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Choosing a Newton

Apple released four distinct Newton form factors containing eight different models between August 1993 and February 1998. Each form factor was an evolutionary step forward for the platform, and introduced design considerations and features that were different from past and subsequent models. Choosing a Newton requires understanding each models benefits and weaknesses and applying that knowledge towards selecting the Newton that best meets your needs.

Original MessagePad & 100

The OMP was unveiled and released on August 3, 1993 at MacWorld Boston. It’s release was somewhat premature and it is referred to by some of the Newton faithful as the ‘grand public beta test’.
Despite having similar technical specifications as later Newtons the OMP is limited to the kind of personal information management we attribute to yesterday’s PDAs or today’s most rudimentary mobile phones. Names, Dates, To Dos, Notes, and the ability to send simple faxes and emails are the OMP’s killer features, but its premature software and inadequate cursive handwriting recognizer Calligrapher, limit its usefulness as a MessagePad.
Unfortunately Calligrapher the word-based handwriting recognition engine in the Newton which was developed by the Soviet programmers at Paragraph International Inc. got more attention for what it couldn’t do than what it could.
Being a word based recognizer Calligrapher can only decipher words that are in its dictionary and even then it has to be trained for several weeks before it gets proficient. Using an Original MessagePad for taking notes often requires adding unknown words to the dictionary and rewriting them several times before the OMP can decipher them correctly. Things got better one year later with the release of the MessagePad 100 which added individual character recognition, but both MessagePads are limited by their early system software that can’t ran many later Newton applications.

The golden screen color, graceful curves, and soft touch casing of the Original MessagePads make these two models some of the most attractive Newtons ever made. But real work on a MessagePad requires real character recognition, and these original MessagePads just don’t offer the versatility or the recognition to make them anything more than collector’s items.

MessagePad 110, 120 & 130

In March of 1994, at the same time the MessagePad 100 was released, Apple updated the Newton form factor with the introduction of a new model. The MessagePad 110 allows for improved portability over the Original MessagePad by offering a slightly smaller display and flip over screen protector that resembles the front cover on a reporter’s notepad. The stylus was redesigned into a more familiar round shape, and internalizing the holster started a trend that made all subsequent MessagePads thinner and more comfortable to hold. The 110 shipped with the same limited Newton OS 1.3 software as the MessagePad 100.

Although all second generation MessagePads look identical, they were produced during a transition period in Apple’s Newton platform and have different specifications. The first models like the MessagePad 110 and the initial release of the MessagePad 120 shipped with the same 1.3 software that makes the Original MessagePads unsuitable for daily use, but later models like the second revision of the 120 and MessagePad 130 shipped with Newton OS 2.0 and its new printed handwriting recognizer Rosetta.

The printed recognizer in OS 2.0 was flawless and required no dictionary or learning period. It worked with familiar and strange handwriting styles alike. It only required separated printed characters to analyze. Even today, its recognition system is unmatched in the computing industry.
Other additions that made it into OS 2.0 include Ink Text, the ability to write and format natural unrecognized handwriting. A text expand feature that allows predetermined shortcuts to be automatically expanded into full length text. The ability to rotate the display into a landscape orientation, and compatibility with external keyboards. Even the the most basic applications like Notes gained custom stationary, and Names gained user defined fields. So many improvements came with Newton OS 2 that I can’t recommend choosing a Newton without it.

The MessagePad 130 is my recommendation for a Newton from this generation. Not only does it sport the comfortable form factor of the 110 and 120, but it is guaranteed to ship with Newton OS 2.0, an extra 512k worth of memory, and over 78,000 new words in its Calligrapher dictionary. It may not have the soft touch casing of the Original MessagePads, but it does have a textured screen with a backlight that is more pleasurable to write on, even in the dark.

MessagePad 2000 & 2100

The MessagePad 130 was just a taste of things to come. The introduction of the MessagePad 2000 brought a true revolution to the MessagePad hardware.

The 2000/2100 series has an ECL backlit screen like the MP130 but with twice the number of pixels (480 x 320 vs. previous model’s 320 x 240) in a 20{493f798df480ad5a2796e65210fbf6e65215ebdcc2070f4d9b100f3865a5d00d} increase in screen dimensions resulting in a high resolution display (100 dpi vs. 85 dpi). It also propelled the newton from being just black and white pixels to 16 level grey scale pixels.
Starting with the MessagePad 2000 the Newton was no longer just a personal information management device with messaging capabilities. It could now perform basic multimedia tasks including displaying greyscale photography, and playing music over its internal speaker. Of course all of these additional capabilities require a large improvement in performance, and the MessagePad 2000 got it with a 162MHz StrongARM 110 RISC chip that puts out 150 MIPS (@400 MIPS/watt).
The previous Newtons all had 20MHz ARM RISC chips that ran at 15 MIPS (1/10 th the speed) and 100 MIPS/watt thus using 4 times as much power. The net result of the StrongARM chip is an unbelievable ten fold increase in speed with 1/4 the power usage.
In addition to the high-res greyscale screen, the multimedia capabilities, and 10x improvement in performance the MessagePad 2000 offers twice as much memory as the 130, and the MessagePad 2100 offers almost twice as much memory as the 2000.

Although both MessagePads shipped with Newton OS 2.1 and greatly improved performance, a 2100 or upgraded 2000 is the Newton to get if you want to experience the most of what the platform has to offer. The additional memory is practically a requirement for web browsing and multitasking, and because these were the last MessagePads released they have the hardware specifications required to experience the entire back catalog of Newton software.

eMate 300

The eMate 300 is Apple’s first and only non-MessagePad Newton with a built-in keyboard. The eMate 300 was designed to take the rugged lifestyle of a K-12 education. For example the eMate’s keyboard has no circuitry hidden underneath to avoid damage from liquid spills, and its protective casing is designed to withstand drops from a student’s hands. If the screen or keyboard is damaged, both are designed for easy removal and replacement.

The screen on the eMate 300 has the same number of pixels but is slightly larger than the MessagePad 2000. And its built-in keyboard adds a row of function keys along the top which replace the button bar and provide one-touch access to built-in applications and common commands such as Close and Backlight On/Off.
The eMate 300 makes a great first computer for a child, but its underpowered 25MHz processor and traditional clamshell design offer few benefits over an older model laptop.

My Choice

My first Newton was a MessagePad 130 and I fell in love with its ease of use, character recognition, and slender form factor. In my opinion no other Newton is better for quick, portable note taking. Later models such as the 2100 are far more versatile, but their features pale considerably when compared to modern devices like the iPad. If you are looking for a first Newton that will do everything the platform has to offer get a 2100. But if you are looking for the optimal MessagePad to do what a Newton does best Note taking, a MessagePad 130 is the smallest device you will find with real handwriting recognition.

Why I Carry a Newton

A Newton MessagePad, the grandfather of all PDAs, is a funny thing to carry around with you when most people are sliding super slim, constantly connected, application-rich smartphones into their pockets. Compared to the iPhone a Newton MessagePad looks like a green brick, and I have been accused more than once of stealing the rubberized signature pad from a UPS delivery man. Despite what my Newton lacks in portability, connectivity, and applications it makes up for with a unique set of features no other mobile computer can match.

Battery Life

MessagePads have a battery life that can be measured in weeks and not days. While most modern smartphones struggle to make it through a twenty four hour period, my Newton keeps on ticking due to an energy conscious design that continues to impress more than ten years later. Best of all, when my Newton runs out of juice a simple AA battery swap will get it back on task while a modern smartphone must wait three to four hours before going back to work. Sure my Newton might not be able to do as much as a smartphone in the same amount of time, but when it comes to writing and note taking my Newton’s closest competitor is the longevity of a pad of paper — not your smartphone.

Handwriting Recognition

Randy Murray makes the argument that In Meetings, Pen & Paper, Not Glass and Fingers help him connect with his clients and keep technology from getting in the way. He points to the iPad as being a distraction while taking notes, and I agree it must be hard to concentrate on your client when your eyes are focused on a virtual keyboard. The Newton alleviates that problem by recognizing your handwriting, and letting you take notes in the time honored fashion we all grew up with.

Want to start a new note? Just draw a horizontal line across the page. Add bullet items and hierarchy to your thoughts the same way you would on paper. Because you are concentrating on the speaker and not your Newton note taking comes naturally. And because your Newton is a computer those notes, bullets, and hierarchy can be reorganized as many times as you like without crossing out lines or throwing away paper.

Searching through your Newton is far easier than searching through a Moleskine. And when you are done no transcription necessary. Just print, email, fax, or sync your notes back to your computer. Show your client what you captured from the meeting before leaving the room. A Newton allows you to preserve the natural habits of note taking, without the adapting to technology, or the transcription required for traditional handwriting.

Document Centric Workflow

When you turn on a smartphone you are presented with a grid of applications that represent tasks your phone can do. When you turn on a Newton you are presented with your content. On a Newton their is no workflow to follow to get back to your writing because you are already there. There is no file system past a simple index. No open or save dialog boxes because what you write and read is always in front of you. A pad of paper never gets in your way because there is nothing between you and the content. In this respect a Newton is the same as a pad of paper.

Share Everything

If you have ever created something on an iOS device you know your data is stored in the app you created it in. You know how to access it by tapping on the app, but do you know how to get it out and share it with other applications or the rest of the world? On the iPhone sharing your creations is different for every single application. Not onl the methods of sharing, but the process of sharing as well. On the Newton everything is sharable, and shared in the same way. You can fax, email, beam, and print anything from the routing button. As new methods of sharing are installed they too are added to the routing button. Because the process is the same for any type of data you create, sharing on the Newton is almost as easy as ripping a page from your notepad and handing it across the table — and the best part is you get to keep the original.

Expandability

The only reason the Newton is still with us today is because it has managed to keep up with the times. Introduced before the popularity of the World Wide Web, the Newton community has developed both a web browser and and an email client for its users. No small feat for a device that was designed without the ability to network past infrared beaming and analog faxing. Later MessagePads have even gained the ability to print via IP, connect to Wifi hotspots, beam using Bluetooth, and in limited cases communicate through cellular modems. These achievements might sound like old news compared to modern smartphones, but the real message behind a Newton’s expandability is the community that brought it this far.

Community

The Newton is a great note taking device with a long lasting battery life, that puts your content first and allows you to share it with the world. Those features alone might sell you on the platform, but the Newton is no wonder device. It is over ten years old, and far past its prime. The reason I still carry a Newton is because of the community that makes the Newton great. NewtonTalk is a mailing list of passionate users that embrace a Newton’s philosophy of putting your data first while expanding the platforms capabilities for another generation of users to discover and enjoy.

If it wasn’t for the Newton’s community I would never have found the Newton in the first place. I still carry my Newton not only for what a Newton does for me, but what I can do for the community of Newton users that embrace technology in the same way I do. Egg Freckles is my way of celebrating the Newton’s unique capabilities, and the community of users that are responsible for pushing the Newton forward.