Sony Ericsson W350

Ericsson T28

The Sony Ericsson W350 is AT&T’s latest phone and it features the previously thought to be extinct downward-folding flap.  Last seen on the Ericsson T28, this was a classic design for early cellphones.  Unlike its predecessors though, the W350 cannot answer and end calls just by opening and closing the flap.  In fact, the music controls on the front of the flap actually just press through to the keypad buttons behind it.  There are no electrical connections to the flap itself and it can even be easily removed without harming the phone at all.  Sadly, it seems that this design resurrection only goes skin deep.

Lenovo IdeaPad S10

To prevent the previous post in this series from becoming a one-off, one-hit wonder, I have been tirelessly searching the past two weeks for another Blast from the Past.  The inspiration came to me when I saw that Lenovo began selling their IdeaPad S10 netbook earlier this week.  Looking at the IBM WorkPad z50 lying next to my desk.  I began to realize the similarities.

Even though the IdeaPad is much more of a full-fledged notebook than the WorkPad ever was, they occupy a very similar niche and have similar form factors.  The WorkPad z50 for those unfamiliar was a Windows CE-based Handheld PC.  It had a QWERTY keyboard and the trademark red eraserhead trackpoint from the ThinkPads.  It was meant to be an ultraportable companion for a computer when portability was key and a true ultraportable notebook was too expensive or did not have enough battery life.  In this regards, the IdeaPad S10 is the spiritual successor to the WorkPad z50.  Fast forward 9 years, and true ultraportable laptops still cost an arm and a leg.  Netbooks, like the IdeaPad, offer the portability of a small computer without the cost.  They also have limitations, like the WorkPad, in that they cannot do everything a full-sized computer can.

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Dell just recently announced their Studio Hybrid desktop, a small form factor computer along the same lines as the Mac Mini, Asus Eee Box, or HP Slimline.  The Studio Hybrid is being touted for being small, fashionable, and eco-friendly (there is even an option to have the case made out of bamboo).  However, Dell’s new creation looks to me like an old creation revisited.  Read the similarities between the defunct WebPC and the new Studio Hybrid after the jump.

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