MessagePad

The MessagePad was a series of touchscreen mobile devices and the very first tablet computer released by Apple Computer as part of its Newton platform.

Development
Three Newton models were originally planned for release: a large 9 x 12 inch version codenamed Senior, a mid-sized 6 x 9 inch version that was quickly cancelled, and a small 4.5 x 7 inch version codenamed Junior which would go on to become the MessagePad.

Release
On May 29, 1992, Apple CEO John Sculley unveiled the first device, tentatively called the Newton NotePad, during the keynote address of the in. However, it was still beset by thousands of bugs when 4,000 prototype units went into production on May 26, 1993 for use at displays at retail stores. The first MessagePad finally began shipping on August 3, 1993 at Macworld Expo Boston for the base price of 699. It ran a monochrome version of Newton OS, which was advanced for its day, and came with a stylus similar to the. By 1995, tepid sales of the MessagePad 120 forced Apple to resort to rebates to help move inventory of devices and accessories. The MessagePad 2000 and eMate 300 introduced grayscale support in March 1997. Though this helped improve sales, the Newton platform was discontinued on February 27, 1998. Around 200,000 units had been sold.

Legacy
The iPhone and iPad, released in 2007 and 2010 respectively, are considered to be spiritual successors to the MessagePad. A similar stylus did not appear from Apple until 2015 with the Apple Pencil for the iPad Pro. In 2020, iPadOS 14 introduced handwriting recognition for Apple's iPad line.

Articles

 * A Guide to the Apple Newton by Stephen Hackett at 512 Pixels (2015-08-18)
 * Retro Apple: The Apple Newton MessagePad was well ahead of its time by Steve Sande at Rocket Yard (2020-08-21, archived 2020-10-21)

Tutorials

 * Hardware projects for the Apple Newton MessagePad and eMate at PDA Soft