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The Newton MessagePad 100 was a precursor to the iPhone, you could say. Released back in August 1993, it was revolutionary in so many ways, from the operating system to the touch screen.
Apple had formed the Newton group in 1988 and given it the task of developing a new generation of “intimate computing devices.” That would result in a device with pen input, advanced organizational functions, communication capabilities as well as an operating system that learned from its interactions with the user.
Then Apple CEO John Sculley described the first Newton it as a highly portable and smart device that could capture, organize and communicate information for a user. The Newton was a $700 device, slightly smaller than an A5 piece of paper, with a black and white display (336 x 240 pixels), 640kb internal memory, and a 20MB processor.
This was all very much way ahead of its time but unfortunately the Newton bombed.
Arguably the biggest disappointment was the really poor handwriting recognition. Users could write text directly on the Newton’s screen with a stylus and the device would interpret it and turn it into digital text. The problem was that the processor was way too slow to keep up with most users and too many mistakes were made. The Newton was also very expensive, making any mass market appeal all but impossible.
Apple kept developing the Newton-line and more MessagePad models followed including the eMate 300, a clamshell netbook-style Newton with keyboard meant for the education market. The series culminated with the 2100, which featured a 162MHz processor, fast enough to keep up with the handwriting recognition, and a much improved Newton OS 2.1.
But it didn’t matter that the 2100 was a very good device, it was too late to save the MessagePad and in February 1998 Apple issued a statement saying that all further development was cancelled. Since then enthusiasts have kept the platform alive with more apps being developed, hacks created to get modern hardware to work, etc. I own a MessagePad 2000, which can connect to Wi-Fi, browse the web and do email. That’s pretty good for such an old device.
Fast forward to 2007 and the release of the first iPhone, in almost every way a better device than any Newton model. For anyone who has experienced a Newton device, they can see many of the similarities.
One important question is obviously whether iPhone would have turned out the way it did if Apple had not ventured into the MessagePad project. My guess is no. The Newton may have been a short-lived and costly affair for Apple, but I don’t think there’s any doubt that it sowed the seeds for future projects like the iPhone.
