ModBook almost ready to ship?

First things first. The iPhone doesn't implement any multi-touch use. It's bi-touch (i've not seen any implementation where three fingers are used, the screen just isn't that big, dunno if the hardware is capable) which is a pretty dumbed down alternative to true multi-touch.

Just because Apple has a limited implementation of this technology on the iPhone, doesn't mean it's anywhere near ready for OS X (especially when they said they had to take OS X developers out of the OS dev space into iPhone dev). With the barebones use of touch sensitivity for the iPhone, it's immensely hard to believe there is anything ready for the immediate future for Mac OS X (we're talking about the Client OS here, not a mobile version). Integrating a new input handling layer into the OS is monumentally huge. In consideration of how everything developed thus far for the Mac OS, either by Apple or third parties, has been on the presumption of a mouse and keyboard (and some cases optical/vocal and other alternate inputs) for its input.

Remember that Leopard JUST came out, and has had no signs of multi-touch implementation, I think we are far far far off from seeing this being a realistic outcome for full fledged personal (desktop) computing from Apple. This is why Microsoft and Apple so far are utilizing new touch sensitive approaches in limited semi-niche devices, to get the public used to such interactivity through a less dominant device.

While I still think an Ultra portable is still very much going to be
release at MWSF, its going to be just that, ultra-portable... meaning
long battery life, small form factor... still the same means of input.

The goal for the Axiotron was to bring tablet like functionality to the Mac OS. Which they are still supposedly doing, but in a relatively archaic form with the use of a stylus. Apple will not release a competing product with a stylus, nor are they ready to release one using a multi-touch approach... at least not in a fully capable computer, I could see something like a bigger iPod Touch or new Newton though. The Mac OS isn't designed to accept multiple points of input, nor is any software really designed to work in such a fashion. There was that piece of software that was essentially a giant track pad that could understand multiple input points, but it was used for gestural recognition... which was nothing more than a much more complicated (and harder to remember) implementation of keyboard shortcuts.

A Multi-touch Mac is not happening, nor is a tablet or anything other full fledged machine with touch sensitivity... an alternate device, like an uber PDA, perhaps.

Yeah, Windows Mobile isn't failing, and isn't crap to use, either. WM6 is a vast improvement over 5, and the WM platform practically killed Palm. It pretty much owns the handheld OS market. Iphone didn't outsell it overnight, just owns a small percentage of the market now... just like Apple does of the personal computer market. Besides, it's apples and oranges here, the iphone is a device. Windows Mobile is a platform. Microsoft doesn't build phones, or computers for that matter.

One last thing, @5- smartphones were not "dorky" pre-iphone. Apple just has really good timing. Smartphones had already taken off in popularity when the iphone was released. This was completely different from their iPod, which systematically started the MP3 "revolution." I mean, does anyone remember the original Mp3 players from Diamond, Iriver, and the like? No.

It's sensitive, not sensative.

Sorry for being a spelling wonk.

It's too bad that this wasn't released earlier. OWC really dropped the ball for funding of these units from Axiontech. Don't expect the build quality of these to even be good, the components used in it weren't meant to last more than 2 years tops before they start failing.

I consider this vapor until word comes from OWC that they are shipping...

Simon Arch, when Apple doesn't, then what? This product is already dead in the water. It's a year later and it hasn't shipped. DOA

That's what I said in my first post.

Also, an ultraportable or even tablet is hardly niche if done correctly. The problem is you are making your comparison to Windows tablets, which are complete crap. Ultraportables are very popular simply for their size. TabletPCs, on the other hand, have continuously failed. This is not the fault of the concept but the execution.

If you'd like a real world example of something similar look no further than WinCE/Windows Mobile. 10 years it's been out there and failed miserably. Lost money the entire time and is still a pile of crap to use. Apple introduces a smartphone into a market everyone said was niche, over saturated, etc, etc. What happens? They outsell Windows Mobile practically overnight.

AppleTV. How is that niche? No more niche than iPod was when they introduced it. Though I think they somehwat have botched the rollout of the product and supporting media/software. It's hardly niche though. It's a strong, relatively new and untapped market. The only thing there is a bunch of crap based on Windows. I predict a mirror of what happened with the iPhone.

As for the ModBook. It's too little too late for too much. It's DOA. That doesn't mean it's bad, it's just the wrong product at the wrong time. Maybe a year ago people would have bought. But not now.

What's really sad is it won the 2007 Best of Show award, and it will barely ship before the 2008 BoS is awarded.

We saw this at the last Macworld. Didn't realize that it wasn't shipping yet. I'm growing tired of companies who do this, whether they charge before shipping or not. Looking at you too, Griffin.

Can't you just patch the Leopard image and install OS X on a PC tablet?
Although laptops are where apple really accels hardware-wise, and I suppose Axiotron got it right too... I really want to consider this.

Wow, I've even seen ads for this in magazines, I thought it was released long ago