PenPad
Encyclopedia
The term PenPad was used as a product name for a number of Pen computing
products by different companies in the 1980s and 1990s. The earliest was the Penpad series of products by Pencept
, such as the PenPad M200 handwriting terminal, and the PenPad M320 handwriting/gesture recognition tablet for MS-DOS
and other personal computer
s.
Other vendors using the term Penpad in product names include Amstrad
and Toshiba
.
The Amstrad PenPad was an early portable personal digital assistant
with handwriting pen input, and a competitor to the Apple Newton
. It was an attempt by Amstrad
, a UK electronics
firm with a history of successful involvement in personal computing, to corner the handheld market in the UK and Europe.
, and the hardware was designed by Mutech Ltd. For its time the PenPad had a relatively successful handwriting recognition
system, where the user would 'train' the PenPad with his own handwriting.
The device was bulky when compared with modern PDAs, but it was very functional with the standard PIM and offered expansion. It featured a calendar, address book, todo list, jot pad, world time, multiple alarms, calculator, and unit conversion on the ROM.
It had a memory capacity of 128Kb, a grey-scale screen, a folding hinged cover that protected the screen when not in use, a PCMCIA type I slot for expansion, as well as a serial port
to link to a PC
.
Eden Group also wrote bespoke software for the PDA600 that run on PCMCIA memory cards, in addition to the standard PIM applications. The PDA600 could be 'hot-synced' with Windows via the optional extra "PC-Organiser for Windows".
who retailed the stock through their chain of stores at £50 per unit, half the price they had cost Amstrad to build. It wasn't until the launch of the Palm
Pilot 1000
in 1996 that the first truly successful PDA relying on pen input was born.
Amstrad did invest in R&D for a successor to the PDA600, called the PIC700, but with the end of the PenPad it never saw the light of day.
Pen computing
Pen computing refers to a computer user-interface using a pen and tablet, rather than devices such as a keyboard, joysticks or a mouse....
products by different companies in the 1980s and 1990s. The earliest was the Penpad series of products by Pencept
Pencept
Pencept, Inc. was one of a small number of pioneering companies in the 1980s developing and marketing technology known as Pen computing, prior to the entry of larger companies such as Microsoft and GO Corporation....
, such as the PenPad M200 handwriting terminal, and the PenPad M320 handwriting/gesture recognition tablet for MS-DOS
MS-DOS
MS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
and other personal computer
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
s.
Other vendors using the term Penpad in product names include Amstrad
Amstrad
Amstrad is a British electronics company, now wholly owned by BSkyB. As of 2006, Amstrad's main business is manufacturing Sky Digital interactive boxes....
and Toshiba
Toshiba
is a multinational electronics and electrical equipment corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of electrical products, spanning information & communications equipment and systems, Internet-based solutions and services, electronic components and...
.
The Amstrad PenPad was an early portable personal digital assistant
Personal digital assistant
A personal digital assistant , also known as a palmtop computer, or personal data assistant, is a mobile device that functions as a personal information manager. Current PDAs often have the ability to connect to the Internet...
with handwriting pen input, and a competitor to the Apple Newton
Apple Newton
The MessagePad was the first series of personal digital assistant devices developed by Apple for the Newton platform in 1993. Some electronic engineering and the manufacture of Apple's MessagePad devices was done in Japan by the Sharp Corporation...
. It was an attempt by Amstrad
Amstrad
Amstrad is a British electronics company, now wholly owned by BSkyB. As of 2006, Amstrad's main business is manufacturing Sky Digital interactive boxes....
, a UK electronics
Electronics
Electronics is the branch of science, engineering and technology that deals with electrical circuits involving active electrical components such as vacuum tubes, transistors, diodes and integrated circuits, and associated passive interconnection technologies...
firm with a history of successful involvement in personal computing, to corner the handheld market in the UK and Europe.
PDA600
The Amstrad PenPad, also known by the PDA600 model reference, was commissioned in 1993. The project manager, Cliff Lawson, had helped developed Amstrad's previous computing products. The Eden Group delivered the underlying operating systemOperating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
, and the hardware was designed by Mutech Ltd. For its time the PenPad had a relatively successful handwriting recognition
Handwriting recognition
Handwriting recognition is the ability of a computer to receive and interpret intelligible handwritten input from sources such as paper documents, photographs, touch-screens and other devices. The image of the written text may be sensed "off line" from a piece of paper by optical scanning or...
system, where the user would 'train' the PenPad with his own handwriting.
The device was bulky when compared with modern PDAs, but it was very functional with the standard PIM and offered expansion. It featured a calendar, address book, todo list, jot pad, world time, multiple alarms, calculator, and unit conversion on the ROM.
It had a memory capacity of 128Kb, a grey-scale screen, a folding hinged cover that protected the screen when not in use, a PCMCIA type I slot for expansion, as well as a serial port
Serial port
In computing, a serial port is a serial communication physical interface through which information transfers in or out one bit at a time...
to link to a PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
.
Eden Group also wrote bespoke software for the PDA600 that run on PCMCIA memory cards, in addition to the standard PIM applications. The PDA600 could be 'hot-synced' with Windows via the optional extra "PC-Organiser for Windows".
Development
Development of end-user applications was possible but required investment in a card-writer in addition to the forms software from Eden Group, which restricted end-user development.Being discontinued
The Amstrad PenPad, like the Apple Newton, struggled in a time where these early PDAs were expensive to produce and did not manage to capture enough interest and eventually production was discontinued. The remaining UK units being sold off to Tandy CorporationTandy Corporation
Tandy Corporation was a family-owned leather goods company based in Fort Worth, Texas. Tandy was founded in 1919 as a leather supply store, and acquired RadioShack in 1963. The Tandy name was dropped in May 2000, when RadioShack Corporation was made the official name.-History:Tandy began in 1919...
who retailed the stock through their chain of stores at £50 per unit, half the price they had cost Amstrad to build. It wasn't until the launch of the Palm
Palm (PDA)
Palm handhelds were Personal Digital Assistants which ran the Palm OS. Palm devices have evolved from handhelds to smartphones which run Palm OS, WebOS, and Windows Mobile...
Pilot 1000
Pilot 1000
The Pilot 1000 and Pilot 5000 were early Palm PDAs produced by Palm, Inc. . It was introduced in March 1996....
in 1996 that the first truly successful PDA relying on pen input was born.
Amstrad did invest in R&D for a successor to the PDA600, called the PIC700, but with the end of the PenPad it never saw the light of day.
External links
- The Unknown History of Pen Computing contains a history of pen computing from approximately 1917 to 1992.
- Annotated bibliography of references to handwriting recognition and pen computing
- PDA600 FAQ
- Amstrad PDA600
See also
- Pen computingPen computingPen computing refers to a computer user-interface using a pen and tablet, rather than devices such as a keyboard, joysticks or a mouse....
- Handwriting recognitionHandwriting recognitionHandwriting recognition is the ability of a computer to receive and interpret intelligible handwritten input from sources such as paper documents, photographs, touch-screens and other devices. The image of the written text may be sensed "off line" from a piece of paper by optical scanning or...
- Tablet PCTablet computerA tablet computer, or simply tablet, is a complete mobile computer, larger than a mobile phone or personal digital assistant, integrated into a flat touch screen and primarily operated by touching the screen...
- PenceptPenceptPencept, Inc. was one of a small number of pioneering companies in the 1980s developing and marketing technology known as Pen computing, prior to the entry of larger companies such as Microsoft and GO Corporation....