Image courtesy of Olo

In the summer of 2007, netbooks didn't exist. And, unlike most people, I thought Palm's proto-netbook called the Foleo was a good idea. It was essentially a netbook that used a Palm Treo as a wireless modem. The idea of a low-cost ($600 was the proposed list price for the Foleo) and lightweight notebook with 2.5 or 3G access seemed like a great idea then and now. Unfortunately, it never saw the light of day. Celio's Redfly took the Foleo concept, reduced its onboard functions to zero, but priced it at the relatively high price of $500 in a world that does know about cheaper netbooks. Celio dropped Redfly's price to a more reasonable $200 for this month. But, I'm not convinced I need a dumb terminal for my Windows Mobile smartphone.

Over the weekend, I read this on Liliputing.com...

OLO Computer would turn an iPhone into a netbook

As you can see in the photo and read in the article, the iPhone is dropped right into the Olo and becomes both its brains and touchpad. Neither the article nor the Olo website provides more detailed information or pricing.

If the Olo becomes available with a sane price (say $250 or less), it has a huge advantage over the Redfly+Windows Mobile combo. The iPhone Safari mobile web browser does a credible job with most conventional websites. Windows Mobile's web browser simply does not render many conventional websites correctly regardless of screen size. The Olo+iPhone combo, on the other hand, could give its owner a good mobile browsing experience with a 2.5 or 3G connection.

Of course, this could be vaporware. And, Apple might announce something on Tuesday (Oct. 14) that renders the Olo unnecessary. But, for the next couple of hours, it remains a good idea.