07 August 2006
Flashy New Sony mylo wifi IM web media thingy.
I guess this is a Gizmodo exclusive for now but this thing looks pretty neat:
There's a Youtube video showing a bit of it in action. It's actually smaller than it looks.
After using a Nokia 770 at 800 x 480 a 320 x 240 screen is a bit tiny but this thing looks pretty cool. I hope they manage AIM support at some point. This looks like a decent Sidekick replacement except for the pretty glaring Bluetooth omission for mobile phone pairing and high price.
It's been interesting watching the handheld space change, it seems like they're punctuated by a lot of false starts followed by a lot of iterative time when people refine good ideas. The design, like most handheld devices will be one of those "gotta hold it to see" things but I think it's a good look and layout. I'm not wild about the 'mylo' [no caps] name but it beats the crap out of Creative-too-many-names-syndrome or iRiver-not letter-number-disease which is refreshing. Finally I am issuing it the Needs More Jog Wheel Award for having what is pretty much the best small UI widget around for dealing with lists and scrolling. It's probably thanks to Apple's dubious patent on jog wheels for portable media devices.
[click for super-huge PR shot with obviously doctored screenshots]
The media player does MPEG-4, digital audio, and pictures. But it also has a WiFi connection and a QWERTY keyboard, for chatting on Google Talk and Yahoo Messenger (No AIM support, sorry.) Wait, wait, wait! It also works as a wireless Skype phone! And it has an Opera browser. And it can wirelessly stream music to other mylo owners in the area, ala iTunes. Without cellular connectivity, its not going to best a Hiptop, but we love the open standard support.
The mylo has 1GB of flash memory, backed by a Memory Stick Pro Duo slot. Its screen is a 320 by 240 pixel 2.4-inch LCD. It'll retail for $350 when it hits the shelves in September.
There's a Youtube video showing a bit of it in action. It's actually smaller than it looks.
After using a Nokia 770 at 800 x 480 a 320 x 240 screen is a bit tiny but this thing looks pretty cool. I hope they manage AIM support at some point. This looks like a decent Sidekick replacement except for the pretty glaring Bluetooth omission for mobile phone pairing and high price.
It's been interesting watching the handheld space change, it seems like they're punctuated by a lot of false starts followed by a lot of iterative time when people refine good ideas. The design, like most handheld devices will be one of those "gotta hold it to see" things but I think it's a good look and layout. I'm not wild about the 'mylo' [no caps] name but it beats the crap out of Creative-too-many-names-syndrome or iRiver-not letter-number-disease which is refreshing. Finally I am issuing it the Needs More Jog Wheel Award for having what is pretty much the best small UI widget around for dealing with lists and scrolling. It's probably thanks to Apple's dubious patent on jog wheels for portable media devices.
