ORIGAMI COMETH!?

Microsoft and Intel plan to announce next week that several industry partners will make small, light versions of a tablet personal computer, people close to the two companies said yesterday.

The machines, which have been the subject of considerable speculation, will be tailored more for consumer entertainment than the larger tablet machines running Microsoft's Windows that were introduced in 2002. The larger tablets, typically with 12-inch screens, sell for about $1,500 and are used mostly by doctors, lawyers, architects and other professionals in office settings. A tablet PC has a touch-sensitive screen that allows input with a pen.

The new models — a category called ultramobile personal computers — will have smaller screens, seven or eight inches, and sell for $1,000 or less, depending on options.

The machines will have the handwriting recognition software of the standard Windows tablet personal computers, and include wireless technology for browsing the Internet. But the new tablets will also have multimedia capabilities for playing music, movies and games in some models.

Those describing the features would not speak for attribution because the products have not been announced, nor would they name the three or four manufacturers that they said were involved.

Intel will discuss the new category in general at a developers' conference in San Francisco that begins Tuesday. The new models will be announced at the CeBit technology trade show in Germany, which opens Thursday.

Intel will supply the chip technology for the ultramobile PC's, and they will run a version of Windows Tablet PC software. The models to be introduced this year are an initial step to what Microsoft and Intel hope will be a popular hybrid category of computer, a consultant to Microsoft said.

They will be hefty, at about two pounds, and have a limited battery life of three hours or so between charges, the Microsoft consultant said. A new generation of low-power chips, extending battery life to six hours, will come next year. Later models, he added, will come with screens of four inches or so.

Without disclosing specifics, Intel and Microsoft had previously acknowledged working on ultramobile machines intended to have the power of a personal computer. The machines were to be designed to do one thing very well, and do a few other things as well — more like a consumer electronics product.

One model, for example, might be geared toward gamers, but also allow e-mail and simple Web surfing. Another might be marketed to soccer moms or business travelers — research showed their use patterns are remarkably similar — who want to be able to do e-mail messaging and read online publications as they do on a desktop without the weight.

"We don't want to create a Swiss Army knife, because that's not what users want," Brad Graff, a director of marketing in Intel's mobile platforms group, said yesterday, speaking generally about the company's approach.

There has been considerable speculation in the last week about what Microsoft may be introducing. A Web site set up by Microsoft, www.origamiproject.com, stirred interest with vague assertions that a coming mobile technology "will change your life." Then, bloggers found and posted a video advertisement for Microsoft Origami mobile technology.

Intel has its own Web site, www.umpc.com, suggesting the ultramobile PC's will be able to handle movies, music, games, television and the Internet.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/03/technology/03origami.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6381789873197028811&q=microsoft+origami

www.origamiproject.com

Well said, Dennis. I got to play with a LS800 today and I am now finding myself saying "Oriwhati?" I am in love with the LS800.

I measure the LS800 screen at 8.75 inches, so it sounds like the new Origami devices will be a bit smaller. I would guess that 800 x 600 will be the natural resolution for that size, but if they are aiming at a younger market they may try to squeeze in 1024 x 768.

It seems fitting that the LS800 should be grandfathered in as the first Origami machine (the OQO too if you ignore its initial lack of Tablet PC functionality). The folks at Motion Computing seem to have been 9 months ahead of the rest of this category.

Well Rob how about www.dualcor.com they seems to be getting close to launch day! Also it probably falls in the UMPC category

Hi Dennis

I dont beleive that theres actually much out there at the moment that fits into the Origami rumor-spec.

Origami needs to slot into a market segment thats really not covered by anyone at the moment and that includes OQO.
Its a lifestyle segment and to me, that doesnt really imply full functionality. OQO and Motion devices provide full 'PC' functionality.

I've commented at length on this in my research at http://blog.carrypad.com. I dont care what Origami is but we've seen in the last two weeks what people want it to be and I really hope Nokia, Motion and others take note.