Long Zheng reminds us that Windows Sideshow is (still) coming. His last picture shows one of the prototype detachable devices that can dock to the lid of certain notebooks. We've been seeing this one for a while, and the next few months will show if anyone is actually going to ship these to consumers.
This led me to an idea... how cool would it be if you could get a Zune dock as an option on your laptop, and your Zune could also run Windows Sideshow? Between that and the Xbox 360 integration... I think it would be a "must buy" product for a decent percentage of people. And the orange already matches the Zune UI. Not convinced? Here's some Photoshop fun:
Wouldn't THAT be sweet :). Is it a coincidence that the Sideshow device and the Zune are almost the exact same size? I don't think so.
Anyways, here's one more Sideshow device that I'd pay for... a Picture Frame that could double as a WiFi connected Media Center display that I could use to watch TV through while I'm working on my computer, without sacrificing screen real estate. Here's what it might look like, using the Living Picture momento 100 as an example:
Those are some of my thoughts. There are plenty of other Sideshow devices coming, like remote controls, drive-mount displays, and keyboards. But I think the best use would be a Sideshow-integrated wall-mounted home security/automation system. Think about it. Give it a keypad and mount it to your wall, and after you enter your security code, you can check to see if the kids left any messages, check which TV shows are recording tonight, and set the music you want to listen to while you get dinner ready. Now THAT would be cool.
Oh yeah... what ever happened to the PocketPC/Smartphone version of Sideshow? I thought a beta was supposed to be released a while back? I'd really like to be able to see this on my phone (not Photoshopped):
Alright. I'm done with the gratuitous pictures. For now ;). What device would YOU create for Windows Sideshow?