three devices and lists the voice-capable mobile phone (agreed) and the laptop (agree, for business use.)

But where’s the third one?

He goes on in his article to say that netbooks can’t replace laptops and I think he’s also saying that MIDs can’t replace phones. I agree.

But where’s the third device?

ringoffie.jpgAs I said a few days ago, I think the MID is a convergence of a number of pre-existing gadgets that already enjoy popularity in the ‘tweener’ ground but require a bigger form factor than a mobile phone could ever provide.  Digital internet-connected cameras, pnd’s, ebook readers and handheld gaming devices are already enjoying momentum that no-one really disagrees with and with social websites and portable internet video taking off, there’s other areas of interest too.

Rather than the MID being a device that crosses over the phone or laptop, it’s a device that could consolidate the 4th, 5th and 6th digital gadget into one.

That’s the third device.

See Ring of FIE (in the second half of this article) for more on the convergence in the middle-ground.

Tweener Devices Fall Between the Cracks of Usefulness – PC World.

15 Comments For This Post

  1. Steve 'Chippy' Paine says:

    PCWorld pitches MID against laptop and mobile phone. (Bzzzt!) http://www.umpcportal.com/?p=5615

  2. Michael Gartenberg says:

    @chippy responds to my thoughts on Tweener devices. He makes some good points as well. http://bit.ly/vWaLq

  3. John says:

    For me, there’s no third mobile device.

    1) Mid-size mobile device (7-9″ screen, tablet, netbook, or convertible tablet)

    2) Pocketable device (phone + MID in one).

    Laptops are too big to carry, IMO. Anything that a laptop can do, that a mid-size can’t (rendering, CAD, 3d shooter, etc.), is something I wont be doing while mobile. So I shouldn’t have to carry anything bigger than a netbook/UMPC.

    I also don’t see why I should waste pocket space on a device that isn’t able to perform both of the phone and MID/PDA roles in one. That’s just a waste of money, weight, power, etc. A phone-less MID is insufficiently connected, and a phone that can’t fill all of my PDA needs is insufficiently flexible.

    There was a time that I also felt that a nebook/UMPC type device was a waste, but over time I found the N810’s screen to be a little too small … and its keyboard to be a little too slow. 75% of the time, that device size is fine. But for the other 25%, I need just a little more. Not a full laptop, but more than a pocketable.

    To put it into your terms:

    1) Mid size device == Netbook/UMPC, larger Media displays, eBook reader, fully featured web interface (full Google Reader, full Gmail, full Google Docs, some web pages that just don’t render on iPhone/Android/etc.).

    2) Pocketable device == Personal Navigation, non-display intensive Media playing, digital camera, smartphone, light web interface, portable gaming.

    With all of those bases covered, and adding in “a desktop PC somewhere”, I don’t see a need for a “just a phone” nor a laptop. Though, perhaps I could carry a CradlePoint PHS or Novatel Mifi … at least, until Android finally starts to support tethering.

  4. TempusFugit says:

    I agree with John for most part.

    I find myself carrying 2 things. Right now that’s a phone with minimal PDA function and a headset. If I have more than that, I lose them.

    An Axim x51v (PDA) was last seen on the top of my car. I have lost a Sansa clip between my office and my car. I sure that is a personal failing, but I doubt I could manage a laptop, a cell phone, some third mystery device and my headset, not to mention the power solutions for all of the above on a trip.

    I believe I want more capability than the phone provides because I keep trying other solutions. The phone’s screen is too small for comfortable use.

    I could be sold on a MID sized device that includes media capability, navigation, internet access, and phone capability in a pocketable form. I much prefer a headset for voices calls than holding a phone to my ears and living one-handed.

  5. Vakeros says:

    In his article he isn’t stating what the three devices are. He is just stating that no-one carries more than three. So this could be a camera, a phone and a laptop. Or a smartphone, pmp and GPS or some other mix. So he is really stating that a MID needs to perform some function that will mean that you can do everything with those three. He also doesn’t see what a MID adds to the mix which either a laptop or smartphone can’t do better – and therefore it is surplus to requirements.
    Personally I agree that you want one pocketable device and on occassion something larger. Because the phone is the pocketable device, then it is a question what that something larger will be. Michael is arguing that it would be a laptop for productivity and then maybe something else.
    I think two devices should be enough (unless you include a BT headset as the third.)

  6. John says:

    in THIS article (the one Chippy is talking about, not Chippy’s article), he doesn’t say what the 3 devices are, but in the article he links to, he does.

  7. LeeN says:

    I would love to have a rather large pocketable device. I think I can accept something a little larger then an N810 but the N810 size is perfect, while the iPhone size is too small (this is all about screen size). It should be a phone, camera, web browser, gaming platform, music/video player, storage (lots of space >32GB), programmable (easy to get a dev kit and easy to put your programs on). I would like to be able to doc it, attach it to TV (hdmi) and/or monitor. Have bluetooth and/or USB to attach keyboard, mouse, headset, etc. I would like it to be XP or Windows 7 based, but I’m willing to go with a Linux OS, as long as it is capable of being a real OS, rather then some stripped down OS that doesn’t have mouse support or is missing some other important features that a user would have to hack or recompile in order to get it in. Oh yeah and it have really long battery life, depending on how it is being used of course.

    This is a very tall order, but seeing devices like the OQO and the viliv make it seem like we are not that far away.

    For my second device, it would be a light weight slate, that is more like a book/notepad kind of feel to it, that would be good for ebook reading and sketching and note taking (it would be awesome if it could switch to an eInk kind of display). This is something you would carry around with you at work, at home, or on an airplane flight, but not really in the street, store, or any place where you don’t want your hands cluttered and can’t or don’t want to carry an additional bag or backpack.

  8. ProDigit says:

    I don’t agree on the netbook thing!
    I’ve already replaced my laptop with a netbook, and I am in favor of the EeePc901; great device;with the issues of storage worked out.

  9. fab says:

    i also think that netbooks and smartphones/phones are what the market is interested in. mid is a device which wants to combine both in one, although you might lose on advantages of each device and have more disadvantages.

    a call you need to pick up is done with a phone. a mid is definitely not what you will use

    write, browse, watch videos and photos…a netbook just is more confortable than a mid.

    why are we discussing since 2 years about MIDs and things are happening just very slowly?

    phones are on another level and netbooks are the plus in computer sales since last year. there’s not place for a mid as a third device

    ps: i want a mid, but the market is not helping me to solve my issue…

  10. John says:

    I’d be fine with owning a MID (I already have/had an N810) … as long as it has full phone features (that’s why I don’t use my N810 anymore; it doesn’t have full phone features). If I can use it to make regular (non-VOIP) voice calls, send/receive SMS and MMS messages, and it has 2G/3G/+ data to support a “FIE” platform/operating system … I think that’d be a fine product.

    But…

    I’m only going to carry ONE pocketable device. So a phone that doesn’t have FIE, or a MID that doesn’t have non-VOIP voice and SMS/MMS, is an insufficient product to earn space in my pockets. The G1 isn’t perfect in this regard, but so far it comes closest.

    For me, the perfect pocketable would be like the Nokia N97, enlarged to the size of the N810 (so, 4.8″ screen with 800×480 resolution), Dpad, Menu, Home, Back, Call, Power/Hangup buttons on the face, the same side slide+tilt mechanism as the N97, and a 5 row keyboard that has a feel and layout comparable to the G1. It would run Maemo (Nokia’s Linux for the N800/N810), and have Dalvik (the Android application/runtime environment) running on top of it. The main question is “what would the user interface look like”, and I’m not sure I have a good answer for that.

    It would have Maemo’s communication suite (SIP and multi-account + multi-protocol IM), with voice calls and SMS/MMS added to it. It would have 3G data built in, plus wifi. It would have the ability to act as a tethering device (the “phone” side of the equation, where current Maemo devices act as the client side of the equation), providing Bluetooth DUN and PAN based tethering, USB tethering, and wifi “tethering”. It would have SyncML, ActiveSync, and Android’s contacts/calendar/gmail syncing for keeping your PIM capabilities up to date (and, it would have to figure out how to combine Maemo and Android’s PIM capabilities). You’d have your choice between Linux layer applications (and full Linux access) and/or Android layer applications. I’m not sure which browser it would have (perhaps both browsers), but it would need to have full Gmail, Google Reader, and Google Docs capabilities, not just the “finger friendly + mobile” versions that Android gives you (another place where there’d have to be careful work done in combining the two UI’s). Oh, and, it would be fully Redfly compatible (usable with the redfly “netbook” product, and the redfly software edition that could run on regular netbooks).

    But, I think that would fully address the “Ring of FIE”. Unfortunately, I think it’s also completely unrealistic :-) I don’t think Nokia/Maemo would make the necessary accommodations for Android, nor do I think Google/Android would make the necessary accommodations for Maemo. I’m also unconvinced right now that Nokia will ever deliver a Maemo phone. And, most importantly, I think trying to resolve the two UI’s would be a path toward madness. But, as long as I’m going for “pie in the sky perfection”, it would also have quadband GSM, world WCDMA (AT&T, T-Mobile-USA, European, and Asian bands), dual SIM cards, and excellent battery life… and there would also be GSM+WCDMA+WiMAX and GSM+WCDMA+LTE editions, as those protocols matured (and, if Sprint paid for it, maybe a CDMA+EVDO+WiMAX edition).

    Yeah, I think that right now, that’d be my perfect pocketable. And, I’m also sure I’ll never see such a device.

  11. John says:

    Since I wrote all of that, Google Voice got announced. Unlike Skype, it allows actual SMS messaging. So I started to think about whether or not that type of VOIP service would be good enough for my use as a phone.

    If I had a reliable network connection, and if the VOIP service is usable on 2G (since I live in an area that’s only half covered with 3G), then I could get by with a pocketable that only has GPRS/EDGE/HSPA, and not voice/messaging. I’d just fill the latter roles using Google Voice.

    The other thought I’ve had since then is that the N97 could be substituted with an HTC Rhodium (Touch Pro2). But, again, scaled up to a 4.1″ screen.

  12. ProDigit says:

    If there where anything like an iphone running Linux or Windows xp,that’d be it!

    The closest to a MID I’ll ever get!
    But forget about all that 3G stuff…
    Me,like about 98% of the population is not interested (enough) in going on the internet with a small device like this!
    Perhaps we would if the internet would come free or at charge of $5 per month!

    I’d only buy a device like this if it can browse on wifi networks, operates as a cell, has some storage space in the likes of 16-32GB, and allows installation of programs downloadable via internet!

    I’m totally not interested in mac stuff,where every program costs me.
    I’m totally not interested in a device where I need to pay more then $5 per month to go on the internet,or can not make use of the internet connection I already have at home.

    It makes little to no sense to me to pay for 2 internet connections!

  13. Bearnheart says:

    At the moment I carry 2 mobile phones (Nokia 7110) and a handheld organizer (HP Jornada 690) and sometimes a Libretto ff1100v. So I use 3-4 mobile devices (without camera).
    My future configuration would be again 3-4 devices:
    1a) + 1b) LG GD910 wrist phone and a second mobile phone as long the wrist phones do not have dual-sim.
    2) a keyboard MID or UMPC like the Viliv S7 (almost same size as Jornada).
    3) subnotebook if necessary (A4 size, because I will not need an A5 size subnotebook when I use a Viliv S7).

  14. Peter Gammage says:

    Surely the time has come for the mix of devices that give function as follow:

    – Mobile internet
    – Personal Information Management
    – Mobile Phone

    2 form factors and therefore 2 devices can cover these

    – web enabled mobile phone – GPRS/HSDPA, blootooth – pocketable and easy form factor for short web access (without destroying your sight or fingers)
    – slate like A5 or A4 web pad – WIFII, Bluetooth, HSPDA – easilly carryable and fits into a bag, purse, folder or even a large jacket pocket

    Battery life is key – my old XDA lasted 6 days standby and at least hours full use. Probably ARM based as this seems to give some of the battery benefits.

    Thin is good – 1cm (half inch) at most. An A5 sized I-Pod touch would be ideal, but unfortunatelly Apple won’t go there and no-one else is venturing into the market.

    What I don’t understand is why someone won’t go here? If you can anwer my question or know if a device like an A5 sized slate please let me know – I’ll buy it and so will a bunch of my mates!!!!

    Both should be solid state and not have any of the junk that eats up battery life.

  15. John says:

    That’s pretty close to what I was saying.

    I like the G1 for the first of your devices (and I’m someone who insists on having a physical keyboard on my phone/MID).

    For the latter (an A4/10″ screen device) I’m hoping that the Always Innovating “Touch Book” will cover that role (though, some might balk at it being ARM based instead of x86 based). Again, I want a physical keyboard if possible, so the Touch Book’s removable keyboard gives the best of both tablet and netbook configurations. I’d also accept a Samsung Q1 Ultra type tablet (split thumb keyboards on either side of the screen), but would prefer 5 row keyboards instead of the 4 row that that Q1 Ultra has … or I’d accept a convertible tablet (swivel screen) netbook. With the added extra wrinkle that I wont run Windows.

    And, there are a TON of rumors circulating about Apple doing a 10″ device in the Fall. So, maybe you’ll get your A5 iPod-Touch. I’ll only be interested in it if it has physical keyboard capability.

Search UMPCPortal

Find ultra mobile PCs, Ultrabooks, Netbooks and handhelds PCs quickly using the following links:

Acer Aspire Switch 10
10.1" Intel Atom Z3745
Acer C740
11.6" Intel Celeron 3205U
VIA Nanobook
7.0" VIA C7-M
Lenovo Ideapad Flex 10
10.1" Intel Celeron N2806
Acer Aspire E11 ES1
11.6" Intel Celeron N2840
Dell Chromebook 11
11.6" Intel Celeron 2955U
Dell Latitude E7440
14.0" Intel Core i5-4200U
Acer TravelMate B113
11.6" Intel Core i3
HP Elitebook 820 G2
12.5" Intel Core i5 5300U
Acer Chromebook 11 CB3-131
11.6" Intel Celeron N2807