Will the atom processor make regular mp3 players/phones obsolete? Way of the future?

I really think mp3 players and phones will be a thing of the past and pocket size computers will become the norm. Imagine using win xp or linux to load up watevr file format you've got your music in, forget iphone apps and just run one of your favorite old pc games like grim fandango or the neverhood, video chat over a wifi or data network. I think netbooks are only the beginning for the atom processor and its family tree from there. Its already happening...


http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2008/04/14/sharp_willcom_atom_first/


Pricey definately, the way of the future? Probably. What are your thoughts?

 

I don't think so. There are many people out there who aren't tech-savvy enough to handle an AIO device. They want a phone to communicate. They want an MP3 player for entertainment. Mixing things into an AIO device is tricky and rarely works out perfectly. You usually have compromises in software and hardware interface and it can become tricky to handle. Simplicity, ergonomics, intuitive interface and aesthetics are major factors if you want to create a great product. This becomes a lot harder if you're limited to using Windows XP or Ubuntu, especially if you want to blindly change songs. They can always build on top of it or make their own shell of course.

 

Id agree with them having to make their own shell.

 

You'd have to get much smaller than the Atom for this to be viable. I sure can't stick my netbook in my pocket. I think going the other way with increasing processor power in smartphones being able to do games and video playback will be more the way of the future.

 

" Sarcastic " I would love to have a cell phone with a fan in it!.

 

Lol @ all you sarcastic people.

The Atom processor was designed for mobile devices - including phones. It is smaller than a penny and produces very little heat. If you think about it, many phones are already using a fully functional OS - for example Windows Mobile, or the custom iPhone OS - however, due to limitations in the size of the screen, a phone will never replace laptops. (That is until we can make a phone that projects an image, then we'll talk again).

 

smaller then a penny?

this would be viable if it was to be followed through with..

 

Its too bad that the new soon to be released Atom Dual-Core's are recieving less then rave reviews over there negligible increase in productivity versus there single cored counterparts

 

I think the phones will be the future thing.
I mean now they can:
Email
Access the internet and do stuff/buy stuff
Play Music
Take Pictures
Create Movies
Take Notes
etc

We just only need wait until they have higher res screens, slightly faster processors, and can handle basic office apps and then we willl have a netbook that can fit in our shirt pocket....

 

That picture of that atom is bull****. I have seen an atom and its not that small and it still runs hot enough to require a fan when it has a load on it.

 

Video from Intel: http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=3276
Picture from Anandtech: http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=3276

You should at least try Google before you make those types of statements.

 

So if it needs a fan when loaded, why do Dell's Mini 9 and 12 not have fans?

 

no fans needed. but the current chipset sucks and needs in some cases a fan.

i have a dualcore atom and it's awesome for my windows home server.. tiny, quiet, and very fast..

 

I hope phones like the Android G1, the iPhone, and HTC Touch Pro become more prominent.

I'd love to have a phone like one of the three above, and then have a good desktop or even just a small laptop.

 

ARM processors are better clock to clock compared to the Atom,consume less power and don't need a heatsink to boot... Atom will not replace Intel own Xscale class mobile cpus or even the Arm Cortex which will end up in netbooks eventually....

 

wow... vista running on a 1.33ghz atom with 1gb ram... it must be unbearably slow... not to mention the fact that it has a 40gb hard drive... which when vista is installed on it.. will be able to hold pretty much nothing.....
of course some of these components would be user upgradable.. but tbh i very much agree that they would have to make their own shell... OSes like ubuntu and vista just weren't made for screen's that small
they should probably adopt something like ubuntu mobile.

 

Wake up!, It has already happened . Smartphones running Symbian or Windows Mobile are actually mobile computers by all accounts. They are more powerful than a 10 year old desktop computer. You don’t have to use an Intel CPU and run Windows XP to call something a mobile computer … Current smartphones use a 32bit RISC processor called ARM (Advanced RISC Machine), which is smaller(I think) and more energy efficient than Intel Atom. They run operating systems including Symbian, Windows mobile and Linux (YES LINUX! there were Linux smartphones 5 years ago !) But most people in the U.S didn’t know about those, they only got to know about smart phones after Apple iphone came out. But things are different in rest of the world (especially in Asia).

But i do agree with you in " forget iphone apps". iPhone is a joke . Nokia/samsung + Symbian/WM FTW!

 

That pic that's right next to the penny is the MID/UMPC oriented Z series Atom. The N series Atom used in Netbooks are far larger. The Sharp Willcom D4 uses Z series Atom with the US15W(Poulsbo) chipset, which only uses 2.2W, compared to the Netbook chipsets 945GU which is 5.5W.

We aren't done of course:

http://www.blitztech.ro/uploads/2008/04/intelmoorestown.jpg

That's when cellphones will become viable on the Intel x86 platform.

 

Most netbooks and Atom motherboards do have fans, but you can get away with them if you use a good enough heatsink. Interestingly enough, the fan is usually to keep the Northbridge cool rather than the CPU itself.

 

I know, I was just telling the OP that the Atom iteslf does not need a fan.