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Future Linux PDA by Samsung 82

Posted by jimjag from the sam-sung-new-everybody-knows-one dept.
BigDaddyJ writes "I saw over on The Gadgeteer that Samsung has developed a PDA design that uses Linux. It has a color display and can play MP3's as well. Check it out here. You know you want it... but right now it appears they're still looking for suppliers. " Neato. Strange that the title for the Web page refers to it as a "Samsung USB PC Camera".
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Future Linux PDA by Samsung More

Future Linux PDA by Samsung

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  • neato. (Score:1)

    by Zurk ( 37028 )
    looks like it uses an ARM processor as well..and contains the codecs for MPEG video as well as MP3 audio. Anyone think that page is clueless ? High Performance Strong Processor ? wtf moron wrote that one ?
  • pine on the road! lynx in the forest! mpg123 in the mineshaft! all with libncurses5-dev! the world can get no better! :)

    Never before have we been able to 'make zImage' on the back of our hands. never before have we had travelling ssh daemons!

    or is it linux based public display of affection... well yeah, i always publically display my affection for linux :)
    #include <signal.h> \ #include <stdlib.h> \ int main(void){signal(ABRT,SIGIGN);while(1){abort(-1); }return(0);}
  • check out

    http://www.ltc.com/linux-mips/

    Not in the same spec ranges but still cool.
  • Ok, so it says it's got an "embedded Internet Web Browser, E-Mail"...

    I wonder what they're using for this.

    Can't be Netscape. The last thing you want is for your tech support people to be getting calls from customsers 'cause their PDA keeps on crashing (or, at least, appears to).

    Mozilla? Shows a lot of promise, but you wouldn't load Alpha software onto a commercial product.

    Opera?

    Hmm...

    And another thing is - how does the GPL come into play here? Now, I genuinely am rusty on this, so this may be a silly question. But if they're using Linux, do they have to distribute the source? (Or at least provide it somehow?) Or does that only come into play if you're actually releasing a distribution?

    Finally - the specs mention USB. Anybody care to comment on this? I was under the impression USB was not one of Linux's strong points... is this the case, or has progress been made (to the point where a digital camera can just be plugged in and it will work, which is what this thing is going to require if they expect to sell any...)

    Cheers,
    Alastair
  • Someone for whom English was a second language. Check the TLD: .kr

  • Distro (Score:1)

    by Maul ( 83993 )
    Looks like it runs a distro called ARMLinux. Are they releasing this distro to the general public (as they should)?

    I wonder how this ARMLinux measures up against Transmeta's distro. Oh well, it is good to see some competition in the Linux-PDA area heating up, hopefully it will keep the product quality high.

    "You ever have that feeling where you're not sure if you're dreaming or awake?"

  • I am already onboard for one of these when it is available, but I thing it would be especially enticing if they added the Springboard component from Visor compatible with Linux. An open PDA hardware component like that with Linux would crush Widoze CE

  • Huh? (Score:2)

    by 348 ( 124012 )
    I think this is going to be pretty cool. More gadgets for my wife to bitch about. However the funnies part was above the pic of the unit they had

    New Gizmos and Product News
    Old News

    Not a great start to the ad campain

  • I think that we all love linux on a variety of devices, but does this really come in to play with other linux developments? It doesn't look like it runs x86, or PPC, or any other normally supported cpu. Unless I missed where it said that it was, it is too much trouble for the non tech user to compile, plus who wants to "type" on a pda. I think it's a cool PDA, but I don't think that it's REALLY going to help linux become much more popular. Then again, it may get the name out to more people making my points moot.

    --Josh
  • "Can't be Netscape. The last thing you want is for your tech support people to be getting calls from customsers 'cause their PDA keeps on crashing (or, at least, appears to)."

    Heh... I can see it now...

    "Hello tech support?...yes...yes...my problem is that every time i run netscape when i drive, i get these bus errors...yes...yes, that's right bus errors. It makes me nervous to drive in the city....what?...yes...what do you mean use w3m?... it doesn't have a bus?... alright...ok...thank you. [click]"
    #include <signal.h> \ #include <stdlib.h> \ int main(void){signal(ABRT,SIGIGN);while(1){abort(-1); }return(0);}
  • The Springboard standard is tied to the Palm Computing platform. It would not be possible to create a proper Springboard-using device without being compatible with Palm software. While this would be great, given the large body of Palm software out there, but it's not really feasible, since this would require an implementation of a large part of PalmOS along with a m68k-compatible processor (or emulator).
  • Well, they have to distribute the kernel sources. But it is OK to have closed-source kernel modules, so they could do that. But they'd have to distribute the sources to anything that is compiled-into the kernel.

    They would _not_ have to distribute the sources to their UI, or any other 'user-space' apps, unless they were based on the kernel sources.

    TiVo is a VCR that runs linux; they released their patched kernel sources, and some changes to the GNU fileutils, IIRC. Not really anything earth-shattering; the user-interface remains closed.
  • The page doesn't say what it syncs with. OK, the e-mail will probably sync with what's in my mail file. But what about the calendar? ical? gnomecal? Or the address book? In fact, do they even say that it syncs with a Linux workstation? It may be Linux on the PDA, but sync with Windows machines. Yes, it'd be really dumb of them not to support Linux, but don't go assuming that they do.

    Other than that, really cool. Want one, but want to know what the price would be, blah blah blah

  • umm (Score:1)

    by jrs ( 27486 )
    What kind of storage is used? I'd be nice if i wasn't that flash crap. Oh joy, 5 mp3s on it.
  • It doesn't look like it runs x86, or PPC, or any other normally supported cpu.

    well, couldn't you say the same of any other PDA? If so, then what's the point of having them, eh? Why _not_ do this thing? I mean, it will never get [more] support if no one does any work with it (i.e., code for it, support, new peripherals, etc..)

    I say, "yay!"
  • Thats because it was spec'd to be strong, sort of like those bounty paper towels. The PDA with the processor that can withstand 1 ton PSI!

  • Nice, but I think the author's on crack (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    This sounds like a nice gadget that meets a lot of my PDA wish list requests. Unfortunately, this looks more like a marketing trial balloon then an anouncement of anything they've actually built. Conspicuosly absent: any mention of the resolution of the LCD, the memory, the CPU speed... come on, they haven't even started designing this! Also, it implies it recognizes handwriting but there's no stylus or place to keep one, and the application examples have a different form factor than the hardware pictured. Plus, oh yeah, I'm gonna be able to actually read slashdot on a 3.9" LCD? Er, I don't think so, Mr. Marketing droid. Ever heard of WAP? It's a protocol designed to reformat data so that you can read it on a PDA. Perhaps you should look into that, next time you dream up a check list for this product.
  • Hrm, I would think that Linux is all around a better operating system, in general, then wince. If lots of linux geeks want Linux in there hands, then there going to buy it. It makes a lot more sense then submersing your motherboard in mineral oil... but people did that, didn't they?

    [ c h a d o k e r e ] [dhs.org]
  • What, pray tell is wrong with UNIX on a pda?

    What is UNIX? It's a file system interface API. It's a process control API. What is wrong with these APIs as far as PDAs? Nothing, that's what.
  • It seems like there is something a little odd here--or maybe it's just me--I just can't figure out why this supposed linux PDA has repeat/game1 and launch/game2 buttons
    Also if you look at what seem to be screen shots you see some kind of what is supposed to be an mp3 player, and some kind of thing to watch videos(on a PDA?-well maybe it's a good idea?)--and something about development of the OS, and a web browser--the common thing between all of these is that are just screenshots from a regular desktop--there is no way that you would be able to read the text if text this small were on any PDA that I have ever seen
    Also, while it looks to my eye like the physical device that you see is a photograph, what they are showing on the screen is definitly some kind of badly drawn artist representaion of what it is linux is supposed to look like
    that kinda leaves me two options in my thinking--either this is badly faked, or they don't actually have any kind of working prototype, and are just hoping for someone to..well I really don't know what...

    then again, it's kinda seems like whoever wrote the page doesn't speak english either well, maybe it's all just a bad translation
    or, maybe I am just an idiot

    either way I hope that someone does come up with one of these things soon, cause I know I want one
  • My friend you need to wake up. When you say there is no hope for Linux on a PDA, you are thinking of Linux as a huge, everything installed, monster of an all purpose OS. What you need to realize about Linux (which you haven't apparently) is that Linux is whatever WE want it to be. They don't mean there going to slap a full Suse installation on there, they mean they are going to build an OS based on the Linux kernel. What that means is that they can build it to do everything they want it to and leave out the stuff they don't.

    BTW: It's not safe to jump off the "Linux bandwagon" right now, you never leap from a vehicle going over 100 MPH.


    Munky_v2
    "Warning: you are logged into reality as root..."
  • I have used the Pilot since it came out and love the simple, big-button interface. It lets me get a few things done very well. I looked at the WinCE devices for a while because I thought it would be nice to have more "features". Well the CE interface is completely wrong for a device of this size. It lets you do _nothing_ quickly, but a lot of things slowly.

    I wonder how they will tackle keeping the UI simple and fast while giving access to the power and versatility of Linux and the applications. You know, I might like this device a lot more if it had wireless connectivity but only a command line interface! They could call it the "bashMan"

  • Hmmmm.... (Score:3)

    by JAZ ( 13084 ) on Friday February 04, 2000 @06:32PM (#1304192)
    Am I the only one who think this looks fishy? Something about the whole think makes me wonder if this is really a product ready to hit the market.

    Follow me here -
    Does Samsung really need suppliers?

    Why is there no info on the amount of RAM?

    It suggests that I can watch my soaps (oh joy) which implies a TV tuner which is not listed in the specs and I cannot believe they intend to deliver real time video in 65000 colors over a cell modem.

    also no real information on the processor (strong high performance doesn't say any thing)

    Then english translation is poor, which doesn't mean anything itself (mine isn't great either) but with every thing else...

    As the story poster noted, the title of the page is wrong, which as an ex-webmaster suggests to me a copied page or misused template, this isn't to say that the product doesn't exist, but a major product like this some exec somewhere would complain. (at least the always caught my minor foo's =])

    This looks to me more like a product concept, they may even have a prototype, but I'd be willing to bet they are nowhere near production with this.

    I carry a Visor and love it, but if something like this were offered at a reasonable price, I'd be all over it. But I just don't this is will be that device any time soon.

  • I have always wondered what the need is for gadgets like these. I don't often want to watch TV whilst I'm driving, or to dictate a letter at the same time. And if I want good music where I am, just burn a CD of it and use my discman.

    Will these go the way of my friends Palm VII? In the corner collecting dust, still in its cradle?

    But of course, it is neat eyecandy. ;)

    • Web browser?

      Probably some Spyglass/Mosaic derivative. There have been a number of embedded platforms built up using that.

    • USB.

      Well, the code is coming along. Take a look at the web site. Linux-USB.org [linux-usb.org]

    • As for the GPL, it implies that they have to offer to provide a copy of the source code to all GPLed code that they provide.

      This is probably most economically done by sticking a source code TARBALL on the CD that comes with the product.

      They don't have to redistribute the source code to Spyglass Mosaic, if that's what they use as the web browser, and so long as it runs as a separate process.

      They may have to include sources to customizations to GPLed or LGPLed libraries; this does not mandate releasing source code to applications that aren't linked to GPLed code.

      In short, if there's a 660MB CD in the box, it won't likely hurt too much if they drop a couple tarballs in that occupy 50MB of it. Alternatively, they may take the approach Tivo [tivo.com] did, and offer to send out a CD with relevant source code for a relatively nominal cost.

  • Said Assistant will actually be a small rock statue ductaped to the case.
    Guess which one will be most popular with this site's viewers.

    By the way to save people time the above links are /.ing a Spice Girls site.

  • Ever heard of the IBM PC110? Alan Cox uses a pair of them for kernel development on the road.

    It's been done before.

    :)

    Try http://www.basterfield.com/pc110/pc11 0idx.htm [basterfield.com] for more information. It's a 486sx33, but hey, IT'S BEEN DONE BEFORE! :)
  • you could buy modular components and basicaly build your own PDA?

    Choose how much ram you want, what kind of display, built in stuff like modem or NIC, wireless etc, choose a case for it. Kinda a PDA version of PC's.
  • ARMLinux is a port of Linux to run on a number of the ARM family of microprocessors.

    There is a "distribution" directed at assisting owners of Acorn RISC and related computers to install ARMLinux on their systems; this likely will bear minimal resemblance to what would be installed on a PDA.

    A PDA represents an embedded application; it is highly unlikely that someone building such would use anything that would be recognized as a "distribution" (in the archetypes of Slackware, Red Hat, or Debian).

    Quite to the contrary, it is possible that a PDA would not have an init process as we usually know it, and it is unlikely that it would have a "userspace" that would be recognizable.

    If they build a PDA, they'd be likely to create a custom init that starts up whatever set of work processes are necessary ( e.g. - X, a "system manager," perhaps something like cron, and so forth), and this init might be highly attuned to the specifics of the nature of what functionality they wish to "embed."

  • It looks like StrongARM. Linux has been available on the StrongARM for quite a while. Look at the Netwinder. Corel quoted that ARM support was available when they were evaluating operating systems for the Netwinder. So it would have to have been around for a while.

    • never before have we had travelling ssh daemons!

    It'd be nice to use the ssh client on a PDA, but why would you want to run the daemon on the road?

  • Man that sounds like it must be fast ;-) Too bad they don't really tell us what the specs are (processor/memory). Judging by their lack of english skills, and one solitary page devoted to the creatively named "Multimedia PDA" I'm not holding my breath waiting to have one in my hand. Oh well, its a nice thought.

    Spyky

  • This look real! Check out Gmate's Linux PDA (kr) (Score:4)

    by Morgaine ( 4316 ) on Friday February 04, 2000 @07:20PM (#1304205)
    "Samsung's" Multimedia PDA is actually GMATE [gmate.co.kr]'s product.

    It's not clear from the info on Gmate's site whether the CHOPIN PDA and the Multimedia PDA are one and the same or whether Multimedia PDA is a more recent model, but it looks real enough. A lot of the questions raised by folk on this thread are answered on their site if you look around.

    I love my Palm, but it'll be quite impossible *not* to buy the Gmate/Samsung PDA if it performs as described and does eventually reach these shores.
  • here, have some more salt. :)

    it was merely a joke intended to make fun of ourselves as a community. I was always under the impression that it was the sign of a healthy community when it could make fun of itself :)
    #include <signal.h> \ #include <stdlib.h> \ int main(void){signal(ABRT,SIGIGN);while(1){abort(-1); }return(0);}
  • If it runs Linux, "what it syncs with" out of the box is almost immaterial, since we'll be able to make it do whatever we want without too much effort.

    As for price, allegedly it'll be 10% less than the competition, whatever that means. :-)

    Check out the GMATE [gmate.co.kr] site for more details of the PDA.

  • Yummy... (Score:1)

    by jra ( 5600 )
    although, what's Compaq doing with the Itsy these days... that rock and roll controller is pretty spiffy...

    Cheers,
    -- jra
    -----
  • I would not recommend anybody buy ANY PDA for the next 6 to 12 months because you never know what new gadgets will come out using the Transmeta chip.

    The Transmeta Crusoe chip is quite powerful and consumes very little power and it's possible we can see PDAs with color screens, voice recording, mp3 playing and have the battery life of a Palm (weeks, not hours).
  • on a pda, any os you're going to use is going to be stable, (mostly anyway *peer CE*) and i don't see how much different it is if the the embedded architecture is linux.

    of course, to the manufacturer, it's nice, because you just need to make modifications to a free product, instead of coding from scratch, but from a consumer standpoint, what does it matter?

    (don't get me wrong, i love linux, i use it whenever i decide i really need to get something done)
  • Also, it implies it recognizes handwriting but there's no stylus or place to keep one

    What page are you looking at? The one linked to above shows a stylus in two pictures, one with it out and the other showing where it's placed when not in use.

    --

  • It's not that hard to load up a PDA with lots of features (ARM processor, lots of RAM, color LCD, etc); just look at the Itsy or lots of prototype 'wearables'. The trick is keeping power consumption down.

    Note that while they have given it a big ol' 1400mAh battery, information about battery lifetime is conspicuously absent from Samsung's page. G-MATE claims "In normal use, CHOPIN can operate continuously for about 8 weeks with Li-ion rechargeable battery"... maybe if "normal use" is one minute a day.

    But hey, we'll see!

  • In midst of this announcement, let's not forget the ongoing project to port Linux to existing WinCE machines. Take a look at http://www.linuxce.org [linuxce.org] to see what I'm talking about.

    The LinuxCE group is still in its early stages, but they are making progress. If there are any coders out there that would like to help out, please do, as I would love to be able to run Linux on one of those things. The MS operating system has been the one thing holding me back from buying one.

    --

  • The web page does mention ARMlinux, which implies that it's using a StrongARM processor (the same as the Netwinder [netwinder.org])

    As for watching soaps, I'm guessing that you first have to download them onto a CompactFlash slot (they'd better be short soaps)

    If you look around www.gmate.co.kr [gmate.co.kr] (near the bottom of Samsung's page they're mentioned under the heading "System and Asic Solution") you'll find a bit of information about a PDA called CHOPIN, which is due out in March 2000. It confirms the StrongARM and Linux are being used, but the only new piece of info amoungst the pages "Under Construction" signs is that it has 32MB RAM
  • Because this way you already have a large base of software you can run in it.. Plus developing software by yourself would be really easy. No need to download such sdk's that you'd need to boot into the other os..
  • A Linux PDA? This is a dream come true!

    I guess this means that I can finally give up on porting nethack [nethack.org] to my TI-89 calculator!

    On the other hand, the PDA's handwriting recognition could mistake one of the single-letter commands for another, with disastrous results... (No, no! I said to 'z' the wand, not 'a'!!!)

    -Hypr Geeque

    P.S.: I actually was contemplating doing that... (I just discovered the game a week ago and boy is it addictive... I'm starting to dream in nethack!)

  • t'd be nice to use the ssh client on a PDA, but why would you want to run the daemon on the road?

    There is TG ssh for PalmOS -- I use it often with Metricom/Ricochet modem.

  • SysV init that is used in Linux is configurable enough to do all those things by itself -- just put everything in inittab. OTOH, "init scripts" definitely won't exist, or will be completely different from what we are accustomed to.
  • Even if this thing is for real, do we really want it?

    The key to the Palm design that (from what I've read) made it sell so well and certainly what made me choose it was its simplicity. It doesn't do a heck of a lot, but it does it very, very well. I can pull it out and with only 1 button open a notepad, calculator, to-do list, or address book. There's no boot time and it is virtually crash-free. It has a very smooth and consistent GUI. I have trouble seeing any advantage to using Linux over a custom-written OS. Just take a look at the disaster that is WinCE. I know that there are some desirable things that could be done with Linux but not with the Palm OS, and of course there is the pure appeal to Linux evangelists and to companies wanting to cash in on Linux IPO mania, but it seems to me that consumers would be better off with an OS written from the ground up specifically for the handheld platform it's running on. A handheld is different from a PC in that it is only useful if it can be depended upon implicitly to anytime, in all situations. A handheld that crashes or fails in any way cannot effectively be used as an extension to the user's body, and therefore loses much of its usefulness.

    Or did I just totally miss the point?
  • whats up with this, I submitted this 2 days ago just after it hit Usenet *sigh*.

    Granted, it sounds and looks like vapourware, as far as screenshots - the obviously incorrect title goes, and the awful 'concept' looking pictures of the unit - and the lack of any real specs except vague stuff about ARM CPU's and how many inches the screen is.

    As a concept, its good (though I'd wanna have gloves on if I were handling it, think of how much the processor will heat up when Mr/Mrs Samsung PDA is shaking its tail feather).

    why are all these ppl complaining about linux on a PDA/PsPC (whatever you choose to categorise it as) - they spend all their time on here waxing lyrical about the wonders of this OS then bag it out later. I think they need to remember that Linux is the kernel. The programs ls, ps, cd, ppd and so on are merely programs designed FOR linux to run. The reason it is great for a PDA is because you can take away all the garbage you don't need, and add on or keep what you do.

    Obviously nobody wants extended typing on a PDA, lots of the time we pon't want it on our desktops - thats what Tk, Qt, Motif and other GUI toolkits are for - for PDAs, nanoX and Microwindows are common. The thing is to pick a standard toolkit and use it, I DON'T want to have thousands of different GUI libraries stuck on my machine.

    Ease of operation via stability and extensibilty is what linux can give to PDA's. As the standard open source mantra holds, if I don't like it, I or someone else can change it. If i create a program, I can keep that as the 'backend', I can then make a frontend GUI that is tailored to the display type. Like all those various frontends to your favourite mp3 ripper.

    USB support is interesting, if they've got it working properly, when will the community be able to get hold of the source code and fix it up for our PCs?

    Radio? nice addition, I'd been looking at making one for my Nino (for those who know it, I was thinking of a clip on in place of the modem). Though how long till RIAA or someone whacks a law suit on it for being able to copy what it receives.

    just my $0.02

  • wouldnt be the first time i've heard "StrongARM" processor so they forgot the ARM part ...
    whoopidy doo give the guy a break english is obviously not his first language
  • Maybe LinuxOne will be providing their Linux implementation? They have a good buzzword-compliance record.

    Or they could always go with Harrix [harrixos.co.uk]; it'd make a smashing OS for a purely theoretical product.
  • FYI, I returned from a business trip to Japan this summer, and they have all of the PDA's that can do what this Samsung can, however I have not come accross a linux version. None of this technology is new. It is pathetic how slow we are to adopt new technology. Sharp makes this unit called the Zaurus I cruise in Japan take a look at this one http://www.sharp.co.jp/sc/eihon/mic1/text/index.ht ml or click on all of the links on this page to see what we may get in 5 years! http://www.sharp.co.jp/sc/excite/zaurus/zaurus-ind ex.htm Yes they are expensive, but Samsung is no genius company. They are just smart for introducing this into the american markets.
  • PDA
    by Justin Osborn

    To the tune of: G.T.O. by Ronnie and the Daytonas

    Little PDA, in the handheld aisle
    4 buttons and a touch screen, it's very versatile
    Listen to her synchin' up now, backing up yer fi-ee-eye-iles
    C'mon flip it out, turn it on, write on it, PDA

    Wa-wa, (Yeah, yeah, little PDA)
    wa, wa, wa, wa, wa, wa (Yeah, yeah, little PDA)
    Wa-wa, (Yeah, yeah, little PDA)
    wa, wa, wa, wa, wa, wa (Yeah, yeah, little PDA)
    Wa-wa (Ahhh, little PDA) wa, wa, wa, wa, wa, wa

    I pull it out at the office, or in the train turnstile
    This little handheld computer, is so worthwhile
    I don't use no Win CE, I'm not seni-ee-eye-ile
    C'mon flip it out, turn it on, write on it, PDA

    Wa-wa, (Yeah, yeah, little PDA)
    wa, wa, wa, wa, wa, wa (Yeah, yeah, little PDA)
    Wa-wa, (Yeah, yeah, little PDA)
    wa, wa, wa, wa, wa, wa (Yeah, yeah, little PDA)
    Wa-wa (Ahhh, little PDA) wa, wa, wa, wa, wa, wa

    Gonna go on the Net
    order a PDA
    Get a case and a cradle
    I'll be running today
    Show it at the conference table
    and then they'll say, yeah, yeah
    That I'm a flagrant geek
    I'll upgrade it in a week
    And then flip it out, turn it on, write on it, PDA

  • i wish to call a moratorium on Neil Diamond parodies. The little 'from the ... dept' has
    got that song echoing in my brain, where I am sure it will remain for the better part of my day, haunting me, and maybe even tricking me into humming it in public.

    If i start breaking into a medley involving "Cracklin' Rosie", I will have no choice but to hunt you down and make you pay for this insidious echo that resounds between my ears.

    In the future I ask you to please be more responsible with your position as slashdot author.

    You have been warned.

    Thank You.

  • Re:Hmmmm.... (Score:3)

    by ralphclark ( 11346 ) on Saturday February 05, 2000 @10:32AM (#1304233) Journal
    Current StrongARM processors of the appropriate format and power consumption for PDA's are about equivalent in processing power to a 200MHz Pentium IIRC.

    Consciousness is not what it thinks it is
    Thought exists only as an abstraction
  • Just add a CompactFlash slot ah-la TRGpro [trgpro.com]. I've ordered a TRGpro (should arrive in about a month), now I'm just waiting for a Bluetooth CF card and TRGpro drivers for it...
  • ... for a replacement for my Newton MP2100.. It's been what, 2 years since it's been Steved and nothing, NO THING has come along which meets its performance and functionality criteria..

    My replacement criteria:
    • Same size screen: Me like being able to scrawl all over the thing
    • PCMCIA slots.. Why use a new formfactor, when you can use an existing one with widespread manufacturing support? Does HandSpring's cartridge thingy have better power-management, or anything technically superior to 32-bit cardbus? My Newt has 2 PCMCIA slots, and I wish it had 2 more even if it added half a centimeter in thickness...
    • Understand the English language, and learn my writing mannerisms.. My Newt, after 2 years of care and feeding, is probably better than 95% accurate, even when I write URLs into the browser.. (Yes, virginia, it does in fact translate http://www.slashdot.org right on the first try! Though I may have to write a NetHopper interface for Slash, as the current webpageset is kinda klunky on the Newt :p )
    • Have color. Come on. I want candy, and I don't mind having to plug the thing into its charger/cradle at night after I get home from work. Besides, color adds multiple dimensions to UI if used correctly... Hell, I'll take true paperwhite over color, if you can do it without color... Use Li-Ion custom-shaped batteries to pack as much voltage as possible..
    • StrongARM or Transmeta CPU. Only those have the power/watt ratio to do the interesting things I want my new PDA to do (MP3/MPEGVideo playback, graphical web browsing, wireless voice messaging, SSH client, etc).
    • Rock-solid syncing of all built-in apps (notes, todos, dates, etc) and an open API to support syncing of 3rd party apps.
    • Voice recognition.. OK, maybe this is a bit much, but if the MP2100 could do it (Dragon Systems ported their VR software to NewtonScript for the 2100, but the platform was Steved before there was ever a decision to release) so should one of these newer-fangled bits..


    My question: after the Newton brain drain to Palm, what have you Newton guys done? Where's Palm's english-language reader? I have yet to see any real progress back towards the functionality I enjoy with my Newton...

    Then again, I guess I've always been a 'too good for popularity' tech collector. Atari Lynx, Jaguar, Sega Saturn, Newton...
    Your Working Boy,
  • Yes, it's the same model. It'll be for sale no sooner than the end of March.
    -russ

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