EchoDesiato Posted February 27, 2006 Posted February 27, 2006 Much like everyone else, I’ve been wondering what Microsoft’s Origami Project is. The speculation runs rampant but it appears that you might not have to wait a few weeks to find out what Origami truly is. Marketing firm DigitalKitchen must have the ad campaign on this one because if you hit their site and enter, click Work and then BrandTheatre, guess what you’ll find. Not just pics of the device, but a Flash-based video showing the various uses. I won’t add to the speculation fire that’s burning and tell you what I saw. Instead, I’ll let you spend a few minutes viewing the revealing show so you can form your own conclusions. I will say this: as a new WMCE user, a TabletPC and WindowsMobile user for several years, I’m hoping what I saw in the video becomes available very soon. I’ll still be getting a new WM 5.0 phone that you can pick for me (so don’t forget to vote), but Origami is next on my list! There’s another pic after the jump. http://creativecoremedia.com/mso.swf http://bink.nu/Article6288.bink Wow, I don't know what to think. Looks like we have another competetor in the handheld market. EDIT: official site
Nintenchris Posted February 27, 2006 Posted February 27, 2006 Will it be marketed as a handheld games console...?? i think not... for a start its MASSIVE.. I know my DS anit exactly small but it still fits in my pocket.
DiemetriX Posted February 27, 2006 Posted February 27, 2006 Hmm... interesting. It's more like a Realy portable Pc.I like the idea. But i don' think it will compete on the same market as PSP and DS.
triforcemario Posted February 27, 2006 Posted February 27, 2006 Thats looks hideously unconfortable, like the game gear.
mario114 Posted February 27, 2006 Posted February 27, 2006 Looks a bit silly, not really portable, at that size you may aswell have a lap-top, which would probaly be a lot more usefull. Not that pda style functions don't impress me, i am considering getting one of those pda phones with msn and all that, but there just a bit bigger than a normall phone, and not the siz of a breeze block.
Guest Jordan Posted February 27, 2006 Posted February 27, 2006 Thats not gunna play Halo... if it does jesus i hate to think about the battery life. Either way, this could turn out to be simply a media device... or it could really be a another step up for Microsoft towards games domination.
Jamba Posted February 28, 2006 Posted February 28, 2006 I hope this cathes on.. I'd prefer that to a Sony Vaio any day!
Gaijin von Snikbah Posted February 28, 2006 Posted February 28, 2006 Handheld my behind. Ther is no way im draggin that piece of crap with me to town.
Kurtle Squad Posted February 28, 2006 Posted February 28, 2006 Like the XBox controller, it's a brick.
EchoDesiato Posted February 28, 2006 Author Posted February 28, 2006 How the hell do you aim with no mouse? The touch screen?
1UP Posted February 28, 2006 Posted February 28, 2006 ^that would work really bad because they're are relead and jump buttons in halo.
triforce_keeper Posted February 28, 2006 Posted February 28, 2006 hmm it does look interesting....just not interesting enough. just looks likie another media gadget.
demonmike04 Posted March 2, 2006 Posted March 2, 2006 its hardly handheld. in my opnion its f-u-g-l-y-! Ever considered that it is in early development, but even if im right or wrong, that thing really is fugly at the moment. Cant see this being a handheld competitor, but as a more efficient way of a portable computer rather than a laptop.
Bluejay Posted March 4, 2006 Posted March 4, 2006 Looks like its going to cost $1000(£572) too. source
Guest Jordan Posted March 4, 2006 Posted March 4, 2006 Thats pretty good for a tiny little tablet PC! Its more that than a gaming device.
mario114 Posted March 9, 2006 Posted March 9, 2006 New info from gamespot.com Microsoft confirmed widespread reports that the Origami Project was indeed an "Ultra-Mobile PC" (UMPC), not a portable version of the Xbox, as some had thought. Touting it as "a new category of mobile devices for consumers and businesses alike," the Washington-based software colossus unveiled the first UMPC models at the Cebit technology expo in Hannover, Germany. Initially, three hardware partners--Asus, Founder, and Samsung--will manufacture UMPCs. The general form factor will weigh in at around two pounds and will have built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth functionality. Each will come with an internal hard drive of between 30GB and 60GB and will sport a 7-inch touch-sensitive WGA screen. According to GameSpot sister site CNET News.com, the only price point announced was for Samsung's first-quarter UMPC, which will have a 900MHz Intel Celeron processor and will retail for around $1,200. However, another News.com report hinted that other UMPCs would retail for around $800. As for gaming, Microsoft's official UMPC site does tout the UMPC's media capabilities. It says the devices can "synchronize with your primary PC and take your music, photos, and TV shows anywhere you go." It also hints that Microsoft is planning some sort of premium download service by saying that consumers can "buy music and movies and download them wirelessly." Indeed, one of the partners on the UMPC site is Movielink, the pay-per-view movie download site cofounded by Paramount Pictures, Universal Studios, Warner Bros., and, ironically, Sony Pictures Entertainment. Microsoft also makes much of the fact that UMPCs offer "a new way to play" games. "Enjoy PC and Internet games in new ways with touch, stylus, or hardware controls," boasts the UMPC site. However, the only game the site displays appears to be one of the puzzle games embedded into Windows XP, which UMPCs run the tablet PC variant of. No mention is made of a graphics processing unit or what kind of games the first batch of UMPCs can handle. Inquires sent to Microsoft about the various UMPCs' gaming capabilities were unanswered as of press time. But given that budget-priced, GPU-less Windows XP laptops from several years ago can run less graphically demanding games such as Civilization III, it is well within the realm of possibility that even basic UMPCs can as well.
CVD Posted March 9, 2006 Posted March 9, 2006 I might actually buy this if the price is affrodable to me. i.e. under £400.
Yoochem Posted March 11, 2006 Posted March 11, 2006 Sounds like a really nice thing, but it's waaay too expensive! Too bad that MS won't make a 'real' handheld, one that's more a gameconsole than it is a laptop... As soon as this thing (or actually only the Samsung, the others are ugly) drops below €400,- , I might buy one, but I don't think it'll be that cheap for a looong time :P
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