I am betting all the nuts that think this is real will be REAL pissed at Apple when it doesn't show up. Like it's somehow Apple's fault. If it IS real I doubt it's a PDA.. but more of a media device.
i think its real... maybe not a real PRODUCT but definetly real in that it exists or existed.
The very last frame of "sayhello" movie, before the spymac logo, you can read the buttons pretty clearly:
Notebook
Web
Mail
Calendar
Calc
Writer
System
Man, we never believe anything even if its smacked in our faces! Jeez! We didnt believe the pics of the new iMac were real when that German site had them, we didnt believe Quicksilver, we didnt even believe retailers had MacOS X last March despite people holding the booklets and everything. No one believed the name of iPod was going to be iPod despite that other site saying so a week beforehand.
I have to say that this was either incredibly well done (look at the shadows and everything dammit!) hoax, or I'm 99% this is real AND will be announced on Monday.
They only thing... the job dial... looks bulky and just doesnt seem very streamline at all. Hmm. Besides that, it looks wicked.
I wonder if you can use it as a gsm and have access to WAP/GPRS and eventually UMTS network. That would be damn nice. Truely wireless net access.
First, some weeks ago, Steve told to some Journalists that he did not want to release a PDA, because it was something outdated.
And am I the only one that thinks that instead of all those stuff, Apple should deliver better hardware with decent performance and prices?
Come on guys, everybody complains about how expensive the Powermac line is, and the G4 is not something that everybody is happy about.
Instead of a PDA even the coolest on earth, I believe that they'd better improve essential things such as the motherboard!
The Powermac runs at 867 vs 2Ghtz for the pc side, we are still using 133 bus, and now we have a PDA (if it is not a fake), wouah!!!!</strong><hr></blockquote>
Amen, and thank god someone is thinking straight. Apple better start putting more time into sorting out the hardware situation. All the super PDA's in the world aren't going to help unless the COMPUTER line-up gets a serious boost.
This is definately a fake, I used to make product prototype models and it is not hard to knock something like this up in a couple of days. What is hard is to make something which will stand up to quality photography which is something that site doesn't provide.
It wouldn't cost very much, materials for it would be less than $30.
The text on the Say Hello.mov is clearly on a layer and the 'half a Yo-Yo' button on the front is obviously being flipped around too fast in the bootup.mov. The unit is obviously stuck to the desk to prevent movement and allow composite overlays.
As to why they would do it? well it's a bit of a giggle isn't it? I think it's really well done and very entertaining and they're probably having a bit of a laugh, it's not expensive to do this, it just requires some talent and a desire to drive people nuts.
Jobs has been quoted as saying he doesn't want an "Internet Junior Experience". He's also been quoted as saying they don't want to be in the PDA market and its not a very good one either.
Schiller has been quoted as saying they're not working on a PDA and they don't plan to.
So I'd just like to go on record saying this is a fake. I don't believe any of it. Sure the object in the video is real, but that doesn't mean the rest wasn't faked.
Even if its not a PDA the browser would still be an "Internet Junior experience".
I think we'll see a tablet running a full version of Mac OS X before we ever see a PDA.
Clearly this is a real, physical object. I don't think anybody's disputing that. The question now is simply down to: is it a real, working, Apple product?
I'd say, definitely, no.
Look at the still images where the object is "on". Especially still10 and still04. In those two images, the user is holding the object in his hands.
In the two movies where the unit is "on", the object is in serious lock-down. That's suspicous enough by itself, but you have to further wonder, if there seems to be no reason why they can't use it while holding it (as evidenced by those two stills), why not film it that way? Especially when you KNOW you're going to have skeptics figuring the whole thing's a hoax.
It seems to me the movies should seem and feel just like the stills, except that they move. As if, for the movies, they simply put down the still camera and picked up the video camera. Or, the stills should have come from the video footage.
Gee, I guess I should put my thoughts down here about this iWalk device.
First of all, it seems to be using the Rosetta handwriting engine. Seems to be on par with the Newton 2100, maybe a little faster, but if your Newton knew what your writing was like, then it could be that fast.
Scroll wheel on a handheld computer? I don't see why if it's just to flip the screen.
I can rotate my Newton 2100's screen with a tap of one button. It realigns itself, and is rotated (It does take a few seconds).
Web browser looks more than a little like IE. Whoop-de-doo.
Is it a dressed up Newton? Doesn't appear to be, although there was a service I remember that would make your Newton's case metallic. I'll have to try and dig it up. The Newton looks to be quite a bit larger than this device.
That's it for now, I guess. I've got the flu and don't have the energy or desire to get into the whole "Is this a fake?" argument. To tell you the truth, I'd have to see some compelling reasons from Apple to buy the thing. I guess we'll see in a few days.
Here is <a href="http://www.spymac.com/test/Test.html"; target="_blank">the page</a> featured in the screenshot above. Why create a test page for the browser of a soon-to-ship product? Shouldn't it render most pages on-line?
okay, after reading ten pages of opinions I can't even come close to formulating one myself - if this is an enhanced PDA, it better be VERY cool (more than the vids indicate) to justify the price tag that'll have to go along with it.
if this is a fake...can someone get those peeps at spymac together with Isamu Sanada over at applele.com, 'cause I'm sure that they could produce something highly entertaining!
Possible explanation for the whole "scroll wheel" thing...could be assignable to several different tasks, one of which is screen rotation (he did also have to push a button on the front). It could be that he wanted to demonstrate the wheel and it had nothing to do with screen rotation. Perhaps the power button works like many cell phone power buttons - to avoid accidental poweroff, it must be held down for more than a second to actually turn the thing off - a tap could produce a different response. I'm not too bothered by the fact that it only required a light tap - Apple's been into touch-response buttons rather than pushbuttons for a while now. Anyways, billions of explanations.
Not to say that I think it's real. If it's a real product, I think this is not a final design. I also think that despite the explanations for the scroll wheel, it is "butt" for lack of a better word. I would suggest relocating it to the side, slightly recessed, like on a Sony Clie, but when I think about the fact that the screen would rotate, perhaps the side is best, and then you can rotate and have it on either side, depending on whether you're a righty or lefty. In either case, I think it needs to look nicer.
While I'm posting, I also have to say that I don't think Apple would release this device because it copies all the aspects of the Newton that doomed it in the wake of Palm. The OS looks very proprietary, and this means no application compatibility. Unless it's got a Palm emulator in it, count me out. And I'm sure it is as expensive as PocketPC's, but without Office compatability.
Features that could redeem it (I'm not saying that it would need to have all of these, that would get expensive...but these would all be cool):
-Airport - it MUST be ready-to-go on a wireless network.
-FULL IE5 compatability - if IE5 can display it, iWalk can display it.
-AIM Compatability
-Palm Emulation - runs like Classic in that it is very transparent. But it will run apps designed for PalmOS in addition to those Apple and 3rd parties make.
-Internal HD, not Flash - an IBM Microdrive maybe. It doesn't need to be as big as iPod's, but big enough to download some things, record voice, run complex apps, etc. 1GB would be plenty.
-Boot and transfer data/apps from an iPod in FW disk mode.
-iMovie compatability (BIGGEST "BUY ME" FEATURE)...use screen/scroll wheel as a control surface with iMovie running on a Mac. Put iMovie/FCP "mobile edition" on the device itself - plug into a DV cam to earmark/define clips, simple edits/arrangements, etc. before you even get to your Mac.
-Wireless FW Cam module...record video of yourself anywhere, store on the internal drive, optional external mic. Edit in iMovie or use as a wireless webcam.
-MS Office compatability - if technology for this has to be licensed from M$, they might go for this since it gives them more income from the handheld market and PocketPC doesn't jive with Mac anyway. If the video out could display PowerPoint (or even AppleWorks) presentations with full color and animation, it would have a leg up on every other out-of-the-box PDA out there.
-IR Remote Control - the Sony CLIE does this and I think it's a cool thing people would use.
-AirPort sync - if you are within range of a wireless network that is connected to your "base" computer, your iWalk will sync with it automatically in the background (with a "resume" feature for if you wander out of range in the meantime). This alone would make me want to give up my Palm.
-FW Recharge - this and the above gets rid of the need for a base entirely - no clutter - very Apple.
Im very tempted to believe its real, but I cant seem to make that jump.
About the videos' problems, couldn't these just be artifacts from poor encoders or compression? If at one point, this video had been subjected to the manglings of a poor divx codec, might this be an explanation for some of the problems? With all of the keyframing and morphing thats going on, this could be a result?
Codename seemed to be hinting at this very device a couple weeks ago in the "G5-The Truth" thread. The image he posted looks like the identical interface/OS to that shown in the iWalk. Makes me think this is legit.
Just received an email from a MAJOR Mac writer/reviewer on the internet who says he's trying to get a comment from Apple on the iWalk. He wrote a column 2 days ago talking about the possibilty of such a hand-held device. It's still very early in the morning in Cupertino as of this post.
<strong>Just received an email from a MAJOR Mac writer/reviewer on the internet who says he's trying to get a comment from Apple on the iWalk. He wrote a column 2 days ago talking about the possibilty of such a hand-held device.</strong><hr></blockquote>
So, if real, how about a Sahara G3 and 5GB iPod drive and an ADC to connect to 15" ASD and get USB off monitor to drive k/b. A light OS using ARM and Flash Memory when on the go and the G3 and Flash and HD when "based". Picture a student with this in class to take notes and access textbooks and bring home or to lab full of ASD and boot into OSX and manipulate notes in AW or Office apps.
Comments
<strong>
Hey Anders... you've thought this was a hoax even before the movie came out didn't you?
</strong><hr></blockquote>
Yes I did and it might have effected me. But if it had been convincing I would not say what I do now.
----------------------------------------------------
Feel about an Apple PDA: Want one more than Fran and the iPod WILL evolve into a PDA thing at one point
Felt pre-posting of pics & mov: Hoax as in iPod not ready yet
Felt post-posting: Hoax as in faked pictures and untrusty webpage
----------------------------------------------------
what's yer point? <img src="graemlins/bugeye.gif" border="0" alt="[Skeptical]" />
The very last frame of "sayhello" movie, before the spymac logo, you can read the buttons pretty clearly:
Notebook
Web
Mail
Calendar
Calc
Writer
System
Man, we never believe anything even if its smacked in our faces! Jeez! We didnt believe the pics of the new iMac were real when that German site had them, we didnt believe Quicksilver, we didnt even believe retailers had MacOS X last March despite people holding the booklets and everything. No one believed the name of iPod was going to be iPod despite that other site saying so a week beforehand.
I have to say that this was either incredibly well done (look at the shadows and everything dammit!) hoax, or I'm 99% this is real AND will be announced on Monday.
They only thing... the job dial... looks bulky and just doesnt seem very streamline at all. Hmm. Besides that, it looks wicked.
I wonder if you can use it as a gsm and have access to WAP/GPRS and eventually UMTS network. That would be damn nice. Truely wireless net access.
<strong>
First, some weeks ago, Steve told to some Journalists that he did not want to release a PDA, because it was something outdated.
And am I the only one that thinks that instead of all those stuff, Apple should deliver better hardware with decent performance and prices?
Come on guys, everybody complains about how expensive the Powermac line is, and the G4 is not something that everybody is happy about.
Instead of a PDA even the coolest on earth, I believe that they'd better improve essential things such as the motherboard!
The Powermac runs at 867 vs 2Ghtz for the pc side, we are still using 133 bus, and now we have a PDA (if it is not a fake), wouah!!!!</strong><hr></blockquote>
Amen, and thank god someone is thinking straight. Apple better start putting more time into sorting out the hardware situation. All the super PDA's in the world aren't going to help unless the COMPUTER line-up gets a serious boost.
Otherwise we're just getting toys.
It wouldn't cost very much, materials for it would be less than $30.
The text on the Say Hello.mov is clearly on a layer and the 'half a Yo-Yo' button on the front is obviously being flipped around too fast in the bootup.mov. The unit is obviously stuck to the desk to prevent movement and allow composite overlays.
As to why they would do it? well it's a bit of a giggle isn't it? I think it's really well done and very entertaining and they're probably having a bit of a laugh, it's not expensive to do this, it just requires some talent and a desire to drive people nuts.
nice idea anyway
Schiller has been quoted as saying they're not working on a PDA and they don't plan to.
So I'd just like to go on record saying this is a fake. I don't believe any of it. Sure the object in the video is real, but that doesn't mean the rest wasn't faked.
Even if its not a PDA the browser would still be an "Internet Junior experience".
I think we'll see a tablet running a full version of Mac OS X before we ever see a PDA.
I'd say, definitely, no.
Look at the still images where the object is "on". Especially still10 and still04. In those two images, the user is holding the object in his hands.
In the two movies where the unit is "on", the object is in serious lock-down. That's suspicous enough by itself, but you have to further wonder, if there seems to be no reason why they can't use it while holding it (as evidenced by those two stills), why not film it that way? Especially when you KNOW you're going to have skeptics figuring the whole thing's a hoax.
It seems to me the movies should seem and feel just like the stills, except that they move. As if, for the movies, they simply put down the still camera and picked up the video camera. Or, the stills should have come from the video footage.
First of all, it seems to be using the Rosetta handwriting engine. Seems to be on par with the Newton 2100, maybe a little faster, but if your Newton knew what your writing was like, then it could be that fast.
Scroll wheel on a handheld computer? I don't see why if it's just to flip the screen.
I can rotate my Newton 2100's screen with a tap of one button. It realigns itself, and is rotated (It does take a few seconds).
Web browser looks more than a little like IE. Whoop-de-doo.
Is it a dressed up Newton? Doesn't appear to be, although there was a service I remember that would make your Newton's case metallic. I'll have to try and dig it up. The Newton looks to be quite a bit larger than this device.
That's it for now, I guess. I've got the flu and don't have the energy or desire to get into the whole "Is this a fake?" argument. To tell you the truth, I'd have to see some compelling reasons from Apple to buy the thing. I guess we'll see in a few days.
if this is a fake...can someone get those peeps at spymac together with Isamu Sanada over at applele.com, 'cause I'm sure that they could produce something highly entertaining!
rr.
Not to say that I think it's real. If it's a real product, I think this is not a final design. I also think that despite the explanations for the scroll wheel, it is "butt" for lack of a better word. I would suggest relocating it to the side, slightly recessed, like on a Sony Clie, but when I think about the fact that the screen would rotate, perhaps the side is best, and then you can rotate and have it on either side, depending on whether you're a righty or lefty. In either case, I think it needs to look nicer.
While I'm posting, I also have to say that I don't think Apple would release this device because it copies all the aspects of the Newton that doomed it in the wake of Palm. The OS looks very proprietary, and this means no application compatibility. Unless it's got a Palm emulator in it, count me out. And I'm sure it is as expensive as PocketPC's, but without Office compatability.
Features that could redeem it (I'm not saying that it would need to have all of these, that would get expensive...but these would all be cool):
-Airport - it MUST be ready-to-go on a wireless network.
-FULL IE5 compatability - if IE5 can display it, iWalk can display it.
-AIM Compatability
-Palm Emulation - runs like Classic in that it is very transparent. But it will run apps designed for PalmOS in addition to those Apple and 3rd parties make.
-Internal HD, not Flash - an IBM Microdrive maybe. It doesn't need to be as big as iPod's, but big enough to download some things, record voice, run complex apps, etc. 1GB would be plenty.
-Boot and transfer data/apps from an iPod in FW disk mode.
-iMovie compatability (BIGGEST "BUY ME" FEATURE)...use screen/scroll wheel as a control surface with iMovie running on a Mac. Put iMovie/FCP "mobile edition" on the device itself - plug into a DV cam to earmark/define clips, simple edits/arrangements, etc. before you even get to your Mac.
-Wireless FW Cam module...record video of yourself anywhere, store on the internal drive, optional external mic. Edit in iMovie or use as a wireless webcam.
-MS Office compatability - if technology for this has to be licensed from M$, they might go for this since it gives them more income from the handheld market and PocketPC doesn't jive with Mac anyway. If the video out could display PowerPoint (or even AppleWorks) presentations with full color and animation, it would have a leg up on every other out-of-the-box PDA out there.
-IR Remote Control - the Sony CLIE does this and I think it's a cool thing people would use.
-AirPort sync - if you are within range of a wireless network that is connected to your "base" computer, your iWalk will sync with it automatically in the background (with a "resume" feature for if you wander out of range in the meantime). This alone would make me want to give up my Palm.
-FW Recharge - this and the above gets rid of the need for a base entirely - no clutter - very Apple.
Comments are welcome.
-S
About the videos' problems, couldn't these just be artifacts from poor encoders or compression? If at one point, this video had been subjected to the manglings of a poor divx codec, might this be an explanation for some of the problems? With all of the keyframing and morphing thats going on, this could be a result?
<img src="confused.gif" border="0">
[ 01-03-2002: Message edited by: AppleCello ]</p>
Codename seemed to be hinting at this very device a couple weeks ago in the "G5-The Truth" thread. The image he posted looks like the identical interface/OS to that shown in the iWalk. Makes me think this is legit.
EDIT: Now I've looked at all of the movies and I'm convinced, man I can't wait...
[ 01-03-2002: Message edited by: gordy ]</p>
[ 01-03-2002: Message edited by: MacsRGood4U ]</p>
<strong>Just received an email from a MAJOR Mac writer/reviewer on the internet who says he's trying to get a comment from Apple on the iWalk. He wrote a column 2 days ago talking about the possibilty of such a hand-held device.</strong><hr></blockquote>
Good idea! I'm sure they'll be very forthcoming.
</sarcasm>
-S
699