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Review of the Pepper Pad: the Linux alternative to the Origami

madpenguin.org — An in-depth review of a $800 ultra-mobile Linux based competitor to the Origami.

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  • dukeinlondon, on 10/12/2007, -1/+15I don't need one but I wish I did
    • jhowe, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7Need is all relative to your perspective ; )
  • Wardvark, on 10/12/2007, -0/+35This would look great on my desk beside the PDA I never use.
  • Hellsadvocate, on 10/12/2007, -3/+11As much as I stand clear of saying anything against Linux. No offense to the OS,
    But that damn thing look's huge... so many buttons. Need... Simplicity.... Ipod...
    I love consumerism.
    • einfeldt, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8Hi Hellsadvocate,

      Actually, the Pepper Pad's size is something that is a plus, for me, personally. I liked the fact that I could actually *see* something. Most other displays are just too small, IMHO.
    • Jinno, on 10/12/2007, -12/+5It doesn't run Linux. At the end of the review they say that it specifically only runs Windows. So no worries for you.


      EDIT! My bad its only compatible with Windows... Linux Kernel. Ignore me, I guess.
      ~Jinno
  • jacks0n, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Umm... I thought the origami OS was produced my microsoft, but the oragmi was produced by another company. I don't see the use of making another product, just to use another OS. Why not just format the origami, and install a light linux dist? Damm small linux perhaps.
    • theone3, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Hell, Ubuntu would work fine. The Origami devices are quite fast.
    • jamesthejust, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Part of the attraction of the Pepper Pad is the OS. Not all Linux distributions are the same!
  • theone3, on 10/12/2007, -2/+23Tiny keypad, Uncommon OS, USB 1.1, 20GB HDD, Bigger than a UMPC, 600MHZ PDA Processor & 32MB PDA Graphics, 256MB Ram, ONLY SYNCS WITH WINDOWS: $800

    Is this really a competitor for a true Windows based PC with 1.0-1.3 GHz ULV Pentium with Intel Intergrated Graphics, 40-60GB, 512MB-1GB, USB 2.0 & ram for ~$900?

    The answer? Not if you want to get any work done.
    • Metabolife, on 10/12/2007, -6/+4Remember when computers were only 400mhz? I remember getting plenty of work done then. Since when is 600mhz not enough to use word?
    • theone3, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12This is a 600MHz _XScale_ Processor. That's more like 200MHz in productivity terms. And I'm speaking in relative terms of productivity, not absolute terms! You can get work done on a 4MHz processor. Heck, you can get work done on a piece of paper. But you can do much more on a 1GHz processor, no matter what OS you're using.
    • Klinky, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7I think he's trying to point out that you get a lot more computer for $100. Also this device has been known for a long while now and kind of comes up short.
    • SanityInAnarchy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Is the XScale x86-compatible? If not, why won't Macromedia give the rest of us a, say, 64-bit version of Flash? Or did I miss something?
    • darthsnoopy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I also believe that the Origami ran a Tablet version, meaning it had handwriting recognition and all the other features that come with that...Pepperpad meanwhile has a touchscreen...anyone who's used a tablet knows theres a huge difference

      Also I'll take an ultramobile running a full OS that I dont have to recompile over a portable appliance anyday
  • jer2eydevil88, on 10/12/2007, -4/+3Yeah great but can any idiot install anything on it yet? Linux is great for us techies but try to show your grandma how to update and patch it.
    • drizek, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5You click on the icon in the system tray that says "Patch available", type in your password, and click update.
    • SanityInAnarchy, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3Are you trolling, or do you honestly not know?

      My mother uses Ubuntu, and knows how to update it. Patching isn't necessary. And she's not much of a techie.

      Why would you automatically assume this is any different? Especially given the screenshots of the thing...
    • Xiol, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5My mother - the woman who has trouble working out the difference between right and left mouse buttons - can manage to run Ubuntu's security updates and, with the tinest bit of handholding (e.g. a manual, but in this case me) can figure out how to install software through Synaptic.

      A non-techy user is a non-techy user, no matter what the platform.
    • einfeldt, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Hi Jer2eydevil88,

      IMHO, one of the positive aspects of the Pepper Pad is that it is really really point and click simple. In fact, one of the best things about the Pepper Pad is that it a granny or a small child could use it pretty easily by just pointing at what they want. There's really not much typing that is needed for the primary purpose of the PP: just playing video and cruising the web.
    • thebadrash, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1You're right. I love my kubuntu machine, but getting basic things to work (and it doesn't matter whose fault this is), such as support for various codecs and so on is too difficult for users with little computing experience. I'm well aware of why certain things can't be built in, but the fact is that until a way is found around this problem, there are plenty of people who just won't be satisfied with it.
  • James_Aguilar, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3The keyboard is the iffiest part of this whole operation to me, but that's like saying that surviving cyanide poisoning is the iffiest part of being in a torture chamber. There's a lot more iffiness where that came from.
  • dlichteman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2It looks like a glorified Zaurus.......

    also its 649.99 cause theres a mail in rebate.....that you would probbaly never get
  • manfesto, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Okay, normally, I hate the "old news" digg nazis as much as the next person, but this is not a new item, and it was not created in response to Origami. It actually predates Origami (and probably did as well as Origami will).

    http://www.tuxmagazine.com/node/1000125

    Tux Magazine reviewed it over a year ago (though, to be fair, back then it was still not yet available to the public).

    Engadget covered it last year, as well:

    http://www.engadget.com/2005/01/09/pepper-computer-ces-the-pepper-wireless-pad/
    http://www.engadget.com/2005/07/22/mossberg-down-on-the-pepper-pad/

    It didn't make all that huge a splash back then, and judging from Origami's lukewarm acceptance, I don't see the Pepper Pad having a resurgence of interest.
    • einfeldt, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Hi Manfesto,

      If you check out the first line in my review, you will see that it says that the PP is ahead of Origami, and beat Microsoft to the punch. The reason that Mad Penguin decided to review the PP right now is that Microsoft has made the new class of ultramobile PCs more newsworthy by spending lots of money on pushing Origami. Mad Penguin is a point of view magazine that is bullish on open standards and bearish on lockdown. We wanted people to see that there is already an alternative to Microsoft's Origami on the market.
    • manfesto, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Hi, einfeldt

      Beating Microsoft to the punch is one thing (which, in my mind, implies that both sides were aware of the battle). Releasing a product to lukewarm reception, only to have a resurgence of interest a year later when a similar product is released, is something else. I dunno, the review did almost seem to imply that the Pepper Pad was created with the intent of giving Origami a run for its money in the "not quite a PDA, not quite a tablet" race (though this may not have been your intent).

      On a side note, one thing that I find telling about the Pepper Pad is this - all of your criticisms were present when the Pepper Pad launched last year, and none of them have been addressed.
  • killa62, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1site is slow
    coral cache of the print view
    http://madpenguin.org.nyud.net:8090/cms/index.php/?m=show&opt=printable&id=6827
  • Urusai, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3It simply is not enough. I can go down to Walmart and buy a laptop for less that does oh so much more, and it won't fit in my pocket either.
  • CornStarch, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2All these devices need is a DVD drive, until then I'll hold off.
  • xaxxon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5This guy scores it a 9 out of 10 after going on and on about how much is missing.

    The battery life is bad (about 2 hours), it only syncs to Windows, it doesn't come with the USB cable required to sync to Windows (which he says is an uncommon cable style, though I have 3-4 of them).

    It's more expensive than a laptop with far more functionality, and it doesn't recognize .ogg or .png files.

    That's not a 9/10 in my book.
    • einfeldt, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Hi xaxxon,

      You said that I should not have given the Pepper Pad a 9/10. The rating at the end of an article is just the reviewer's opinion. IMHO, it is less important than the reviewer's observations.

      Mad Penguin software and hardware reviews are typically 5x longer than what you get in most other magazines. We like to think that we give the reader the information to judge whether or not our final conclusions are meritorious or not. You felt that there was a disconnect between my detailed analysis of the product and my conclusion. Fine. But the point is that you certainly had the information there to reach your own conclusions. That makes me feel good. That's why we write long reviews. So many product reviews are merely glowing rehashing of the product features. We tend to give you the good, the bad, and the ugly about products. So I will remember your criticisms next time I write a review, because similar criticism were made in the /. discussion. So you obviously do have a point. But IMHO, there is no disconnect between my conclusion (9/10) and my analysis.

      The bottom line is that I just personally LIKED the Pepper Pad despite its flaws. At the end of the day, if you just like something, you are willing to overlook its flaws and live with it as it is. I really liked the instant on / off feature. I also liked the touch pad. I like the ease with which the Pepper Pad found a wifi signal. The absence of DRM. The ability to get a command line. The ease of playing video. etc. For me, there were a lot of features to like about the Pepper Pad.

  • HackWithRamzi, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1Haha, looks like something Linux developers would make. They need to learn how to design...
  • 45rpm, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2ok, serioiusly, USB 1.1? Yeah? No. Why would anyone come out with a *new* device that has USB 1.1?
    • pwrstick, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Thinking the same thing. Not that I'm even in the market to purchase one of these, but USB 1.1 would kill the idea right off the bat for me.

      Other than that the price is definitely better!
    • kualla, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1...thats exactly what I thought, USB1.1??? WTF were they thinking, all my USB drives, USB DVD burner, USB external HDD's, all relatively pointless. Thats the one big design flaw they made there, an extra what $1.99 to upgrade from 1.1 to 2.0 which would of added a value to the customer of at least $50 sounds like a BIG mistake to me. It's not like they have to pay any royalties to apple to get a firewire port, wtf are these people on, crack??!??!!!!!

      I would like to see a revision done with a purchase price at ~$400-$500 with 2-3 USB2.0 ports (mouse, keyboard, extra peripheral) and at least an optional RAM upgrade up to 1GB would be prime.
  • Technopundit, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I bet they sell dozens of these.
  • jakob, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Another video: mms://a999.v0674e.c674.g.vm.akamaistream.net/7/999/674/3ccdde3f/cnetnews.download.akamai.com/674/4n0928pepperpad_1_hi.asf
  • nerdler, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Why would anyone buy this? It's too big to be any more portable than a laptop, but too small for serious use. I forsee them selling for $99 at overstock.com soon.
  • BiggPa, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3usb 1.1?

    uh...
  • jabab, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I don't get these things, too big for a pocket, not big enough to warrant carrying around a bag. I think they only appeal to techie women with large handbags.
  • flap, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1It's almost as ugly as the that black origami beast, or as I like to call it the "Game Gear XP".
  • dayquil, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0That is one ugly son of a bitch.
  • OmegaNine, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I like it, just that its slow, and outdated....and USB 1.1, WTF?!?
  • angelp, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2The Pepper Pad has been around for quite some time....I saw it at Digital Life last year and after holding it, I realized it was too heavy and awkward, not to mention extremely overpriced.
    • DVRDude, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Yup, I got some hand's on time with it there too. Heavy and awkward, with a poor screen and average battery life. I'd be willing to pay maybe $250 for it, but it's definitely not an $800 product.
  • demonicume, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1why so expensive? i could get a crappy notebook for $800 that'd do more... or i could buy 2 crappy dells desktops and pimp out my network... i could get another Xbox 360 and and put the rest towards a Wii...

    $250, tops.
  • loureiro97, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1yup definetely overpriced, just as all UMPCs... :(
  • Ripberger, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Pepper has a new version, soon available, called the Pepper Pad Plus. It has an AMD x86 processor instead of XScale, USB 2.0, and Bluetooth 2.0, among other improvements. It also has slightly smaller dimensions. MSRP $500. A preview is up at MobileTechReview.
    • stmiller, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2From that article:

      "The Future

      At CES in January 2006, Pepper announced the Pepper Pad Plus which will be available sometime in Q2 2006. The Plus has an improved battery which should last 60% longer, adds WiFi 802.11g (b will still be supported), upgrades hard disk capacity to 30 gigs and upgrades Bluetooth to 2.0. The Plus will include VoIP (finally, a use for that microphone!), Windows Media 9 support and multimedia streaming from UPnP devices. The software upgrades will be available as a download to existing Pepper Pad owners and Pepper will have an upgrade program for those who wish to upgrade their unit to the Plus. No price has been set for the hardware upgrade program but the software upgrade will be free. In fact, Pepper frequently releases free software updates that add new features (Mobipocket and Flickr support being recent examples), and has top notch support via phone, email and fast, personalized help on their forum at www.pepper.com/forums. I posted a few questions on their forum one weekend (not revealing who I was or that I was reviewing the unit for a publication) and received answers to my questions in less than an hour. These days, high tech support is often limited and out-source to India-- what a refreshing change to get immediate, knowledgeable support."

      http://www.mobiletechreview.com/Pepper-Pad.htm

  • iamsjn, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I'd buy this in a second for those times when I mindlessly surf. I find that I'm doing more of that now than I used to. Hmmmmm..... Watching Doctor Who and surfing from the couch... That works.

    SjN
  • beni, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Coming soon... the Brian Peppers pad!
  • dioscaido, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0$800? You have to be kidding.
  • Ripberger, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Actually I was referring to the following:

    http://www.mobiletechreview.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=news&Number=23766&Forum=All_Forums&Words=pepper&Match=Entire%20Phrase&Searchpage=0&Limit=25&Old=1week&Main=23766&Search=true#Post23766

    Sorry I didn't link to it in my first post.
  • freonchill, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1800x600 for web surfing - what is this 2000 ?
  •  

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