Filed under: Macworld, Hardware, Portables, Video, Mods, Interviews, Macbook Pro
Macworld 2009: Axiotron Modbook Pro
Simply stated, it's the fastest tablet computer on the planet, and it's a Mac.Axiotron surprised everyone in 2007 by demoing a tablet Mac, the Modbook, made by transferring the inner workings of a stock Apple MacBook to a new chassis with a touch / pen interface. At Macworld Expo 2008, the Modbook actually shipped. Now Axiotron has raised the bar for all tablet devices by announcing the Modbook Pro, a new model made with the 15.4" MacBook Pro electronics.
I talked with Axiotron's CEO and Chief Engineer Andreas Haas this afternoon. Andreas was with Apple's Newton group and said that he always wanted to get back to a pen-based device. The new device is impressively fast and powerful, and Andreas was willing to show us the insides of the new box. Enjoy the video after the break.
Update: One of our readers asked about VESA mounting points for the Modbook. We believe there are holes in the Modbook to allow mounting, but we'll double-check with the product managers and let you know shortly...
![TUAW [Cafepress]](http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/tuaw-cafepress-promo.png)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Geoffrey Long said 11:24AM on 1-08-2009
I'm very curious to know how the sensitivity of this compares to Wacom's Cintiq displays. Aside from that, though, I love this thing! The magnetic pen holster and the GPS are great add-ons. Tack on an RFID reader, and you'd have what I expected Apple themselves to be putting on the market years ago.
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Andrew said 12:59PM on 1-08-2009
Why on earth would you want an RFID reader????
Geoffrey Long said 1:05PM on 1-08-2009
I've been conducting some experiments lately with simple off-the-shelf products like Lucent's Tikitag, and I'm convinced that said tech is only going to take off at the consumer level once RFID readers are built into things like laptops and phones.
ProfessorDex said 11:29AM on 1-08-2009
Truly a thing of beauty!!
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James Creamer said 12:25PM on 1-08-2009
hahaha I didn't notice that till you said it
but if I had 5 G's just laying around, I'd totally get one
teenylittlesn said 11:29AM on 1-08-2009
Axiotron ModBook Pro - Epic Win
Labeling the video with "Axiontron" - Epic Fail
lol, nah, still love you guys :)
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tripdragon said 11:52AM on 1-08-2009
good on them for trying. Bad on them for releasing it at this time at that price in this economy.
Bad on them for even thinking that would fly. Bad on them for STILL having only one touch response for that price.
It's a firkin wacom. Thats it. You can by a windows version of the same thing NOT OSX for 1000 or less. Face it. Tablets will never fly till someone makes a real interface for them.
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Mark Cuda said 11:54AM on 1-08-2009
Wow....I am amazed. $5000 is just too much though, sorry to say! Maybe if they come out with a new modbook for the 13" unibody macbooks, and it's reasonably priced, I'll get my macbook 2.4ghz 4GB ram model axiotron-ed lol.
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dorian said 12:36PM on 1-08-2009
i wold be completely in love with this thing if it just had one thing... A KEYBOARD!
He said there was more buttons but i didn't see anything about it. There so many time where when I'm using my tablet, i'll need to press ctrl, cmd, alt or shift as i draw. I don't see how you can do that easy with the current modbook unless the new products have those buttons.
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iansltx said 12:32PM on 1-08-2009
Call me insane, but I still thin a 3-pound Modbook Air would be really cool. Half an inch thick, and the processor/gfx card are now decent enough that it shouldn't be a pain to use. Plus, it shouldn't cost more than the Modbook pro right? :)
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Shawin said 12:50PM on 1-08-2009
Okay... I want one. TUAW please ask Axiotron to send me one so I can do a non-geek 3D artist's review of that thing.
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PSN: HinchyFC said 12:57PM on 1-08-2009
HOLY FIVE THOUSAND BUCKS BATMAN
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jjk said 1:47PM on 1-08-2009
seriously. As awesome as it seems, $5000 for a laptop that'll most likely be obsolete in less than 5 years(?) is just too much. Isn't their target audience artists? For that price I'm much content with my MBP and my wacom. Even for presentation purposes it's overkill.
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computerguy said 1:44PM on 1-08-2009
I think I'll keep my tx2500z that I got on that great sale for $600 that is now running OS X 10.5 WITH working pen enabled wacom tablet. Smaller, cheaper, more powerful, def easier to work with. Hard to beat.
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Miaccabbi said 1:53PM on 1-08-2009
5000 is a lot but if it could take the place of two computers then its not too bad. Does anyone know if they make a a stand for home use? It be nice to to sit it on a stand at home with a mouse and a keyboard and use it like a touchscreen imac and then just pick it up and take it with you when you leave or if you want to use it somewhere else in the house. I have a notebook and a desktop. If it could act as both then it is still expensive but not as absurdly so.
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Moose said 1:59PM on 1-08-2009
Well, to add to the echo chamber, $5k is really just ensuring that this remains in the province of commercial application, but with the decline in advertising and ad revenue due to the economy, its going to be tough to justify over more traditional media and cheaper dumb units.
Little things:
1. Its a shame it doesn't support "actual" multi-touch (as opposed to pen+virtual pad), but sounds like they are prepared for the part swap when the time comes.
2. Why is the pen white, or is that just because he borrowed it from a different unit?
3. Their website doesn't lend much credibility to their product - refresh needed ASAP - and there is some funkiness going on with the domain and primary links if you click around (link tracking issue?)
4. Shame they didn't settle on a more pleasing bevel for the bottom casing
Flush wall mounting this would be absolutely badass though if I had cash to splash... Much more reserved than the Rosie Savant OS X based touchscreen systems...
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Bernard Ramsey said 2:40PM on 1-08-2009
Interesting video. I'd be more interested to see a video on how it works, and I can understand why they are loading Vista business as the default OS in boot camp on this thing...Mac OS X's Ink just blows compared to Vista's handwriting recognition.
If running Mac OS X is worth $5000 on a tablet, I would think that a demo of the "new and improved" Axiotron Ink features would be worthwhile.
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tnkgrl said 6:14PM on 1-08-2009
Here’s a video and some pictures: http://tnkgrl.wordpress.com/2009/01/07/macworld-axiotron-modbook-pro/
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fuzzywells said 10:27PM on 1-08-2009
More cool computer fodder for Stargate and Sanctuary. Modbooks have been prominent during the last several episodes of each.
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pcb said 8:26AM on 1-09-2009
How dumb are you,TUAW, not to post the video in a format that the iPhone can render...
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