New Plastic Enclosure?

[MacWhispers]

To my mind, the keenest need for ANY completely new product from Apple is for Big Steve to be able to whip it from under a cloth. hold it in the air, and ... in 30-seconds or less ... show it do one incredibly mind-bogglingly beautiful thing that no other product on the planet does. I call that, "Pow! Factor." And, it's absolutely what would be needed to successfully launch and sustain a radical new product extension.

What could be crafted into a Mac-connected mid-size tablet/handheld that would create this Pow! Factor response from potential buyers?

I'm not speculating at the moment, as I'm having, er... accuracy problems these days.

 

[pyrotoaster]

Not a picture of a frame...

Originally posted by NortonRoget
Whatever happened to the rumors of an apple branded digital photo frame? iFrame perhaps?

5x7 would be perfect for 4x6 photos with a half inch border. The multiple ports could be USB, firewire, various memory card slots...

The reason nobody's talking about a digital picture frame any more is because whether this enclosure is for a small tablet, a cool Newton, or an interactive coaster, we're assuming it has a color screen. It would be able to display pictures very nicely, but it would do a lot of other great things, too.

 

[cshapiro]

pyrotoaster said that Mac OS X was probably the most ram consuming system and that a small amount of ram would not suffice

I disagree

Mac OS X is not the most ram consuming operating system.

I have a Windows XP machine (as well as a ibook) with 512 MB of RAM. On a fresh boot about 256 MB is taken up by Windows.

It may be that windows takes advantage of computers that have larger amounts of ram by running more features on a boot, but I've never heard of anything like that.

My ibook has only 128 MB of RAM and runs perfectly fine. I can tell that the RAM is only about ten percent used in the process viewer.

I think a tablet would run fine with 128 MB, which is all that is really neaded for the deivce assuming that the processor is a G3. Furthermore, no one is goiing to be running Final Cut on a Tablet.

 

[backspinner]

Originally posted by cshapiro
Furthermore, no one is goiing to be running Final Cut on a Tablet.

never say never...

 

[pkradd]

New Enclosure Rumor

Sounds like the pocketable tablet that Walt Mossberg (?) speculated on prior to MacWorld S.F.

 

[makkystyle]

I really do hope it is a pocketable tablet!!! That is exactly what the market needs.

On another note to a couple of people who mentioned things earlier:

Computer Remote control: Download this app - "Sony Ericsson Clicker" from salling.com It is the coolest thing I have ever seen. I can now use my T68 to control iTunes, DVD Player, PowerPoint, Keynote!!! and any other AppleScriptable program. It is f___ing amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just make sure to remove the "show song info" menu option from the iTunes menu as it made the iTunes menu not work initially, but now it works perfectly. I can lie in bed and control the music from across the room.

Also Sony Ericsson did have a bluetooth "Chatpen" coming out a while ago, though I haven't heard much about it. It was a normal pen but had bluetooth so it could send whatever you were writing on paper to a bluetooth enabled device.

 

[pyrotoaster]

Here's something to think about.

The way the dimensions of this enclosure are described, the thing sounds wide instead of tall, making it very unusual, considering its small size.

Now, remember the MessagePad 2000 and 2100. They let you switch from a vertical interface to a wide horizontal one.

Newton, anyone?

 

[Aries 1B]

Reaching for my nitro pills....

The Apple PDA/Tablet show is the best entertainment on the web. Don't know what I'll do for fun if Apple actually produces one. Or several different sizes of this possible new product line.

MacWhispers: I enjoy your speculation immensely. Keep it going!

Aries 1B

 

[MontanaMacster]

its got to be for...

the new apple branded firewire toothbrush. Developers in Japan have usb powered ones
http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/akiba/hotline/20030222/image/tooth1.jpg

 

[rafaelperini]

what I would like to see...

A small size computer/PDA/tablet, airport extreme, running OSX and emmulating Palm OS. Firewire/USB. Being able to play songs/movies from its hard drive as well through rendezvous from your distant desktop.

Remember... this is the "laptop" year... this does not rule out small devices such as PDA/tablets.

Of course, this is what I WOULD like to see... not what would probably be....

 

[adamsan]

Easier networking

But if it's pda/tablet, where's the hole in the enclosure for the screen? Surely the source would have noticed if there was supposed to be a display on the thing?
I reckon it's an apple brand rendezvous enabled adsl modem/router/firewall/switch that can connect directly to the airport base station. Sticking with the 56k modem in the Airport Extreme basestations was a mistake and something like this would enable people to upgrade to BB easily. Creating a broadband network is a pain in the arse for the averager user and it's exactly the kind of thing that Apple could apply their ease of use skills to. iDSL anyone?

 

[DeusOmnis]

Whatver it is, it bette be 500 bucks or less, or i'm screwed.

 

[bennetsaysargh]

it can be a lot of things, but my most likely predictions are

1) a tablet, with usb, fw, svideo, bluetooth, running a pocket os x, and of course a color screen, with a g3 chip in it, running iApps, and syncing with other macs.

or

2) a device, with video capabilities and fw. it can connect to tv, and has a small iTunes running on it along with qt.

i am just guessing, but i have no idea what they would call it.

 

[NicoMan]

Originally posted by Niknar
I mean anything in the sence that I am leaving my options open on this.

Yes I know. I was being silly...

NicoMan

 

[ennerseed]

HMMM

A Small Portable Tablet

A PCMCIA slot for wireless modems would be great, if thier were no 2.5G or 3G cellular connection capibilities. Especially with bluetooth ear pieces, It could work as a phone pretty easily.
Not to mention how perfect Watson and Sherlock woulde be for web information, with thier small interface and smaller data transfer needs.

 

[jettredmont]

5x7 tablet idea ...

First of all, I too wonder why the "source" didn't notice any video display opening if he noticed the port-concealing door.

However, I just wanted to add my praise for a 5x7" tablet computer. When I go to meetings, I always carry 5x7 notebooks (the old paper kind ) The size is perfect for carrying around, and the surface is perfect for organizing notes without tempting me to write down absolutely everything. A 5x7 tablet would fit in my world much better than the larger PC tablets would.

Also, regarding the guy who thinks having a keyboard on a tablet is a horrid idea ... well, if I was to use a tablet as my secondary computer, there are many times when keyboarding is far easier and better than handwritingm, no matter how well it recognizes my chicken scratchings. In the world where the tablet PC is a secondary PC, replacing a notebook, then an option for a keyboard to be attached (bluetooth doesn't match up; imagine trying to set up a detached keyboard and display as you would a laptop ... what would hold the screen in place?) is very important. For me, if you're going to have a full-size notebook display to begin with, you aren't overly concerned with bulk and/or weight, so keeping the keyboard hidden but permanently attached isn't that big of a deal.

On a 5x7 tablet, on the other hand, a permanently-attached keyboard might be a problem. Something more akin to the various Palm keyboards would be more appropriate, or perhaps even a "slide-out" keyboard "drawer" of sorts, although that relegates you to pencil-eraser key-pecking.

There was a discussion here a while back about a "peripheral" type of tablet - one which isn't necessarily a general-purpose computer in and of itself, but rather a detachable extension of your primary computer that would synch up with your main computer either after the fact (like current Palms/PocketPCs) or in real time via airport. Given a 5x7 form factor, this paradigm is even more appropriate, both because it is difficult to fit a full-featured notebook in a 5x7 form factor, and because at least in an office environment the ultra-portability and yet big-enough-to-write-on size, paired with the connectivity required to use and drive a full-fledged computer back at your desk, makes it a perfect note-taking machine. Note, of course, that the TabletPC is targetted at just this market: note-taking.

On the other hand, whipping out your 5x7 tablet on the subway would also be nice, and the peripheral concept isn't as good for such a device. There, you're unlikely to be able to directly connect to your desktop in realtime, and really need enough power "under the hood" to do useful work. However, the design constraints for a 5x7, cool-to-the-touch form factor might be too much to allow for OS X power, and screen-size constraints would make the OS X interface as awkward on the screen as the XP-ish interface is on PocketPCs.

Overall, far too little information to say anything for sure. But I'd love to see something along either of these lines coming later this year ...

 

[Skelator]

little off topic, but apple should really make some bluetooth based wireless headphones for the ipod!

 

[DavPeanut]

I have an iBook right now, and I use it at school. (I know, its weird for a high schooler to use one, but I have ADHD and I also have problems writing fast enough to take notes that I can read the next day.) I like my iBook because it has a keyboard, but there have been many times that I would have liked to have it with me, but it was too clunky. A 5x7 tablet isn't wonderful for writing reports or taking in depth notes, but it would be wonderful for presenting things to people for their criticing. I wear UFO pants, and I could easily fit a 5x7 tablet in my pocket. It would be the perfect device. It would be especially sweet if Apple got durable touch LCD screens so that you wouldn't have to keep them in a case. Also, It would be amazing if they were made out of Aluminum. That would separate them from the iPods.

 

[Teqanjel]

"Oh, one more thing..."

Hi, all!

Been reading with interest all these hypotheses -- and unbridled hopes -- and thought I'd add a couple more things to ponder on.

- I think the most damning evidence against the "new plastic enclosure" being a long-awaited Apple tablet or PDA is what wasn't said -- as mentioned earlier, the source noticed such things as a door and holes for ports, but no place for a screen was obvious enough to stand out to him/her. I can think of several explanations for this, but they'd be more easily described with a diagram.

- Let's assume, though, that it is meant to house our dream gadget. Most comments envision an Apple-branded version of capabilities which are already out there: PDA functionality, tablet PC uses, a more compact version of what a laptop does. But Apple historically "thinks differently", and that is why Steve Jobs has said time and again that there will be no Apple PDA -- why just do Apple-istically what everyone else does?

- Apple certainly does not want to take market share away from their other product lines. As evidenced by some of the comments above, a G3-powered tablet PC could easily satisfy some users' needs, and might cut into sale of 12" PowerBooks and iBooks. Ideally, Apple would want customers to want both a 12" laptop and "this new product".

- Add in a trend: Apple's marketing strategy the last couple of years is geared toward moving PC users toward Apple products. The iPod was innovative enough to make even the most die-hard PC users take a closer look at Apple. My former roommate "confessed" to me recently that she had broken down and bought an iPod even though she hates Macs (my constant comparisons of Mac and Windows probably didn't help ).

- Add in another trend: With Keynote and Safari, we've just seen Apple making serious inroads producing software which competes directly against Windows standbys. They will probably continue to do this with upgraded versions of AppleWorks and who knows what else. By their own admission, Apple plans to release more software than they have previously.

So put this all together and what do you get?
- A product which opens up new possibilities, not just doing the same-old-things better;
- A product which encourages purchase by both Mac and PC users; and,
- A product which could introduce new Apple-branded software.

I am going to go out on a limb here and suggest that this new enclosure is meant to house a portable computer which not only serves as a PDA and tablet, but which incorporates Apple-branded speech recognition software. Via AirPort Extreme or wired network, it can also serve as a remote console to the user's main desktop or laptop, regardless of whether that computer is Mac OS or Windows driven.

Well, I can dream, can't I?

~ Teqanjel

 

[bignumbers]

Hope and expectation

I hope it's a tablet. It's just about the right size. Perfect would be just larger than an 8.5x5.5 screen, half a letter-size page. A little smaller is fine.

However I think it's just a part of something else. Someone said the back of an eMac. Could be, although I haven't seen one. Or maybe it's an external case of some sort, just a FW/video interface or something more interesting along those lines.

I just don't see Apple coming out with ANOTHER line of products in this economy.

 

[cycle]

now this is an ibook

yep..the ibook as we know it will go away

5by7 and one inch thick is enough to include dvd drive

i hope we do not have to wait until july..but its obvious in some way

ohh this is so sweet look! no..i mean the smiley..

 

[Teqanjel]

Re: now this is an ibook

Originally posted by cycle
5by7 and one inch thick is enough to include dvd drive

...but not much else, I'm afraid.

Regarding a new product being released "in this economy"...if there is such a thing, it was probably conceived and designed "in that economy" -- the one with jobs and annual raises and prospects for the near future.

Just a thought: at 5x7 inches, would such a product be called an iPaperbackBook?

Still dreaming,
Teqanjel

 

[synp]

Picture frame

Here's my prediction:

A 5"x7" enclosure with a 4"x6" screen for displaying pictures. It will also be able to connect via USB or firewire to a digicam/digivideo to download the pics.

Used mainly as a buffer from the camera's 128MB-1GB picture card. The 40 GB drive will hold enough pictures until you get home to your computer. Only the Terapin Mine has this feature now, and it doesn't have a screen.

This is a good companion for a digital camera, and alleviates one of the major impediments to digital photography.

Later they will add some more stuff, such as iPod functionality, address book integration, wireless email, handwriting recognition for commenting on photos, but the above is the big thing.

 

[boobers]

laser keyboard.

Apple needs to use this:

http://www.canesta.com/products.htm

this would be very cool.

 

[Ervino]

Many nice coincidences...

3 *concrete facts* to think about, speaking of a possible new 4x7x1" Apple iPod2/Tablet/PDA/whatever:

1) AirPort Extreme card size is much smaller than normail AirPort one.

2) This Spring are 5 years from official Newton demise (Spring 1998).

3) This Summer are 10 years from Newton introduction (Summer 1993).

so...

1 *personal comment*: what better moment to introduce a new Apple ipod2/Tablet/PDA/whatever than Summer 2003?

And, in this way, recapture one-hand the attention of the media and of the whole Newton Community (I still get 10s of post daily from the NewtonTalk Mailing List...).

Cheers
Ervino