Original i-Tablet being sold on eBay
I don't know if I should be sharing this with you (because I kind
of want it myself) but Joseph DeRuvo Jr.'s i-Tablet, built in
2004, is up
for sale on eBay. If you don't remember, TUAW and Engadget covered the i-Tablet when it was released. Since 2004, the i-Tablet has become
a sort of holy grail of mods for Apple fans. The i-Tablet is a modded iBook with a Troll Touch attached to the iBook screen which has been flipped and attached to
the top surface. Extra firewire ports and a snazzy black leather cover have been added as well.Apparently Mr. DeRuvo is revving up for a new project and needs to fund his compulsion for hardware hacking (wait, so do I, my Eastern European hackable electronics collection keeps growing) and therefore is selling the coveted i-Tablet. I guess I'll be seeing you in the eBay auction.
[thanks Joseph for emailing the hack a day tip line, posted here with Eliot's permission]

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tipsters said 3:39PM on 2-09-2006
Can't wait untill Apple releases a TabletMac. This together with a innovative UI could really open up a new market.
For Swedish Mac news read:
http://www.technologysweden.com
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Ryan said 6:58PM on 2-09-2006
He's just selling it because he knows in April apple will release there's and he's selling this so he has money to get his own when they do. As for me, I feel sorry for the soul who purchases this now to be sadly dissapointed when Apple releases their tablet in April. Of course nothing's been confirmed, but I think they will - just get that gut feeling. I have no idea though, pure speculation but I considor myself both a optomist and wishful thinker.
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jerome said 8:00PM on 2-09-2006
Does anyone WANT a tablet? REALLY? WHY?
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Ruben Santiago said 8:24PM on 2-09-2006
Slow news day eh?
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Denny said 9:01PM on 2-09-2006
I would love a tablet laptop. I was sure as the Windows tablets were coming out, Apple would not be far behind.
I would rather buy a tablet laptop than a Wacom Cintiq. http://www.wacom.com/lcdtablets/index_21UX.cfm
I want to draw on my screen. We had them in conference rooms for thumbnailing at my previous job and it was a truly great feeling to see and draw on the same surface.
That's all I want! So, yes, people do want them, well, at least some artists.
Take care,
Denny
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Sharvil Shah said 11:53PM on 2-09-2006
It seems that some enthusiastics are modding ibooks and selling them as iTabs.
Find out at www.theplaceforitall.com
(it seems their website is off!)
But I remember they expected to sell 100 itabs of each ibook revision.
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Kaegan Donnelly said 12:05AM on 2-10-2006
1) I doubt he's selling it simply because Apple may release one. If anything, his tablet would be worth MORE after Apple releases one. It's a collectors item.
2) I personally would love to have an Apple Tablet to use with Final Cut. I can just imaging moving clips around, cutting and slicing... it would work great. I'm sure many professionals and enthusiasts would enjoy it.
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Nik Fletcher said 7:05AM on 2-10-2006
Oh how I'd love an Apple Tablet. It would be really useful, especially if it were flash-based and "instant on". That WOULD rock!
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Thom Brooks said 9:46AM on 2-16-2006
This ended up going for $1525. There were a lot of bids and it's just a 700 mhz G3 iBook. Arguably, the touch screen adds value but how much value?
A quick eBay search reveals that a G3 700/30/256 goes for about $250.
Enough said! I hope that people from Apple took note of this sale!
Oh, and I signed the petition.
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