Picking a MIMD instead a UMPC, picking the N800 instead of the N810

A MIMD. My  tongue finds itself trying to perform mindboggling contractions. I meant of course an internet en media tablet. For short an iTablet. This is part of a series of posts on the recently bought N800.

Why an MIMD instead of a UMPC

A UMPC seemed a bit over the top, The standard VGA-out, usb-ports and built-in videocam make them an excellent for the roll as compact tablet pc and a light home PC.. Yet Windows on my desktop P2.4 GHz with 1 GB RAM is already annoyingly slow in booting from standby. UMPC are slower still and with development in full gear this year it seemed best to wait for prices to drop and UMPC's to become smarter, faster.

I wanted something to web browse, something quick. Just to pick it up and read the news, check what's on tv, check my favorite webpages, do e-mail, play some music and video from my uPnPserver. Have it run VoIP (Skype and SIP ) and talk to some far-away friends. It should a donkey kicking boottime, instant-on from standby, with an intuitive and quick user-interface and a typing speed comparable with a good mini-qwerty keyboard. ly capable to leave a PC powered off. More important a N800/N810 has a 1500 mAh battery giving a standby time of 9 days while keeping a constant wifi-connection.

The N800 versus the N810

With the coming of the N810 the prices of the N800 dropped to 200 euro making it a very attractive device. In comparison to a standalone VoIP-phone for either Skype or MSN or SIP. Costing around 100-130 euros in comparison. So the N800 is perfectly priced.

Yet the N810 has a mini-qwerty keyboard and a GPS. Howver I was looking for a tv-couch oriented internet tablet, not a portable PNA (Personal Navigation Assistant). As such the GPS is not required and I have an old Garmin with navigation as a backup in case the N95 GPS breaks down. Better yet there is a GPS-application that allows the N95 to work as a bluetooth GPS for my N800. And it works. How about that!

So the mini-qwerty issue is left to discuss. Now I have a i-Go bluetooth keyboard that can be used while lying on my lap. It locks contrary to the SU-W8 of Nokia making it more versatile and an excellent supplement for both the N800 and the N95. Typing speeds certainly exceeds that of a mini-qwerty. Also there were indications in several internet blogs that typing speeds might not differ that much. So I took the risk, saved 250 euros and went N800... Since the internal hardware of the N810 and the N800 are identical, same clockspeed, screens and processor this will most likely be a guarantee for future software updates by Nokia, see NeonCherry's post the Internet Tablet School.

With the N800/N810 running Linux it has a viable developer-community and then there is Intel. Intel that tells us at CES2008 that Linux is the way to go for a MIMD. Now it seems Nokia took the propper road. Even Apple agrees, their UNIX desktop OS-X is based on FreeBSD that again is based on BSD 4.4 Lite. A stable and reliable source
tree with an ancestry of decennia going all the back to the beginning!  And yes next year there will be Palm OS II, based on Linux...

So? did I do wrong?