Early Details On Courier, Microsoft's Take On a Tablet 175
rbanffy points out an article on Gizmodo about Courier, a tablet (or more accurately, a booklet) in development at Microsoft. "The dual 7-inch (or so) screens are multitouch, and designed for writing, flicking and drawing with a stylus, in addition to fingers. They're connected by a hinge that holds a single iPhone-esque home button. Statuses, like wireless signal and battery life, are displayed along the rim of one of the screens. On the back cover is a camera, and it might charge through an inductive pad, like the Palm Touchstone charging dock for Pre." A concept video shows off the ability to use the two different screens for separate purposes, like browsing the web or a photo album on the left and using the right as a notepad or workspace.
I don't believe in dogs (Score:0, Insightful)
They are very bad animals. Also, is the tablet chewy or do you have to swallow it. Thank you for your trim.
Re:Looks like a nice device (Score:5, Insightful)
To me this thing is in a completely different category from eBook readers.
What you're really paying for on eBook readers and the real benefit is an e-ink display, which this most certainly does not have unless Microsoft has made some technological breakthroughs they're not sharing. If you get an eBook reader that uses regular LCDs you're right back in the realm of trying to read a book that's printed on top of a lightbulb that's switched on, with the accompanying battery requirements of powering said lightbulb.
Re:Looks like a nice device (Score:3, Insightful)
Yep. Anyone who likes a device and can think of why they'd like it is obviously a plant.
The Origami Project (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Looks very nice but... (Score:4, Insightful)
The UI is just another part of the mock-up. It looks to be very dependent on handwriting recognition for character input, like entering the URL, which is very, very difficult to do right. (Has anyone done this well enough to be useful yet?)
There's no evidence that the UI in general is any more developed than the hardware side of the device- and until someone actually gets their hands on one, we won't know if the UI is any good or not. Remember, this is the same company that produced Vista's shutdown menu.
Why? (Score:2, Insightful)
Reporting on Microsoft vapourware is just plain silly considering how little of their announcements that reach the market. Considering how much specs that gets tossed out the window to get it out after delays upon delays makes it even more pointless.
Re:"booklet" computer a great idea (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Most important question... (Score:5, Insightful)
Even better question: Will they ever bother selling it?
Microsoft has a nasty habit of fending off emerging threats by promising vaporware products that do the same job, only somehow better. In many of these cases, it's main job isn't to do $functionality, but distract attention and hype away from competitors (like, say, Apple's rumored tablet thingy), then the proposed product gets quietly buried once the hoopla is over.
It's a great way to suck the oxygen out of an emerging concept that threatens any sort of status quo... after all, Microsoft's profit margins got socked in the gut pretty hard by the whole netbook emergence.
Re:Looks like a nice device (Score:5, Insightful)
In this case. it's pretty likely.
Anyone who's been around long enough will see this footage has all the signs of a typical Microsoft marketing puff piece.
Check out this video [youtube.com]. See any similarities? Can you tell us what happened to the innovative product being marketed? Do you remember Origami? Natal? Surface?
Microsoft operating systems are too bloated and slow to make an interface like this work, it's just another attempt to convince shareholders that their research money isn't being wasted.
Ignore it. Nothing of value will come of it.
Re:Looks like a nice device (Score:3, Insightful)
It's hard to fathom that there may be a product out there that doesn't fit your personal preferences?
I have no use for a smartphone personally. But I'm not going to be so presumptuous as to say that there's no place for such devices. I mean, it's neither a cellphone nor a laptop, but that has no bearing on the utility of such a device. Every new category of products exists to cater to a previously unfilled niche. It was the same with netbooks. And just as now, there were shortsighted/close-minded individuals who dismissed the device for not fitting into one extreme or another (palm pilot/organizer and laptop).
I mean, what is so difficult to grasp about the reasoning that: since there are people who have uses for screens sizes 4" and less as well as those that measure over 9", there might also be a market for screens in between those ranges? If there are people who enjoy reading books on a tiny cellphone screen, then why not a device with a larger screen that is still portable? Frankly, 7" diagonal is about the size of a small netbook. That can easily fit into a purse or any of the pouches or pockets on a standard backpack. Heck, that's smaller than a small paperback novel that can easily fit in the side pockets of most of my pants.
Your skewed sense of proportions aside, the functionality of a tablet/ebook is geared towards different applications from a netbook or laptop. Sure, you can read ebooks on a similar-sized netbook, but an ebook reader would benefit far more from dual screens than a keyboard. Likewise, there are people who require tablet functionality and not the extra features that come with a netbook. Some people might prefer taking hand-written notes or being able to highlight passages in books they're reading. A laptop that weighs much more, is far less portable, has a shorter battery life, costs more, and is inferior for what you need it for just doesn't make sense.
Step outside of that solipsistic head space once in a while.
Re:Looks like a nice device (Score:3, Insightful)
Devices with LCD screens are still way cheaper and easier to read on than those darkgrey-on-lightgrey, expensive and slow e-ink displays.
(unless of course, some breakthrough improvements have appeared and no one told me)
Re:Looks like a nice device (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Looks like a nice device (Score:2, Insightful)
Are we watching the same video?
Did you see the bit where it said "Coming October 2003"?
Did you notice that the UI in the Longhorn marketing video was responsive and fast, even in 2003? Do you remember Microsoft being subjected to a class-action lawsuit over its "Vista Capable" campaign? Have you ever used Vista? Was it even vaguely similar to the marketing? On ANY hardware?
This video IS a marketing exercise and this discussion IS full of MS "Reputation Managers". No doubts.