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HP Developing Hybrid Tablet PC / Coffee Table
StrongGlad writes "HP has been working on a different take on the home entertainment PC. "Misto" is a hybrid of a coffee table and a tablet PC, featuring a large, built-in touch-screen display. The idea is to allow a group to congregate around the table and share pictures, play board games, or peruse a map. Misto uses a standard desktop PC as its engine, but comes with some specialized HP software for managing the interface. Pricing, availability and style of coffee table are all undetermined, but Misto gives people some idea of how HP wants to develop products that expand on its existing businesses."
what happens to a touch-screen coffee table when you place a cup of coffee on it?
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Finally ... an appropriate place to program in Java.
(Still won't make it run fast, but but the irony is thick)
Everyone knows that this is nothing more than a MAME setup to play all those old cocktail table games of yesterday! Long live Joust and Ms Pacman!!!
http://religiousfreaks.com/Look for this item in next years Ikea catalog as part of the Tákkí collection. At the low price of $15,995.99 it is a perfect addition to any Mátereülisték line of furniture and Yöpee accessories. If you are a Mátereülisték person looking to spend some money, a Tákkí coffee table with a PC built into it would be a perfect addition to your Yöpee house! It is custom made to fit into your gas-guzzling Hummer for easy delivery. And just imagine how well it would look gathering dust between your baby-harp-seal-skin sofa and 97 inch high definition television!
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Hideous piece of show-off crap... this is the most useless invention since the pet rock!
Capitalism: When it uses the carrot, it's called democracy. When it uses the stick, it's called fascism.
I just press the eject button and a motorized coffee cup holder slides out. Must be some kind of productivity option on my cheap PC.
"Misto"?
I would like to point out that 'mist' is the German word for 'manure'. Hmmm.
I want to drag this out as long as possible. Bring me my protractor.
Madge: Barb, this party is terrific. Good wine, excellent cheese...
Barb: Thanks Madge! Jim and I try to make them memorable!
Madge: I really like your coffee table [sets wineglass down on top of table]
Barb: Oh yes, it's the latest thing! It's got a computer inside...
Madge: Oh my!!!!! [loudly]
Barb: What's wrong Barb? What... OH DEAR GOD! JIIIMMMMMM!!!!
Jim: What's up Honey?!? What's with all the... GOOD GOD!!!
[Party comes to a halt as Jim's private pics of his and Barb's conjugal activites slideshow across tabletop]
GetOuttaMySpace - The Anti-Social Network
Husband:"Seriously, we need this!"
Wife:"You're really not joking are you?"
Husband:"But, we can have rotating screen savers with pictures of the kids..."
Wife:"Or you can just sit there flipping channels on the tv while checking scores on EPSN.com"
Husband:"yea, or that too..."
Wife:"It doesn't go with the the furniture we have - no."
All of us had this idea years ago. Only HP is dumb enough to think they can make money selling one.
Conclusion: the Empire squashes the Federation like a bug. Accept it.
PC + liquid = spectacular failure
really? my old Toshiba toughbook I use for emptying CF cards and writing in my journal during hiking works just fine sitting there in the rain, with a diet coke spilled in it, etc....
If this thing is going to cost what I think it will, it will be trivial to make it as protected as a toughbook is.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
The top of the table will be a single sheet of tempered glass. Tablet PC's do not use resistive "Touch screens" like PDA's do; they use Active Wacom Digitizers, which sense the position of the pen or other pointing device over the screen.
Actual tablet PC's don't have you writing on the mushy LCD, there's a sheet of tempered glass over the display to protect the LCD.
at Comdex.
Looks cool. But thats about it.
I don't think there is a any market for this.
I would not feel comfortable placing my coffee cup on this table.
For the man who needs to buy just one more stupid thing to get his wife to divorce him.
No folly is more costly than the folly of intolerant idealism. - Winston Churchill
"So what happens when you spill coffee on it? half joking, but half serious too... I have two small children, my guess it this wouldn't last 5 minutes in my house!"
Oh yeah? I have 3 (all boys). I bet *my* kids could destroy it in only 2 minutes.
Seriously though, this does look very cool. Would be a great way to play Risk.
Beauty is in the eye of the beerholder.
Forget replacing desktops, that's not what this is about. Consider the following:
That's just things that immediately occur - I'm sure there's more. Simultaneous web-feeds whilst TV viewing for example - perhaps a program has more info coming up on the screen. For my money, it would be improved if they made the surface tiltable, so that I could lie on the sofa and look at this with a 45 degree angle say, or for easier viewing of the movies etc.. Would also be nice if it wasn't built-in per se, but instead defined a form factor into which easily upgradable motherboards etc. could slot in. And the whole thing would need to be very hi-res too.
As I say, I like it. Would I drop everything to rush and buy one? Doubtful. But I certainly don't think it's a waste of time.
Cheers,
Ian
Nobody saw The Island...
Ummm...why not use existing TabletPC active digitizer technology? The working surface is a piece of glass, which is hard, spill-proof, easy to clean, and replaceable.
If you don't know where you are going, you will wind up somewhere else.
Here's the obligatory Ikea-joke from The Simpsons, courtesy of SNPP.com
The Simpsons make a shopping excursion to Shøp, the place to go for modern Swedish furniture and accessories. A costumed character that looks like an Allen wrench with arms and legs walks up.
Now, in all seriousness, I think this table is a dream come true. I only hope in a decade they are affordable enough for the common man. LCD prices are becoming cheaper, and it looks like multi-input touch screens are functional in demo form. Imagine playing table-top RPGs with the assistance of custom terrain underneath? This would also work pretty well in business at places like architecture or engineering firms where everyone can crowd around a gigantic display.
Small potatoes make the steak look bigger.