Thursday, January 22, 2004
Ultra-Personal Computers - PCs in a Pod
Posted by Jason Dunn in "OFF-TOPIC" @ 01:00 PM
"So-called 'ultra-personal computers', or UPCs, which squeeze a full-blown PC into a form factor more reminiscent of a PDA, have been touted as the next big thing for several years. The recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas has finally shown that the UPC may at last have become a practical proposition. The realization of the UPC concept can be attributed to a couple of crucial factors. First, component miniaturization, especially of high-quality VGA displays and hard drives, is now making a desktop-type experience feasible on a small device.
Secondly, the commitment of chip vendor Transmeta to the UPC concept, with the latest generations of its low-power Efficeon and Crusoe designs, provides the necessary horsepower to drive devices based on a 'full' desktop operating system as opposed to the relatively slim-line operating systems used by today's PDAs."
Ah, the classic PDA vs. UPC discussion. Where do you stand? It's my belief that there will always be a place for "appliance" devices like PDAs and smartphones, because operating systems like Windows XP and OS X simply weren't designed with mobility in mind. They need too much RAM, too much storage space, and too many CPU cycles to effectively scale down to a small device. Eventually hardware advances might overcome those obstacles, but until a development paradigm comes about where a mobile/pda application UI is just as important as a desktop UI, I don't see the richness of applications necessary to carry the UPC concept forward.
Secondly, the commitment of chip vendor Transmeta to the UPC concept, with the latest generations of its low-power Efficeon and Crusoe designs, provides the necessary horsepower to drive devices based on a 'full' desktop operating system as opposed to the relatively slim-line operating systems used by today's PDAs."
Ah, the classic PDA vs. UPC discussion. Where do you stand? It's my belief that there will always be a place for "appliance" devices like PDAs and smartphones, because operating systems like Windows XP and OS X simply weren't designed with mobility in mind. They need too much RAM, too much storage space, and too many CPU cycles to effectively scale down to a small device. Eventually hardware advances might overcome those obstacles, but until a development paradigm comes about where a mobile/pda application UI is just as important as a desktop UI, I don't see the richness of applications necessary to carry the UPC concept forward.
