‘We’ve been waiting and waiting to see Pixel Qi's 3Qi e-paper screen in a device, and we were hoping to see some sort of solid announcement at CES, but looks like we will still be waiting. Though the company has ramped up production on its E ink killer, which allows you to turn the backlight off on an LCD screen, they're still working with its half a dozen partners. We were told that within the year we will see a manufacturer that “everyone is familiar with” announcing a device that uses the technology. No word on if it will be a netbook, e-reader or tablet.’

Rampant speculation surrounded Pixel Qi as the likely supplier for Apple’s iSlate device but it doesn’t seem as likely at the moment, at least based on rumored suppliers and price point.  Stay tuned, however.  Anything’s possible.

via Pixel Qi screens to be used by a major manufacturer in 2010 — Engadget.

More on the upcoming slate.

DIY, Pt. II – Neven Mrgan’s tumbl.

Andy Ihnatko is a super great tech industry writer, and this article on the upcoming Apple slate thingy is about the best out there.  Some of what he said:

‘You get a lot of overlap and internal head-butting in other tech companies. The people who run the netbook division of DiscoWare wish no harm to any other living creature, but if the people in charge of DiscoWare’s notebook division were to fall facefirst into a stump grinder, they’d have an immediate proposal for how that division’s budget and personnel could best be absorbed by the netbook group.

‘Apple’s different. If The Coca-Cola Company were run like Apple, they’d have just one brand of zero-calorie cola, not three. Apple sees its product line as a cast of characters, through which they tell a single story. If two products seem to do the same job, then one of them needs to go.’

via Thoughts on what an Apple tablet should be – or not :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Andy Ihnatko.

This attempt at copying Apple is even worse than the Microsoft Store concept.  Then again, nobody has any idea what Apple’s going to unveil later this month.  It’s just sad the furthest their vision takes them is a recycled tablet named a “slate” to preemptively rip off Apple’s most likely product name.

Where’s the innovation?

Microsoft’s Slate: Exactly Unlike Apple’s Upcoming Tablet.

Regarding the iPhone win, Mr. Kumar commented “It’s looking like Qualcomm is beginning to be the one to beat [as the next iPhone chip supplier],” referring to the fact that Google has confirmed that Qualcomm was also chosen for its Nexus One smartphone.

If you’re tuning in late, this should come as no surprise and you should be overjoyed over this development.  Qualcomm’s chip delivers wireless technology independence: yes, any carrier.  This isn’t about Qualcomm so much as it’s about the two most powerful forward players all but eliminating the importance of carrier choice.

It’s a HUGE win for consumers and manufacturers, and every other phone maker will have Apple and Google to thank two years from now.  Frankly, Nokia should end their lawsuit with Apple and Motorola should give them a big hug for saving this massive part of their business.

In the mean time, these two will likely milk the single early carrier model, meaning they’ll grab extra cash from the highest bidding carrier in every market in exchange for short term exclusivity.

Mobile carrier power over technology is dead.

via Apple Tablet Goes With PA Semi Chip, Verizon iPhone With Qualcomm | iPhone | The Mac Observer.

If the word has yet to get out, we’re in an era where Apple is just plain lapping the entire competition.  Based on the release of devices like this new one from HP, even if the Apple iSlate device is a giant iPhone it’ll still be miles ahead of anything else in a similar form factor.  I can’t remember anyone in this much control of their market since Microsoft in the mid nineties or IBM at the advent of the PC age.

Is anyone going to step up?

Microsoft CES keynote PR leaks early: HP slate device is just a PC, Natal in holiday 2010 — Engadget.