VOIP Multi-Function Handheld

When I'm put in charge of gadgets I think I'll draw up a "Golden Rules of Ergonomics" that all manufacturers must adhere to.  Number one on that list would be "don't make your tech look like poop", closely followed by number two, "if you're going to have a keyboard, I don't want my thumbs to ache after using it two minutes".  Sadly MIU's M*free 'Hybrid Dual Portable Computer' would fall foul of both of these rules, and probably a few as-yet-unwritten more – while the idea of a multi-function VOIP/wireless-IP handheld is great, their industrial design appears to be "make a shoebox out of plastic, and then put all the gubbins in".

Perhaps I'm being unduly harsh.  I mean, there are very few dual-OS VOIP handsets with fold-out screens, interchangeable function cartridges and full QWERTY keyboards out there, so MIU have been forced to innovate on their own as opposed to just tweak someone else's design.  But really, who thought it was a great idea to sink a keyboard deep inside a hard-edged plastic gully, where your poor thumbs will jam up against the sides?

The concept is an interesting one: a core device, in this case with some sort of wireless mobile broadband connection, is marketed as a way of making VOIP calls cheaper than on a typical cellphone or landline and better quality than other VOIP providers.  In addition to that, its screen-popping design gives both a pretty reasonable handheld game console format and a Sidekick-on-steroids look for bashing out emails and web addresses and the like.

So just what add-ons have they got in mind for the M*free?  Well, think digital camera, think MP3 player, think portable storage... all in chunky little cartridges.  They expect it to cost around $875 when it's launched in the first half of 2007.

Make sure you check out the further images on the next page.

MITS-Challenging HDPC [Aving.net]