[...] is I’m confused. We’ve talked before the MID (an acronym for Mobile Internet Device) in Do the MIDs have an advantage over the Advantage? and MIDs vs. Large Screen Windows Mobile Devices. However, there’s been little since to talk [...]

[...] talked before about the MID (”Mobile Internet Device”). The MID’s concept is exciting, at least [...]

[...] – I was looking at Mobile Internet Devices. But I’m not sure I am anymore. With devices like the HTC Touch HD available with a [...]

[...] Do the MIDs have an advantage over the Advantage? told you about the MID, or Mobile Internet Device. Several MIDs were featured at the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) that just took place from August 19-21, 2008 in San Francisco. More MIDs are being introduced in the aftermath of the IDF. I’m still trying to synthesize all this information before I post. [...]

Advantages’s screen resolution – There are programs (RealVGA) and tweaks on xda-developers that permit 96, 128 or 192 dpi.Opera or NetFront may provide better browsing than PIE.

Advantage’s size/weight – Its dimensions are more square, which I think makes it a bit less pocketable. It’s lighter than the MIDs. Still, it feels more like a small brick than a cell phone in your pocket. But I’m not sure if the MIDs will be any better.

Nokia N810 – I thought of including it. I didn’t for the reason you stated; it’s not connected.

iPhone 3G as a MID? – Hmmmmmmm…

By size I mean it’s HEAVY (weight) – not pocket friendly in that regard.

Personally, I’d say that the Nokia N800/N810 should be included as MIDs. I know they’re not ‘connected’ unless through a phone but they’re definately MIDs and also cheaper without the extra IP.

The reason I returned the Advantage was the screen resolution and size. The screen size is great but browsing on the 5″ VGA screen would be the same as browsing on one of the smartphones with 3.5″ VGA screen, especially with IE Mobile as your portal. If HTC were willing to take the Tytn II and give it better RAM/CPU and the same screen as the MIDs listed above then they’d have a winner on their hands, especially is preinstalled with a good browser and Core Player for videos. With WM’s PIM applications and the Office Mobile suite it’d make the best MID available. Oh and don’t forget to keep the price down!

Browsing on small screens (even 800 x 480) was doomed to failure (as we saw in the first batch of UMPCs) but now that Apple has shown us that browsing the web is possible on a small screen and how a little feature like zoom makes all the difference I think MIDs are likely to succeed. I held out with my N95 and didn’t buy an iPhone but I’m very likely to buy it in July, instead of an MID!

So, how does the iPhone 3G compare with the MIDs above??