Now this is exactly what I was hoping would come up when there was a buzz around Apple‘s ipad. Sadly the ipad did not go all the way and still has tremendous scope for improvement in terms or becoming a proper computing platform than a media display unit. The concept was put forth here.

The MSI however loses out on giving a  page span virtual keyboard that is identical to a real keyboard. Some thinking would have prompted them to give a more usable split keyboard when vertical and use one touch screen as input device when horizontal and the other as a display, creating a regular laptop kind of environment to work in.

Hands on is discussed at Endgadget

Dual Screen tablet

Tablets in Grid mode. One gets 10 screen space (assuming that the screen borders are minimal) and 5 processors.

Screen Grab from the Video

This is the result of TAT’s Open Innovation experiment. It is an experience video showing the future of screen technology with stretchable screens, transparent screens and e-ink displays, to name a few.

Well actually I would expect more. For instance the Keyboard and Mouse sure look redundant with a display and touch sensitive table surface. And a few other things here and there. Interface shown for Mobile to Mobile sharing is really great, hope speeds and technology catches up with such things faster. I am not a fan of straight edged black screens, but I guess it’s just the idea that counts at this stage.

Via www.unpluggd.com

(via Gizmodo)

Philips 56" Super Wide LCD TV

Toshiba Libretto W100

Sometime back when the ipad popped out from Apple‘s stable, I kind of wished something like this was offered by Apple instead of the current ipad. I think the ipad is beautiful but it’s just not really a useful device.

The Liberto “looks like” it has its basics correct. There are two touch screens, you can use either as an input device and you can use the whole thing as a conventional laptop with a virtual keyboard on one of the touch screens. Smart and ideal. Except that the device looks a little too bulky for it’s size and definitely uglier than the ipad. Personally we would prefer something thats got a 15″ display on each side to work and play with.

http://www.timeline-studios.com/blogs/2010/02/concept-grid-with-tablets/

A concept I had with the dual screen tablets, probably some fodder for those who are actually developing these things.

Tablets in Grid mode. One gets 10 screen space (assuming that the screen borders are minimal) and 5 processors.

Microsoft’s got a phone out there now and it does look good. Comes in two versions of Kin One and Kin two, and both look rounded and fresh, much like a Samsung Corby, young and happy. It’s a welcome break from the numerous iPhone lookalike crowding the market.

KIN One and Two (The bigger one is Two) - Screen Grab from website. They should give some links to download photos.

From what can be seen in their videos and website, the phone has a very intuitive touch interface complemented by a hidden keyboard which many of us do like to have.

Time will tell weather they have cracked it with this one or not.

KIN ONE Specs

1. Slide-out QWERTY keyboard
2. Solid camera
3. Compact size

KIN TWO Specs

1. Wider screen
2. Bolder camera
3. More memory

KIN ONE Tech Specs:

1. Form Factor: Vertical slide, QWERTY size: 57cc
2. Display: 2.6″ TFT, QVGA (320 x 240), capacitive touch screen
3. Camera: 5.0MP CMOS anti-shake, autofocus, dual LED flash
4. Speakers: Mono
5. Memory: 256MB DDR RAM, 4GB storage
6. Battery: 1240 mAh
7. Connectivity: EV-DO Rev A, Bluetooth 2.1 w/A2DP, Hi-speed USB, 802.11b/g
8. Other: Assisted GPS, FM radio, accelerometer

KIN TWO Tech Specs:

1. Form Factor: Vertical slide, QWERTY size: 65cc
2. Display: 3.4″ TFT, QVGA (480 x 320), capacitive touch screen
3. Camera: 8.0MP HDR CMOS from Omnivision with anti-shake, autofocus, Lumi LED flash
4. Speakers: Mono
5. Memory: 256MB DDR RAM, 8GB storage
6. Battery: 1390 mAh
7. Connectivity: EV-DO Rev A, Bluetooth 2.1 w/A2DP, Hi-speed USB, 802.11b/g
8. Other:Assisted GPS, FM radio, accelerometer

Here’s another Tablet in the market, hitting it a wee bit before the ipad, sometime in December 2008.

Since it’s a prototype the Adam’s casing here is not what the final design will be; in fact this was hand-made especially for showing the tablet at CES. The eventual hardware will be 14mm thick (Rohan said they could even get it down to around 12mm) with a reasonably minimal bezel, packed with the 10.1-inch Pixel Qi transflective display, a capacitive touchscreen eventually capable of recognizing six simultaneous points of contact, integrated WiFi and 3G. Thanks to Tegra 2 the Adam is 1080p capable, with an HDMI port to output to an HDTV or projector, and while the OS they’re showing today is bare Android they’ve a new UI in the works complete with a replacement on-screen keyboard more ergonomically designed for large-touchscreen use.

- Slashgear

Read the rest here. Notion Ink Adam hands-on via Notion Ink Adam hands-on – SlashGear. Notion Ink is based out of Hyderabad and the product design is carried our by Ether Design very much in Bangalore.

Notion Ink, Adam. Image courtesy - Slashgear

We all know that iPod is probably one of the most used devices in the car in conjunction with other devices that already exist. But why doesn’t Apple get into the market directly and give us front row right from the driver’s seat either as a Software (with 3rd part hardware) or Hardware + Software combo. Many die hard fans have already put their Mac Minis in the their cars.

Car audio running front row!

Example: http://bit.ly/b2NoCF becomes http://bit.ly/b2NoCF (with tooltip, hover to view) or http://timeline-studios.com/blogs/2010/02/i-would-have-loved-if-my-mobile-and-tv-did-this/ (complete URL)

WordPress Plugin Anyone?

How it would help:

1. Reduction in energy costs when heated wash is used.
2. Most washing soaps are designed to work in room temperature, and this would allow the machine to manipulate and chose a water temperature.
3. Definitely green.

For the sake of redundancy, the heater part should remain. After all, we do not really get the sun shining all the time.

Dual input for a washing machine to save energy.

Top Sites is a feature in safari where it gives you a thumbnail display of all frequently visited websites. Although the function is very simple, the display however is fantastic like all things Apple.

Safari Top Sites

That’s how this thought came up.

What if the Mobile and the TV could talk. Which means I use the mobile to type and navigate while the TV did the display part. I would not mind a 640×480 display on the HD screen, but it would be larger, take less time, and much more user friendly just by the sheer size of it.

Mobile 2 TV display transfer

Interconnectivity

This is needed in the very near future. Devices would be categorized as Handheld, Storage, Display, Input, Output, Network apart from all others that may be there in the Kitchen. Let’s just leave them for now for the sake of ease (that’s my ease). Diagram displays the possible interconnectivity and overlap.

Overlaps

The problem comes when there are innumerable redundancies. For instance: a cell phone can be used to control a television, home theater and others thus reducing a remote. Music can be streamed to portable devices for the larger part, thus reducing the need for large data drives on them. Movies can be viewed directly on the TV screen on demand, instead of crouching in front of a Laptop to get the latest from Youtube, and all this has to get simple.

Not right now, but very soon.

Tablets in Grid mode. One gets 10 screen space (assuming that the screen borders are minimal) and 5 processors.

The idea maybe a little over the top, but things should aim at heading this way.

Well this might be a little too early to say as I may give in to the looks and the design of the ipad sometime soon as soon as its stable and available in India, but I still have my doubts over the whole Tablet concept.

We all wrote on a paper with pen a little more than 2 decades back when Bill and Steve started selling us stuff so that we hit keys instead of flaunting a Pen. In came a PC and then a Laptop. All that was to replace and make stuff easier for us to handle. Little after this Apple got in the Newton and we all loved it, it could schedule and recognize handwritten stuff and let you even scribble aimlessly, and then faded into oblivion.

Then came the Tablet PCs/Laptops which had this screen that swiveled and frankly thats what was the weak point. Sooner or later, they would become lose, wobble etc.

And we are back to the ‘no physical keyboard’ era again with iPhones (and it’s million copies from LG, Sony, Samsung etc.) and now a larger one in the ipad.

But the basic is missing. The ease of having a separate Input and Output device makes like a lot easier. physical memory takes care of the rest, much like the stick shift in a car. QWERTY was perfect.

Hence This. A two screen solution is probably a way to go.

Dual Screen tablet

Although Gizmodo has revealed something similar by Microsoft, I would rather wait for the Apple one.

How fast do you need to run to avoid getting run over by a train?

The answer seems to be simple upfront that you cannot outrun the train and sort of come under it and perish permanently. But the actual answer depends on how fast the train is going actually? If its running a bit slower than you can run, chances are you will survive.

Just a thought!!