iPad?

[arn]

In one of the more roundabout rumors... this thread on MacNN (http://forums.macnn.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=29&t=000664) roughly translates a Chinese clipping (scanned here) (http://www.oeyvind.org/misc/iPad_rumor.jpg) regarding a rumored PDA/MP3 Player from Apple

Inventec Appliances has possibly received a contract from Apple for production of “MP3 players” and PDA units. The total number of “MP3 player” and PDA in the contract may exceed several millions. So far, the “MP3 player” has been successfully put on production line and available on the market, known as “iPod.” On the other hand, “iPad”, which combines the functions of a MP3 player and PDA, is under test by Inventec

[Ensign Paris]

I kind of home we see a iPad before I do the DOE award. I really need something to have music on AND be useful at school!

My PB is getting to damaged taking it to school every day!

[Scab Cake]

I guess that interview with Steve Jobs where he said that he doesn't want to get into the PDA market because it's dying and not very stable doesn't really mean a whole lot to people. I'm willing to bet that Apple will not release a PDA any time soon. It's a silly idea. It has nothing to do with the whole digital hub idea. There are plenty of variations of PDAs that can/will sync with the mac. There's really no reason for Apple to get into the market.

On a side note...

If you use tcsh in the terminal, type in "bill gates". Pretty funny. I saw this in an appleinsider forum, I think.

[Hemingray]

iWould buy one! :D

[eyelikeart]

I don't know what to think....

I'm with u though Scab Cake.....Steve said no PDA!!! :confused:

now I'll probably get flamed for my many posts against the idea....

only if it's true...

[crassusad44]

Here we go again.... Oh, *****...

[britboy]

It wouldn't just so happen to be referring to this would it?

http://www.ftxs.fujitsu.com/newsarticle.asp?navid=3&newsid=426

[arn]

Originally posted by britboy
It wouldn't just so happen to be referring to this would it?

http://www.ftxs.fujitsu.com/newsarticle.asp?navid=3&newsid=426

same name, different specs

arn

[Macmaniac]

I would buy it:)
PDAs are very primitive Apple could take a chance in the PDA market, I think they should:)

____________________________
Not all who wander are lost.

[obeygiant]

ahh..ahhhhh.....ahhhhh....************!

oh excuse me...I just sneezed.

[Doubtful]

Nah, don't think it's likely. iPad and iPod sound too similar and would create confusion. At the same time, I dont think Apple would create a PDA again anyway.. marketplace is just too volatile.

[burleypokey]

iPad? Despite the fact Jobs has stated he's not interested in an Apple PDA, why would Apple name it the iPad. It sounds a bit like a feminine product of sorts to me.


BurleyPokey
Slot Loading iMac of Doom and Mass Destruction.

[Quark]

1. In case people haven't heard, from SJ at MWSF and in the iMac video, the Digital Hub idea is pretty much Complete...

2. SJ said that they have alot more ideas that they are working on... this leaves room for the following ideas:

A. a digital camera - I wouldn't put it past Apple to take their OS and software expertise and combine it with Nikon's photography expertise to come up with an insanely great digital camera with iPhoto 2 to do things that can only be done on a Mac.
--I would buy one

B. PDA, not so sure, but a tablet computer would hit a home run. I have wanted something like that for a long time. I would use it in meetings, inventory people would use it all the time and the same businesses that would buy the "IT" human transport thing would probably invest in them as well. M$ OS and tablet PC concept has been hitting problem after problem. People want this thing and no one else can deliver it like Apple and SJ.
--I would buy one, immediately (almost regardless of cost)

C. A pager/cell phone communications device that was similar to the HipTop would be fantastic
--I would buy one, immediately

Steve seems to keep each device simple and to the point. He would make the Best Digital Camera to be the Best Digital Camera. He made the Best MP3 player to be the Best MP3 player and didn't clutter it up with additional items that could have easily been put in, like a mic - how would solve the problem of identifying a recording you just made using the mic... date/time stamp, that's almost meaningless.. some sort of scrolling text writing program where you scroll through the alphabet and pick each letter... no, keep it simple and to the point and make it the Best.

I think that a tablet type device will be announced mid 2002.

I think the Digital Camera idea will be announced in Tokyo.

The last idea would probably be co-developed by Apple & wOz and sold under the Apple name.

There you have it....:D

[as he steps away from the computer, trying to remember the original point, only to find that his cup of tea on the side of the desk has cooled to room temperature... he grins as it heats up in the microwave, knowing that soon he will be far away at an improbable destination...]

[voicegy]

Originally posted by Quark

...as he steps away from the computer, trying to remember the original point, only to find that his cup of tea on the side of the desk has cooled to room temperature... he grins as it heats up in the microwave...


Now if Apple made a microwave...
I'd buy it!

[Onyxx]

1) Jobs hated the newton; it was a shully project i believe
2) Market is saturated with pda's right now
3) Job's said that apple wasn't going to enter the pda market again

oh and as for the tablet idea, unfoutunately it has died. Remember that semi-ugly looking sony tablet computer? Well it was recently pulled from the product line due to lagging sales. True this wasn't a "true" tablet computer, but it said to manufactures that the majority of the population (and thats what it would be geared to) doesnt want one.
If cost really isn't an issue with you Quark, buy an iMac, take off the 15 inch screen and replace it with the 15 inch wacom lcd tablet. There you go, a pro-level tablet machine. Ok so maybe a screen transplant wouldn't be a great idea but nothing is stopping you from getting say a dual 1 ghz and equiping it with that wacom. it would just replace the monitor (but you could still have a second one).
So i guess you could say that the tablet pc already exists; its just that there is some assembly required.

[Unregistered]

The Newton 2.X OSs have a date bug. I forget when it kicks in. Sometime in the next couple years? We're due a replacement before that bug kicks in.

[Unregistered]

January 29, 1998
New Newton OS Planned

Amid unconfirmed news reports that Apple Computer plans major shifts in its Newton development and marketing, Planet Newton has learned from sources at Apple that it intends to revamp the Newton Operating System (Newton OS) and release an entirely new version based on Macintosh/Rhapsody technology later this year.


http://www.planetnewton.com/dailyplanet/PN012919982.html

[voicegy]

Originally posted by Unregistered
January 29, 1998
New Newton OS Planned


Uh, more like it's come and gone.

[arn]

Originally posted by Unregistered
The Newton 2.X OSs have a date bug. I forget when it kicks in. Sometime in the next couple years? We're due a replacement before that bug kicks in.

I think it's in like 50 years

arn

[matt201]

Hehehehe, it just so happens that I am from Taiwan and understand Chinese... The correct translation regarding the iPad should be "And ACCORDING TO RUMORS, they are also developing iPads for Apple...." so, the reporter isn't really quoting from any reliable source, either. Just FYI.

[ipiloot]

...Apple has something to offer to the PDA market.

1. HWR - nowadays HWR-s on the other PDA platforms are simply not usable. Therefore, the only HWR, I use is on my Newton 2100
2. Usability - Newton is still easier to use than PocketPC or Palm
3. Style - no comments needed here
4. Tech - Looking fo iPod makes me think, that there's still plenty of things, that are missing from PDA-s

And last, but not least:
5 Looking to the price- structure of the recent Apple products - something is radically changing. Apple is actually cheaper, than comparable PC product in many cases. So, thare's also a price per value candy expected.

About fitting into the hub strategy - well, PDA can be the hub by hemself.

About the tablet PC - i think, that the concept itself is ill. Open the Franklin planner or TimeSystem an look at the size. It's the size of the Newton. End it's awfully inconvinient to write to the nowaday's PDA screens (320x240 pixels is tiny). So the suitable device has to be the size of the planner, but not the size of the notebook.

About the Steve saying no PDA - well, it's Steve. Maybe it's true. Maybe he call's the device other way (Personal Digital Planner). Maybe he will just say sorry. Maybe I'm all wrong and there would be no PDA.

[ipiloot]

... there would be a device, which is:
1. In size of the usual A5 planner (i.e. Newton MP2100)
2. Has 480x320 color screen (same res as Newton)
3. Has 128 Mb RAM
4. Has 10Gb HDD
5. Has G3 inside
6. Has OSX (without classic and with special PDA software)

And most important:
7. Can be connected to the keyboard, mice and monitor and act as a full-blown Macintosh computer.

I'll buy it. Immediately.

[eatmypiano]

Palm is losing money hand over fist. Psion has stopped production of PDAs. The Newton was discontinued because people don't take notes on devices that spend ages trying to recognise your handwriting and then get it wrong.

iPad is a registered trademark of Fujitsu so it would be real stupid of Apple to use that name for one of their products - they'd just get their butts sued.

Apple will not release a PDA. Sure, they'll release small gadgets but a PDA does not fit into the realm of the Digital Hub unless it does a lot more than take notes and keep phone numbers.

As for "Running PalmOS" - Fujitsus iPad runs Windows CE. 65% of Apple Employees are programmers. So it's a great idea to waste that investment in the talented manpower that brought us OS X and license a technology from a third party instead. My arse.

On a personal note, why is it that the people that all say "Oh, I hpe this is true" and "It must be true because Apple are making a PDA" can't actually spell properly?

Give up on the PDAs - it's not going to happen. They are great novelties but they are not serious business tools and are no use to Apples vision of a Digital Hub. You want a PDA - buy a HandSpring Visor and stick the Apple Logo on it.

[Unregistered]

[i]If you use tcsh in the terminal, type in "bill gates". Pretty funny. I saw this in an appleinsider forum, I think. [/B]

well, unix doesnt seem to like Steve Jobs either:

martin% bill gates

OK? kill gates? yes
kill: Arguments should be Jobs or process id's.

[Unregistered]

Originally posted by Unregistered
January 29, 1998
New Newton OS Planned

Amid unconfirmed news reports that Apple Computer plans major shifts in its Newton development and marketing, Planet Newton has learned from sources at Apple that it intends to revamp the Newton Operating System (Newton OS) and release an entirely new version based on Macintosh/Rhapsody technology later this year.


http://www.planetnewton.com/dailyplanet/PN012919982.html


And you believe this? LOL!

[kainjow]

Here's what I would like in a PDA but nothing is close to it:

1) Voice Recognition
Like ViaVoice, but on a PDA. Why do you have to write into your stupid pda? Everyone knows it's a pain in any pda, even the Newton (which I own, as is great!) still has many issues. Apple needs to team up with IBM and create a simple PDA (what's more simple than voice recognition) and allow the user to do EVERYTHING by voice. no stupid stylus, no keyboard, no nothing... Just voice. so instead of having to type each character of an email, you would just speak it and then say "send" and it's sent to the person whereever you are. newton had something like this, but i never got the chance to try it out.

that's all i want is voice recognition in a pda. why not? just lose everything else (like all the gay graffiti crap) and make it pure voice recognition. ibm can do it. apple/handspring can do it. why not?

just wishful thinking,

-kev

[Unregistered]

The article its a Palm OS machine with a 10 gb hard drive which can be used and an external hard drive, 60 000 units, Apple's secret weapon, due out late first quarter / early second and is expensive.

[Six]

Originally posted by kainjow
Here's what I would like in a PDA but nothing is close to it:

1) Voice Recognition
Like ViaVoice, but on a PDA. Why do you have to write into your stupid pda? Everyone knows it's a pain in any pda, even the Newton (which I own, as is great!) still has many issues. Apple needs to team up with IBM and create a simple PDA (what's more simple than voice recognition) and allow the user to do EVERYTHING by voice. no stupid stylus, no keyboard, no nothing... Just voice. so instead of having to type each character of an email, you would just speak it and then say "send" and it's sent to the person whereever you are. newton had something like this, but i never got the chance to try it out.

that's all i want is voice recognition in a pda. why not? just lose everything else (like all the gay graffiti crap) and make it pure voice recognition. ibm can do it. apple/handspring can do it. why not?

just wishful thinking,

-kev


Yeah, in theroy that is a great idea, but sadly I think it could only be wishful thinking. Imagine trying to use on of those at an airport or business meeting while being surrounded by 50 other buinessmen yelling in to their Apple PDAs

[cplmd]

iPad - never be that name - they don't own the trademark and doubt Fujitsu would sell it.

Is the digital hub complete - according to Jobs and co yes - but then again the iMac and iPhoto were suppose to blow us all away and go WAY beyond the rumor site - go figure.

What do the "other projects" include?

There is an interesting news items in Reuter's today about the declining sale of PCs in Japan - more than the unending recession there would explain.

Could it be that 3G networks and smarter phones are taking over the communication jobs that people use to use computers to do?

Could it be that instead of converging on one device that tries to do everything half way - instead we want multiple devices that does one thing really well and are cheaper than a pc system?

Palm's death (yea I think it's going that way) is not due to dissatisfaction with PDAs as much as Palm not giving people what they want. Look at this latest i705 - basically a blackberry in palm clothing. It ignores the 802.11b networks we have deployed and continue to deploy. It uses proprietary protocols that cost an arm and a leg to use and don't allow easy access to data we already own. You couldn't give me one as a paper weight.

Now if i had a device that had a bigger screen and used AirPort 802.11b to access my docs on my desktop mac on the go.......... :) would that be a PDA???

[eyelikeart]

looks like I'll be taking my iPoop out of storage! :p

who else has theirs? we can synch them up!!

[mischief]

Yes, Apple's new Personal Dung Assistant. It keeps track of your health, nutrition, sexual preference and stress level through it's revolutionary rectal interface. Some users may experience heightened performance due to close cerebral proximity of the I/O.

Warning: Side FX include constipation, flatulence, hemmrhoids, toxic shock and in rare cases sexual disfunction. Continual use of vibratory-beep feature may result in loose stool.

PDAs are the fins-on-the-Cadillac of the digital age.

[rastalin94]

1. In size of the usual A5 planner (i.e. Newton MP2100)
2. Has 480x320 color screen (same res as Newton)
3. Has 128 Mb RAM
4. Has 10Gb HDD
5. Has G3 inside
6. Has OSX (without classic and with special PDA software)
7. Can be connected to the keyboard, mice and monitor and act as a full-blown Macintosh computer.

The above specs would make for a very nice machine. There is a need for some type of device to fill the need of a mp3 player/PDA/laptop. I currently use an eMate 300 for writing mainly because the batter lasts a long time, it is instant on, and is very simple to use. It would be nice to have some type of computer device you can have with you at all time so you can begin to record those random thoughts that you have that right now you loose. It should be small enough to have with you at all times, battery last a long time (I am talking like 10 hours of active use), easy to get large amounts of info into (keyboard or voice or both), and have decent storage. It would be the true “personal” computer. I have no idea exactly how it would work but I will leave that up to apple.

One thing I would like to point out is just because there are a lot of something on the market does not mean that you can not come out with something better. I think Apple should come out with a camera, make it work with the Mac in a way no other camera does. If you have to many choices that can make a decision harder than if you have just a few choices. If I was to get a digital camera and Apple made one I would just get the one they made because I trust Apple to make a product that will fill my needs and than some. There are iPod like devices on the market, what makes the iPod unique is the Apple spin on it. Apple could put their spin on any device, PDA, Palm top computer, Camera, Set top box, etc, and it would have a market. Apple is great at designing devices that are powerful, easy to use, and you can use them without having to go through a steep learning curve. People buy technology to do something, not to learn how it works J
Apple does not market to the Business world, that is not their market. Mainly because it takes that world a few years to “get it”. They sell to the average user, or the creative power user. They have a great formula, make a device that is easy to use yet powerful enough to do everything the consumer wants.

[mischief]

Oh sorry, lemme give you some privacy to answer that.

(runs from room):D

[Xapplimatic]

The article is bullsh... Apple has no plans for a PDA as much as we might want them too, and they wouldn't set themselves up for a trademark lawsuit with Fujitsu like that.. reality strikes here.

In other news, rumor has it that Apple is contracting with Vikasleeze to build 5,000,000 of its upcoming iBewares. Specs include the new low power G5, Mac OS 11, eye movement recognition control system, fluid voice command, interface with all cellular phone networks for voice calls, 802.11a and bluetooth networks, and comes with a new lithium hydrogen battery pack which runs for 5000 hours before adding water!

[cplmd]

Originally posted by Xapplimatic
The article is bullsh... Apple has no plans for a PDA as much as we might want them too, and they wouldn't set themselves up for a trademark lawsuit with Fujitsu like that.. reality strikes here.

In other news, rumor has it that Apple is contracting with Vikasleeze to build 5,000,000 of its upcoming iBewares. Specs include the new low power G5, Mac OS 11, eye movement recognition control system, fluid voice command, interface with all cellular phone networks for voice calls, 802.11a and bluetooth networks, and comes with a new lithium hydrogen battery pack which runs for 5000 hours before adding water!

REALLY??????
When will they ship??
:D

[Unregistered]

Originally posted by Scab Cake


On a side note...

If you use tcsh in the terminal, type in "bill gates". Pretty funny. I saw this in an appleinsider forum, I think.

Thats not an intentional easter egg. Darwin automatically recommends an command if the you are using is not available. so ':bill gates' == ':kill gates' since 'kill' is a valid command and 'bill' is not.

[udannlin]

for those of you that can read chinese you noticed that this system is referred to as a 'replacement' for the ipod. so ipad = ipod2. This would indeed work with the digital hub strategy since this would still reside in the music arm of the digital hub and the pda interface would just be an additional incentive to sell the device. Since it will run PalmOS as its implying then there are hardly any maintenance overhead besides the original R/D of the hardware... make sense to me...

[eyelikeart]

Originally posted by mischief
Oh sorry, lemme give you some privacy to answer that.

(runs from room):D

ha ha ha.....maybe I should give u some rubber gloves! :D

[Unregistered]

Forget the business applications, wireless connections, etc.
Yes, these devices are a dime a dozen and no, Apple does not need to produce their own pda's.
However, what has Apple been focused on the past few years?
Pictures and Sound!
I would LOVE an i-whatever that would do the following:
1. Play mp3's. DUH
2. Display color pictures so I can take my 'digital photo album' with me.
Maybe somehow, someday, sync up with iPhoto??? Seems the obvious next step to me.
'course we'd need a nice big clear color screen :)
...and hey, if it runs the Palm OS, all the better
I know Sony makes this exact thing, but given the choice, I'd buy Apple....in a heartbeat.

[robodweeb]

I agree that Apple shouldn't/won't enter the PDA market. However, I think it's entirely feasible - and desirable - for Apple to develop a new device between the handheld PDA and the iMac ... and I think that such a device could be a tablet.

I've been in lots of business meetings (and worked on a graduate degree) over the past few years and I've been struck by the fact that everyone who used a PDA also brought along a pad of paper. The PDA was used for reference (schedules, emails, etc.), with some minimal editing, while the pad of paper was used for gathering new information, entered by hand. Folks with laptops similarly tended not to use their laptops so much during meetings, lectures/presentations, etc. They took notes on pads of paper. Don't get me wrong, I've loved having a Powerbook G4, but I generally only used it when I was effectively alone (you can only watch so many DVDs on flights). This has been the main reason I haven?t bought a PDA for myself (though I?ve tried them) ? a pad of paper has been ultimately more useful (and cheaper), though lacking in ?coolness?.

Now, an xTablet, with a appropriately pruned version of OS X that uses a low power 600 MHz G3, with an iBook-type of battery, and an iPod type of drive, would be a good start. Handwriting recognition is a must. I?d like a color LCD touch display, but would settle for greyscale. Firewire and 802.11g-compatible Airport would provide excellent connectivity. I?m not so keen on the voice recognition as a primary input means, suggested by a prior posting, because voice recognition doesn?t allow much for privacy. I would, however, like to be able to digitally record lectures/presentations/meetings (I think that Apple missed out by not including this in the iPod ? I ended up getting an Olmypus DM-1 digital recorder/MP3 player) and occasional voice notes (for subsequent recognition?). Add audio input to an iPod and that could be the invput device for this. I wouldn?t mind a small ?handscanner?, built-in, that stores material for later OCR or processing of images.

The main thrust of the xTablet would be to help me gather information as I go throughout my day ? like a multimedia ?pad of paper?. I don?t really need to do extensive processing while I?m away from my ?digital hub? G4 ? if I did, I?d use a Powerbook. When I got home, it?d be great if my xTablet would automatically sync/back-up with/to my G4.

Now, a feature that I think could really drive sales of an xTablet would be its ability to act as an input device for other computers. Like a Wacom tablet, it could emulate a mouse but there?s no technical reason why it couldn?t also emulate a standard keyboard as an input device, say via a USB port (or some sort of wireless dongle). Instead of writing long drafts on paper first, I?d write on the xTablet and it would send keyboard-like commands to my G4. It would, in effect, be a ?dual processor? system, with one processor that you could carry with you. In fact, there?s not much reason, that I can see, why the xTablet couldn?t emulate a lot of keyboard interfaces ? in multiple languages - with a ?virtual? keyboard displayed on the touch display (perhaps with a plastic overlay to reduce wear and tear?).

And, to further drive sales, enable the xTablet to emulate a PC keyboard by connecting to a PC. That way, I could move seamlessly between my Mac environments at work and home and my PC environment at school. Just think of it as a way to get millions of PC users to buy Macs ? a ?foot in the door?, as it were ?

The component parts, based on existing products, would cost around $900, but I?m betting that Apple could drop that to $700 or so (perhaps by making an xTablet the default keyboard for Apple?s professional desktops?). I?m living mostly on a grad student income right now but would gladly pay $800-1000 for such a device. A Palm PDA with a keyboard and wireless Ethernet already costs more than that. And I think it makes good sense: it responds to existing practices (rather than trying to force people to change), the potential market is huge (it can be justified in the business marketplace ? something the iPod can?t), and it could be a winning entry point for current Windows users.

The G4 Cube was positioned between the iMac and the G4 and didn?t sell well ? in spite of its visual appeal ? because people had a lower option with sufficient usefulness. With an xTablet, there would be nothing in Apple?s computer line below it ? if folks needed more, they?d buy up to an iMac.

[Biggles]

why would voice recognition be bad at a meeting? Obviously you could just slip your PDA in the shirt pocket of the person giving the lecture/speech/whatever really really quickly so they dont notice. then steal it back from them when they leave so you have their entire speech in print! Genius i tell ye!!!

[robodweeb]

Ah, so you would want a surveillance device .... surreptitious recording without people's awareness? If the meeting was public, you could argue that it wasn't an invasion of privacy, but private meetings could land you in jail (in the legal spirit of recording phone conversations or in the business pragmatic sense of claiming the content of such meetings as "trade secrets").

But I basically agree with your intent. If you'll re-read my posting, you'll see that my only argument is against voice recognition as the *primary" menas of input. I specifically allow for digitally recording meetings, etc. but I don't require that the conversion to text occur on the xTablet ... if I needed that much power on-the-fly, I'd get a Powerbook. For me, there's no problem in recording things while I'm moving around throughout my day and then, later, letting my digital hub process the recordings into transcripts (yes, I know I'd have to wait for voice recognition software to be able to handle multiple untrained voices).

I want to be productive, not Big Brother ... and I don't want other folks in a meeting hearing me pull up my email or checking a web site during the meeting ... it's disruptive and rude, both of which argue against the commercial success of such technology) ...