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Handhelds Hardware Technology

More on the Jackito Tactile PDA 190

Posted by michael from the you-don't-know-jackito dept.
Roland Piquepaille writes "A week ago, I wrote a column about a new Tactile Digital Assistant (TDA), the Jackito. Several Slashdot readers questioned the existence of the product and thought it might be an elaborate scam. I also had serious doubts. But as both the company behind this TDA, Novinit, and myself are French, I decided to investigate and contacted the company. And I spent several hours with the CEO and the CTO. I told them about the mistakes they made in their early announcement and asked what kind of corrective actions they were taking to fix the situation and build trust in their product. I also discussed their vision of this TDA, the history of the project and its possible future. But more importantly, I used an early prototype. I don't know if this TDA will be a success, but one thing is sure: it's real. Read this interview for more details."
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More on the Jackito Tactile PDA More

More on the Jackito Tactile PDA

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  • YHBT (Score:1, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    RR, the submitter is a known troll.

    YHBT, YHL, HAND.

  • Yipes! (Score:3, Funny)

    by simetra ( 155655 ) on Thursday July 22, 2004 @11:58AM (#9770975) Homepage Journal
    Did anyone else read that as a Michael Jackson thing at first - Jackito Tactile?

    • I did...I thought it said Tito, :)
    • I think that they left the characters 'ff' off the end of the name by accident. So, is anyone else creeped out by this little insight into the mind of a marketer?

    • I sure did. What even got my attention further was that "tactile" has to do with touching. We all know what Michael Jackson is known for.

      In fact, wondering if anyone else saw the same thing was the only reason I bothered to read these comments. Even as I write this comment I still don't know anything about it other that it's some kind of PDA.

    • Actually, I thought it sounded more like something I would order from Taco Bell. Figured that maybe they'd come out with an upgraded model and call it the Jackito Supreme :)

    • Actually, I was thinking of George Michael when I saw the name of the thing. Just add two Fs to the end of the name and it's a perfect match.
  • isn't that spanish for michael jackson's baby?
  • Whats the big deal with this product? What is more innovative about this then say a crackberry? I mean black berry :) -A
    • If ever there were a poster-boy for the acronym 'RTFA.' you sir, are it.

      From their site:

      Thumbs-only
      > No stylus or handwriting recognition
      > No mechanical buttons or keyboard

      Fully customizable
      > Removable front cover
      > Control panels
      > Multiple virtual keyboards

      Totally reliable PDA
      > Backups on memory cards
      > Data automatically saved in internal Flash memory

      Colour me 'enabler.'

      • Re:Whats the big deal? (Score:4, Insightful)

        by AviLazar ( 741826 ) on Thursday July 22, 2004 @12:31PM (#9771332) Journal
        I did RTFA article. Don't assume, you make yourself look like an ass.
        I could already use my PDA without a stylus - I have used a pen, keys, my fingers.
        Handwriting recognition is useful and someone can be really practiced at it that the speed is quite fast. Also many PDA's have a keyboard feature. Removing front cover - ok this is about as cool as changing the faceplate on a phone (big whoop).
        Multiple virtual keyboard? Is this anything like the touch-keyboard that PDA's have now a days?
        No such thing as "totally reliable" if you believe that then i have a proposition for you - some money has come my way from Nigeria.
        I backup my PDA everytime it hits the cradle.
        So whats the big deal with this thing? The only new attraction is that it totally omits the need for stylus and lets you have two touch points at once....cute but not worth $600.00
        -A
      • This thing is more than the price of a new Treo. $600? You've got to be kidding. No phone, no wifi, no camera, and you even pay extra for a usb cord. It's not clear what the OS is or whether it will play well with my computer (on the list of software is included "PC Synchro" but no explanation). It's not clear how the input interface will allow you to input more than a few clicks at a time -- not great for entering significant amounts of text. I like that you can choose your GUI, but with names like "G
    • This may be real or not, but the real disadvantage of using your thumbs to run a PDA is that the thumb is blocking the view and you need to constantly move your thumb out of the way in order to see what you want to press. A stylus also blocks but it is much smaller and much less frustrating. This is the reason I don't use fingers on my PDA and if my PDA didn't have a stylus I'd use a pen.

  • Building trust (Score:3, Insightful)

    by gmuslera ( 3436 ) on Thursday July 22, 2004 @12:01PM (#9771016) Homepage Journal
    add wi-fi capabilities, and rename it to Hackito, and your company will be a step closer to the PDA world domination :)
    • PDA world domination
      They said its NOT a PDA and that they arn't interesting in competing with PDAs. This is a totally new device.

      -grin- Thats what they said atleast.
  • Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • All well and good but (Score:5, Informative)

    by Timesprout ( 579035 ) on Thursday July 22, 2004 @12:07PM (#9771081)
    How do we know Roland Piquepaille is real? Having a blog you like to link to from slashdot is hardly proof of identity.
    • How do we know Roland Piquepaille is real?

      Indeed, how do we know you are real? Or me? Or Slashdot itself? All these thing, nay, all things in the universe itself may well be naught but a hallucination experienced by me, or by someone else, trapped in a dream or a coma or a stasis pod hooked up to an enormous machine bent on harvesting our bioelectricity for their own nefarious purpos<END DATA NO CARRIER>
    • Yes, if their page would be very elaborate for a hoax, and if they took it that far, then they would probably go so far as to hoax this person.

      LS

  • Not Really Going Anywhere... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by johnhennessy ( 94737 ) on Thursday July 22, 2004 @12:08PM (#9771100)

    I hate to be the harbinger of bad news, but the PDA market (and Tablet PC market for that matter) isn't really going to take off (in the way it should take off) until we can give people more than the 72/100 dots per inch on the screen.

    Its hard to convince people to completly drop paper when any standard laser will spit out printouts at 600dpi (or greater) yet the best displays are still only pitched at 100 dpi.

    If you had a choice, which would you pick ?

    The same applies to the sensitivity of the touch-screen.

    • Re:Not Really Going Anywhere... (Score:1, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      the PDA market (and Tablet PC market for that matter) isn't really going to take off (in the way it should take off) until we can give people more than the 72/100 dots per inch on the screen

      What the hell are you talking about? PDA's were never designed to "convince people to completely drop paper". The functions that a pda serves has nothing to do with dpi of displays. PDA's are all about the three F's, functionality and form factor. Deliver a reasonable set of functionality in a "convenient" form fa
    • If you had a choice, which would you pick ?

      When I'm in a setting where paper makes sense (and I don't have lots of large screens just laying around) then I choose paper.

      Otherwise (and far more often than the paper setting) I enjoy carrying 300MB of books, contacts, and other assorted data around with me that I can access, edit, add to, or remove with a few seconds of work.

      I also carry my laptop for longer sessions of adding/editing and internet access.

      600dpi for contact and appointment info and
    • Compared to a PDA, paper has better resolution - if it is writing or printing paper. Tissue paper is not so resolute when displaying ink points.

      Your body has a finer sensitivity than a PDA -- unless you're using your nose, which is not an easy thing to use in place of a finger when writing.

      Reaim the marketing to the snot-removal industry and you may be on to something.

      • Piquito Tactile: Giving people a choice to pick when they choose to pick.
    • I agree with your conclusion, but not the reason why. The PDA market isn't really going to take off unless the mobile phone market goes away.

      Cell phones are getting more and more PDA features for each new generation. Most people have never owned a PDA, and what they find in their cell phones are more than enough to satisfy the needs of the vast majority.
      • The "PDA Market" and the "Cellphone Market" aren't different markets. The split between them is artificial and driven by marketers and "industry experts".

        One of the most popular PDAs out there is the Treo. But it doesn't even show up in the "PDA Market" stats, because "it's a cellphone".

        Saying "the PDA market isn't going to take off until the cellphone market goes away" is like saying "the portable computer market isn't going to take off until the laptop market goes away".

        The kind of cellphone you're tal
    • I like PnP organizers. They're cheap, versatile, and nobody will steal them unless they want your data. I can drop mine, get it wet(ish), drill a hole through it, or leave it in the lobby overnight.

      It will work right away and requires no batteries. It automatically intergrates with every single device I own. If I want to use it to email a contact, all I have to do is open my book next to a computer and type the email address I have written down into any email program. It is compatible with Windows, Mac, an
      • To each his own. Why doesn't anyone else get that?

        I hate using just a pen and paper. I have taken all of my notes on my PDA for all of my college career. Unlike paper, I can search my notes. I can get my email. My PDA is a computer, and when I'm not at work, it's my primary computer.

        I've never had a problem breaking or drowning my PDAs. I may not be as much of a klutz as you. Not to insult you- the world is full of them and so a PDA isn't right for you. But paper isn't perfect.

        What's the equivalen
      • I can even rip out a page and hand someone a note if I really want to. What's the PDA equivalent - giving someone the battery cover?

        Point my PDA at their PDA and tap "beam". a few seconds later, they tap "accept". And I can do it (and have done it) a hundred times at a conference without running out of virtial paper.

        How many of the "hundreds" of people in your PDA have you called this week?

        If I use one address or number or other bit of random data squirrelled away in my PDA per month... so that it's a
    • I don't know about you, but I've had PDAs with screens with that kind of DPI. My Sharp Zaurus C760 has a VGA screen with a DPI of 210. My Sigmarion 3 has something close- about 190 on an 800x480 screen. My Sony Clie NX70V has a DPI of 160 on a HVGA screen.

      If you have the choice, why continue to buy low DPI PocketPCs if you want something better?

      That said, I've no clue where you're coming from. Assuming the res was at least 320x480- preferably full VGA- I'd rather have a smaller DPI. The screen on the Z
    • The paper market isn't really going to take off (in the way it should take off) until we can give people less then the current weight per page.

      It's hard to convince people to completly drop their PDAs when you can take megabytes of information in 28 pounds. Yet the best papers would still weight some kilos just to carry the same amount of data. Let's not even talk about the volume, and the ability to search, anotate and edit the data.

      BTW: My clié sj20 has a 2.5" display with 320 pixels, that's 128 d
    • If I had a choice... I'd pick the same thing I picked the first time. Here's my score:

      Paper vs. Visor Deluxe -- Paper loses!
      Paper vs. Visor Prism -- Paper loses!
      Paper vs. Sony Clie SJ22 -- KO! Paper is OUT OF THE MATCH!

      • Yeah, I went through a similar process...

        Paper vs Rock -- Paper Wins!
        Paper vs Scissors -- KO! Paper is CUT TO RIBBONS!!!

        I have a Toshiba e335, but I rarely take notes on it. Mostly I use it as a portable music device. With a 512MB SD card and Winampaq, I can carry around pocket full of OGG's, but also play PocketPC Age of Empires when I get bored... which is great on the airplane or the porcelain seat of contemplation. Having said all that, though, I don't really use it as a PDA too often.
  • Looks a little strange. I do like the fact that they seem to let you customize it however you want, B&W or color screen, memory size, built-in modules. That would be pretty neat to custom build your own PDA just as you can custom build your own PC.
  • Now a Jackito is 20 times smaller, 20 times cheaper, and consumes 60 times less energy.

    What does that mean? 60 times less? The reference is a device that used 9 Watts. One time less would be 0 Watts. (9 - 9*1 = 0) Does 60 times less mean the device yields 531 Watts?

    Maybe he means one-sixteth. Hopefully this was the CEO talking and not the CTO.

    • the device yields 531 Watts?
      Finally, the first Over-Unity PDA!
    • so 20 times smaller means its in a reverse universe? Come on you know what it means. It means 9/60
      why exactly people say it that way is kinda confusing I guess.
      • The grandparent is correct; "20 times smaller" is just plain wrong. But even newspapers have problems with this error, which gives some copy editors fits [theslot.com].
        • The problem with that is though, it's ignoring common english usage.

          More means addition, fine. (one more slice, please!)
          Times means multiplication, fine. (two times two is four)

          They then go on to literally interpret 5 times more of x to mean x+(5*x), and 6 times less to mean x-(6*x).

          However, the common english usage means that when they are combined, it governs the side of the multiplication. I.e.

          x is 5 times more than y means 5 * x = y
          x is 6 times less than y means, x = 6 * y
          so you could also say y is

  • Cool Idea (Score:3)

    by Oriumpor ( 446718 ) on Thursday July 22, 2004 @12:15PM (#9771170) Homepage Journal
    Except, for a company behind it's release schedule it's bad form not to update your schedule on your companies website. It makes it look like you have a product, but aren't selling it.

  • I'm not sure how well this company is going to do. Reading the interview it's clear that they're making huge mistakes marketing wise.

    Hopefully they learn from their mistakes fast.

    • There are two cases - either they're a scam or they're not. If they're not, then they've got a bunch of problems:
      • Asking for a deposit upfront sounds a lot like they don't actually have enough working capital for the orders they're getting, and don't have enough credit line of their own to cover it either. Companies that start off with inadequate amounts of capital are almost always doomed, so even if they don't _intend_ to be a scam that takes your money and runs, they can still take your money and crash
      • I am pretty sure it's still a scam. Quite possibly they are a real company. But the thing is, you are not going to get jack shit (no pun intended) for your $100. They make you wait 90 days before it ships (so your cc company won't be able to do anything about it). Their website has no physical address. They have logos of various companies on their website -- obviously an attempt to make them look legitimate. Their website has no pictures of the executives -- strange. If this is not a scam, then th
  • Or is it? Should I investigate whether this is similar to JBoss astroturfing? How do we know you aren't an employee (tongue firmly implanted in cheek)
  • From the demo on their website, that this doesn't look like it would be easy to use at all. It looks more like a gameboy than a pda. Looks like you have to drag your thumbs on the screen to choose menu's and options. I know I won't be buying one...
    • I actually said the same thing. How is this useful at all? Typing on a miniature alphabetized keyboard with your thumbs? I'd take a stylus any day over that. The problem with the thumb thing is that it's not like anything else we currently use (other than a Gameboy). Some people may like this, but most people go for something familiar. A stylus is familar, it's just a pen without any ink, and it can be used like a mouse too. However, are most business professionals going to buy something that works l
    • From the interview, it is supposed to be more a Gameboy than a PDA. So it actually holds this promise :)

  • Any other correlation? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 22, 2004 @12:24PM (#9771267)
    The submitter is a long known troll.. I don't trust this for one minute.

    I can't believe that Slashdot would run this story without some type of vertification from multiple sources.

    When it gets proven that this is a total fraud, don't say I didn't worn you.
    • I'm still not convinced either. I think it's fake, but I guess you can rely on credit card's fraud protection if you want to take the risk. It looks like the the payment form really does go to Banque Populaire.
  • ...we'll have to change PDA to mean Patriot Digital Assistant.

    Just kidding.
  • did anybody else read that as "Tactical PDA?" Which then begs the question, what would a tactical PDA have as accessories? Stylus that doubles as a stun gun? IR port that doubles as a LASER weapon? Explosive batteries?

  • Spam vs. Reality (Score:2, Insightful)

    by toetagger1 ( 795806 )
    Oh Great! Now we are at the point where we have NO WAY to distinguish between a GOOD SPAM and a REAL Bussines. This is one of the next big issues on the internet: Credibility. I know it has been an issue all along, but it is slowly moving more into the forground of the battles fought out in public.
  • But as both the company behind this TDA, Novinit, and myself are French, I decided to investigate and contacted the company. And I spent several hours with the CEO and the CTO.

    Right. This is July! There aren't any French people in France. Just Germans. The French are in Spain, half-or-more-naked, overturning tomato trucks.

    ...or at least, that's how it looks from here in 'murrica, where we milk our two weeks of vacation and wonder why Europe doesn't return our phone calls all summer. ;-)

  • Interesting.... (Score:2, Interesting)

    by Spyro VII ( 666885 )
    However, even if it's not a sham, it still seems like pretty shady business. Besides, how is it that only this Rolad fellow seems to know anything about it's existence (while of course having no ties to the actual company)?
  • I thought this was a tactical PDA. I clicked the link, fully expecting to see a PDA with a hardened outer shell and fully waterproof... Now that is something I could use... :-)

  • Saw a braille PDA at the bus station the other day (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Robotech_Master ( 14247 ) * on Thursday July 22, 2004 @01:00PM (#9771660) Homepage Journal
    Funny thing...not long after reading the original article about this PDA, I was at the city bus transfer station waiting for the bus...and I happened to see a fellow fiddling with something that looked a lot like that Jackito PDA illustration. At least, it had a similar form factor and the braille strip in the same place, even though it wasn't identical. So, I can't speak for the Jackito PDA--heck, I'm not even entirely sure that what the guy was fiddling with was a PDA--but I can say I've seen someone using something that looked a lot like the picture of that thing. Didn't get to ask him about it, because he put it away and went to catch the bus I got off of.
  • ...the submitter of the first story!

    Way to go Slashdot. Those night school lessons in journalism must really be paying dividends.
  • ... while they seem to have updated some of the English language product pages to 7 processors (which, if you follow numerologists who might be among the class of subjects targeted could be a better choice as a figure - along the lines 6~incomplete 7~complete ;), their French [novinit.com] page still tells us (at the time of this post) "Notre architecture électronique fondée sur un réseau de 6 processeurs cablés permet l'utilisation de plusieurs applications à la fois (multitâches) dans plu
  • If it's real, it's way too expensive. The thing has comparable specs to a 1999-2000 Palm or Visor, apart from the screen size. The main CPU is a little slower, even, and the way they count processors the later Dragonball chips in the Palm have 2 or 3 all by themselves... ignoring the graphics accelerators that started showing up in the Sony Clie to support hi-res, built-in modems and other communications processors...

    I don't see anyone but ardent Francophiles buying it because it's from France. Well, at th
  • Is this a reference to Micheal Jackson's penis (jackson's mosquito)?
  • Hmmm, okay, judging from the "demo" it's a touch sensitive screen that allows you to drag objects around using your thumbs? Sorry folks, PDAs have been doing that for *years*. It's called a touchscreen.
    • Exactly - I can use my fingers on my Tungsten's screen. If I did, the screen would quickly become unreadable and smeary behind a layer of fingerprints, and I doubt this is any different. Unless they have some sort of screen wiping system?
      The interface does look quite well thought out, though.
  • .. but who was the marketing genius who put the words "Jackito" and "tactile" in the same sentence? Michael Jackson touching? WTF?
  • In Soviet Russia, Jackitov tactiles you1
  • I can't wait to buy thse Los Souvenir Jackitos myself...
  • ...read the words "Jackito Tactile PDA" and immediately think of that pop singer who used to wear only one glove?

    I'll leave it to your imagination what PDA might stand for.

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