Showing: All entries in 'Analysis'




Nah - UMPC should not be compared to the DualCor

Most of us were feeling the price of an UMPC is high (atleast with what gates promised us). The DualCor cpc which seemed promising before the UMPC was announced has a price tag now — yes a whopping 2 grand ($2,000).

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Now if you compare the specs of these two, most of it the same (atleast on paper) except the fact that Dualcor has dual OS (Tablet and Mobile) and ofcourse a smaller screen (5″), They promise a battery life of 3 to 8 hours.

Do you think these can be compared? - not until the DualCor cpc is less than a $1000.

Smooth Ride on a Rough Road

intel_umpc.pngAs we know there has been a lot of analysis so far about the UMPC. A lot of people did express that it’s going to be a rough road for Microsoft & Intel to market the UMPC with the features and the price. Well if it was an Apple product where the price does not change (come down) often but the features updated more often than the price, but in the PC world the Hardware costs keeps coming down day by day and sure enough we’ll have the UMPC that Bill gates primised - yes the ones that cost around $500 may within a year or two. Now IT Bussiness Canada explores it a bit more

After Bill Gates described his vision of a fully functional mobile PC with all-day battery life priced around US$500 at last year’s WinHEC conference, many were surprised to see Microsoft come to market with a device that’s not only bigger but more expensive and power-hungry than the software maker had hoped.

Stephen Baker, an NPD Group analyst, doesn’t see the devices having much mass appeal. “Prices are too high for the mass market, battery life isn’t sufficient and product definition is not sufficient,â€? he said.

“It’s a product in search of a solution. The hardware and software manufacturers have an idea, they have a form factor and components but they’re not really sure what they should do with this other than it’s ultra mobile.â€?

Microsoft recognizes that the initial target audience for the UMPC will be tech-enthused gadget fans, said Elliot Katz, senior product manager of Windows client at Microsoft Canada [...]

Read the full article at [IT Bussiness Canada]




What’s the future of Handhelds?

Ed Hardy has an analysis of What hadhelds do today & what it holds for us in the future.
Well, does handhelds have to sport full version of an operating system like windows, or can there be a minimal version that does the job. This i hope has remained a question even to the researchers at microsoft. This being the case there would be people who might prefer just one of these, to keep them happy might be microsoft’s take till now.

Here is an excert from the article

Whenever UMPCs are being discussed, someone always asks, “Why should I want one of these? I’ll just stick with my Pocket PC/Palm.” My answer is, “You might not have much choice.”

I got a brief glimpse of the next version of Windows Mobile, and I think it is going to be an excellent operating system… for smartphones.

I was told nothing has been set in stone, but it seems to me that Microsoft is giving up on something its mobile operating systems have had since the beginning: trying to look and act like the full version of Windows as much as possible.

Instead, I got the impression that the upcoming version of Windows Mobile is being designed to make the tasks most often performed on a smartphone easier to do.

While that’s all very well and good, what makes a good smartphone operating system doesn’t necessarily make a good handheld operating system. For example, good smartphone operating systems emphasize doing things one-handed via a D-pad, while ones designed for handhelds should emphasize stylus-based control.

And before you ask, Microsoft has made it clear that the days of there being two very different versions of Windows Mobile will be over with the next version. There will still be touchscreen and non-touchscreen devices, but there will be one operating system for both….

Read the full article at [Brighthand]

Defining the term “Pocketable”

Layne Heiny of UMPC Buzz  posted something really interesting and he even explains why he says that. Well he is correct when he says “how many of us use our pockets for these gadgets?” I enjoyed reading it

…Come to think about it, I do not like putting many things into my pockets. I put papers in my pockets. My wallet is in my back pocket. Keys are in my front pockets, along with some change. A pen might be in my shirt pocket. Let me double check. No. I have managed to lose another pen. The pen is probably under the seat cushions. Oh, my iPod sits inside my jacket pocket. This is so that no one steals it. Otherwise, most of my pockets remain empty.

There are many things I refuse to put in my pockets. For example, I was taught that guys who walk around with their hands in their pockets are suspect – so I keep my hands to my sides. So, if you are sitting or standing with your hands in your pockets then you might want to remove them from the pockets and place them on your sides…

Read the full post at [UMPC Buzz]

UMPC will be Successful!

Darryl Burling has posted his opinions on why he thinks UMPC will be a success. The UMPC is about to hit store shelves. Lots of people are wondering whether these devices will make any sense in the market and if they will sell at all.

Looking at the platform design goals, there are four key advantages of the Ultra Mobile PC:

  • Full PC and internet capabilities
  • Location adaptability
  • Anytime connectivity
  • Ultra mobility

In this series I’ll look at each of these and try and figure out why this advantage is compelling….

Interesting enough that darryl has some clear points of various facts that will and should be considered while speculating the market for the UMPCs.

Read the full posting at [geekzone]






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