If you want to listen to the radio while eating breakfast you buy a radio for the kitchen. And if you want to make toast for breakfast you buy a toaster. You don't go looking for a radio that makes toast or a toaster that receives All Things Considered.
Sound silly? Well consider -- that's what we do when we want to surf the mobile Web. We use a…telephone handset.
Am I the only person who thinks there might be a better way? You know, something designed for reading and typing – which is how we interact with the Internet – instead of dialing and talking.
Evidently I'm not alone here, judging by Taiwanese electronics company GIGABYTE Technology's sleek new M528 mobile Internet device, scheduled to launch in Taiwan in August with 3G service from Chunghwa Telecom, according to an InfoWorld report.
The M528 is part of a new series of ultra-mobile devices unveiled by GIGABYTE in June.
Slightly larger than a PDA – 6" x 3" x ¾" – and weighing in at 12 ounces, the Linux-based (Mobile Linux) M528 features a 4.8 inch touch screen – compared with the typical mobile phone's 3 inches – a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, 802.11b/g WiFi support, 4GB disk, Bluetooth, USB ports, micro-SD card slot, a 3M-pixel camera and an application suite that includes a Firefox 3-based browser, Open Office and Skype. It's expected to retail around US$750.
It also has a SIM card slot, if you want to use it as a mobile phone. No word on whether it makes toast.
UMPC portal has more discussion on the M528, if you're interested.
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4 comments:
Today, you can use the Nokia N810 for this purpose. Works pretty well and is about half the cost of the device you talk about here. No GSM radio, but you can always tether to a mobile phone.
The device even looks very similar to my Nokia N810.
The difference is your kitchen has room for a lot of gadgets. Your pocket does not.
There will be a variety of gadgets starting with basic phones that only call--no alarms, no sms,just the basics.--to iPhone/Android type everything phones. For those who want to carry a bag around, there will be small laptops and smaller tablets.
But when you're in Home Depot and you want to see what Lowe's is selling this $1999 grill for, your iPhone/Android phone is likely the one you'll have on you.
I always use the example of the all in one TV/Video/Stereo. Most people thought the quality was "good enough" on each, but the experience was not optimal for each. To cap it all, if one broke, they all broke, and something always breaks. So, if you want toast, get a toaster.
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