Pepper Pad 2 Linux Web Pad

`Sean writes "Pepper Computer debuted their $800 Pepper Pad 2 at DEMOmobile 2004 this week. Specs include a 624 MHz XScale processor, 8.4" 800x600 TFT touchscreen, 802.11b+g, and 20 GB HDD running MontaVista Linux CEE. Out of the box the Pepper Pad 2 loads the Pepper Keeper as its GUI, but a full-blown Linux distribution with Java 2 JRE and X-Window System is sitting under the covers just waiting be customized. I personally can't wait to get a hold of one of these to turn into an OBD-II and telemetry workstation for the rally car."

Comments

Media Player

[EEproms_Galore]

This would make a great portable media player with a bit of hacking.. Hmmm I sooo want one.

IR !

[phreakv6]

Oh it also has IR... hmm.. so u can use it as a TV remote !!

Is this up to the standards of Windows Tablets?

[notthe9]

I realize it is a lot cheaper, but I amnto sure it is worth it. Does the XScale processor pack the necessary punch? I know I have one (albeit a probably inferior one) in my Toshiba e740, which has many of the qualities this thing brags about. Also, is this an actual touch screen? If so, this is unfortunate Having used Tablets before, I really enjoyed the special pens, and would think this would make a great picture. Also, that thumb keyboard looks quite lacking, and considering they are not bragging about their handwriting recognition, it probably also leaves something to be desired. At this point, I think I could get a lot more functionality out of a laptop or one of those tablets-that-runs-your-pc-iver-wifi things than I necesarily would this.

Re:Is this up to the standards of Windows Tablets?

[jaxdahl]

If you're looking for a tablet of some sort that you can draw on directly for photoshop and such, check out Wacom's Cintiq line -- basically an LCD monitor with a pen touchscreen. They start at $1500 and up for 15" monitors. A PC is required, though, to use them. LCD Tablets

Low Cost Linux SBCs?

[DAldredge]

Where can you buy low cost Single Board Computer that can run linux? Kind of like the one in the WRT54g?

unfortunately no

[Anonymous Coward]

the included linux distribution (a custom gentoo setup, believe it or not) does not run well on this machine. thats why its not the default. its there just to allow developers to get their feet wet.

also there is the screen, its is only 800x600, very little can be done in that workspace. battery life is
so, no.

I've wanted this

[Hugonz]

I've wanted this for months now. A "laptop" that instead of advertising the newest P4 processor for Barbecues (R) gives you low power, ARM (XScale) computing at the right price. Of course, It has to run linux. Good one!

Re:I've wanted this

[Anonymous Coward]

So have I. Imagine, it would make a great X terminal at home. Use the power of your desktop in a device that weighs 2.3 pounds.

It's basicly what MS's tablets promise to be, but at a third of the cost and it has the flexibility of linux.

The thing can be 3x as powerfull as a tablet PC if you have a nice dual (core?) opteron computer laying around somewere.

The business aspects of this device is also intreaging. If you use it as a X terminal, the majority of the time the harddrive will be asleep, and thus the only real things using the battery would be the display and the wireless.

A 802.11g is plenty quick for this...

Also would make a great DVD movie player once you used Mencoder to rip them into libavcodec (or the inferior Dvix or Xivd ) mpeg4 avi file.

2 pounds!!

The 600mhz proccessor would be pleny fast for any Linux machine, except if you want to play doom3 or run real transparencies or something.

everything that MS said that the tablet would be minus the suck and the price (oh and almost-working writing recognition)

Re:I've wanted this

[Spellbinder]

i got my Intel 2200 B/G working on a vaio tr2
with this

Re:But....

[anonymous cowherd (m]

Personally, I'd rather have a Sharp Zaurus SL 5600 with an added GPS unit. Different use cases, true, but I'm certain I'd get more use out of the Zaurus.

But will I be able to get...

[Samurai Cat!]

...a Dawson's Creek Pepper Keeper Future S2000?

Battery?

[melgeroth]

Is the battery life mentioned anywhere? If it is I missed it.

Re:Battery?

[Demon of the fall]

Is the battery life mentioned anywhere? If it is I missed it.

Couldn't find any exact info other than the following in the press release:
"It has a rechargeable lithium polymer battery with power management providing support for a day's worth of activities"

hacking?

[commodoresloat]

It kind of already is a portable media player. The Pepper Keeper software looks like it will do most things you would need, and since there's a full linux system underneath, you can just install whatever players are missing.

No USB 2?

[hobbsbutcher]

According to the photos page it just has USB 1.1 and only one USB port.

ok lets just get it all out of the way now

[ErichTheWebGuy]

1. Yea but does it run Linux?
2. Imagine a beowulf cluster of Pepper Pads!
3. In Soviet Russia the screen touches you!
4.
4a. Design a superior piece of hardware
4b. Include a superior OS
4c. ???
4d. Profit!
5. Netcraft confirms, Pepper Pad is dead!
6. If it doesn't run [KDE/Gnome/desktop of choice] then it sucks!

There, I think that about covers it!

wow I want one

[dcstimm]

WHen I get a job and can afford $800 dollars ill buy one in a heart beat, lets just hope it can run the mythfrontend so I can watch tv in bed.

Re:wow I want one

[dspacemonkey]

Or possibly even buy a small TV...

Or is that a little too far out?

Re:USB 1.1

[arakon]

I was thinking the USB port would be used for A Mouse or a Keyboard. Especially for someone who though this would be great for editing docs on the go.

Of course the other half of me thought immediately, i could use it for a game controller and slap mame or another emulator on this bad boy... 600+ MGhz should be plenty enough to run a SNES emu.

I mean it has built in wireless networking and anyone who would buy this would fork over $50 for a wireless AP right? File Transfer problems solved.

Nice ad `Sean

[Anonymous Coward]

You thought you snuck one past the editors huh?

Look folks, of course `Sean wants one of these for his rally car...he's in on the damn thing!

Check out these pics.

good job /. editors for plugging this thing for Sean Hamor.

News for nerds. Shills that matter.

Re:Nice ad `Sean

[kalidasa]

Ah, but he didn't come out and say that he was involved in the product. If someone sends something to Taco or Hemos saying "hey, we've got this great LINUX product I think /.ers would be interested in," I expect Taco or Hemos would post it. I would want them to post it. But I don't want any pretense.

Sounds nice...

[cperciva]

but I worry about the psychological impact of making computers look less like computers. People have been taught for the past few years that they have to keep their computers up to date with security patches, that they should have a firewall and a virus scanner... but this doesn't look like what people recognize as a "computer". It isn't even advertised as a computer; it's called a "web pad".

Combining the innate cluelessness of most of the people who will buy these, the fact that these don't "look like computers", the fact that these are wireless-only as far as networking is concerned, and the lack of apparent infrastructure for distributing security patches... I have to wonder how well these machines will fare once they reach the real (insecure) world.

Re:Sounds nice...

[pipacs]

I agree with you the trend is worrying, but I don't think shifting the responsibility to customers is the solution. It just shows in what a poor state the industry is today.

There is a full-blown computer in my wireless access point, mobile phone, DVD player. Soon in my TV, my fridge, you name it. I don't want to be the system administrator of my fridge!

Infrastructure, as you say, for distributing and installing security fixes is needed - but manufacturers will never invest into this unless forced to do so. So what we really need is security standards, extended customer protection, all enforced by regulations. NCAP crash tests for the home computer...

I hate to say it...

[deminisma]

But where's the market? You can buy a decent PC for $300, the keyboard looks too unsuitable to be used professionally and it's too big to used as a PDA. So it is an overpriced, oversized PDA, with a clunky interface. Who really has any utility for that?

Re:I hate to say it...

[Maserati]

As a Mac user I've suspected it for years. There's a previously uncataloged meme on Slashdot, and it's spreading. It's the $300 PC meme. New iMac ? $300 PC Computer for the kids ? $300 PC No Linux games ? $300 PC New tablet computer ? You guessed it... Frank Stallone !

Pepper Keeper?

[david_reese]

Hopefully it'll have better info-retention capabilities than my junior high Trapper Keeper :-) Seriously, my main issue with contact managers are

1. Data Entry... and this has a full qwerty keyboard (tho it's arguable how usable it is, being so small keys)
2. Sync capabilities... palm was good, but ipod/iCal is better, and so is my SonyEriccson T610 that supports SyncML. Can't recount the number of times that I lost data due to bad sync or lack of sync {sigh}.

From the site's page on PK, it looks pretty good. Gotta try the download and see if it's better than my palm desktop.

I'm a little underwhelmed

[NanoGator]

Hmm this might have been neat a year or so ago, but I'm a little underwhelmed with it. Just a couple of months ago I bought a Toshiba M-200 TabletPC. Granted, it's over twice the price of this guy ($2,000...) but lemme share with you the specs:

-Centrino 1.5 ghz processor.
-1400 by 1050 resolution screen
-512 meg of RAM
-40 gig HD
-It doesn't use the touch screen, rather the Wacom digitizer for the stylus. This means pressure sensitivity, but it means you can ONLY use the stylus for input.

-NVidia Go5200 card.
-3-4 hour battery life. (I've reached a little over 3 with it.)

-It works in both slate mode, and it can unfold like a laptop with a kb. ..etc. etc. etc...

I do like some of the things they're doing with this machine, but ... well... it's hard to really get excited now that I have this M200 machine.

The iPod has:

[StarKruzr]

No keyboard.

No color screen.

A proprietary O/S (yes, it can run Linux - poorly)

No bluetooth.

No ability to run real applications.

No touchscreen.

No WiFi.

This is easily worth two iPods.

Not the Only Tablet PC Pre-Equipped with Linux

[wehe]

There is already a bunch of Tablet PCs pre-installed with Linux available, there are also installation reports for other Tablet PCs.

Think "Big Zaurus" not "tablet PC"

[Spoing]

This doesn't have PC processors or other hardware. It does have 32MB flash built in to go along with the 256MB RAM and 20GB hard drive.

That 32MB flash should be usable to boot the machine nearly instantly; no need to suspend/hibernate to save battery life.

I wonder what the Opie and OpenZaurus folks think about the Pepper Pad 2?

Compared to a Zaurus, this is a good upgrade.