This is the second article in a series - if you haven't already and you are new to this, please read part 1.

A few years ago - actually just one year ago the Tablet PC was out of reach of most people.  When we looked around for a Tablet PC around a year ago for our pastor, we found that a decent Tablet PC cost around NZ$4000.  We ended up buying him a second hand Tablet PC for around half that.

Today however, things have moved on a little.  A little over a year ago Microsoft announced the UMPC - or Ultra Mobile PC.  These are tiny devices around the size of a novel - perhaps slightly longer - that were purposefully intended to be a full blown PC and a Tablet and affordable.  Previously something PC and portable in one package caused the price to go up.  Putting Tablet functionality in with it just added to the price further.  The Ultra Mobile PC is changing the Tablet PC market - slowly, but inevitably.

I've been a UMPC owner since they first hit the market, and I find I use my UMPC every day.  If you are a bible geek like I am, you'll love having all the books in your library with you wherever you go, not to mention your notes and the ability to simply pick up your UMPC wherever you are and start reading or studying.

Given these devices are (for the moment) all slates they are all pretty small and for the most part pretty light (around 3-4 lbs).  This means that they can fit in your purse, or in a small bag - in fact - if it can fit your Bible in it - it can probably fit a UMPC.  In addition -while they don't have a keyboard for input (well... there are exceptions) they have a touch screen.  This means that for Bible Reading you can use your fingers to navigate the pages or text. 

If you want to enter text on an UMPC there are several options.  If you happen to have a UMPC with a keyboard (see below), you can use that.  If not, you can simply use the handwriting recognition system to write in your text, or you could plug in an external keyboard and use that.

I mentioned affordable above... Let me explain that.

Samsung have recently announced the availability of the Samsung Q1 Ultra.  The Q1 Ultra is an updated iteration of the year old Q1 - one of the first UMPC's to hit the market.  The Ultra comes in a variety of models at price points that vary based on the features.  There are currently two on the market with two more models due to come on the market next month.

Currently the two models are the Samsung Q1 Ultra and the Samsung Q1 Ultra EL  The EL model is lacking Bluetooth and the cameras, but other than that is much the same as the Q1 Ultra - and the best part is that these can be purchased in the US for US$799 - around NZ$1000 (more on specs and prices here).  The next model up has a couple of additional features, but if all you want is something basic that does the job we are talking about above - the EL will do fine for all but the ultra techy.

While US$799 might sound reasonable, the vision for these devices is for them to be priced at US$500, so while we are getting there, we are not there yet.

Next - moving beyond paper...