Blog:: Craig Pringle

Yesterday I posted that the Motion LS800 is not a UMPC.  Steve over on The CarryPad UMPC Journal has called me out on that because he feels that it is.  Steve has taken a punt at defining the UMPC as:

A highly portable computing device with 5-10" screen, wired and wireless connectivity that is able to load and run common internet, office, media and pim applications operated through a graphical user interface.

If you use that definition then the LS800 is certainly within the category - however that is not the definition I use.  In truth - it is not hardware that defines the UMPC category, it is software.  Whenever I use the term UMPC or origami I am referring to a device that is running the MS touch pack.

Now, although it is software that defines the category (for me - feel free to disagree) because of the requirements Microsoft put on OEMs the software dictates the hardware.  Specifically:

Hardware Specifications

• Approximately 7" diagonal display (or smaller)
• Minimum 800 x 480 resolution
• Approximately 2 pounds
• Integrated touch panel
• WiFi- and Bluetooth-enabled

The LS800 is certainly a PC that is Ultra Mobile.  However Motion Computing cannot license the touch pack for the LS800 because the screen is 8.4" and it has an 800 x 600 screen resolution.  It also has an active digitizer instead of a touch screen so - quite simply - it would not make sense at all to put the touch pack on it.

Microsoft got some great mileage out of the UMPC launch and they don't have a trademark on the term UMPC.  As a result people who sell similar products will label them UMPCs to try ride the coat tails of Microsoft.  That is what marketers do.  Steve is bemoaning a lack of clarity and in the same post adding to the confusion.

When I use the term UMPC I mean something running the touch pack.  I use the term Ultra Portable to describe other devices like the LS800.

At the end of the day, however, it does not matter where we draw the lines in the sand or what labels we use.  What is important is that we understand the relative strengths and weaknesses of devices so we can help people get the right device for their unique set of needs.

I have been snapped again at TechEd – this time by TechSmith’s Betsy Weber.  Since we’ve exchanged emails in the past I dropped by to introduce myself.  Betsy was very taken by the little Motion LS800 I am carrying and I took Betsy over to the Motion stand for a look. 

Betsy blogged about the encounter here.  One slight correction – the Motion LS800 is not a UMPC, it is just a really small tablet.  I’m going to take up Betsy’s offer of a screen cast later this week and we will talk about the differences, among other things.

Well I bit the bullet and performed an in-place upgrade from Windows XP Tablet Edition to Windows Vista Beta 2 on my HP TC1100.

Why, you may ask, would I do that?  Well there are a couple of reasons.

1)      My poor little tablet needed a rebuild anyway.  It has recently become quite unstable and given the amount of beta software that has been installed, uninstalled and re-installed in the last 12 months I am not surprised.

2)      One of the focuses of Beta 2 is the upgrade experience.  Given point one I should be a fairly challenging test case :)

So how did it go – apart from taking a very long time to complete the upgrade it looks pretty good at the moment.  A few things broke:

·         ActiveSync (but it told me it would before I started)

·         Trend Micro PCCillin – installing CA etrust for free now.

·         Screen rotation – I’ll look into that tomorrow.

·         My EVDO card – at the moment this is the only thing that is more than just annoying.

More later…