Start-Up to Offer LindowsOS on Tablet PCs

A group of PC industry veterans Tuesday took the cloak off a new company called StepUp Computing, and revealed its first product: a low-cost, pen-based tablet computer that can run Windows 2000, Windows XP, and--coming soon--a version of the Linux operating system from Lindows.com.

The cofounder of budget PC maker Emachines and several former executives of that company are behind the new venture. Its goal is to offer affordable desktop and mobile computing products that serve small- and midsize-business users in targeted specialty and vertical markets, the company said.

StepUp Computing's first product to market will be a tablet computer called the DocuNote, which will cost as little as $799, depending on the software it ships with, the company said. Though it's being released at the same time as a host of tablet devices from vendors such as Acer and Hewlett-Packard, the DocuNote doesn't run Microsoft's new Windows XP Professional Tablet PC operating system, and it lacks some of the advanced features available with those devices, according to Microsoft.

Price Point

It also doesn't carry the same price tag. Tablet devices running Microsoft's new operating system cost as much as $2500.

The DocuNote weighs 2.5 pounds with its battery pack, and measures about 10 inches by 8 inches by 1 inch thick. It features an 8.4-inch-diagonal touch-screen display and a built-in color digital camera and microphone that are designed for video conferencing, the company said. It also has a 667-MHz Transmeta Crusoe TM5600 processor, 256MB of memory, a 20GB hard drive, and a slot for a wireless network card.

Unlike the new class of Tablet PCs, the device from StepUp Computing lets you navigate by touching the display with any object, such as a stylus pen or your finger. It does, however, share capabilities, such as inking and handwriting recognition, with the more expensive machines.

Similar Philosophy

Young Song, president and chief executive officer at StepUp Computing, was a cofounder of Emachines. Other executives at the Fullerton, California-based start-up include the former director of finance and the senior director of corporate communications at Emachines.

Like Emachines, StepUp Computing is pursuing a strategy of keeping hardware costs at the low end of the market. The devices are manufactured in Seoul, South Korea, by Garnet Systems and will only be available through select VARs (value-added resellers) and systems integrators, which will be responsible for setting up and configuring them for customers.

StepUp Computing is now accepting orders for the DocuNote through the channel with plans to begin shipping units in mid-December. In early 2003, the company will begin selling DocuNote devices running LindowsOS 3.0, it said.