Dangerous iBook Sale
August 18, 2005 | 1 Comment
The Bison tried to convince me to go down to Virginia and buy some used Apple iBooks that were being sold for $50 each. I was in Utah during the sale, so I was out on the plan. Turns out they made them only available to local residents, so thankfully we were excluded, because chaos ensued!
Virginia News:
An estimated 5500 people were on hand when the gates were opened. What followed can only be described as chaos as dozens rushed to get to the head of the line. People were trampled, shoved and pushed.
Yahoo News:
People threw themselves forward, screaming and pushing each other. A little girl’s stroller was crushed in the stampede. Witnesses said an elderly man was thrown to the pavement, and someone in a car tried to drive his way through the crowd.
The local NBC affiliate even posted sweet video footage titled ibook chaos. The noon video is the best as far as I’m concerned.
Other resources:
Slashdot: Henrico County iBook Sale Creates iRiot
Yahoo Finance: Va. Laptop Sale Turns Into a Stampede
CNN: Panic ensues in rush for cheap laptops
Dave Barry: iBOOK RIOT UPDATE
Tags: apple, chaos, computers, hardware, ibook, laptops, mac, panic, riot, used computers, used laptops
Future of Computing?
August 5, 2005 | 1 Comment
There is a great discussion going on over at TeleRead titled Want to reach nongeeks? Then beware of the C word, about computing devices and handhelds. What will be popular and eventually gain critical mass with general public awareness and interest. Should the geeks be determining where we go, or should we finally listen to what users want.
In the initial post Casey Bisson said:
Geeks look at things asking what they can do to them, the rest of the world is asking for something to do the things they want to. Computers have necessarily put a little geek in everybody, but those expectations are counterproductive to the development of new devices like the Pepper Pad. Twenty years ago geeks scorned the Macintosh because it didn’t offer the DOS prompt they expected. Where’s that DOS prompt now? Geeks aren’t average users, we shouldn’t use those expectations in judging products targeted at the mass market.
Go read the whole post. Then read Casey’s additional post, The Coming Information Age. I think this really digs into where computing hardware is going. It is always interesting as we try to predict the future, many ideas will be discussed, few will come to be.
Tags: computing, future, hadhelds, handheld computer, hardware, information, macintosh, pepper pad
Pepper Pad
July 26, 2005 | 12 Comments
On friday Casey and I went to see the Pepper Pad in Massachusetts. To me this is a hugely interesting product. It sits in the vacant space between PDAs and laptops, ignoring the existence of Tablet PCs. To tell the truth, I think tablets are entirely useless. Unless you have money to waste or a budget to spend, there is no justifiable reason to invest in these devices. They come up short on the power of a laptop, and are not actually portable. However, the Pepper Pad has found the sweet spot between laptops and PDAs, amazingly they do not pretend to be either and this is where they shine.
Do you ever find yourself watching TV and want to look something up quickly on the Internet? Do you want to be able to see recipes while cooking in the kitchen? Do you want an Internet enabled device you can walk around your house with? If you answered yes to any of these questions or similar ones, the Pepper Pad is for you. From their site:
Portable and lightweight? Definitely.
Able to instantly connect you to all your favorite activities-e-mailing, IM, Web browsing, listening to music, watching videos, sharing photos and more? Absolutely.
How about easy to use, totally low maintenance and ready to travel with you-whether to the couch, the backyard or even the local coffee shop? Check.
That device is here. Say hello to the Pepper Pad. The Pad represents an entirely new category of wireless device-bigger and more powerful than a PDA or mobile phone, but smaller, lighter and far less complex (and a lot more fun) than a laptop.
This is an existing gadget I’d like in my home. However, the Pepper Pad is not perfect. I have to point out the areas they fall slightly short in hopes they, or another generation, will resolve them. Problems:
- Spongy feeling keypad - limited tactical feedback
- Unlabeled “function” key
- Oddly placed backspace button
- Laggy response to stylus input - scrolling with the wheel is great, the stylus is troublesome
- I question the lack of a word processor, even if limited in features/functionality
Not to knock the Pepper Pad, because it is hands down the coolest thing of its kind available, but I want competitors in this space. Would we have ever gotten an MP3 player as sweet as the iPod if there Creative and others hadn’t pioneered that space first, I think not.
In a perfect world someone like Apple would step in and build something If they took the components in the Mini, added a small LCD touch screen, gave it appropriate usability testing, OSX, and a <$800 price tag, they’d make billions. I know I’d find the money somewhere…
Tags: computing platform, hardware, innovation, laptop, mobile, mobile computing, pepper, pepper pad, tablet, technology, ultra portable
The Greatest Keyboard Ever
July 25, 2005 | 3 Comments
Art Lebedev Studios is currently showing off the Optimus Keyboard which is still in the initial stages of development. This is undeniably the greatest keyboard ever created. On each key are OLEDs giving it ability to have dynamic images. Imagine the possibilities! Dynamic buttons for various games, or programs. I’d love to look down at the keyboard and see that I accidentally left the caps lock key on. I want one, I wish they were available now…
Previously I was in love with the ZBoard which has exchangeable keysets. The downfall of this is that you have to buy separate keysets for each application/use/game you want to use with it. This could become expensive quickly. Additionally it is far less versatile than the Optimus keyboard.
I found this on Alexa because the site is currently enjoying a 50,000% increase in traffic! I think that is entirely related to it being Slashdot’ed.
More Info:
Engadget
Primo Tech
Gadgetopis
Ensellitas
TechSpot
Tags: alexa, gadget, hardware, innovation, keyboard, OLED, optimus keyboard, technology, zboard