Feature Articles

Smartphones Versus UMPCs: Mobility Meets Mobility

By Aloysius Low - 5 Apr 2008

Software Redux

Software Redux

On the developers' side of things, Microsoft hasn't given up on the UMPC and is working on Origami 2.0 , the upgrade to the Origami 1.0 interface. The interface is oriented mainly towards making the UMPC more user friendly, as you can see in the following pictures below. An interesting note about the Origami Project is that rather uncharacteristically of Microsoft, the team appears to place greater emphasis on obtaining user opinions and feedback that go towards improving the project.

The Origami 2.0 Experience interface looks pretty and nice. Shown here is the Origami Now, a context sensitive screen for UMPCs.

The Project Origami Team wants your feedback!

One of the main aims of the team is to also enable the full gaming experience for UMPCs. Currently, systems are only able to run some casual games, even though they are using an otherwise fully functional Windows XP or Vista (which from our firsthand experience, runs quite slow). The more expensive models are able to run at decent speeds, while the more entry level models tend to be sluggish at times.

The UMPC team behind Project Origami has stated that this will be something they will be focusing on, as part of their project to enhance the usability of UMPCs. Intel's newest chip for UMPC and MID segments will also play a part in the course of things to come (more on that later).

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