Engadget is running with the boo-birds with their latest piece on the Ultra-Mobile PCs, thinking that the prospects for the new devices look paper-thin. Clever and overworn analogies aside, its intriguing to attend a wake before there has even been a birth. Granted, there are certainly lots of questions to be answered, and I think one can legitimately question the effectiveness of the viral marketing campaign and the fact that there were no devices on hand when the news was made official. If the pundit population is expecting iPod like market share (perhaps an expectation fed by the viral approach) then nothing but disappointment will be the result, most likely.
I've posited before here that we may be looking at the beginning of BETA hardware releases, (intriguingly at a time where Microsoft is re-examining the value of BETA programs for its software.) While that may be a bit far-fetched, it does make sense on certain levels. Even so, the future is uncertain and if anyone can predict it, I doubt they'd be writing for Engadget. I'm willing to see how things shake out and look to the potential that the UMPC offers, admitting freely that the concept really appeals to me. Will all the factors line up and the questions get answered to make UMPC a huge overwhelming success in the market place? Define that success first please.
