Wikipedia In Your Pocket, $99

An anonymous reader notes the announcement by Sean Moss-Pultz (Openmoko, Inc.) of a new geek device: The $99 WikiReader. All of Wikipedia in your pocket with no Internet connection required. Works in bright sunlight. 3-button interface. You can update the information in the WikiReader either by mail (they ship a microSD card) or by downloading a 4+ GB file.

Comments

Solution looking for a problem

[pv2b]

With ubiquitous cellular broadband practically everywhere (that matters) and phones with good web browsers in them, this is a solution looking for a problem.

Re:Solution looking for a problem

[Anonymous Coward]

Three points to consider:

- It's openmoko based, so it's extremely hackable.
- It uses standard AAA batteries. I can't overstate how important this is to me.
- No contract, hard copy of reference information, safe to give to a kid.

This seems like a good gift solution for

a. hackers
b. travelers
c. parents

Re:Solution looking for a problem

[FlyingBishop]

yeah, there's no use for an encyclopedia with detailed information on all edible plants out in the middle of nowhere where there's no cell access.

and you couldn't possibly find yourself in a situation where you need information but can't access your wireless, despite being in a 'covered' area, cell phone coverage is, practically, perfect.

Oh, also, power outages. Infrastructure is all well and good, but having all the knowledge you need about the world around you at your fingertips regardless of the state of the outside world is great.

I'd say the places that matter the most are precisely the places that don't have cell access.

Re:Solution looking for a problem

[graphicsguy]

yeah, there's no use for an encyclopedia with detailed information on all edible plants out in the middle of nowhere where there's no cell access.

Might not be as useful without pictures, though.

Re:Solution looking for a problem

[xaxa]

No contract, hard copy of reference information, safe to give to a kid.

I'm actually wondering about this part. Their website seems to be clearly positioning it at children, and yet Wikipedia is quite deliberately not censored for children. I smell a lawsuit there once some 7yro Johnny, driven by curiosity, starts with anime, and ends up diving into the depth of interlinked mesh of articles on yuri and lolicon...

Read the site, rather than just looking at the pictures ;-)

For Parents: WikiReader offers an easy way to protect your child from adult-oriented content.

<flamebait>I wonder if there's "American mode" (hiding all the articles about sex) and "European mode" (hiding all the articles about guns).</flamebait>

I've got wikipedia reader in my pocket

[tylersoze]

It's called an iPhone. :)

Re:I've got wikipedia reader in my pocket

[sowth]

How much did your iphone cost? Does it run on batteries you can buy anywhere for cheap? According to the website this device runs on AAAs.

This sounds like a great little cheap device. If I can make and load my own articles (the site said something about updating with a flash card), then it could be useful for me. If this is programmable (open source mentioned) and has a touch screen like it appeared (video had someone typing search in a touch-screen keyboard), then it could have all sorts of uses. If you are rich enough to buy an iPhone, then obviously this device is not for you.

Re:trick you into thinking I'm educated

[Yvan256]

The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination. - Einstein

Re:So this is ...

[oh2]

There is a lot of research about wikipedia and its veracity going on. You can look at Episteme for instance that did a themed issue about the social web where Wikipedia figures prominently. I have also read research papers where they establish that the information in Wikipedia generally is as good as or better than encyclopedica brittannica. Dont knock the wikis.