thoughts on an all in one mobile device

Discussion in 'Macintosh Computers' started by howard, Oct 11, 2004.

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  1. howard, Oct 11, 2004

    howard macrumors 68020

    howard

    Joined:
    Nov 18, 2002
    #1
    Now with news about a color screen photo iPod and also countless other mobile technologies merging onto all sorts of devices I'd like opinions about the ultimate all in one device.

    1st of all, as of our technology right now, I personally despise when companies put things in other things that don't belong. I don't want a crappy camera on a phone, I don't want to play 32-128 megabits of mp3s on my PDA, nor do i want to view calendar dates on my iPod. Obviously there are differing opinions of my statements... and one negative side to all this is that if i want all these things done well i'd need a camera, an iPod, a PDA and a phone. If you get any of those individual devices, they do there job very well, however now you can pretty much mix and match any 2 of those devices, and something like that exists but it doesn't do the job very well.

    2nd topic is THE FUTURE... Now if we have the technology to combine all of these devices very very effectively without making them all crappy then I think that would be one of the largest technology revolutions in history.

    The next paragraphs are speculation using imaginative technology:

    Now must people alive today carry around there phone wherever the go, so lets start with that. Now, i think some phones can play music, but if they could store 4 gigs of it while retaining its size how amazing would that be? Then i wouldn't have to carry my phone and ipod all around with me.

    Now throw in pda functions... it gets a little fishy... obviously a color and larger screen is a must now. Also, touch screen capabilities. i also don't think a keyboard is needed personally... if anyone has written with some of the current PDA's it recognizes pretty well, at least my handwriting :)

    Now..one of my most despised add-ons... a camera. I personally would not use a camera on a multimedia device unless it took really really nice pictures. I suppose i'd draw the line at about the quality of the 2 mp canon elphs.


    To wrap things up. If we do get the technology to make a product such as this would you buy it? How big would it have to be? would it need input devices on both sides? ie: screen, scroll wheel and number pad. My guess is eventually, some day we will have all the technology out there to do all this in a small device, i mean we could now but the device would probably be hideous. My question is: Where do you draw the line on?
     

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  2. zelmo, Oct 11, 2004

    zelmo macrumors 603

    zelmo

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    #2
    I like having products that do whatever it is they are designed to do extraordinarily well. Right now, and for the near future, that means walking around with a freaking utility belt for my phone, PDA, iPod, camera and PSP (yes, I'll buy one, and maybe the DS, too).

    A lot of people are interested in the potential convergence of these items. I suspect that most of us will continue to tote around the best items for the job (that we can afford to buy). If that means separate gadgets, so be it. If two or more are combined, all the better.

    I haven't found a cell phone that does PDA features as well as my T3, so I have both. The Treo devices are close to merging a phone with a fully functional PDA. It just feels kind of clunky holding it to my ear - almost there. Give them two to three years, max.
    Music? You can buy a 1GB card for your PDA, but that doesn't hold enough for many people. Flash drives are getting there. Give them a couple more years to up the capacity and bring the prices down to consumer levels, and you could conceivably have a device that acts as cell, pda, and music player.
    The kicker is the digital camera. I have an LG VX6000 camera phone, but the pictures are laughably bad. My Fuji FinePix 3.2MP camera is enough for me, and I think that 2 or 3MP is sufficient for most consumers, even though they might think they need more. Cell phone cameras are getting better, but it is going to be a long time, five years or more, before the quality is on par with what consumers really need. I would bet that this is the item that will continue to thrive as a stand alone device, even moreso than mp3 players.
     
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  3. howard, Oct 11, 2004

    howard thread starter macrumors 68020

    howard

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    Nov 18, 2002
    #3
    yeah, i definitely agree with all the issues you have with camera phones.

    also, one of the best things about the ipod is how it syncs with itunes, playcounts and everything. Listening on a pda i can't do that, which is another little downside. This device would probably require pretty sophisticated sync software.
     
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  4. cmx08, Oct 11, 2004

    cmx08 macrumors regular

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    #4
    ahahaha =P

    that's y i got a Z72 with 1GB for mp3 and another 1GB for recording, MTV, and programs.

    I like the cam, although it's 1.2, it is more than enough for me on the daily bases since I always like to have them at 1024x768 and 1.2MP is larger.
    I use it for snaps. if i want to go higher, I will have to take my Pro Dicam which takes me a full backpack for the lens and filter, (u know what I'm talking about, PRIVACY INVADERS, AHAHAHHA)

    I have an ipod 10GB but only had 5 out of my 100GB of mp3 install, but only listen to 2GB (500 songs that i like the most). U know, when u have some much, u don't know what to listen.

    I needed to narrow down my daily gizmos from Palm T2, Canon S330 (2MP, the best one out there) and iPod 3G, & my SE T616 into 1 or 2 things.

    but the SE P900 was too high for me so I have to make it 2. besides, i wanted the phone to stay as a phone.

    that's when I got the Z72 to match with the SE T616, the perfect combo.

    The T3 was in the list, but I did not need the landscape mode, it was useless for me since i use the ibook for Word and Excel.

    I can say that if the T3 had a 1MP cam or the T616 had a 1MP cam I wouldn't have bought the Z72.

    but the down side of the T T2 and T3 was the moving part that i didn't want. and the T5 is too ugly. give me a T3, Z72 or even another T2 anyday.


    remember that if u talk a lot ur battery will die fast so u want them separate.
     
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  5. GregA, Oct 11, 2004

    GregA macrumors 65816

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    Sydney Australia
    #5
    Some PDAs have bluetooth to sync with your PC. And new 3G (or 2.5G) phones are good for basic data transfer.

    I could see a PDA being able to check email or synchronise a calendar via 2.5G mobile technologies (or maybe buy a song?). However - I don't like the idea of making the PDA look like a phone handset... why should it? Why can't your headphones double as a handsfree kit?

    Just thoughts
     
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  6. howard, Oct 12, 2004

    howard thread starter macrumors 68020

    howard

    Joined:
    Nov 18, 2002
    #6
    the treos look pretty cool to me, they are on the right track i think... but do they really need that keyboard? i don't have any problem writing with a pen,

    can you detach the keyboard?

    basically if you had a little camera and a bigger memory card thats practically the first device for an all in one thing... However i don't think i would buy it unless all of its components did the job just a little better.

    cmx08:

    for some ideas on playlists that keep your listening options to a minimum check out this thread:

    http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=75523&highlight=playlist+ideas
     
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