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I have a full collection of Newton's from the OMP to the 2100 (including an eMate). They're neat devices and it's interesting to wonder what could have been. A

I have a full collection of Newton's from the OMP to the 2100 (including an eMate). They're neat devices and it's interesting to wonder what could have been. At the same time it's really easy to see their limitations and why they failed to take off. The Newton was aimed squarely at the concept of a late 80s early 90s jetsetting executive. A small device that replaced a briefcase and purchased on the company AmEx. Unfortunately for the Newton that's a pretty rarified market. Even within that market a contemporary laptop was vastly more capable for only 2-3x the price. Because the Newton seemingly aimed at such a narrow market it just couldn't support itself let alone a third party ecosystem. I was in love with the idea of a Newton, they were the PADD from Star Trek! The price put them out of reach until I bought a 2000 second hand. I'm glad I started with that one because the 2000 and 2100 were the most capable Newton's released and had the best expansion options. I was able to get some use out of it for years. Between NUGs and the NewtonTalk mailing list die hards were able to keep Newtons useful for a while. My love for them aside I can understand why Steve Jobs axed them. Like the $4500 PowerBooks (the base 3400c cost that much in 1997 dollars!), the Newtons were just way more expensive than their utility could justify. The Palm Pilot market was an order of magnitude larger than the Newton and it was selling for half the price. There wasn't much reason to fight two entrenched platforms in two different markets (Windows/PC and Palm/PDAs).

indymike 4y ago
I think Newton didn't make it because early 90s jet setters liked Palm Pilots that would fit in your pocket and played well with non-Apple computers. It was pretty rare to go to a meeting and see a Newton, but everyone would pull out the Palm Pilot. Price and form factor were probably the drivers.
- giantrobot 4y ago
  Newtons predated the Palm Pilot by a couple years. The Pilot 1000 was not released until 1996. The Newton was on the way out by the time the Palm Pilot was released and off the market by the time the really popular Palm III/V/VII series was released. So in the early 90s no one had a Pilot and by the late 90s the Newton was history. The jetsetters the Newton was targeting (or I posit they were targeting) did end up getting Palm Pilots in the late 90s but in the early 90s likely either went with electronic organizers like a Sharp Wizard or a full laptop if they went with any electronic PIM/organizer device.

indymike 4y ago

I think Newton didn't make it because early 90s jet setters liked Palm Pilots that would fit in your pocket and played well with non-Apple computers. It was pretty rare to go to a meeting and see a Newton, but everyone would pull out the Palm Pilot. Price and form factor were probably the drivers.

giantrobot 4y ago
Newtons predated the Palm Pilot by a couple years. The Pilot 1000 was not released until 1996. The Newton was on the way out by the time the Palm Pilot was released and off the market by the time the really popular Palm III/V/VII series was released. So in the early 90s no one had a Pilot and by the late 90s the Newton was history. The jetsetters the Newton was targeting (or I posit they were targeting) did end up getting Palm Pilots in the late 90s but in the early 90s likely either went with electronic organizers like a Sharp Wizard or a full laptop if they went with any electronic PIM/organizer device.