The World's First Tablet Mac- and What It May Mean For The Mac

For years, the Windows world has enjoyed carrying around these notebook-like PCs- called Tablet PCs. On these, a person can write, or draw out ideas for projects and even use them in presentations.

But on April 1, we Mac-heads- who have salivated over these tablet PCs for years- finally get our own tablet.

The ModBook, made by Axiotron, and distributed exclusively by Other World Computing, a vendor for Macintosh computers- will be released. It runs on the Mac OS X (Tiger, currently, though support for the upcoming Leopard is expected), and has the Intel Core 2 Duo processors, and GMA 950 graphics card inside. In the 1.83 GHz model, you get 60 GB hard drive; 512 MB memory; and a CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo drive. That runs at $2279. For $300 more, you get a 2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor; 1 GB memory; WAAS-enabled GPS; and 80 GB hard drive. The top of the line has the same features as the $2579, but in addition, you get 2 GB of memory and 160 GB hard drive.

On all models, an iSight camera is on top; a Wacom(R) Penabled (TM) Digitizer pen is included. The 13.3" display is made of Chemically Strengthened glass, and the ModBook allows you to write on it. It's Bluetooth-equipped. The only thing the ModBook doesn't have is an external keyboard (though, it has an internal one. Just turn it on. Got that, Ballmer? It does allow you to use an external keyboard, if you like).

And yes, after you finish your work, you can pop in a DVD and watch that porn flick you've been itchin' to watch all day.

The ModBook is targeted for professionals who edit photos on programs such as Apple's Apeture and Adobe's forthcoming Lightroom.

The ModBook arrives on April 1.

With Axiotron building the first non-Apple Mac computer in ten years, this could mean that Apple will once again open up licenses for computer manufacturers to run the Mac OS X on their computers. If the ModBook is a success- and with many Mac-heads wanting a Table Mac for quite some time, it'll likely be that- look for other manufacturers to put the Mac OS into their computers. I'm guessing- and I'm no computer expert, so don't quote me on this (not yet, anyway...)- that Sony and HP will likely jump on board (HP could turn its' Compaq brand into a Mac division. Who knows? I'm just guessing here. Or it could be a dual-OS or even multi-OS division,with computers running on Mac, Windows, and Linux...).

But right now, the ModBook opens up possibilities that the Mac OS may soon no longer be confined to just Apple. Sure, Apple will continue to create the OS, and control the rights for some time (I doubt very seriously that Steve Jobs will give up his baby). But I'm guessing in about a year- at least- and no more than three to five years, the Mac may be on HP, Sony, and even Toshiba computers. That'll give those knuckleheads up in Redmond a combination of a grand mal seizure and an Excedrin headache.

Copyright 2007, by Darren W. Alexander. All Rights Reserved.