Is That A Laptop Or A Phone?

from the don't-think-anyone's-going-to-get-confused... dept

Intel is now pushing computer makers to build phones directly into laptops. At first, I wondered why this was necessary, since it's easy enough to install a softphone - but they're actually talking about the hardware aspect. The idea is that on the cover of the laptop, you'd have a screen and phone buttons, and the system could be used even if the computer was in sleep mode. Initially, the phone would be a VoIP phone, but they also want to add cellular service. The screen also will integrate with some email programs so you could check your email without opening up the computer. While this certainly has a novelty factor, I wonder how big a market there really is for such things. Most people who would be remotely interested in this have a mobile phone already. Are they really going to be that interested in adding additional phone service just for their computer? Also, the way this offering is described, it sounds like it's only really useful if the laptop is closed.

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