Are Intel MIDs evolving into "smarter smartphones"?
When the Director of Mobile Internet Devices for Intel says that the future of cell phones is "computers that happen to make a phone call," two things come to mind. The first is obviously Intel's upcoming Moorestown-based mediaphones, which were shown at Computex in June and are expected to be among the highlights of IDF later this month. The second, for me anyway, is whether Intel MIDs without phone capabilities are heading toward their demise.
We already know that many non-Intel MIDs are merging the smartphone and MID categories into one, and we've seen evidence that at least some of Intel's devices plan to do the same (assuming they make it to market, of course), but does this mean that soon we won't see or hear of any MIDs that aren't phones?
Considering that built-in 3G still isn't a standard feature on mobile internet devices, the idea of MIDs and smartphones becoming even more synonymous than they already are doesn't sit well with me. My ideal MID isn't a phone (many of your "perfect" devices aren't either), but I think the window for getting what some of us truly want is getting smaller by the day. What about you?
Photo from ars technica
