Compaq, now part of Hewlett-Packard, has said it views the tablet PC as an extension to the notebook PC market. However, tablet PCs will command a premium over mini-notebooks, which already cost more than the most popular notebook PCs. So far, the market for nontraditional notebooks, or those that don't use the standard clamshell-style design, is small, accounting for just 3 percent of the overall notebook market, according to researcher IDC. IBM recently phased out its ThinkPad TransNote, a machine that captures handwriting jotted with a special pen. Sony also phased out its high-end Vaio Slimtop Pen Tablet PC. Microsoft and its partners, however, will likely argue that tablet PCs will be both less expensive and more functional than the ThinkPad or the Slimptop PC. Microsoft's minimum specifications for the tablet PC call for a 500MHz to 600MHz processor, 128MB of RAM and a 10GB hard drive. Tablet PCs will also support wireless networking. Motion Computing said it will preview its Tablet PC at next month's TechXNY trade show, and the device is expected to ship later this year. Many other tablet PC makers are also expected to show off their designs during the trade show. The tablet PC was announced in November 2000 at Comdex by Microsoft chairman Bill Gates.
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