I do enjoy a bit of Om Malik. He cuts through the crap well and has a great sense of humor. He also seems to like mobile computing. Both he and Stacey Higginbotham write good detailed mobile computing articles that you know they are passionate about.
This morning I read an article from Om about netbooks and cloud computers. He’s not happy with the general design of netbooks.
So far, all they have done is cram traditional notebooks into smaller, maybe-lighter-to-carry bodies. They’re neither good for computing nor for communication.
You know what, I think there are two types of Internet people out there. People that have discovered mobile Internet and people that haven’t. Om is obviously of the mobile persuasion and he, quite correctly, points out that netbooks really aren’t a massive leap forward for mobility and, very importantly, require some form of mobile Internet connectivity. Fortunately for netbook manufacturers, most people haven’t discovered the mobile Internet yet and will probably be happy with a netbook. [It also raises the question of whether netbooks should tend towards ultra mobile PC designs over time?]
Om goes on to list his Cloud Computer requirements which, if you ask me, has ultra mobile PC written all over it. – apart from one thing. But first, his specs:
- Instant On
- Doesn’t generate too much heat.
- Minimum 5 hours of battery life.
- Must feature at least four communications options: WiFi, Ethernet, Bluetooth & Wireless Wide Area Network connection to, say, an EVDO or HSPA Network.
- Less than three pounds (Batteries included).
- Screen size of 3.5 to 8 inches (wide-screen proportioned)
- The primary function of the computer should be cloud-based activities that can include everything from listening to live music, reading blogs and watching videos. Writing research reports or cranking out spreadsheets isn’t the primary purpose of these machines.
- It should cost no more than $300. This isn’t a computer; it’s a communications device. It should really be an on-the-go device. It is a device for the moments when your cellphone isn’t enough, and laptop is too much. An iPhone should qualify.
- Its innards, ports should be geared for Internet-based activities — from making calls on Skype to consuming RSS feeds — though it should be able to handle external peripherals.
- In the future it should move away from the keyboard and have a touchscreen interface that allows one to sift through large amounts of data (or web pages) quickly, as cramped keyboards and touchpads can be hard to use.
Spot the problem feature at #8. Sorry Om, you aint going to get a device like that for $300. 3G modems are still very expensive. Touchscreens too. Then there’s the scaling cost to consider for a market that, compared to the smartphone market, is tiny. You might see a device offered by a carrier for $300 but you’ll have to sign up for 2 years of data to get it which, in this fast changing mobile Internet world, is an eternity. Expect to wait another 12-18 months before a sub $400 3G-equipped ultra mobile PC hits the market. In the meantime, us early adopters will have to be prepared to pay.
At least we have a choice though, just two years ago you could count the number of ultra mobile PCs on one hand. Today, you have over 100 to choose from.
Source: What Makes A Cloud Computer?
Om is describing, to the letter, the 3G iPhone.
Yeah sounds a bit like a MID with the whole €300 price range thing
this is indeed mid territory. that is, if you show intel the middle finger…
no way are you going to get 5 hours of active use out of a device that size if it has a x86 cpu under the hood…
hell, i wonder what the reaction would have been if nokia had gone for HSPA for the N810 refresh, rather then wimax…
The N810 is just a CPU and 3G module away from being a very attractive MID!
Steve.
indeed, but it seems that we may have a interesting joker in the form of pandora. this given its recent addition of bluetooth ;)
but i think nokia will never put a 3G module in their tablet, for fear of disrupting their phone market.
hmm, that may also be why palm was pushing the foleo as a companion rather then a stand alone product. if it was sold as stand alone, it could risk undermining the treo sales…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disruptive_technology
Distrupting existing product sales is one reason that Nokia, Apple etc may hold back from MIDs. Its a real shame.
I can’t wait to see how Pandora performs!
Steve.
i dont know about apple. they do not have anything other then iphone. and like john commented, the points above match almost perfectly the new iphone 3g. but i wonder what apples love for control will to say about the end result.
hell, i cant shake the feel that apple will iphone/eeepc-ify their low end desktop and laptop products, and leave osx for their high end pro stuff.
maybe because such a move would match my own thoughts on casual users of computers, and what product they would probably be happy with.
Interesting list, but I have to make a few comments:
1 – Weight. Must be around 500 gr or less (1 pound), to be a real mobile “companion”.
2 – Price. I do not see price as very sensitive. Here in Sweden, we gladly pay 500 euros for a smartphone (without contract). So for a MID (or whatever we choose to call it) around 500-800 euros would be OK.
– Really important to me is to have voice call functionality included, as I use a bluetooth headset anyway. Then it could really be the “one” mobile device you need.
About Netbooks. Here Om is definitely on the right track. I do not understand this class of computers at all. They are too small for heavy-duty professional work (word, spreadsheets..) and too large for being your main mobile device. In addition no touch screen. Sorry, but no.
I guess I am not as free with my spending as the rest of you. Yes, I would like a good computer with always-on connectivity, but the connection prices are outrageous. Now, just as the portable units are getting to where they could be useful for consuming media on the go and using cloud apps, US carriers are slapping download limits on their “unlimited” connection plans.
My preferred setup would be an mini laptop (loved my old Psion Series 7, and I am still looking for something to really replace it) or a Nokia-style tablet, with a small feature phone to use as a modem. Unfortunately, with the extra cost of tethering, it is impractical to go with a two-device solution. Even if I did, I would constantly be wondering how much I am downloading and if I am near the cap. Instead, I have to find a smartphone that MIGHT do in a pinch. The idea of paying more than $600 for said phone just feels silly.
What you are forgetting is that UMPC is supposed to be full Windows not a glorified MID internet phone? Right now most phones have internet and most of the same features as an MID.
The interest in netbooks to me is clearly proving that the majority want a touch type keyboard. What is missing is just a jacket pocket laptop something like the shape of a Psion 5mx or HP Jornada 720 yet runs full windows. I am fine paying more for a full windows real computer that has a touch type keyboard and is jacket pocket size; the reason is then it can be a primary mobile full PC.
Anything less is a toy and then price is an issue. When you compare what is available in the windows mobile smart phones and blackberry type devices I see less and less value for a MID device.
UMPC’s need to focus on being a full PC that is mobile enough to carry in a large jacket pocket and provides the input of a tough type keyboard that everyone wants. It is not price it is that UMPC’s have had the wrong form factor to make it jacket size and they have lacked a touch type keyboard.
Ask yourselves how does the majority of the world use full Windows? the answer is with a touch type keyboarde. Psion and HP Jornada 720’s proved that a touch type keyboard can be small enough to be jacket pocket ket still functional.
the problem with full windows is that the gui for the desktop and apps where never designed for use on small screens…
Look at the OQO, (the Samsung sph p9200- unfortunately not availble in the USA & the Sharp Wilcom D4 ). To me the best is the Samsung sph p9200 as it provides a unique approach by making it a trifold to provide a easy to input touch type keyboard and a still usable screen.
The N810 needs more than a CPU and 3G upgrade. It needs decent software. Hopefully the upcoming N900 and the new Diablo OS will fix a lot of these issues.
Netbooks are popular because they are dirt cheap. If the OQO or Samsung Q1 were $300, they would sell like hotcakes. I think the majority of UMPC users do not require touch-type keyboards, they just need access to the same applications available on their desktop.
Adding a touch-typeable keyboard is likely to reduce an UMPC’s usability as a handheld device. Touch type keyboard are only truly useful if you’re using the device on a table. I use my UMPC on the train, on flights, in bed, heck I even type out emails while walking around the city!
i totally understand the netbooks. most people dont touchtype and most people dont use pcs for real work.
i was handed a normal sized laptop this week because the wifi stopped working, it really isnt good after using a umpc because its too heavy , but the eee i had was great, just needs a touch screen and to get rid of the mouse pad and use synaptics pointer.
A lot of good comments about where each bit fits in.
The consumer as opposed to the prosumer doesn’t need a touch type keyboard, but they do want a keyboard.
The netbook is closest to what they know, however MIDs and good interface touchscreens will work too.
Me I want an ALL-in-one device, that means small with a usable keyboard similiar to PSion 5mx, but running all the apps I need from work, and the ability to make calls. Look in the forum pst, what UMPC do you want and add your own!
The naturally prefered input is still touch type keyboards as the notebook/laptops and desktops make up the majority of full windows users worldwide. Yes her on a UMPC site you have more techno people whom are ok with no traditional input methods. But look at the facts, in all of 2007 only 350k UMPC’s were sold. Technology to be adopted by the mainstream needs to match the mainstream’s input method they find most comfortable and it is not a thumb input or pen.
I think the best form factor for true mobile use for business and adoption by mainstream would be a device like the Psion 5mx or HP Jornada 720 that was updated using full windows. Those devices still enabled adequate standing input yet provide good touch type input when seated. Those type of devices sold almost 7 times as many units than the UMPC have in a year and they did not have full windows!
Jacket pocket size devices (debateable) like the Jornada 720 or Psion 5mx are only possible due to their extremely wide-aspect screens. My Jornada 720 (yes I had one) has a 640×240 screen. Windows Vista/XP would be completely useless on that screen resolution.
If you stretched the display to a useable 16:10 aspect ratio, you’ll end up with a device with the same size as the HTC Shift.
WinCE Handheld PC and Psion devices only sold because there were few PIM alternatives. When the Palm and Pocket PC form factors appeared, everyone abandoned the HPC form factor.
only 350K UMPC were sold in full 2007? In which market? Worldwide? I heard 700K units of Eee PC was sold in only a quarter.
After Bill Gates, MicroSoft should develop a new version of Windows for UMPC, for 5 inch UMPC, not 7 inch or 8.9 inch for people to have FIE (full internet experience) in pocketable device.
Will,
The Samsung sph p9200 has a 5″ screen and when folded it is 4.25″ in depth which just barely fits in a jacket pocket but would fit. If there is no way to display in 1/2 vga like Windows CE; then a 4-5″ screen would still enable a jacket pocket UMPC. The Samsung sph p9200 would probably be the largest screen and the Sharp Wilcom D4 still would be usable, although a little small.
I think some type of device using one of the above size screen that has a touch type keyboard is what is required for the hardware to really get mainstream attention; unless there is a software or new version of Windows that enables 1/2 vga like the Psion if the current version does not allow that?
A foldable keyboard unfortunately is useless on anything but a flat surface. I know, I use a Think Outside Bluetooth Folding Keyboard.
Regarding screen size, while I’m sure Windows can be made to run at any screen solution, Win32 applications are designed assuming that most screens have at least 600 pixels vertically.
Take a look at Firefox on XP. With the Start Menu, Firefox status bar, address bar, Window controls, tabs bar and navigation bar, there would be no space left to display the webpage!
Even on my Flipstart (which has a 5.6″ 1024×600 screen), there are times when I feel that there is insufficient vertical space. I’m glad I didn’t end up with the OQO which has a 5″ 800×480 screen.
Al, I think the best device for you is a slider (like the OQO) or a pure slate (like the Samsung Q1) partnered with a Bluetooth folding keyboard.
Wil,
I tried the OQO and Samsung Q1 and did not like them. I really want a better keyboard. I’m keeping my eye on the Sharp D4 to see how Sharp does with the final version released in Japan as I am considering buy that one since several vendors claim they are going to import them? So far all the UMPC ‘s seem so far away from being a sole independant computer for business use; the Samsung sph p9200 seemed to me the best for my needs but it is not available outside of Korea as it is a wimax device.
Al,
I know we’re really off topic here (um.. this is a cloud computing article :) ) but what exactly will you need to do on a UMPC? Will it be primarily used for writing long documents?
If so, I think your best bet is still a UMPC with a Bluetooth keyboard like this:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0018MFORS/ref=dp_cp_ob_title_1
Does it have to fit in a jacket pocket? What about weight? The Psion 5 are only about 300-400g while UMPCs are generally 500g+
The Sharp D4 keyboard looks like a larger version of the keyboard found on the HTC TyTn II which is meant for thumbtyping, not on-table touch-typing.
All I want which I also believe most business people want is just a simple jacket pocket computer to use as our primary stand alone mobile computer that has a built in touch type keyboard, runs full windows. I currently use a HP 728 which is a lot heavier than a Psion but thats fine with me. If I have to carry another foldable keyboard then it is not really very mobile when you think about the added keyboard and the hassle to connect and use it versus a built in one.
I know Sharp has never made good keyboards but so far this is the closest I could find to my desires and I guess having waited since the HP Jornada I am ok sacraficing a little? The other UMPC’s to me are toys that can not be an effective stand alone pocket computer. I find it amazing that nobody has built a modern Psion?