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$2k for that? You've got to be kidding. I bought a device that does nearly the same thing for $350. Both Sony and Vandum make these things (respectivly called Tripad's or Clio's).

In my experiance most people (or at least me) use laptops mostly for note-taking and internet functions. It just isn't practical pricewise and functionwise to carry around a portable desktop (I'd also add physical strain...I can barely lift some of Dell's laptops!)

This is where the tablet PC comes in handy. You don't need a tablet PC to run the newest 3D gismos, you need it to take notes. It makes sense that you could save alot of money and get all the needed functionality out of a thin solution.

The great thing is if you want the power of your home computer you plug it into an ethernet jack and use Terminal Server (for windows) or Terminal X (for linux)...yes linux does run on these things.

Not to mention that the computer looks like it is held together by some sort of fabric-like case, which seems very poor fited for the job. The flip top Tripad/Clio seems to do what it needs to just better.

I won't even get into the false claim it is the first tablet PC.

Judging by the size of Slashdot pasted onto that webslate image, I'm guessing they are proposing to have a ~1024x768 screen in a unit ~7"x5". That's a pretty high density screen, which would be expensive if it's even available.

More realistic in the short term are devices like the Clio, which has a (more realistic) 640x480 screen. But developers could replace the 200Mhz MIPS cpu with a 700Mhz Intel-compatible one, which would probably be not only faster but also have wider software compatiblity (if you go the Windows route).

maybe you should meet the Clio®

:)Fudboy

IBM had a laptop with a touchscreen and handwriting recognition (along with some gesture commands) a while back. I remember hacking one at EPCOT Center once about maybe six years ago. It was a very cool machine and, of course, I want(ed) one. The screen folded over the keyboard so you could use it like a big tablet. It was like a full-computer version of Vadem's Clio. I think that it ran on a 386, or a slow 486. I don't remember the specs, but I do remember being disappointed by them.


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It sounds like you want something like a touchscreen Clio, where the screen can flip around to hide the keyboard.

In the industry they're called pen computers . Most pen computers are Palm-like devices, although some are clipboard-sized (other names are "clipboard computer" or "pen tablet"). Telxon, Norand, Microslate, and Fujitsu make some. There also are notebook-like convertibles which hide or remove the keyboard, such as the Clio.

This maybe slightly offtopic, but this is the best crowd to answer the question.

I want to setup a wireless lan at work with my pc and a handheld. Specifically, I want to use either the Vadem Clio, which is just sooo cool or the Psion 5mx, both of these have pcmcia slots which would accept the lucent wavelan 11Mbps card. Is there any way to setup tcpip between these and my suse box? The options are just endless...Most of my time is spent at work or home and I'd rather have a fast connection than try to use my cell phone...

Sitting in a meeting...playing quake!

This way you don't have to deal with the hassle of WAP or web clipping or whatever it is they call it these days...

That's exactly the same thought I had when I saw an article here a while back about linux on mips palmtops. I wonder what the difference in performance is between the psion and the clio.

Yes, this FreePad is DECT - but GPRS is truly mobile. I didn't say that the FreePad used GPRS. If it did, it would be a lot more interesting, but then GPRS isn't in use yet except at one BSC (Base Station Controller) at T-Mobil in Germany, I think.



I'd prefer a real notebook though. Those Vadem Clio WinCE boxes they recently ported Linux to will be nice, too, at least when they get an X server running on it.


%japh = (
'name' => 'Niklas Nordebo', 'mail' => 'niklas@nordebo.com',
'work' => 'www.pipe-dd.com', 'phone' => '+46-708-444705'