iPad vs Microsoft Courier

[diabolic]

The zune os is different than the windows CE. Have you ever even used a zune? its based off windows CE, but theyre entirely different experiences.

Yes, I have. If you believe the iPad nay-sayers, "everyone" thinks these tablet devices shouldn't run a mobile OS, but should be running full Windows or OSX. I disagree, but if the complaint applies to Apple, it should apply to Microsoft too.

Hopefully the Courier will be as cool as the concept video. I'll get one if it is.

 

[Geoffrois]

The reaction to the Courier videos...

Percentage of internet users who have a need for an interactive notebook: 0.01%
Percentage of internet users who think they have a need for an interactive notebook: 99.99%

 

[vini-vidi-vici]

microsoft mobile products are hyped up to be good and then they end up being horrible.

Whatever happened to that touchscreen tabletop computer that MS was touting a few years ago... it cost like $5000 or something. I thought that looked cool too. Totally impractical at that price, but looked cool in the promo.

Seems the courier is going the same route. There isn't even a hint at a release date for this thing... or a price.

 

[vini-vidi-vici]

One major issue with the folding screens that I never see discussed. It'd be really easy to get something stuck between the screens when you fold it together - some grit, a pen, keys, whatever. This would make the whole thing pretty damage-prone, as when you close the screens, you'd jamming that object into the glass, either breaking/scratching the glass or the hinge.

 

[t0mat0]

Are these still mockup videos? Are the videos real hardware?

 

[Bytor65]

Are these still mockup videos? Are the videos real hardware?

They are still computer renders.

 

[bpd115]

nothing is stopping a developer from using software to 'divide' the iPad screen in half and creating a "Courier" application. I'd be shocked if there wasn't one eventually.

 

[oneeach]

Whatever happened to that touchscreen tabletop computer that MS was touting a few years ago... it cost like $5000 or something. I thought that looked cool too. Totally impractical at that price, but looked cool in the promo.

The MS Surface is the device you are thinking of and they sell commercial and developer units.

Seems the courier is going the same route. There isn't even a hint at a release date for this thing... or a price.

Courier is just a concept at this point. There may be some hardware that does this stuff in the works, but it is still a long way from seeing the light of day. Unless Microsoft rushes (and thus ruins) it.

 

[flyguy206]

Whatever happened to that touchscreen tabletop computer that MS was touting a few years ago... it cost like $5000 or something. I thought that looked cool too. Totally impractical at that price, but looked cool in the promo.

Seems the courier is going the same route. There isn't even a hint at a release date for this thing... or a price.

When i had to replace my xbox 360 over 3 times i just gave up on microsoft. the xbox360 has been out for 4 years now and it still has the rrod and that is crazy to me.

 

[gibbz]

Vapour.

That does look very good. If and when it actually exists I'll take a closer look at it.

Well the iPad seems to have the big advantage because it exists and actually has a release date.

Exactly. Right now there is no comparison. Vaporware versus a tangible product shipping in a month.

The Courier as a concept is cool I guess. Not sure I like the form factor. Either way, Engadget posted nothing more that a demo of a concept. I'm not holding my breath for MS to actually release it as shown.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

*Sigh*

Looking at this reminds me of how lazy apple was with the iPad... Now I'm not saying that the courier is perfect or that it will be better than the ipad (and I'm certainly not saying that it will be more popular. only time will tell), but it feels more full and more designed to be a tablet device.

The iPad really feels so much like something that was thrown together within a year. Just keep iphone OS and soup up a few apps to make it work... Not a project that was being designed and perfected years before the iphone was even released... Yes the OS is simple... but TOO simple for what the device is supposed to be. it's not a phone.

Perhaps they did it for convenience so they only have 2 OS lines to work on instead of 3... But I was really hoping/expecting a much more grand hybrid of iphone OS and OS X that would just blow us away.

 

[thejadedmonkey]

One major issue with the folding screens that I never see discussed. It'd be really easy to get something stuck between the screens when you fold it together - some grit, a pen, keys, whatever. This would make the whole thing pretty damage-prone, as when you close the screens, you'd jamming that object into the glass, either breaking/scratching the glass or the hinge.

It has the same flaw as a MBP, hush.

 

[kdarling]

Whatever happened to that touchscreen tabletop computer that MS was touting a few years ago... it cost like $5000 or something. I thought that looked cool too. Totally impractical at that price, but looked cool in the promo.

The Microsoft Surface is being used in restaurants like Hard Rock Cafe, casinos, hotels and stores.

Heck, AT&T was the first retail customer, putting Surfaces in its flagship stores back in early 2008 to allow people to compare phones. YouTube video here.

 

[kdarling]

Courier is just a concept at this point. There may be some hardware that does this stuff in the works, but it is still a long way from seeing the light of day. Unless Microsoft rushes (and thus ruins) it.

Courier seems to be a progression of the well known Codex and InkSeine projects. (Unlike Apple, Microsoft publishes a lot of their R&D.)

Engadget pointed out the relationship a while back in this article.

You can even download the software to play with from MS Research.

 

[flyguy206]

*Sigh*

Looking at this reminds me of how lazy apple was with the iPad... Now I'm not saying that the courier is perfect or that it will be better than the ipad (and I'm certainly not saying that it will be more popular. only time will tell), but it feels more full and more designed to be a tablet device.

The iPad really feels so much like something that was thrown together within a year. Just keep iphone OS and soup up a few apps to make it work... Not a project that was being designed and perfected years before the iphone was even released... Yes the OS is simple... but TOO simple for what the device is supposed to be. it's not a phone.

Perhaps they did it for convenience so they only have 2 OS lines to work on instead of 3... But I was really hoping/expecting a much more grand hybrid of iphone OS and OS X that would just blow us away.

How has apple been lazy? If anything they have put more thought in the ipad then most people think. I think everything apple has done with the ipad is for a reason. of apple was lazy they would have gave us everything that we wanted and we would be unhappy with it becase it would not work well. Would you rather have no web cam or a web cam that did a horrible job at what you wanted it to do.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

How has apple been lazy? If anything they have put more thought in the ipad then most people think. I think everything apple has done with the ipad is for a reason. of apple was lazy they would have gave us everything that we wanted and we would be unhappy with it becase it would not work well. Would you rather have no web cam or a web cam that did a horrible job at what you wanted it to do.

Oh please. Explain to me how from my post you deduced that I want a web cam. I'm talking software.

I think the iPad has TONS of potential, and I'm really hoping that 4.0 brings us a lot of that. But think about it. There have been apple tablet rumors for how long?? Since 2001? Now granted I'm sure the current ipad is quite different than what they had in store back then, but still they have been doing R&D on this spot for a decade.

And what did they unveil?? an iphone OS (2.5 years old OS) with about 5 apps taken out and the others are revamped slightly for a larger screen.

Don't get me wrong, I still think the iPad will do well on this OS. I will probably get one eventually (when the reasons are compelling enough), but I still can't help but look at what they unveiled, look at what they unveiled 3 years ago for the iPhone and think "So it's basically the same..." I guess I was just thinking of some revolutionary new OS between the 2. Or actually I was expecting the iphone OS but I was still expecting a lot of new innovative interactions with the OS. Multitasking, widgets, interactive lockscreen, 3 and 4 finger gesturing, expose... Something revolutionary. We didn't get a SINGLE one of those things. Of course the future leaves room to grow... I just hope the future comes quickly

 

[blackNBUK]

all else aside - but why would battery life for this be any more of a challenge than the much bigger iPad?. I am not being snarky. Sincerely - do you have an engineering background or have any data that would suggest that one big screen uses less than 2 smaller? Of significance?

No real engineering background here unfortunately; however there is some logic behind my statement.

Unless Microsoft have some new battery technology up their sleeves a one pound device with two screens and a hinge is going to have a smaller battery than a one and a half pound iPad. The power consumption of two screens is more uncertain; I'd wager that it is more but I don't have any firm figures. However even if you think the power consumption is the same the smaller weight of the Courier leads me to think that the battery life will be less.

What the real battery life is is currently unknown. However I'd want to know that is reasonable before I start getting interested in the device.

 

[ronjon10]

I like the fact that it's built with stylus input in mind. I don't know why Jobs doesn't think people don't want to use a stylus.

I'd never get a device like the courier or ipad to mainly be some sort of entertainment device. It's just not worth the money.

I'd love to be able to use one of these devices at work, taking notes in meetings or in the field that I can then then transfer to my computer, etc. With stylus input and excellent note taking software, this device moves ahead in the functionality I'd want from one of these things.

The folding screen should also protect itself more than a slate device.

 

[samcraig]

One major issue with the folding screens that I never see discussed. It'd be really easy to get something stuck between the screens when you fold it together - some grit, a pen, keys, whatever. This would make the whole thing pretty damage-prone, as when you close the screens, you'd jamming that object into the glass, either breaking/scratching the glass or the hinge.

And this is different than any laptop?

And the iPad screen - that's safe not having ANY protection (natively)?

Really? which do you think possesses a bigger issue when it comes to keeping the device "safe"? LOL

 

[samcraig]

No real engineering background here unfortunately; however there is some logic behind my statement.

Unless Microsoft have some new battery technology up their sleeves a one pound device with two screens and a hinge is going to have a smaller battery than a one and a half pound iPad. The power consumption of two screens is more uncertain; I'd wager that it is more but I don't have any firm figures. However even if you think the power consumption is the same the smaller weight of the Courier leads me to think that the battery life will be less.

What the real battery life is is currently unknown. However I'd want to know that is reasonable before I start getting interested in the device.

It could be that more of the 1lb weight is dedicated to battery than the 1.5lb weight of the iPad. Who knows without knowing the guts. And it's possible that two smaller screens use less than one bigger screen. Again - who knows as it's also based on what type of screen, etc.

Too many unknowns - which is why I "questioned" the statement

 

[blackNBUK]

It could be that more of the 1lb weight is dedicated to battery than the 1.5lb weight of the iPad. Who knows without knowing the guts. And it's possible that two smaller screens use less than one bigger screen. Again - who knows as it's also based on what type of screen, etc.

Too many unknowns - which is why I "questioned" the statement

I would agree that there are a lot of unknowns; which is why I expressed a "concern" and not something stronger. However given what we currently know I would be surprised if the Courier had a bigger battery.

Battery life is something that I think is an important consideration for these new tablets. I think that the important thing for a tablet is that you can pick it up at random and probably have enough charge to do what you want. A 10 hour battery life means that an iPad should either last through a busy day of constant use or last a week of casual evening use. If the Courier doesn't get close to that then it will be a significant problem for me.

 

[terrymr]

I think this is old thinking. Xbox (despite hardware flaws which I never experiened), the Zune HD, and Windows 7 all work very well. Windows 7 Mobile looks good as well from the previews shown.

Excuse me ? It sounded like you just said Windows 7 works very well.

The best thing that you could honestly say about windows 7 is that it is not as bad as Vista. It is slower in every measurable way than XP.

I haven't seen windows mobile 7 but it's almost impossible for it to be worse than the previous versions.

 

[yodaxl7]

Looks Neat, but awkward, too

It looks like a digital scrapbook! Guess, it's for those who want to write novels, take notes, etc. It seems to be a limited device. It looks like a web os type of device. So, it depends on a strong wifi connection or 4g. Plus, it is still a concept. I don't seem a real time type interaction demo yet. iPad is way more useful. There are developers who will create app that would do this scrap book thing and better. So, Microsoft courier is an epic fail!!!! Need more info!! What's the os? etc.

Epic fail? Overused. And not applicable. If you want to argue that the iPad ISN'T just a big iPod Touch - then you can't blather on how this just looks like it's a scrap book.

Can we all try to agree to use EPIC FAIL when it actually means something instead of the "go to" word of the day?

It's better to present the full package, then to leak a peak. There's no appeal to this device. At least we got more a great experience with the iPhone os. So, the iPad is not totally new, but it provides much better experience than the smaller devices that use the same os.

 

[Roessnakhan]

Well then I guess to each his own, but Snow Leopard and Windows 7 are both very capable operating systems.

Excuse me ? It sounded like you just said Windows 7 works very well.

 

[samcraig]

It looks like a digital scrapbook! Guess, it's for those who want to write novels, take notes, etc. It seems to be a limited device. It looks like a web os type of device. So, it depends on a strong wifi connection or 4g. Plus, it is still a concept. I don't seem a real time type interaction demo yet. iPad is way more useful. There are developers who will create app that would do this scrap book thing and better. So, Microsoft courier is an epic fail!!!! Need more info!! What's the os? etc.

Epic fail? Overused. And not applicable. If you want to argue that the iPad ISN'T just a big iPod Touch - then you can't blather on how this just looks like it's a scrap book.

Can we all try to agree to use EPIC FAIL when it actually means something instead of the "go to" word of the day?