Roger Cauvin points out that smartphones have become so advanced that they perform many of the same functions as laptop computers. He predicts:

…the laptop computer of the future will be a mobile phone to which you can attach a portable but external high-resolution monitor and full QWERTY keyboard.

I’ve thought about this as well – usually more in the context of my Palm device rather than a phone (now that I have a Treo, those are the same). I agree with Roger that this will happen, but that input and output devices are going to be very different from what we use today. Something like this cute SV-6 PC Viewer from Micro Optical Corp that just fits on your eyeglasses and projects an image directly into your eye:

and perhaps a one-handed “keyboard” like the HandyKey Twiddler:

It’s not qwerty but it’s a lot smaller than a full-size keyboard and can be used with one hand. To me this kind of rig would be perfect for use on an airplane (in coach), for example, where I can’t even open my regular laptop.

What are your visions for the future of personal computing – meaning a computer on your person?

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