There is a good amount of quiet hesitation about the xpPhone around the interwebs this morning. It seems that everyone wants to believe that the xpPhone will make it to market, but it almost seems to good to be true. The specs list an unspecified AMD Super Mobile CPU powering the system and it will be configurable with a wide range of SSD and HDD options. But best of all, the company lets you select the 3G module needed for either AT&T, Vodafone, or Orange. That is, of course, assuming the xpPhone will actually be produced even though you can pre-order one today.
Maybe everyone, including us, are approaching the xpPhone slowly because it seems too good to be true. This “phone” would probably be the most powerful on the market. But it’s almost like that because the device is called a phone, some are taking a different approach. If the device was called a UMPC with a 3G connection, there probably wouldn’t be as much hesitation.
But when you compare specs, the xpPhone is really a Viliv S5 with a physical keyboard, a 0.2-inch smaller screen, and probably a special software suite for the phone functions. The Viliv S5 also has a 3G modem, runs XP off of a mobile CPU, and great battery life though. The only thing it’s lacking is a microphone and it too could be a phone.
The xpPhone could totally make it to market. Now this market could be a tiny, niche market of nerds and a select group of inventory control types, but let’s not forget that this device is simply a UMPC with a phone functions. And it’s going to take a special someone to carry the beast.