XplanaZine

I had the educational privilege of attending a junior high where the extra curricular activities included pitching pennies outside the gymnasium and shooting craps in the bathroom. I learned enough during my two years there to know that no one really has a chance in las Vegas. I also learned that in craps, while you can kiss the dice or invoke a powerful muse, it’s really all about luck.
That’s about the state of the union in the market for mini or ultra-mobile devices. The good news for manufacturers is that, unlike craps, there are far fewer possibilities (approximately three) on which to gamble. The bad news is that no one yet has any idea which of those three possibilities is the one customers will prefer or choose. So here’s the deal. Manufacturers know that mobility is in and that users want integrated devices for computing and communicating.
What they don’t know is exactly which permutation of that integrated system will be the dominant player in the market. But they still have to gamble and try out products, hoping that one of them will hit in the right niche. To date, the options and variables are fairly clear — 1) mini-pc’s; 2) handheld devices; ultra-portable laptops; 4) some combination of the above. The problem is that, while we as consumers would love to have a single device that handles all of our needs, out needs are really so varied that such a device is almost unimaginable. So what we end up with is a series of devices that tries to guess which of our needs is most important and should serve as the design/architecture anchor for their product.
The mini pc, like Vulcan’s Mini PC, or Samsung’s Nexio bets that what we most want is our general computer apps and functionality but that we want them in a very small form factor that we can take anywhere without additional baggage (they fit easily into purses, large pocketbooks, and briefcases). They are built with integrated wireless and bluetooth, and have excellent batter life. Some, like the Nexio, even have cameras and Webcam applications integrated.
The Ultra-portable Laptops is built with the idea that what users really want is a full desktop that can go anywhere conveniently. This product is more powerful than the mini pc, is also larger and heavier, but has keyboards and screens that remind us of a regular computer. Like the mini pc’s, these also have wireless capabilities but generally ship with ethernet ports, larger drives, and integrated DVD drives.
Moving away from the “computer is the center of my universe” mentality is the handheld device. Products like the Handspring Treo fit into this category and gamble that mobile users are most interested in mobile communications and need only minimal data options as they move about. These devices give users e-mail, Web browsing, and access to basic office applications. They heavy stuff is best done on heavy machines, the philosophy goes. For now, in the early-adopter stages, we see that powerful handheld devices are extremely popular. But with newer, smaller PC’s and the promise of a national, broadband network, it’s hard to say what consumers will ultimately want. One of the major issues, of course, is cost.
What we should all be resigned to is that as devices get smaller and more connected, mobile warriors will have to pay for both the size and the connectivity. And don’t think it’s gong to be cheap.