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View Full Version : pocketnow.com Ponders the Ultimate Digital Assistant


Jason Dunn
10-30-2003, 02:00 AM
<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.pocketnow.com/index.php?a=portal_detail&t=reviews&id=291' target='_blank'>http://www.pocketnow.com/index.php?...=reviews&id=291</a><br /><br /></div>"Remember back to around the turn of the century? Remember when the iPAQ H3600 came around and the possibilities were endless? These days the excitement has died down and many of us are waiting for something to get excited about. Well maybe someday the Ultimate Digital Assistant will come our way. But for now, it looks like we'll just have to keep dreaming. Meanwhile, here's a possible look into the future with the Adam Lein concept design of the UDA Pocket PC. This new Pocket PC takes the conventional design paradigm to a new level featuring increased ergonomics, software integration, and significant built-in wireless capabilities..." <br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/uda_sm.jpg" />

Kati Compton
10-30-2003, 02:03 AM
Hmmm.... but a conspicuously absent directional pad...

dean_shan
10-30-2003, 02:09 AM
That looks very unconfertible to hold.

felixdd
10-30-2003, 02:10 AM
No jog dial either.

jnunn
10-30-2003, 02:30 AM
Hmmm.... but a conspicuously absent directional pad...
The direction pad is that dot in the upper left and the author dreams it to be eight direction too. This is just fantasy but the author says an upper left direction pad offers more comfort.

Thinkingmandavid
10-30-2003, 02:30 AM
It is ugly, plain and simple. it looks too big, if hta is the case idotn want it, duh, they have notebooks and the tablet for that.

freitasm
10-30-2003, 02:31 AM
Needs more "intelligence", like adding more Voice Activated commands, not only with the version 1.0 of Microsoft Voice Command (http://www.geekzone.co.nz/content.asp?contentid=1679), but with extended capabilities, like

User: "What's my next appointment?
PPC: "Next appointment in 45 minutes, at XYZ."
PPC (new): "Do you want me to book a cab?"
User: "Yes, please"
PPC (new): --- connects to wi-fi or GPRS network, using web service developed with Vodafone and arranges the cab to be there, sending the GPS coordinates ---
PPC (new): "Cab on its way."

Good looks or key positioning is not everything.

MichaelA
10-30-2003, 02:32 AM
It certainly isn't a device built for gaming. Actually, I'm not sure it's useful for much of anything! :roll:

Ed Hansberry
10-30-2003, 02:46 AM
...if hta is the case idotn want it, duh,...
Once again, in English?

Covert
10-30-2003, 02:47 AM
While he says that a directional pad on the top-left would be ergonomically better, I disagree. With the pad up there it becomes far too easy to obstruct the screen with your thumb/hand. If the buttons were on the bottom-right side of the unit they would constantly be accidentally pressed while just holding the device.

No need for either CF or SD, so it seems. What's the processor speed? How much memory does it have? ;)

Icebaron
10-30-2003, 03:52 AM
useless for lefties, expects too many connectors, which take space, wants the door for the expansion bay to be REMOVABLE (great another bit to lose), etc etc etc.

The only semi-intelligent idea I saw in this whole article was the detachable bluetooth headset.

jmarkevich
10-30-2003, 04:22 AM
Useless for righties too. I use the D-pad with my right thumb while holding the device.

I love the ideas on Andromeda - "flexis" roughly 6"x8", virtual holographic screens that can be moved around with your hands.

For closer to today, perhaps a separation of the input and output devices. A small cellphone-sized handheld device with the electronics. www.eyetop.net has a pair of glasses with a display, though it's kinda clumsy and inadequate, IMHO. A good entry method is still necessary, something like a fitaly-style keyboard for one hand -- obviously needs a bigger surface than the handheld control will allow. No idea how to implement that yet, but I'm thinking!
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Kati Compton
10-30-2003, 04:44 AM
8O I thought the d-pad was the POWER button. That's what I get for looking at the picture but not reading the text.

ctmagnus
10-30-2003, 05:05 AM
On the left side of the device is a removable rubber grip.

Hopefully it's from a different batch than the first 221x's ;)

egads
10-30-2003, 05:10 AM
Hmmm.... but a conspicuously absent directional pad...

I've gotten so used to not using the crappy dpad on my Dell that I would not even miss a dpad (and I've even have one of the X5's with a fixed dpad).

PPC manufacturers should be going to Nintendo and have them design their dpads. Every PPC I have ever played with has had a worthless dpad, it can't be that hard can it ???

dean_shan
10-30-2003, 05:12 AM
Hmmm.... but a conspicuously absent directional pad...

I've gotten so used to not using the crappy dpad on my Dell that I would not even miss a dpad (and I've even have one of the X5's with a fixed dpad).

PPC manufacturers should be going to Nintendo and have them design their dpads. Every PPC I have ever played with has had a worthless dpad, it can't be that hard can it ???

I can't wait till they do that. I want to put my GB emulator to good use. It is too hard to play with the d-pad on my ppc.

rmasinag
10-30-2003, 05:16 AM
For me, the ideal PDA is close to the IPAQ 4000 series, the one w/o the keyboard. I would want a BT eye display to make screen size less important. I can't wait till these displays become the next display standard. For connectivity, I want to see the upcoming IPAQ 6000 series, with the BT eye display. :)

MichaelA
10-30-2003, 05:32 AM
PPC manufacturers should be going to Nintendo and have them design their dpads. Every PPC I have ever played with has had a worthless dpad, it can't be that hard can it ???

If you get a chance, play with an ASUS A620. I waited to upgrade my E125 this long because all the d-pads have been garbage. While the A620 isn't perfect (the pad is still in the center!!), it has excellent responsiveness and is round and shaped well for gaming.

Foo Fighter
10-30-2003, 05:41 AM
I'm wondering if next year's "Personal Media Centers" (formerly Media2Go) is where Microsoft intends to shift its focus. With the popularity of MP3 players raging like the California fires (no offence to the victims), and PDA sales ever falling, they could be right. Cell phones and Smartphones are quickly stealing share away from handhelds. Maybe PMC is the next evolutionary step between PDA and Digital media? Not that Microsoft will pull the plug on PPC, but perhaps they see Personal Media Devices as the future of consumer electronics...and not Personal Digital Assistants. And they would be right, IMO. Just a thought.

toxostoma
10-30-2003, 08:01 AM
I hear ya foo fighter.

It's always bugged me that you can't turn a PDA into an MP3 player as good as the IPOD. For example, I have to spend $200 just to get a GB on a CF card. And while a GB holds a modest amount of songs, it's just not enough compared to Apples IPODs.

PPCs sure do have the power and form factor to be great MP3 players, but they lack well-priced, high capacity storage.

jizmo
10-30-2003, 09:37 AM
I hear ya foo fighter.

It's always bugged me that you can't turn a PDA into an MP3 player as good as the IPOD. For example, I have to spend $200 just to get a GB on a CF card. And while a GB holds a modest amount of songs, it's just not enough compared to Apples IPODs.

PPCs sure do have the power and form factor to be great MP3 players, but they lack well-priced, high capacity storage.

Well, isn't this basically what is weird with the whole PPC thing nowadays? I can type text with PPC, but I choose to use my slim laptop instead. I can play games with emulators, but then again I really rather use my gameboy for that. I have dozens of MP3 files crammed in my 512mb CF, but I find it easier to carry around my 256mb usb player.

PPC is a versatile device capable of almost everything, but this just seems to be the tendency that people will spend three times the same amount of money, to get the same options from many devices, designed to do one specific task in the best possible way. After the enthusiasm in the beginning my PPC is now used for what I bought it for in the first place: As a personal organizer. Works great in that utilization, I must add.

..as a device, designed specifically for organizing :wink:

/jizmo

PR.
10-30-2003, 10:36 AM
Pocket PC = Jack of all trades, master of none

I agree that these things need better inteligence making note of things for you and booking you taxis when you want them or attaching the latest weather report to the picnic you have on Saturday and warn you its going to rain and better reschedule. But where does that helpfulness end and the annoying nagging of Clippits "Do you want to write a letter" start?

On one side I like the idea of MS Voice Command on the other I can't see me using it, talking to my PDA in the street, or instead of the little alarm in a meeting you get "REMINDER: Buy your wife flowers on the way home" :D

adamz
10-30-2003, 01:24 PM
It certainly isn't a device built for gaming. Actually, I'm not sure it's useful for much of anything!

How so? There are three buttons accessible with your right hand and a directional pad for your left. And it can be used in both portrait or landscape modes. What part of that does not allow it to be used for gaming? Perhaps you're left handed?

Here's the lefty version.

http://www.adamlein.com/PocketNow/uda_lefty.jpg

While he says that a directional pad on the top-left would be ergonomically better, I disagree. With the pad up there it becomes far too easy to obstruct the screen with your thumb/hand. If the buttons were on the bottom-right side of the unit they would constantly be accidentally pressed while just holding the device.

Okay, try this.. hold your Pocket PC in the palm of your left hand and relax your fingers completely. Where does your thumb naturally rest? At the upper left corner or the center of the bottom part of the PDA? Does your thumb obstruct the screen? Mine doesn't, yet my thumb is still moveable. And look where you're other fingers rest. On the right side.
If you're conserned about accidentally pressing them, the buttons are recessed in order to reduce accidental activation, and they do require a pressed "click" in order to activate. Rest your four fingers on the top of your PDA on each of the hardware buttons. THIS is not a comfortable position, however tell me how often you accidentally press these buttons in that position. Unless you're aggressively squeezing your PDA with your left hand at all times, buttons on the right side will not be pressed accidentally.
Having the hardware buttons and directional pad on the bottom center of the device makes this interface entirely unaccessible during one-handed usage.

Perhaps some people hold their PDA between their forefinger and thumb at the bottom where the directional pad normally is. That's fine, but you do not have the use of your other four fingers in this position. It's a waste of perfectly good fingers. This UDA design can still be used in that position as there ARE 3 hardware buttons on the bottom, however it is more efficient and more comfortable to hold the PDA in the palm of your left hand.

What would you have done differently?

HTK
10-30-2003, 03:14 PM
Pocket PCs were designed to be used in portrait mode, I donīt really care if this guy thinks landscape is better, a lot of games will be portrait mode and this upper left dpad just seems unusable on this orientation. :evil:
Besides, the device is incredibly UGLY! :pukeface:

RobertCF
10-30-2003, 04:55 PM
What a horrible looking concept. I was instantly reminded of a coaster---with less functionality. I keep seeing these stories about "ultimate PDAs" and I just laugh. There IS no such thing, folks. Period, by definition. An ultimate PDA would have to be one that has everything you think is important to have on a PDA. Some of you think those stupid thumboards are must-haves. Pure garbage, in book. Some of you think the jog-wheels or jog-levers on the side are must-haves. My Axim has it and it just gets in my way--totally useless. And every one of us has different ideas on what "enough" memory is. And landscape mode? I'm sorry, but a PDA in landscape is the most uncomfortable, cumbersome and useless position to have a PDA in. A PDA naturally needs to be portrait since that's the most comfortable position the human hand holds things. Some people want the PDA to be thinner, smaller, blah blah blah. To me there is a size below which a PDA become unusable as a PDA--which is why I cannot stand those stupid smartphones. A screen smaller than my driver's license and about as useful as reading notes written on a grain of rice. Yes, not everyone sees them the way I do, but I also know I'm not unique. The point is, there will never ever be an ultimate PDA because there are 6 billion people and 6 billion different worlds and 6 billion ideas of what constitutes "ultimate". Which is why there will thankfully be various manufacturers of PDAs to cater to what they HOPE will be a huge market share. Market will determine what direction things go, and the best you can hope for is that your desires are somewhere found in the "collective". For the rest of us, well, I'm just thankful for the concept of "third party"....

AZMark
10-30-2003, 05:39 PM
OK, let's all stop complaining about it and start doing something about.

I think we have enough intelligence here, and just a few photo shop experts, that I think we could come up with our own design concept.

Let everyone chip in a bit and try to come up with something that is innovative, and not just every feature that is on the market today thrown into one device. Something that could be brought to market with a 1 to 1.5 year timeframe. A little of what is needed today and a bit of what will be looked for in the future.

The rules...
1. Shouldn't be phone centric. There will always be need for PDA's, they are much better for data entry, bigger screens better for multimedia, and extended web browsing. #1 need in a phone for most is tiny.

2. Come up with new and forward thinking features that aren't availablein todays pda's.

3. Should be doable with todays tech, with some future shrink thrown in.

Hugh Nano
10-31-2003, 01:31 AM
I'm wondering if next year's "Personal Media Centers" (formerly Media2Go) is where Microsoft intends to shift its focus. With the popularity of MP3 players raging like the California fires (no offence to the victims), and PDA sales ever falling, they could be right. Cell phones and Smartphones are quickly stealing share away from handhelds. Maybe PMC is the next evolutionary step between PDA and Digital media? Not that Microsoft will pull the plug on PPC, but perhaps they see Personal Media Devices as the future of consumer electronics...and not Personal Digital Assistants. And they would be right, IMO. Just a thought.

Hmm... Good thought. A Pocket PC with a 10Gb HD built-in (or, better yet, built slim-line around a PCMCIA-slot for removable HDs...) would be a killer design! Add a VGA screen, USB hosting capability, WiFi and Pocket PC OS (or XP Tablet?) and you have a must-have all-in-one next-generation connected multi-media PDA! (At least a "must-have" in my books!)

Hugh Nano
10-31-2003, 01:36 AM
What a horrible looking concept.

I don't know... I rather liked it (including the d-pad concept), except for the colour! All these complaints... (And not just from you!) At least the guys on PocketNow are putting in the energy to put forward some creative ideas and concepts--they should be commended for that! After all, they're not getting paid for doing this and they're doing a more thoughtful job than some PDA companies I can think of. Can you do any better?

adamz
10-31-2003, 02:11 PM
What a horrible looking concept. I was instantly reminded of a coaster---with less functionality. I keep seeing these stories about "ultimate PDAs" and I just laugh. There IS no such thing, folks. Period, by definition. An ultimate PDA would have to be one that has everything you think is important to have on a PDA.
&lt;snip>
The point is, there will never ever be an ultimate PDA because there are 6 billion people and 6 billion different worlds and 6 billion ideas of what constitutes "ultimate". [quote]

I know. This was just one opinion of an ultimate PDA.
The last paragraph of the article reads:
[quote]CONCLUSION
Perhaps there will never be an ultimate digital assistant. Obviously different people are looking for different features, and some may even be satisfied with the current PDAs, but personally I'd still like to see more. So I'll keep dreaming.



OK, let's all stop complaining about it and start doing something about.

I think we have enough intelligence here, and just a few photo shop experts, that I think we could come up with our own design concept.

Let everyone chip in a bit and try to come up with something that is innovative, and not just every feature that is on the market today thrown into one device. Something that could be brought to market with a 1 to 1.5 year timeframe. A little of what is needed today and a bit of what will be looked for in the future.


Thank you, AZMark! That's exactly what I was trying to accomplish. Hopefully some Pocket PC manufacturers will see these thoughts (they have)... and be inspired.



I don't know... I rather liked it (including the d-pad concept), except for the colour!

You know, when I see that type of paint job on cars I really don't care for it much. But on a PDA, the purple and gold just seems so compelling as you tilt it in the light and it changes from one to the other. The colors of royalty on a PDA fit for a king! :) Plus, I'm really bored with everything being silver.