Windows Netbook?!

[spegru]

Not sure that I believe this.

Psion, one of Microsoft's main competitors in the handheld computer market, will switch its top-of-the-line handheld over to Microsoft's Windows CE operating system in time for Christmas, a source briefed by the company said.

http://afr.com/it/2002/09/13/FFXNJ64KZ5D.html

However, if true then it shows Psion are committed to hardware. Interesting.

spegru

[tomas]

... that's the first horseman of the apocalypse ! What next :-)) ??

[WolfUK]

I am taking this with a huge pinch of salt, mainly because the Windows for Handheld PC 2000 that runs on devices of this form factor is updated less frequently than EPOC is for the netBook. Since Pocket PC 2002 is not, AFAIK, compatible with a keyboard-based device this would have to be the operating system used.

On the bright side, if this is true, I guess that we all have a choice between using EPOC and Windows CE and if it sells more units and keeps the netBook alive for longer then all for the good. I personally would not switch since the CE applications are rubbish compared to the EPOC ones.

[netBookBabe]

Originally posted by spegru
Not sure that I believe this.

Psion, one of Microsoft's main competitors in the handheld computer market, will switch its top-of-the-line handheld over to Microsoft's Windows CE operating system in time for Christmas, a source briefed by the company said.
Harvey, are you in a position to confirm or deny at this point in time?

Julie

[ghitchen]

While this would appear to make good sense for Teklogix in making it more acceptable to the (EPOC) uninitiated, and also good news for us in extending the life of the netBook hardware, it would probably be bad news as regards any future upgrades to EPOC like 158.

And as someone has already said, the Handheld PC 2000 seems to have no commitment from Microsoft. EPOC R5 is way better than Handeld PC 2000, and MS are still playing catch up with Pocket PC 2002 for real world use.

Teklogix might find themselves wrong footed with this. Once the Symbian smartphones like the Nokia 7650 & 3650 and Sony-Ericsson P800 take off the world will find the idea of Symbian/EPOC more acceptable and then a netBook with Symbian (think bigger, better Nokia 9210 without a phone) would be a valid proposition. EPOC is difficult to sell in the traditionally conservative, Microsoft focussed Corporates, but once they have loads of Symbian phones with users who want to synchronise their email & calendars, a Symbian netBook is no longer that strange.

I'm starting to rant, time to sign off . . . .

Gary

[zolee]

:eek:

[Steve Moore]

This is interesting and exciting/depressing in equal measure.

I *love* the quick'n'easy nature and reliability of Epoc

Microsoft may have sidelined HPC2000 but their embedded systems guys have hijacked some of the PocketPC stuff for CE.Net which will be available in the Siemens SIMpad (an interesting piece of kitc - not a netBook though) and it looks like Microsoft want to turn CE.Net loose in the appliance and handheld market.

It has a whole load of applications in the kiosk/appliance market as well as the PDA space and wouldn't be too far removed from what TekLogix do. Their competitors (HP, Intermec etc) already use versions of CE and it would remove a lot of the liaison and the development headache from Teklogix.

It is a shame that not everyone in the world gets EPOC. I've owned 7 Citroens and the world only started buying them in quantity when they de-natured them too, so for my money it is a sensible, competitive move - I hate the slow fatware of Windows but CE.Net looks pretty good.

Furthermore if it keeps the netBook alive we can all CHOOSE.


But I wish they would get their people trained on stuff. I've made four calls to TekLogix and Psion (some at £ 1/minute) trying to find out when they'll have the new PCB ones around, or if any of mine will work with the Option Globetrotter card and I haven't spoken to a single person who has even read the GPRS notes they have posted with the OS. Noone knows anything, although some of them try and be helpful.

Here ends the sermon ...

have a good weekend everyone

[ste]

Let them bring it out !! Let the numpty corporate's buy it!!

It will crash all the time...ask to be updated whenever you hit the web....It will probably need to know your name, address, credit card number, inside leg measurement and microsoft passport dna analysis before you can upgrade it..


I'm love mine as it is...I have no need to have gif images on my folders or other fancy microsoft wotsits that eat memory


Long live my Netbook...I'd be lost without it....


but I would like someone to write a driver for a bluetooth card..;)

Love your netbook....dont microsoft it !!!

[spegru]

Amen!:p

[netBookBabe]

Brings to mind a quote from the wonderful (fictional) Jean Brodie:

"For those who like that kind of thing, that is the kind of thing they like!"

Kinda says it all, really, doesn't it? ;)

Julie

[spegru]

netBook continues with Epoc for now but they're looking at evolution possibly with multi OSs. Price also comes into it, so the OS of choice could remain as (a development of) epoc 5. Maybe even bluetooth!

Now that's what we wanted to hear!

http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/27154.html

[walterg]

I think that a lot of us 'll prefere to continue to use an old os like epoc's then to "rape" our nB with a winCE .....
I propose for the future to bridge all of us to apple imac: bigger but.....microsoft never! :mad:
walter