Apple Rehires Newton Developer Michael Tchao

[MacRumors]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com/2009/09/28/apple-rehires-newton-developer-michael-tchao/)

The New York Times reports (http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/28/apple-rehires-newton-and-nike-marketing-whiz/) that Apple has rehired Michael Tchao, one of the developers of the Newton, Apple's personal digital assistant platform that launched in 1993. Tchao, who returned to Apple today after a 15-year absence, serves as vice president of product marketing and reports directly to senior vice president Phil Schiller.It is not clear what his new duties at Apple will entail; Apple would not comment further on the matter, and Mr. Tchao did not immediately respond to a phone message. But identifying a market for the much-rumored Apple tablet could certainly be among them. Mr. Tchao gets the credit (or perhaps the blame) for convincing John Sculley, Apple's former chief executive, to integrate the company's handwriting-recognition technology into a consumer device.Tchao worked at Apple from 1986 until 1994, holding three different positions during that time and eventually advancing to Group Manager for Product Planning and Strategy in the company's Personal Interactive Electronics division. He then spent several years in consulting and product development before taking the position of General Manager of the Nike Techlab in 2002, where he has overseen the development of a number of Nike+iPod products and technologies.

Article Link: Apple Rehires Newton Developer Michael Tchao (http://www.macrumors.com/2009/09/28/apple-rehires-newton-developer-michael-tchao/)

[macus3r]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wED9xyAmItE

Michael Tchao, y'all

[ob81]

Hopefully he has nothing to do with the tablet. That would mean that it hasn't been started on yet. That would also mean that all of the rumors thus far are ********.

[saving107]

Hopefully he has nothing to do with the tablet. That would mean that it hasn't been started on yet. That would also mean that all of the rumors thus far are ********.

he got rehired as Vice President for Product Marketing, which means that Apple could be done with the Tablet and now needs to find a way to Market the device to US.

[Alfuh]

he got rehired as Vice President for Product Marketing, which means that Apple could be done with the Tablet and now needs to find a way to Market the device to US.

This is what I'm hoping for and what seems to make the most sense. Maybe they are getting close enough to completion to develop a way to bring this device to the public and convince enough of us we need it ...

[ob81]

he got rehired as Vice President for Product Marketing, which means that Apple could be done with the Tablet and now needs to find a way to Market the device to US.

True. I wouldn't bet that Apple is having a problem with marketing a device though. This could be a corporate move, making sure someone familiar with the sector is around during decision making time.

[twoodcc]

well after watching some videos of him talking about nike+, he seems like a good guy. i hope he brings the same enthusiasm to apple and works on the tablet

[HiVolt]

A bit OT, but why are the positions always a "Vice President" of this or that...

Is there a President of Product Marketing? Why is Phil Schiller the Senior VP, when its obvious he's the head honcho of the department?

[jmcguckin]

I've said it before- I don't need a tablet, but if anyone could convince me otherwise, it'd be Apple... worst case scenario, I'm not convinced that I need one and still end up with a nice piece of Apple eye-candy to eventually toy around with.

[joueboy]

It's about time to take back and recognize this person. I don't know anything about him but hey we all know Newton. I would say the iPhone was inspired by Newton for Apple to comeback and make a new portable device. Who's next Woz coming back on Apple with a new project?

[irmongoose]

As far as I know, Product Marketing at Apple consists of coming up with actual ideas for new products, and is not really a marketing position as the name might suggest. Which, in turn, makes this hire particularly interesting.



irmongoose

[Stately]

well after watching some videos of him talking about nike+, he seems like a good guy. i hope he brings the same enthusiasm to apple and works on the tablet

I second that or. . . third that, well maybe like. . 10th that judging by all the positivity here lol. I love it. :D

[sockdoggy]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wED9xyAmItE

Michael Tchao, y'all

Seems too young to have created the Newton!

[dwhittington]

This is exciting, to say the least. He seems to have a great understanding of tech+marketing.

[aaronsullivan]

It's kinda corny but I like seeing some of the old people coming back. Sorta sweet. :P

[Doctor Q]

Maybe Mr. Tchao will autograph my eMate.

[Woz Beard]

Who's next? Woz coming back on Apple with a new project?

The new iSegway is out in 2010.

[11800506]

A bit OT, but why are the positions always a "Vice President" of this or that...

Is there a President of Product Marketing? Why is Phil Schiller the Senior VP, when its obvious he's the head honcho of the department?

That's always bothered me.

[dicklacara]

*

Oh Yeah!

*

[Mister Snitch]

Gee, there's a four-word sentence I never thought I'd see. Kinda hope he WAS hired to, you know, work out some of the finishing details. I miss my Newton. I'd buy a Newton-like tablet in a second.

[valanchan]

A bit OT, but why are the positions always a "Vice President" of this or that...

Is there a President of Product Marketing? Why is Phil Schiller the Senior VP, when its obvious he's the head honcho of the department?

Yeh, my thoughts are that Steve Jobs or the CEO is the president. More realistic since everyone in a company generally answers to the CEO.

I hope Michael Tchao is back to help build the social aspects of Apple and not just a product. Develop the community as a new platform so it spans the iPhone OS and Mac OS.

[appleguy123]

Gee, there's a four-word sentence I never thought I'd see. Kinda hope he WAS hired to, you know, work out some of the finishing details. I miss my Newton. I'd buy a Newton-like tablet in a second.

yeah, you and 10 other people.

[Thex1138]

Pieces of the puzzle dropping in to place for the Tablet to rise from the Newton ashes... You know... the pieces that Amilio brought down out of Mount Apple and smashed if you believe in that sort of thing...

[hazmatzak]

A bit OT, but why are the positions always a "Vice President" of this or that...

Is there a President of Product Marketing? Why is Phil Schiller the Senior VP, when its obvious he's the head honcho of the department?

Unless the company is structured with separate autonomous divisions, "there can be only one" President. The top executives under the President are all Vice Presidents, although they can be further sorted with descriptors like Associate VP, Senior VP and Executive VP. These VPs are often in charge of something.

In effect, you're missing a comma. Phil Schiller is "Senior VP, of Worldwide Product Marketing", much like someone can be "Duke, of Edinburgh". There is no one higher than Duke "in charge" of Edinburgh; there is no King of Edinburgh. So there is no comma in actual usage.

[Antares]

I would LOVE a new Newton!

Please. Please. Please!

[Maserati7200]

I'm not really in the market for a tablet because i don't really know what to do with one. Maybe Apple's tablet with have something new and revolutionary.
A bit OT, but why are the positions always a "Vice President" of this or that...

Is there a President of Product Marketing? Why is Phil Schiller the Senior VP, when its obvious he's the head honcho of the department?

I've always wondered that myself.

[Maserati7200]

Unless the company is structured with separate autonomous divisions, "there can be only one" President. The top executives under the President are all Vice Presidents, although they can be further sorted with descriptors like Associate VP, Senior VP and Executive VP. These VPs are often in charge of something.

In effect, you're missing a comma. Phil Schiller is "Senior VP, of Worldwide Product Marketing", much like someone can be "Duke, of Edinburgh". There is no one higher than Duke "in charge" of Edinburgh; there is no King of Edinburgh. So there is no comma in actual usage.

Ah. Thanks for the explanation.

[eastercat]

It sort of bugs me that a man behind a failed product is being brought back. Here's hoping time has made him wiser.

[*LTD*]

It sort of bugs me that a man behind a failed product is being brought back. Here's hoping time has made him wiser.

Now that you mention it, it's starting to bother me as well . . .

Damnit!

[Prom1]

Odd!

Very interesting as the old techies still can get jobs these days.

But a Newton developer?! I'm old enough to have used a Newton in my young childhood and it was HUGE. I even remember bashing the iPhone as a smartphone contender or its success begin equal to not more than the Newton and look at me now .... from Symbian to iPhone BLISS!!!!!

I do remember one sweet feature of the Newton that many others, long time Mac users may not know or remember. In OS when you deleted an alias from the dock (maybe before Panther) it made a "Puff" cloud-dust like animation. Well it gets its roots from the Newton!! :apple:

[puffnstuff]

It sort of bugs me that a man behind a failed product is being brought back. Here's hoping time has made him wiser.

I think it failed because it was ahead of its time. I look at the specs of it today and I think to myself I so want a messagepad..

Now is certainly the time to release a revamped messagepad with the netbook craze going on now and certainly there has been a lot of buzz about it coming from tech blogs and magazines. So there is an interest for it today.

Certainly it will sell more than the Air.

[notjustjay]

he got rehired as Vice President for Product Marketing, which means that Apple could be done with the Tablet and now needs to find a way to Market the device to US.

I'm skeptical about that. Apple is about the only technology company that DOESN'T say "OK, now that we've developed this fancy, shiny new device... uh... has anyone thought about how we're going to market this thing?"

[rollsroyce442]

first, we bring back the Newton, next, the pippin?

[kdarling]

I think it failed because it was ahead of its time.

Yes. Many good ideas just need decent hardware to run on.

Just like the way that Apple stayed out of the phone business until the displays, cpus, radios, GPS chips, and everything else fell into place.

One thing the rehiring points out again, is that innovations depend mostly on individuals, not companies.

But it's interesting that it happened right after Microsoft showed off their booklet project.

I think it'd be funny if lots of older innovators were hired on both sides during the next few months... a memory war, as it were. Who next, Larry Tesler?

[ShiftyPig]

I just don't see a market for $600-900 tablets. Suppose it runs full OSX - what will this thing be able to do that I can't do on a MacBook?

And what can't I do on the tablet that I could do on laptop? Type efficiently. Carry it in a backpack without scratching the screen. Connect to the Internet via an Ethernet cable...

Just because the technology exists to create something doesn't make it a good consumer product. See Segway (2001).

[mac jones]

They just want somebody who has experience in failure around when this tablet bombs.

[puffnstuff]

People keep saying it will bomb because they are looking at the present tablets. I don't think you can base what Apple may be planning on doing with what is out today. I think they are going to be making a different monster if that makes any sense and it won't bomb even if Apple comes out with something exactly like archos 9 it will sell because of the Apple logo on the back. Apple has that kind of power to where they can sell ***** literally and people will buy it.


Apple reinvented the MP3 player to the point where people call any old MP3 player iPods and iPods have there own special section in stores

They reinvented the smartphone and PDA with the iPhone and iPod touch. Gave it a more touch friendly OS and now everybody is going in that direction.

I don't see how the tablet market would be any different.

[inkswamp]

If rumors are correct and this pertains to a tablet, this is late in the development stage. I agree with comments that he's probably being brought to help market the device as opposed to shape what it will be.

IIRC, wasn't the Newton axed partly because its main buyers were in the medical industry and Apple had no clue how to deal with that market? Maybe they're heading off that same problem this time by bringing someone in ahead of time who knows what to expect.

[Rot'nApple]

Welcome Back, Tchao (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVS3WNt7yRU&feature=related) :D

[ShiftyPig]

People keep saying it will bomb because they are looking at the present tablets. I don't think you can base what Apple may be planning on doing with what is out today. I think they are going to be making a different monster if that makes any sense and it won't bomb even if Apple comes out with something exactly like archos 9 it will sell because of the Apple logo on the back. Apple has that kind of power to where they can sell ***** literally and people will buy it.


Apple reinvented the MP3 player to the point where people call any old MP3 player iPods and iPods have there own special section in stores

They reinvented the smartphone and PDA with the iPhone and iPod touch. Gave it a more touch friendly OS and now everybody is going in that direction.

I don't see how the tablet market would be any different.

This is the problem with the tablet: what does it replace in a person's life? An iPod replaced our CD and cassette players. The iPhone replaced cell phones that couldn't access the Internet/email/music.

If you think a tablet replaces my laptop, you're nuts. If you think a tablet will carve out some new niche in my life that I never thought possible before, you're even more nuts. Suppose it focuses on media (likely) - do I really need a $600 dongle to access my music and movies?

The only people who will line up to buy this are FBs, end of.

[Firefly2002]

The iPhone's the new Newton

[rumplestiltskin]

Maybe Mr. Tchao will autograph my eMate.

Y'know, I was thoroughly enjoying this thread and then you had to mention the eMate. (Pardon me while I make my peace at the porcelain altar.) :D

I used to sell them for Apple...not enough to make serious enemies, however. Please, let us not see anything like that again!

[puffnstuff]

This is the problem with the tablet: what does it replace in a person's life? An iPod replaced our CD and cassette players. The iPhone replaced cell phones that couldn't access the Internet/email/music.

If you think a tablet replaces my laptop, you're nuts. If you think a tablet will carve out some new niche in my life that I never thought possible before, you're even more nuts. Suppose it focuses on media (likely) - do I really need a $600 dongle to access my music and movies?

The only people who will line up to buy this are FBs, end of.

I do not recall the MP3 player being a hot commodity until the iPod came out. There were MP3 players before before the iPod yet still people gravitated to CD players. Once the iPod came out everyone wanted a MP3 player. The smartphone was just for business people but the iPhone changed that and made that market segment hot everybody wants a smartphone now.

My point is that it may seems pointless and unusable now but Apple can change the way consumers view a product. Call me nuts but it is the truth.

Personally I think it makes perfect sense. When a screen is smaller than 12" I rather have a tablet with a touch oriented OS like iPhone OS over a tiny netbook with a full blown OS, a small keyboard and trackpad.

[rollsroyce442]

People keep saying it will bomb because they are looking at the present tablets. I don't think you can base what Apple may be planning on doing with what is out today. I think they are going to be making a different monster if that makes any sense and it won't bomb even if Apple comes out with something exactly like archos 9 it will sell because of the Apple logo on the back. Apple has that kind of power to where they can sell ***** literally and people will buy it.


Apple reinvented the MP3 player to the point where people call any old MP3 player iPods and iPods have there own special section in stores

They reinvented the smartphone and PDA with the iPhone and iPod touch. Gave it a more touch friendly OS and now everybody is going in that direction.

I don't see how the tablet market would be any different.

Not everything with an apple Logo makes it. A few recent flops;

Apple Bluetooth headset

ipod HiFi

AppleTV (its still just a hobby device)

Macbook Air (I like 'um but they didn't get the attention that apple was planning)

[Firefly2002]

The iPhone's the new Newton

[i.mac]

It sort of bugs me that a man behind a failed product is being brought back. Here's hoping time has made him wiser.

the newton did not fail, it was a product ahead of its time. the times failed the newton back then...

[chasemac]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Mobile/7C144)

Who doesn't need a nice big iPod! It will sell like hot dogs.

[LEStudios]

I've said it before- I don't need a tablet, but if anyone could convince me otherwise, it'd be Apple... worst case scenario, I'm not convinced that I need one and still end up with a nice piece of Apple eye-candy to eventually toy around with.

Yeah that's everybody here! :D

[LEStudios]

It sort of bugs me that a man behind a failed product is being brought back. Here's hoping time has made him wiser.

If you really think about it when I first seen iPhone I was think thinking a Newton Phone, why? iPhone and iPod Touch really to me is a resurrected Newton running Mac OS X Leopard. :D

[saving107]

They just want somebody who has experience in failure around when this tablet bombs.

I just thought this was funny...

[designgeek]

TABLET!!!!11!!!!!one!!! OMGWTFBBQ.



I kind of hope there is never a tablet just to see all of your dreams crushed.:)

[LEStudios]

first, we bring back the Newton, next, the pippin?

I'm buying long as it's better than Microsoft XBox 360 54.3% Failure rate! Now they gotta buy Electronic Arts before Microsoft does! :D

[Sun Baked]

I don't read too much into it, since NOW is the time to rehire a bunch of proven visionaries who are hunting for a job.

They are a dime a dozen, and it is smart to grab them while others are letting them go.

[mrr]

This is great news!

Maybe now, Apple will make an iPhone or Tablet that is more capable than the current not-so-smart iToy and include an EXTERNAL KEYBOARD and PEN INPUT and turn it into a seriously smart, powerful and portable computer with some of the cool features that the Newton had in 1997 !!

http://cafedesignorants.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/1997messagepad2000.jpg

[cjmillsnun]

A bit OT, but why are the positions always a "Vice President" of this or that...

Is there a President of Product Marketing? Why is Phil Schiller the Senior VP, when its obvious he's the head honcho of the department?

Because Steve as CEO is president of all departments

[Thex1138]

clik here for know more (http://www.google.com)
Troll alert :rolleyes:

[Chintan100]

I'm not really in the market for a tablet because i don't really know what to do with one. Maybe Apple's tablet with have something new and revolutionary.


I've always wondered that myself.

The CEO is the president of them all.

Its like the same system that we have for universities in india.

All universities only have a Vice Chancellor and the Governor of State is the Chancellor of all the universities of that state.

[Stuart in Oz]

Maybe it's to aid in Apple's next big push in wearable electronics.

The only successful wearable, clothing integrated computer product to date is the Nike+iPod... and he did it.

iGlasses - augmented reality display for humans. (Robocop anyone?)

iTie Clip - records all your conversations for later reference and forwards them to the government for monitoring of inappropriate political beliefs.

iWallet - Apple already take most of your money, now they want your wallet as well.

:D

[Tiffy]

It sort of bugs me that a man behind a failed product is being brought back. Here's hoping time has made him wiser.

Steve Jobs himself is behind some failed products... Those who never fail are those who do nothing.

[wizard]

It sort of bugs me that a man behind a failed product is being brought back. Here's hoping time has made him wiser.

You obviously don't know what you are talking about. Newto was actually a successful product that Apple couldn't afford at the time. Sometimes retrenchment is required in order to save a company. Newton was very impressive considering the hardware tech available back then for portable devices.

Dave

[electroshock]

You obviously don't know what you are talking about. Newto was actually a successful product that Apple couldn't afford at the time. Sometimes retrenchment is required in order to save a company. Newton was very impressive considering the hardware tech available back then for portable devices.

Well, we need to distinguish between 'commercial success' and 'technological success' here... I agree it was a fine technological achievement for its time, but honestly, never really took off in the marketplace at the time, so Apple cut their losses, and canned it. That's what most people are referring to when they mention 'failed'.

But Apple learned from their Newton marketplace experience and introduced even better products. They'd done stuff like that -- for instance, with the original Mac Portable, they noted all of the design issues and pretty much addressed them all with the first PowerBook a few years later.

[mixel]

Bring on Newton 2010. :D

It'd be great if it happens but we're pretty spoilt now with the ipod touch/iphone being such good little handhelds. The Newton did a lot of stuff better though, for sure.

The market wasn't ready for the Newton, that doesn't mean there was anything wrong with the device itself.

[kornyboy]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile/7C144 Safari/528.16)

This could mean a number of things that are not tablet related. Honestly I don't really get the hype with a tablet. I'd like to see Apple do something that hasn't been done before.

[*LTD*]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile/7C144 Safari/528.16)

I'd like to see Apple do something that hasn't been done before.

A successful tablet?

[bobob]

I just don't see a market for $600-900 tablets. Suppose it runs full OSX - what will this thing be able to do that I can't do on a MacBook?

And what can't I do on the tablet that I could do on laptop? Type efficiently. Carry it in a backpack without scratching the screen. Connect to the Internet via an Ethernet cable...

Just because the technology exists to create something doesn't make it a good consumer product. See Segway (2001).
This is the problem with the tablet: what does it replace in a person's life? An iPod replaced our CD and cassette players. The iPhone replaced cell phones that couldn't access the Internet/email/music.

If you think a tablet replaces my laptop, you're nuts. If you think a tablet will carve out some new niche in my life that I never thought possible before, you're even more nuts. Suppose it focuses on media (likely) - do I really need a $600 dongle to access my music and movies?

The only people who will line up to buy this are FBs, end of.

QFT

I love this guy!

I only wish I was as uninhibited as ShiftyPig. I wish I felt free to parade my lack of vision of the future before the world. I dream of being unfettered by crippling imagination. How simple life would be...

[Stuart in Oz]

ShiftyPig in 1902...

I just don't see a market for $40 motor cars. Suppose it runs a full gasoline engine - what will this thing be able to do that I can't do with a horse and cart?

And what can't I fit in the cart that I could do with the car? Carry pigs to market. Repair a broken wheel myself. Feed a horse my own farm-grown oats instead of having to buy expensive benzene...

Just because the technology exists to create something doesn't make it a good consumer product. See electricity (1898).

This is the problem with the motor car: what does it replace in a person's life? The steam train replaced long stagecoach journeys and the pony express. The electric telegraph replaced letters that took 3 months to send by ship.

If you think a motor car replaces my horse and cart, you're nuts. If you think the motor car will carve out some new niche in my life that I never thought possible before, you're even more nuts. Suppose it focuses on leisure travel (likely) - do I really need a $40 horseless carriage to go to the county fair?

The only people who will line up to buy this are rich New Yorkers with more money than sense, end of.

[Sakura Eclair]

he got rehired as Vice President for Product Marketing, which means that Apple could be done with the Tablet and now needs to find a way to Market the device to US.

Very possible. My own idea is that this hiring indicates that the Tablet might be bigger product launch than originally expected. They already have people to handle the iPod (including the touch) and also people to handle the notebooks. This hiring would indicate to me that this business needs a dedicated person outside the groups that are already in place.

[notromeel]

ShiftyPig in 1902...

lmao. whew, def just made my day.

As far as Tchao and his "title", you never know. Just because he worked on a product 15 years ago doesn't mean he will be working on THAT type of product. Who knows. We sure don't :rolleyes:

[ob81]

ShiftyPig in 1902...

rolf. Wow that was good.

Some people just don't like change though. They are afraid of it for some reason.

[gloss]

ShiftyPig in 1902...

Nicely done.

[Bubba Satori]

Siam fighting atomic sentry.

[Stately]

I think it failed because it was ahead of its time. I look at the specs of it today and I think to myself I so want a messagepad..

Now is certainly the time to release a revamped messagepad with the netbook craze going on now and certainly there has been a lot of buzz about it coming from tech blogs and magazines. So there is an interest for it today.

Certainly it will sell more than the Air.

Right. I think its that the tech at the time couldn't keep up with the great minds. ;)

[huntercr]

I think it failed because it was ahead of its time. I look at the specs of it today and I think to myself I so want a messagepad..

Now is certainly the time to release a revamped messagepad with the netbook craze going on now and certainly there has been a lot of buzz about it coming from tech blogs and magazines. So there is an interest for it today.

Certainly it will sell more than the Air.

Uhhh... no you don't because you had exactly that with the Palm VII.
People think the Newton was so revolutionary, and it was... for about 5 years.
It was responsible for creating the entire "real" PDA industry ( remember John Skulley himself coined the term PDA ) .. everything before it was basically a toy ( electronic originizers they called them back in the day ), but they thing is Newton missed the mark considerably. The Palm Pilot was what struck the right balance for the time. Palm of course made the mistake of not knowing where t go next. Had they brought out the Pre before the iPhone, Apple would have had a much tougher sell to the world. That every PDA and phone was basically a pile of crap at the time made Apple's return of the king possible.

I *really* hope Apple learned their lesson on all this. That they never came out with another PDA until iPhone is a sign that they did.

[Bubba Satori]

Ian is riding a taste sensation.

[sarge]

not to defend Shiftypig's POV, but we should point out that another marvel of engineering- the Erie Canal, was proposed 24 years before it was finally completed. It took 15 years to build and was obsolete in as many years, replaced by the steam engine, which could also deliver goods in the winter (as it's operating system didn't freeze...)

[bobob]

not to defend Shiftypig's POV, but we should point out that another marvel of engineering- the Erie Canal, was proposed 24 years before it was finally completed. It took 15 years to build and was obsolete in as many years, replaced by the steam engine, which could also deliver goods in the winter (as it's operating system didn't freeze...)

If the Apple tablet isn't released for 39 more years, I will be forced to see your point...

[html]

I think we can safely expect good things to come.

[luckenbg]

I would LOVE a new Newton!

Please. Please. Please!

YA me too! I loved the features of newton long ago. I really wish they would do something similar with modern day technology. Stuff like being able to print directly from the device (wireless of course). :D

[sarge]

If the Apple tablet isn't released for 39 more years, I will be forced to see your point...

Funny, but no- the point being that even if a tablet/newton were released tomorrow, it may already be obsolete