I have a dream gadget, actually, I have two. It’s too late for these gadgets to be available for Christmas 2008, probably not even Christmas 2009, but 2010 is not too soon. Thanks to the trend of gadget convergence, my Christmas wish list for 2010 has just two items. Oh sure, some people want every tool and gadget in their home to converge into just one, but let me explain my two dream gadgets.
Gadget 1: My Pocket Media Device
Don’t worry, this is just a descriptive name, I’m sure that the fine folks in marketing will come up with a much better name for this device. My pocket media device is about the size of an iPhone and has more than just size in common. Of course, I expect this device to serve as my phone, messaging, and internet device. I expect it also to play music, videos, and show pictures. It should have GPS with turn-by-turn directions. Flip it over and it should have a reasonable point and shoot camera. This camera will have plenty of pixels and a good lens with zoom and auto focus. If this device is going to replace a phone, music player, and camera it has to be good at all of them. Very few phones are also good cameras; I want it to do both. If I can talk interface for a moment, holding this device like a camera leaves my thumbs in the perfect position to pinch-to-zoom on the multi-touch screen. Is this too much to ask? I want a Phone-Messaging-Media-Camera-GPS-Gaming device that is actually good at all of it. Come on gadget-makers, get on that.
Gadget 2: My Netbook/Ebook Device
Netbooks are hot right now: they were some of the hottest devices of 2008. What exactly constitutes a netbook is still a bit fuzzy. Some say they’re defined by their impossibly small size, others their price. I think the category is defined more by function. A netbook should boot almost instantaneously, be heavily connected, and have a UI that provides quick access to the web, email, basic document editing. Ok, it should have some sort of VOIP client and media player too, but since I already have a communication and entertainment device, I’m ok without those. It certainly doesn’t need video editing, games, or a full desktop OS. If twitter is what you do between blog posts then a netbook is what you use between trips to your desktop or full notebook computer. This is not your everyday computer, this is the one you use while you’re out and need to do something quickly. Ok, so far, I can get this device today. Here’s what I want that’s different. When the lid is closed it reveals an e-ink display for reading documents. I want to be able to read books, documents, emails, whatever on a very low-power e-ink display. Let’s take it a step forward. If I’m reading a document for a co-worker or perusing my emails, I want to hit one button, open the lid, and the netbook will come right up to the document or email editor. When I close the lid again, it’s my ebook reader once again. I know that I don’t like reading on a back-lit display and I know that I don’t want to do daily tasks on an e-ink display, but why does that necessitate two separate devices?
Ok, there you have it, this is my 2010 wish list. I want all of my devices to converge into just 2. There’s one more very important thing, price. If I have to spend $1000 for both devices, they’ll never take off. Each of these devices should be a few hundred dollars and I guarantee that nearly every person in America will carry these two devices. Come on gadget-makers, make my wishes come true.