killing the Newton when he returned to Apple because it had been championed by

John Sculley, the Apple CEO who had ousted Jobs from his own company.

According to Newton fans, however, the product was turning a corner when

it got shelved. Newton enthusiasts don’t think the device’s reputation as a failed

device is fair and are quick to come to its defense. When Hutchinson spoke of the

device, he put air quotes around the word failure. “The Newton did not fail,” said

Hutchinson, a web design and software consultant from Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

“It was early to market, and it was killed just as it was getting going. The thing that

gets under my skin is when people call Google Glass or the Apple Car the next

Newton. Don’t compare Betamax tapes to Newton.”

The Newton Talk mailing list, which Hutchinson oversees, has a membership

of just under 1,000. With several active Newton user groups overseas (Japan is

a “hotbed” for Newton aficionados), he believes the number of Newtonists is

around 4,000.

To appreciate the various generations of Newtons, check out the Newton

Flickr group, which is just shy of 300 members.

03.003.02

Mobile computing in the 1990s was done

on the Newton MessagePad. PHOTO:

Grant Hutchinson

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