Microsoft Tablet (Courier) Revealed in Stunning Pics and Video

We’ve heard so very little about the Microsoft tablet project, aside from a few rumors from people assuring us it actually exists. But it was hard to get excited about that when there were so many more details and renders of the Apple Tablet popping up periodically. Now we can officially say we’ve forgotten all about the Apple Tablet because the first pictures AND video of the Microsoft Tablet have appeared in that magical place called the internet. See both below.

Both the pictures and video come from The Paperboy on Gizmodo. It’s too official looking to be a leak, so it must be a guestblog from someone involved in the research on the tablet or the beginning of Microsoft’s marketing campaign for the device. We don’t care though because we’re too busy drooling over the video.

As you can well see, the tablet is gorgeous. We were surprised to discover Microsoft went with the folding dual-screen approach instead of the traditional single screen, and if you had told us it would be folding before seeing this video we would have scoffed. How can that be done so that you can use both screens effectively? But after seeing the demo in the video, we’re convinced.

Let’s be clear here, the video is more of a proof of concept than an actual product demo, so the whole thing could be destroyed if the Courier tablet doesn’t turn out EXACTLY like this. But if Microsoft can make it do exactly what it does in the video, the dual-screen should be no problem. It also shows that Microsoft has put some significant thought into creating something that improves work flow. You can change apps in each screen so you can transfer images, files and notes from one app to another by sliding it to the other screen.

The video is also instructive because it’s obvious the Courier tablet isn’t running some simple Windows port. The UI and presumably the OS behind it are designed for both finger and stylus input, and it’s built around a series of apps. We’re intrigued to find out if the Courier tablet will be able to download more apps from the Windows Marketplace, like so many other Microsoft devices. We also want to know how accurate Microsoft can make the stylus. Styli haven’t been known to transfer written text to screens very reliably, and since these screens would need to be capacitive to handle multitouch gestures, we’re wondering how well a stylus would work at all.

Here’s what we do know from The Paperboy’s post. Courier is in the “late prototype” stage of development, so don’t expect it to hit shelves any time soon. The two screens are both about 7 inches diagonally. The hinge between the screens holds the home button (demonstrated in the video) and also can act as a sort of “pocket” to store items you want to transfer from one screen to the other. It’s unclear how that differs from the flicking motion that obviously sends things to the other screen.

Status lights, for things like wireless signal and battery life, will be displayed along the rim of one screen. No details on what kind of wireless connectivity (WiFi? 3G?) it will have are available either.

The good news is that The Paperboy says he’ll be back with more news and details about the Microsoft Courier tablet over the next few days, so this won’t be the last we see of the Courier.

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