The Future of the PC?
 

Personally speaking, I hate Cell Phones. I went to school in Toronto for 2 years (possibly 2nd to Hollywood in cell phone use) and grew to hate them not because I couldn't afford them, or that I thought they were useless, but the people that used them. Everywhere you went there was some 12yr old using one, usually letting it ring 30 times before answering, or some 30 yr old using it in line at Subway or at a the supermarket. I made a vow to never own a cell phone because I detested the culture that it spawned.

Then all that changed when I saw this crazy bitch of a Cell.

HP iPAQ h6315 Pocket PC - Phone Edition

http://hpshopping.speedera.net/www.s...fa239a_400.jpg

As you can see it's a Cell phone, a digital camera, and a Pocket PC. It has a version of Win 2003 Mobile, it's Bluetooth, and currently has a 3.5" colour display. Supposedly you can play a shitload of games on it, even old NES emulator games, and a friend told me that it can even play videos. There are programs out there that let you shrink DVD's to around 128mb so you could even have a few 128mb flash cards and watch DVD's on the go (it's even widescreen if you turn it on its side). Plus with wireless internet you can scan TFP on the bus or on the can.

This got me thinking, of how electronics are starting to overlap in their uses. DVD players function as stereos for many people. Computers play DVD's and have TV tuners so they're overlaping into that dept, and cell phones collect e-mail.

I think that we're about 2-3 years away from a Pocket PC like the HP iPac that has the space to hold a practical amount of information, and a powerful enough processor to do most anything. Imagine it, one device to do nearly anything. Take it to work and plug it into the docking station (keyboard/Monitor) take it home and do the same (keyboard/Monitor/Soundsystem/Extra Sotrage), take it to the video store and DL the latest rental, go to the store and pay for your groceries.

Anyone else think that this is possible, or just the 1950's prediction that people in the 80's will travel by rocketpack?

Nice, But for how much? I don't see the point in ponying up a few grand for a pocket PC/cell phone/camera right off the bat. I'll wait until multiple units are manufactured by competing corporations thereby driving down prices.

You can get that sucker for $499 from Tmobile with a one year contract. I'll be geting one in a few months. ;)

Found it on Google ;)

Absolutely beautiful. I should buy one of these babies, my Motorola phones always break after a year of buying them :\

Wonder what codec that is. The thing must have a fairly decent CPU...well..for a phone at least. I really don't see the need for having everything in one like a swiss army knife...actually thats a good example..how ofeten do you use a swiss army knife vs actually getting a knife/scissors/whatever. Convergance doesn't mean better IMHO.