Axiotron, Inc., together with distribution partner Other World Computing, saw huge crowds at the Macworld Expo in San Francisco this week, as attendees flock to take its new Mac OS X-based "ModBook" tablet computer for a test run.
Unveiled at MacWorld, the $2,279 device is an after-market hardware modification to Apple's MacBook notebook line. The companies claim it's the "first ever Mac OS X tablet computer solution."
Each ModBook starts off as a MacBook Core 2 Duo but undergoes a surgical operation where its original display and keyboard are severed, then replaced with a new 13.3-inch Wacom pen enabled widescreen display set in a chrome-plated magnesium top shell.
The device runs the current version of Mac OS X and utilizes that software's built-in Inkwell handwriting recognition. Meanwhile, the tablet retains all of the hardware features of the current Apple MacBook line, such as a 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, an integrated camera and CD/DVD combo drive.
While the ModBook utilizes the original MacBook iSight camera, it has been slightly tilted downwards to allow video conference applications like iChat to better frame the face of the user.
Axiotron says the ModBook features the same Wacom Penabled hardware technology that has made Wacom pen tablets and interactive pen displays the preferred choice amongst professional artists and photographers. The technology requires no batteries and allows the Mac OS X cursor to be controlled in a mouse-like interface, even if the user's hand is resting on the screen.
Comments