There are certain things that the Neeks would love to see in computers in the future.
For starters, all computers should have a touch screen. Hands down, this is the most handy thing a computer could come with. Not only should they be touch screens, but two people should be able to touch the screen at the same time. Kim should be able to draw on one end of the screen, while Elizabeth is writing on the other end. This would come in handy with games, such as pinball.
Also, computers should have integrated webcams. Something like this would be useful for the people who like to instant message outdoors, and don't want to carry around an extra camera. Our future computer would require a built in GPS system, too. Neeks get lost, and we can't depend on stars. Our next option? A GPS system to guide us home.
Another requirement for our future computer is to be lightweight. Lightweight meaning two or three pounds, and nothing more. We want to be able to walk across the floor of CES with a computer and not have tired arms. Along with this lightweight machine, it would have to be durable. We want to be able to run across a field with a computer in our right arm, and not worry about what would happen if we dropped the device.
Adding to the outdoors theme, if a computer is going to be successful, it needs to have a nice, long battery life. When we're outside, we're outside. We aren't going to be next to an outlet just because we have a computer. Or maybe that's something the world needs to change to become more mobile. Random outlets in random places. (Trees, fire hydrants, parking meters. Okay. Nix the fire hydrants.) Until that happens, we need batteries that last a good ten, twelve hours. Maybe longer.
Because most of the things the Neeks do on the computer happens to be on the Internet, all computer would need WiFi. We want to be able to go to the beach and have WiFi. We want to be able to go to the mall and have WiFi. We want to be able to be in the middle of the desert and have WiFi.
For entertainment reasons, computers should come with the ability to play movies and listen to music. When we're at a picnic, we want to be able to watch a movie with the cousins, or turn on some awesome music. Not only do we want the ability to watch movies, but we also want a built in projector. Nobody wants to huddle around a small machine to watch a movie. To be able to watch these movies without putting them on the hard drive first, it should have a DVD player.
Now, a very important thing for this computer is the keyboard. We understand that hand recognition is extremely useful when it comes to school work, taking notes, and doodling. With this said, there are several people in this technological world who type faster than they hand write. We need to accept this fact and provide the necessary equipment for those folks to survive.
Eventually, this perfect computer should have the ability to be used as a cell phone, or something of that sort. We still haven't figured out how to combine the two, because we can't figure out how someone won't look completely ridiculous holding a seven or eight inch machine to their ear. But I'm sure we'll get there.
What else do we want?
We want to be able to tell the difference between Kim's machine and Elizabeth's machine and Sarah's machine. We want changeable skins, like cell phones and iPods have. We want to write on the skins. Maybe the skin should be able to be put in the washing machine so you could write, wash, and write again. You could write on this with something such as Magic Markers.
Zunes have shown us how easy it is to share information between devices. We want the same thing with our machines. Flashdrives are too much hassle -- just give us the information!
We want this thing to be waterproof. We understand that electricity and water do not mix, but this is the twenty first century! Who doesn't want to check their email in the pool, or film a video while running through the sprinklers? What about when you're lost outdoors, the GPS system is your only hope, but it starts to rain?
Neeks like to play board games. That is where the inspiration for the following came from. Layne Heiny wants a 22" screen so he can see easier. Elizabeth wants her computer size to switch between the size of her desk at school, and a Tablet PC. Our solution? An expandable screen. Because our machine is extremely lightweight, it has to be thin. And because it's thin, it can fold up. If you wanted to use the computer as a cell phone, you could fold it up all the way. It might end up a few inches thick, but that's better than nothing. If you're like Layne, you could expand it all the way, and if you're like Elizabeth, half way out would do. Each size remains a fully functional computer. After you have reached your desired size, you would snap it into place and pop out the keyboard.
These ideas may be a little far fetched, but if Bill Gates can think far into the future, why can't we?
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