UNR versus UMIDE

Liam Proven lproven at gmail.com
Mon Sep 29 15:48:15 BST 2008


2008/9/29 Vadim Peretokin <vperetokin at gmail.com>:
> It's UMPC's and MID's. Ubuntu Netbook Remix is for UMPC's, Ubuntu Mobile for
> MID's.
>
> UMPC is a (in my opinion) a cheap, gimped laptop. See EEE-PC and the lot.
> MID is a powerful gadget (imho again). See Samsung Q1.
>
> The difference is that a UMPC is in the V shape, so you can't use the
> keyboard without being stable / sitting down. While an MID is usable while
> standing and etc. :)

Fair play - you did say it was just your opinion - but I have to
disagree. I find the N800 type things to be an amusing toy but utterly
useless and expensive at that, whereas the netbooks are a useful
category of little machine that I could use a lot. Cheap and cheerful,
using the bulk market of cheap PC bits - so standard keyboards I can
write on, a useful-size screen not a postage stamp, and cheap generic
processors and memory and storage, so it runs ordinary vanilla PC
stuff, including Wine or even Windows if you need it.

My Nokia E90 Communicator probably counts as a MID - it has a similar
spec to an N810, only my phone company gave it to me for free and it's
also a great mobile phone. It's very handy to be able to look at the
occasional web page on it, but it is so constrained and limited that
if that's all it did, I wouldn't even *consider* buying it.

The laptop type form factor is not a problem if it's properly
designed. I suggest you look up the Psion Series 5 and 5mx, which were
of the same style, but 100% usable when standing. Small enough to go
in a pocket, but a better keyboard than an Eee, so I did lots of real
writing on mine. I would give good money for a modern version of a
Psion 5, whereas I refuse to pay £200+ for an Eee - I am happy with my
IBM Thinkpad X31.

However, in another year or so, I reckon something Eee-like will get there.

But I still want something like an OLPC in a Psion 5 form factor...

-- 
Liam Proven • Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/liamproven
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