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Sony's Wireless Webpad

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the stand-back-cowboyneal! dept.

John Jorsett writes "cnet news has an article about Sony announcing the Airboard, a wireless web pad with a 10-inch touch screen that also doubles as a television and a remote control for other appliances. The Airboard will be introduced in Japan on December 1. Interesting, but judging by the picture, it's not entirely flat, so it will be more of a counter-top appliance, rather than a knee-top."

7 of 71 comments (clear)

  1. Getting close to science fiction by Adam+Wiggins · · Score: 3

    It's funny, because there's nothing revolutionary here. Combine flatscreen with touchscreen, wireless internet and a TV. And yet somehow we seem to be getting so much closer to the way that computers look in science fiction like Star Trek and Earth: Final Conflict. Dunno if there's any signifigance there, but I suspect in 20 years our TVs and computers (and other electronics) will all look and function pretty much just like this, and we'll look back at the huge clunky boxes that we used at the turn of the century with amusement.

  2. On the same subject... by graniteMonkey · · Score: 5

    I heard that cnet news has an article about the same Sony Airboard, which is a wireless web pad with a 10-inch touch screen that also doubles as a television and a remote control for other appliances. The Airboard will be introduced in Japan on December 1. Interesting, but judging by the picture, it's not entirely flat, so it will be more of a counter-top appliance, rather than a knee-top.

    There's also an article on cnet about the same thing

    Somedays, it just ain't your day.


    --

    This is a manual virus. Copy it to your sig and help me spread!
  3. Hackers strike again! by Black+Perl · · Score: 3

    The hackers have set up a back door and they are posting redundant articles. They have also been rumored to be posting trolls, impersonating Bruce Parens, and changing the spelling of random words.

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    bp
  4. Lame by bat'ka+makhno · · Score: 4
    We've seen it with WAP - a "great" idea developed by people totally out of touch with the reality of their intended market. Just who the fuck is going to use this? Certainly not the mass consumer market the kitchen-white design and laughable features (wireless modem? 10 inch screen running at what, 640x480? hello?) seem to target. The layman might've bought the device two or three years ago, before everyone who has any use for the internet and can afford a computer got onto AOL and started cruising for preteens in the great online community.

    Think about the people you know who have the money to buy not only the appliance, but the various Sony gadgets that the thing is supposed to control. WEGA TV - $1'000+, DVD - $400+, sound system - $1000+. Do you really think that, first, those people constitute a large enough market in the US and, second, they aren't already fully connected and would cringe at the lack of expected functionality in the Sony device?

    This webpad shit is DOA, just like WAP, committee designed by a bunch of Finnish cokeheads who had the galt to believe that people outside of their insignificant socio-economic circle would be willing to pay exhorbitant rates to daytrade and check the delay on that connection at ORD.

    Honestly, there are several basic facts that idealab whiteboarding motherfuckers should get into their heads:
    • Everyone who could connect is connected, in the Atlantic zone at least.
    • People are set in their ways and will expect functionality similar to what they have now.
    • 1% of the population controls 99% of the capital. Just because everybody you know has a Visor with a GSM phone and modem and an mp3 player in their M3, doesn't mean that most people do.

    --
    Violence is necessary, it is as American as cherry pie.
    H. Rap Brown
  5. This is getting silly. by emerson · · Score: 5

    OK, the previous article on this is STILL ON THE FRONT PAGE.

    Guys, proofread. Fact check. Communicate among yourselves. Read your own site. Spell-check ("Wiresless?").

    This, right on the heels of the default-password crack... well, as the dandruff commercial used to say, "that little itch should be telling you something."


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  6. E-mails that you guys will never see by Frac · · Score: 5
    Date: Fri, 29 Sep 2000 14:43:29 -0400
    To: malda@slashdot.org
    From: marketing@cnet.com
    Subject: Low banner views
    ----------------------------

    We didn't get enough page hits from that Sony webpad article last night. In fact, it was pretty damn pathetic. You guys better do something about this. Otherwise I might have to write that scathing article about VA Linux, Andover.net, and CowboyNeal being in bed with Scott McNealy.

    Respectfully yours,

    CNET Editors

  7. Groundhog day by Frac · · Score: 4

    In the world of /. editors, EVERYDAY is a Groundhog day.