Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Newton II - Does The Rumor Have Legs This Time?

Posted by Zonk on from the inewton-maybe dept.

Ian Lamont writes "Mike Elgan at ComputerWorld has an interesting analysis of the small computing market, and predicts that the market is primed to take off. He admits that small computers have been tried before and failed ('Every single UMPC device that has been shipped or announced suffers from lousy usability, high prices, poor performance, ill-conceived user interfaces, or any combination of the above') but he points to several recent products — and a rumor — that he says changes the playing field and paves the way for the first-ever successful small computer, from Apple. The products are the iPhone and the iPod touch. The rumor: Apple Insider has sources who claim that Apple is actually working on a 'modern day Newton' to be released in the first half of 2008. The device will supposedly have a version of Mac OS X Leopard and a touch interface, according to Apple Insider. A lot of people just aren't buying it. They point to the fact that the first Newton eventually flopped. A few note that similar Newton II rumors have been trotted out in years past, as well as a high-profile hoax. Nothing ever came of them." Would you buy if the Newton came back?

4 of 242 comments (clear)

  1. Uhh, isn't that an iPhone? by nweaver · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Isn't the iPhone basically what the Newton was supposed to be, but with a soft-keyboard rather than text recognition (which could be added to 2.0 easily enough)?

    --
    Test your net with Netalyzr
  2. the Newton is like Elvis by mattkime · · Score: 0, Redundant

    dead.

    --
    Know what I like about atheists? I've yet to meet one that believes God is on their side.
  3. newton II by scolbert · · Score: 0, Redundant
    newton II is already out on the market, its called the iPhone. That's what newton was supposed to be, remember the tag line, the personal communicator. newton's biggest problem was not hand writing recognition (which, yes, sucked and which apple's marketing spun out of control on) but rather size. everyone inside apple wanted it smaller, but the components of the day couldn't make that happen. now ask yourself, which added features did newton have that the iPhone doesn't? the iPhone is practically a superset of newton minus the developer story (meaning iPhone is presently a closed box). i suspect that apple's so-called-move (rumor) into the newton space is simply the next generation of iPhone.

    - sammy iPhone; Touch; 1st gen shuffle

  4. Newtsicle II by Chooch+Bunsen · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Only if it comes pre-bricked and they instantly drop $200 off the price two days after.