I just watched one of the many Youtube videos (Dell Streak: The versatile 5-inch Android tablet ), and I'm not so sure. I may *want* this beast.
It looked remarkably like my old, much beloved, PalmPilot, sitting in the demonstrator's hand. So I looked up the sizes:
| product | dimensions | weight |
|---|---|---|
| Pilot 1000 | 120x80x18 mm | 160 g |
| PalmPilot Personal | 4.7x3.1x.7 in | 5.6 oz |
| PalmPilot Professional | 117x81x17 mm 4.6x3.2x.7 in | 6.0 oz |
| Palm III | 81x119x18 mm | 160g 5.6 oz |
| Kyocera 6035 1st SmartPhone? | 14.2x6.6x2.2 mm 5.6x2.6x.86 in | 208g 7.34 oz |
| Dell Streak | 153x79x10mm 6x3.1x0.4 in | 220g |
| iPhone | 4.4x2.4x0.46 in 115x61x11.6 mm | 4.8 oz 135g |
| iPad | 242.8x189.7x13.4 mm 9.56x7.47x13.4 in | 680-730g 1.5-1.6 lb |
The largest screen that can fit into a man’s shirt pocket.” That’s how Dell executive Ron Garriques described the Streak which was showcased at the D: All Things Digital conference according to a CNet report.
The Dell Streak is almost the same size as my much beloved PalmPilot and, in particular, my old Kyocera phone. I _loved_ those devices. I would still be using my Kyocera - the original, pre-Microsoft, SmartPhone - except for coverage problems.
True, the Dell Streak is longer than my much beloved PalmPilot and my old Kyocera phone. Can you tell that I loved those devices? In particular, it is longer. I do wish that they did not need quite so much bezel, quite so much non-display; I do wish that the display could go much closer to the edge of the top surface. Sure, there has to be a place to put the display logic and drivers, but could not some smart packaging engineer figure out how to fold them under the display?
My biggest concern is not size, but passivity: one of the big reasons I loved my PalmPilot and, then, later, the Kyocera SmartPhone, was that it was a pleasure to enter data into it using the stylus and Graffiti. For several years they were my primary means of keeping track of addresses, to-do items, etc. - basically, they were my PDA! And I haven't had a PDA anywhere near as good since my Kyocera bit the dust, even though I have gone through several smartphones. My Ming A1200 with its stylus came close, but it was not BIG enough to be a good PDA. I doubt that the on-screen keyboard will cut it.
In any case - I look forward to trying the Dell Streak out in person. I hope that there will be some scribbling/handwriting app available, even if I have to write with my finger.
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Here's a dream: something the size of the Dell Streak, although perhaps a bit smaller. Multitouch, but also stylus (how?). Also touch on the backside, like the Motorola BackFlip (which my wife loves) (how to use touch both front and back, I am not sure - movement?).
