MS has a nifty new tablet pc: The Courier

[wellington1869]

Gizmodo: "It feels like the whole world is holding its breath for the Apple tablet. But maybe we've all been dreaming about the wrong device. This is Courier, Microsoft's astonishing take on the tablet."

http://gizmodo.com/5365299/courier-first-details-of-microsofts-secret-tablet

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[Rajagra]

Looks nice, but I'm reminded of the iPhone TV ads, where they put smallprint up saying "some steps not shown, and time shortened."

Also the joke about the dead man who had to choose between going to Heaven or Hell and was given tours of both. In Hell everyone was partying and having a good time. In Heaven they were all sitting around bored or doing chores. So he chose to go to Hell for eternity. When he got back there, everyone was being consumed by Hellfire and screaming in agony. He said to the Devil "Hey, it wasn't like this before!"

"Oh," said the Devil. "That was the demo version."

[itlnstln]

I really like the "opened book" idea of the MS machine. It makes me wanna hold it and flip pages. That's a feeling that has been missing on ebooks.

QFT.  On the one hand, I really like the idea of a tablet PC that is actually a tablet.  On the other hand, this is vaguely a Nintendo DS on steroids.  All-in-all, though, I really like it.

[Mr.6502]

This looks very promising.  MS Surface at home and one of these for the road maybe?

[JBert]

"But does it run Linux?"

[InSanCen]

"But does it run Linux?"

This.

I need one that does. I daresay someone will hack it to run *nix quite quickly (Seeing as it's a Microsoft device, I suspect the effort will be more than usual, just so Linux Hackers can have lulz at M$'s expense (Though as they are pocketing cash for it in the first place, I say they will win regardless)).

The gadget freak in me still wants one though (which is why I come home from work on payday with goodies *every* month)...

[vyshane]

Reminds me of the origami concepts. The production UMPCs never actually shipped with software remotely like the concept videos that were put together by Microsoft. In fact, phones like the iPhone and Palm Pre are the devices that come closest to the envisioned origami experience.

Concepts are easy. Shipping actual products are hard.

[ak_nala]

Actually seems more than a little reminiscent of Apple's original "Knowledge Navigator" concept from way back in 1988 - sans the AI agents of course.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knowledge_navigator

[ricercar]

I picked up a book-sized pen tablet in June and love it, despite its 1999 vintage (inability to play Flash or enter SSL). I carry it everywhere, and nearly no one double takes me in the line at the bank or movies, not at all like when I take out a netbook. The clipboard and pen paradigm is far less intrusive even than the two-fisted game-boy paradigm, and in a totally different league than the laptop (even netbook).

• Give me a paperback sized 800 × 600 screen any day over a screen like a postage stamp, or even credit card sized screen on an iPhone 320 × whatever.
• The pen is faster than the touchpad. Really-really. Your hands and eyes are working simultaneously, not linked.
• There's less sense of isolation with a clipboard computer than other paradigms.

Ask any doctor, counselor, or salesman what a laptop screen does for doctor/patient, or customer psychology. You're in a fortress behind that screen, and nothing overcomes the anti-social aspects of it. The medical profession is rife with tablet computer advocates; see any pen-computer forum and it's filled with doctors and lawyers. For example, One of my friends is a child therapist. She had a small Sony Netbook back in 2003, before the concept was born. Even for such a small machine, she instantly recognized a laptop screen was inappropriate for taking in-session notes, and reverted to her Palm IIIc.

Then you have a game boy two-hands computer, where you have both hands on the machine, so it's undeniable that you're paying attention to the machine at least as much as the person you're chatting with. Bzzt. Game over.

Compare these with a clipboard. Even with both hands engaged, one holds only a stylus. You can look at the other person and tap the stylus on your desk or chin and no one thinks you're computing instead of listening. People are used to thinking of clipboards as innocuous. A tablet computer is barely perceived.

And tablets generally run regular MacOS X or Windows, so there are no dumbed down applications to learn. I have Office and Internet Explorer and Photoshop in my man-purse, so I don't have to reformat my documents when I get back to my desk.  I love my tablet.

YMMV.

[ricercar]

which lifebook is that?