Steve Litchfield, the guy I was referring to in my E90 video introduction yesterday, has a great segment in his latest Smartphones Show videocast. Steve has been blogging about smartphones for a long time, really knows his stuff and I regard his opinion highly so when I saw him talking about his ideal 2007 smartphone spec it was time to pay attention and very interesting to see him list some UMPC-like features on his requirements list.
Take a look at the video on YouTube and FFWD to 2:10 where Steve starts talking about his requirements. The list includes features like ‘modern browser engine’ and third party applications. If I was to list requirement the ultimate low-end ultra mobile PC or “Communiputer” (for want of a better expression!) , the list would look very similar too, so in the table you’ll see below I’ve taken Steve’s list and added a few extra points that come from my ultra mobile PC world. I have marked each sector with points based on best-of-breed device features and finalised it with some notes. It turned out quite nicely (even if I do say so myself!) and shows where the two categories have already met and where the two categories could meet in the future. It also highlights where each device could easily (without technical/physical limitations) get better. Of course, this is only my own opinion and I’m sure the weightings would vary for others but in general, the trends look about right.
The intersection point between these two markets is extremely close now and its quite amazing that the phone and desktop PC have evolved so far and wide that they are meeting each other head-on on the Uber-smartphone and ultra mobile PC territory. The market potential in this space must be HUGE and the fight is going to be a hard one. Not only for OEMs to find their target customers but for customers that to find their target device amongst the huge range of devices that will appear in the next few years. For me, the E90 and Everun represent the point at where the two markets are starting to merge and in the next few days I’ll be looking at these two devices side by side with this list in mind. It should make a nice video presentation and discussion point.
(click on ‘read more’ below if you’re not already viewing the full article)
Here’s the list then. Have I missed anything that’s a must-have feature on a ultra mobile PC or smartphone? let me know and I’ll try and keep the list updated. remind me to do an update in 12 months time!
|
Feature |
Uber-Smartphone |
Comuni-puter (umpc-platform) |
Notes |
|
Phone features |
10 |
2 |
UMPCs are near-useless as phones at the moment. Size and software are the major problems. |
|
Cellular Data connectivity |
10 |
8 |
This is one area where smartphones and UMPCs are both getting it right. Cost is an issue for UMPCs in some cases. |
|
Other data connectivity (wired/wireless) |
8 |
10 |
Multiple USB, docking ports, sd, cf, vga. Many of these are missing from the uber-smartphones. |
|
Modern Ajax/Flash browser engine. |
6 |
10 |
There is still no smartphone that can bring the FIE to the small screen. Its speed of processing and plugin support that need sorting out. |
|
CD quality music, 3.5mm jack and A2DP |
8 |
8 |
A2DP is missing from a lot of BT implementations. |
|
1 meter screen experience. |
2 |
10 |
1-meter is the distance from seat-back to table-top for long-duration video or browsing/reading. You need a 5-8 inch screen for this and a PPI (pixels per inch) less than 200. |
|
30 cm screen experience |
8 |
6 |
UMPCs too heavy for the 30cm handheld screen experience. |
|
A great camera. Glass optics. 3+MP |
10 |
2 |
ultra mobile PC cameras are generally cheap and low quality. |
|
VGA Camcorder |
10 |
2 |
ultra mobile PC cameras are cheap and low-quality. |
|
Built in GPS and software. |
10 |
0 |
UMPCs need built in GPS. E90, Advantage are super navigation devices. |
|
Native/Java third party applications |
2 |
9 |
UMPCs lead by a long way. X86 is THE platform for third party applications although some need tailoring. |
|
Games |
5 |
5 |
Games on UMPCs could be a lot better than just 6 year old PC games and online gaming. Smartphones also need better games. |
|
Pocketable size |
10 |
4 |
UMPCs are too big for the pocket right now but remember that smaller size means less screen experience. |
|
Processing power |
4 |
8 |
The best of the high-end smartphones need more power and even low-end UMPCs could do with some help with complex Internet applications. |
|
Battery life |
8 |
5 |
The best of the UMPCs are reaching 4 hours usage. Smartphones aren’t much better in similar active scenarios due to radio and screen power drains but are close to the minimum required for all-day use. |
|
Great (quick, slick, productive, stylish, thrilling and fun) user interface |
10 |
4 |
Smartphones have this issue sorted out. UMPCs need to get much much much better here. Predictive text, touch interfaces, color, movement for example. |
|
Input capability |
7 |
9 |
UMPCs equal or better the best of smartphone input methods. Mainly because of the larger size though. |
|
Desktop capability |
2 |
7 |
Docking to full-desktop operating mode is possible on UMPCs. Not on Smartphones. |
In Green – Steve Litchfield’s requirements
In Blue – Steve Paine’s requirements
In Red – These points can and should be improved.
Communiputer definition: A very small pocketable ultra mobile PC designed for mobility
with voice and data communications on an x86 platform with
full desktop-PC operating system capability.
