I’m knee-deep in coding today as I work on a new feature for the portal so I’m in skeleton-post mode. Two posts that I want to highlight though are both about operating systems that are relatively new on the ultra mobile PC scene.
First-off is the new update to the mobile phone operating system from MontaVista. [news via LinuxDevices.] Mobilinux 5.0 (not Intel’s Moblin) was released last year but they’ve just added a new component which brings in support for the Ti OMAP 3430 ARM-based system-on-chip (SoC), a platform I consider to be a contender for use in the mobile Internet device sector. It’s based on ARM’s Cortex A8 architecture which brings some very important processing speed advantages over the current ARM 11 architecture. How about a Nokia N810 with two to three times more processing power? It brings ARM-based silicon into the same ball-park as Intel Atom in the same release timeframe. Pocketables highlights that ARM are now using the ‘Mobile Internet Device’ label and I can add that TI are using it too. They’re not shying away from a face-off! Operating systems like LiMo, MontaVista, Android, Moblin, Symbian, Maemo, Apple and others are all ones to watch in this space. There’s even a rumor that Microsoft might be planning a catch-up exercise within a new consumer-focused division called ‘Premium Mobile Experiences.’ I don’t believe that any one player is going to totally dominate the space as there’s room for multiple target markets but it will get very busy as Smartphones, PMPs, Navigation and Internet tablets platforms offer the opportunity for real convergence.
At the high-end of the UMPC/MID range, desktop operating systems are a possibility and Kevin Tofel of jkOnTheRun has reported that he’s had some success installing Apple OS X on a Samsung Q1 Ultra Premium which appears to have stirred up more desire for the long-rumored Apple tablet, something that I feel sure is in a lab somewhere. Good job Kevin.
