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WePad Tablet Will Use Linux To Rival the iPad

Posted by kdawson on from the open-period dept.

cypherdtraitor writes with news of an iPad rival being prepped in Germany for a June launch. "A German company, Neofonie GmbH, has set out to provide an alternative to the iPad, according to Neofonie's founder, Helmut Hoffer von Ankershoffen. The WePad will boast a Linux-based OS, USB ports, webcam, and Wi-Fi, as well as other features. The 16GB edition will cost €449 ($610), and the 32GB €569 ($773). A more expensive model will include a 3G modem. This PDF compares WePad specs with the iPad. There are also hints of cheap, available software. For example, OpenOffice.org will be the primary office suite, and you may use 'any application that pleases you' to play music and video, a clear edge over Apple's limitation to iTunes." The WePad will also run Flash.

31 of 536 comments (clear)

  1. WeeWeePad by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    First, there was the iPad for those nerdy chicks..

    Now our children will have the "WeeWeePads"?

    Who comes up with these names? And more disturbingly, what did they name their children?

    1. Re:WeeWeePad by sopssa · · Score: 4, Insightful

      WePad makes sense anyway. It's both pun of iPad and illustrates the product - it's more for us and since it uses Linux it allows multiple user accounts, good privacy and better security. iPad only has a single user and not even a guest account, do you really want to let your kids, friends or random people to use it access all your browser history, photos, emails and such?

      It also looks awesome and you can use applications or develop them yourself. You can run scripts and most ssh in to the tablet. It shows Flash. At this point I would either get this or Courier, as the iPad seems really limited and you have to hack it for it to be any use. Oh and it supports multitasking too.

    2. Re:WeeWeePad by WrongSizeGlass · · Score: 4, Funny

      and Microsoft will dub their ill-begotten progeny the " MyPad "

      If it's Zune compatible you'd be able to ask someone to "squirt on over to mypad" ... and then we could all throw up together.

    3. Re:WeeWeePad by Kreigaffe · · Score: 3, Insightful

      You obviously are not part of the Apple Collective or you would see the wisdom in only allowing 1 user and no guest account.

      If someone else wants to use your iPad, good! But don't let them, because it's only YOURS. Flame their jealousy. Soon, they will cave under the pressure and buy their own iPad.

      It's a single user product, you understand. Sharing is verboten.

      --
      ... still waiting for this free-as-in-beer free beer I keep hearing about. :|
  2. The comparison to the Apple II era again... by RyuuzakiTetsuya · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why am I suddenly reminded of the days in the 70's and 80's when everything ran CP/M and everything *had* to run CP/M? I know that Apple II *DID* run CP/M of some flavor, but CP/M *sucked*, and Apple showed nearly no support for it.

    Now we're stuck with Flash, which everyone tolerates and does a lot, but again, it *sucks*. Adobe hasn't put together a decent Flash interpreter for ANY OS(well, the Windows version is debatable), and everyone puts up with it because of it's ubiquity.

    Folks. Ubiquity is never a reason to keep a shitty idea around. Particularly when it comes to the mobile space.

    --
    Non impediti ratione cogitationus.
    1. Re:The comparison to the Apple II era again... by Serenissima · · Score: 4, Insightful

      You're right, but it's going to take time to move on to new ideas. HTML5 is awesome, but certainly not ubiquitous. ANY internet enabled device that does not provide users with the ability to view content that is EVERYWHERE on the internet is going to give the customer who purchases that device a limited internet experience. Sure Flash sucks, but it's out there, and it's all over the place. It's just plain stupid to not give customers the ability to view that content.

      --
      Give a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day. But light a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.
    2. Re:The comparison to the Apple II era again... by e2d2 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Okay. What about money. Is money a good idea to keep something around? Businesses tend to think yes. "Throw away all your flash formatted content" is not really something you want to hear as a decision maker who's heavily invested in the format. And considering the iPad device is geared towards things like video, it's a no brainer to support what is now become a standard. Okay so you support HTML5, but what about the meantime as everyone converts?

      But let's skip the bullshit. This is a corporate game and the end user suffers for it. You can pretend Apple has your best interest in mind if you like, but the facts speak for themselves. They have limited functionality to poke a competitor in the eye. A competitor that basically kept their Mac platform alive with their creative tools. It's pretty messed up IMHO.

    3. Re:The comparison to the Apple II era again... by hoggoth · · Score: 5, Funny

      > And yet the iPhone was the best 'internet experience' mobile phone on the planet when it came out. In spite of the fact that it didn't have flash.

      "These aren't the missing features you're looking for", Steve Jobs waves his hand.

      --
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  3. Much faster clone time by jimmyhat3939 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Obviously competitors have realized that it's worth it to come out with clone or me-too products much faster than they did in the past with the iPhone. This suggests to me that they'll be at least somewhat more successful than before in taking market share from apple.

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    1. Re:Much faster clone time by slart42 · · Score: 3, Informative

      Obviously competitors have realized that it's worth it to come out with clone or me-too products much faster than they did in the past with the iPhone. This suggests to me that they'll be at least somewhat more successful than before in taking market share from apple.

      Just that the makers of the WePad don't actually seem to be as far as they claim to be. I know someone who was at the press conference were they showed the product yesterday. He said that current versions run windows, not Linux, the touch screen didn't work on the "show" device, and it had a fan which was running all the time. In it's current state it would not have a chance to compete well with the iPad (and I personally doubt it ever will).

    2. Re:Much faster clone time by Yvan256 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      People still don't get it, however. The WePad thinks it can compete with the iPad with hardware features but will run Linux... which is a server or desktop OS. Apple didn't use their desktop version of Mac OS X on the iPhone, the iPod touch and the iPad for a good reason: portable, touch devices need customized interfaces otherwise it just sucks. I tried using a Blackberry and was shocked to see the tiny cursor that I had to control with a tiny trackball.... Seriously, WTF?

    3. Re:Much faster clone time by BasilBrush · · Score: 3, Insightful

      If the iPad had all the features of this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vadem_Clio bad boy I might give it a look.

      And yet the iPad outsold the entire lifetime sales of that "bad boy" on it's very first day.

    4. Re:Much faster clone time by VValdo · · Score: 3, Informative

      The WePad thinks it can compete with the iPad with hardware features but will run Linux... which is a server or desktop OS. Apple didn't use their desktop version of Mac OS X on the iPhone, the iPod touch and the iPad for a good reason: portable, touch devices need customized interfaces otherwise it just sucks.

      The WePad will use a "Linux-based" OS, namely Android, which has an interface perfect for a tablet.

      W

      --
      -------------------
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    5. Re:Much faster clone time by moronoxyd · · Score: 3, Interesting

      What they do is aim to get the tiniest details right; they really know their customers and make products to match them as perfectly as possible.

      That's why it took them several versions of their iPhone OS until they added copy & paste or multitasking for third parties, right?

    6. Re:Much faster clone time by Facegarden · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Is it going to be multi-touch capable and actually responsive, rather than barely touch aware and laggy?

      I have yet to see a piece of hardware running android that doesn't feel slow to the point of non-response or that is just as comfortable to use as the UI on my iPhone. Anyone recommend a device running android that doesn't feel like a sluggish piece of poop?

      The Nexus One. It seriously is fast as hell and i have a crapload of apps installed. Like, i was blown away the other day when i realized how many apps I have and how that has had *no* effect on the operation of the phone.

      I did windows mobile for years (reboot twice a day), then the iphone 1g (reboot once a week maybe? I forget), and then the tmobile G1 (reboot twice a week maybe, but it was just generally underpowered). I got the N1 recently and it just blows me away how fast and stable it is. The 1GHz processor really makes a difference, and I can multitask all I want without having to ever use a task manager. Its also nice to have what i consider an excellent camera as far as a mobile phone goes. Low light with the flash is great and it is better than any device I've ever had (which is mostly HTC, they never put a big priority on cameras before). Also, the camera takes ~1/2 second to start up. THAT is nice!

      There are some oddities - about once a week data stops working, but a reboot always fixes it, and honestly that could be AT&T for all their crapiness, I'm not sure.

      But it is always snappy, and i couldn't be happier with the phone - it is literally the phone i have always been looking for.
      -Taylor

      --
      Worldwide Military budgets: $2100 billion. Worldwide Space Exploration budgets: $38 billion. Really, world? Really?
  4. Just stop it by pieisgood · · Score: 4, Funny

    You don't need to create a device to compete with the ipad. The ipad will fade into obscurity and during that time your efforts could be better invested else where.

    --
    Eat sleep die
    1. Re:Just stop it by Fahrvergnuugen · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The ipad will fade into obscurity and during that time your efforts could be better invested else where

      I hope you didn't bet money on that...

      --
      Kiteboarding Gear Mention slashdot and get 10% off!
    2. Re:Just stop it by sjonke · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Except that the iPad won't fade away. Other then that, spot on - they absolutely are wasting their time with this ludicrous attempt at a competitor. OpenOffice? You've got to be kidding me. That just screams finger-based-input-small-tablet software right there. People are going to love fighting with that. I mean the ones who hate themselves.

      --
      --- What?
    3. Re:Just stop it by 0100010001010011 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      "Less Space than a Nomad. No wireless. Lame."

      "No they didn't, the big difference between iPhone and OpenMoko is that OpenMoko is completely open, so anyone can extend it, while iPhone is closed and only licensed parties can write extensions. This is what uniqe about OpenMoko. Apple added glitter to iPhone, but there are other smart phones (maybe not as good, but I can't judge, it's a long wait till iPhone will be available in Europe) so nothing revolutionary about it. OpenMoko has philosophical feature - openess. So as a geek I know which one is the winner here :)"

      How's that OpenMoko doing today?
      How about those iPod killers?

    4. Re:Just stop it by sjonke · · Score: 4, Insightful

      This notion that people are simply being fooled into buying Apples devices is interesting, but doesn't quite jibe with the customer satisfaction level of the iPhone, for example. The iPad we don't have the data for yet, but when it comes to the iPhone, the idea that people buying them have just been fooled by good marketing... that is the only reality distortion field in effect here. Meanwhile, all those iPhone users, you know the ones that have been fooled by marketing, they are all thinking... iPhone's great, entirely touch-based interface but with a bigger screen that doesn't require so much zooming in and out? Who let the dogs out?

      --
      --- What?
    5. Re:Just stop it by H0p313ss · · Score: 3, Insightful

      "No they didn't, the big difference between iPhone and OpenMoko is that OpenMoko is completely open, so anyone can extend it, while iPhone is closed and only licensed parties can write extensions. This is what uniqe about OpenMoko. Apple added glitter to iPhone, but there are other smart phones (maybe not as good, but I can't judge, it's a long wait till iPhone will be available in Europe) so nothing revolutionary about it. OpenMoko has philosophical feature - openess. So as a geek I know which one is the winner here :)"

      How's that OpenMoko doing today? How about those iPod killers?

      Well they forgot to mention other difference between the iPhone and the (OpenMoko) Neo. The iPhone worked out of the box while the Neo shipped with hardware bugs and even a year later the best OS for it made the Apple ][ look stable.

      In order to be an Apple killer it must work BETTER than the Apple. You have to be able to show your WORKING gadget to a potential Apple customer and make them want yours more.

      Disclaimer I actually used a Neo as my phone for six months. Very cool geek toy, worst cellphone ever.

      --
      XML is a known as a key material required to create SMD: Software of Mass Destruction
  5. Yeah! by Infonaut · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The free/open source OS will run the proprietary multimedia software. Openness triumphs again!

    --
    Read the EFF's Fair Use FAQ
  6. Features... by elewton · · Score: 3, Funny

    A delightful microfan to hum you to sleep.

  7. Less space than a nomad... by Duradin · · Score: 3, Informative

    Specs aren't what will make a device sell well with non-geeks (of which there are more of than geeks).

  8. Give me ARM, please by marcansoft · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I'm tired of people shoehorning the power-hungry x86 architecture into small devices. If there's one thing that Apple did right it's not using the Atom. The WePad runs Linux: there's no reason to stick with the legacy x86 architecture. Even Adobe Flash works on ARM (just not Flash 10 yet).

    If the WePad used an ARM chip, it could probably retain its feature set and bump up the battery duration to the iPad level, which seems to be the only feature where it loses to it.

    1. Re:Give me ARM, please by jedidiah · · Score: 5, Informative

      > If you're running Linux, you're sticking with legacy x86 architecture.

      How can you even be on Slashdot and post something that ignorant?

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
  9. laptop? by Gothmolly · · Score: 3, Insightful

    At that price, why not just get a laptop?

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    I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
  10. Not clones, just timing. by pavon · · Score: 3, Informative

    There were a ton of tablet prototypes shown at CES this year, months before the iPad was announced. Everyone and their mother independently came to the conclusion that tablets were going to be the next big thing after the success of netbooks.

  11. Re:Slashvert by c6gunner · · Score: 3, Insightful

    That being said, I never thought I would see people ardently defending paying more for less

    Ever been to a strip club? The skinnier the girls, the more you pay!

    Come to think of it, dating isn't much different ....

  12. That's not why. by Civil_Disobedient · · Score: 4, Informative

    everyone puts up with it because of it's ubiquity

    No, everyone puts up with it because:

    1. Unlike everything else on the web, It Works.
    2. Define works? Sure, no problem. It handles:
      • Vector animation
      • MP3 support
      • MP4 support
      • TrueType fonts

      ...all out-of-the box.

    3. Define works, in developer terms? Sure!
      • You don't have to fix cross-browser issues. It is truly write-once, play-anywhere
      • If you know JavaScript, you know ActionScript

    As of 2010, these bullet points have all been true for nearly fifteen years. Meanwhile, HTML5 will still be playing second-fiddle even when the language is completely formalized (no fonts, MP4 is questionable, MP3 is questionable, and you'll still have to test twenty different versions and have plenty of hacks up your sleeve to get everything to look correct across all platforms & browsers).

  13. Re:Slashvert by SteveFoerster · · Score: 3, Funny

    So in other words, like the old saying goes, you don't pay escorts to come over to your place, you pay them to leave afterward?

    --
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