During the 1990s, we used one gadget after another that we now look at with a mix of nostalgia, fondness... and, to be honest, a pinch of dread. One of the most recent examples we explored was the Casio Secret Sender 6000 organizer, which sent messages and worked as a remote control, but today we have something even stranger, to the point that we could imagine it as part of the first generation of smartwatches: the Seiko Ruputer Pro, with a joystick on the top and a requirement for two batteries.
Smartwatches were supposed to cover all our needs. After growing up with ideas like the PipBoy, the truth is that we were basically begging for the possibility of carrying a mini computer on our wrists. However, smartwatches got stuck in the category of accessories for the traditional smartphone, and most users decided to ignore them completely. Believe it or not, the concept of the smartwatch has been with us for a long time, and the first available models were, (despite the difficulties), a bit more independent. One of them was the Ruputer Pro manufactured by Seiko, while in the West it was known as the onHand PC, under the wing of Matsucom.
Specifications and Design
The Pro designation in the name indicates that the Ruputer Pro is actually an optimized version of the original Ruputer. The Ruputer Pro features a 16-bit processor running at 3.6 MHz, 2 megabytes of flash storage (512 KB in the first Ruputer), 128 kilobytes of RAM, and another 128 kilobytes of ROM. Its operating system is W-PS-DOS, version 1.16, according to the available information. The interface combines a fairly adequate mix of graphics and text, with enough complexity to present advanced characters (Japanese language) without requiring a higher resolution (barely 102 x 64 pixels on its LCD screen, with backlight). With the exception of the processor, the general specifications of the Ruputer Pro are similar to those seen in the early generations of Palm Pilot.
Controls and Limitations
The device can be controlled in three different ways: using the joystick and side buttons, creating an infrared link with a maximum speed of 9,600 bits per second, or using its dock of synchronization, much larger than the watch, with a limit of 38,400 bits per second. The format of the Ruputer Pro was very interesting at first glance, but fundamentally uncomfortable once it came into action. The screen is too small, the joystick becomes a nightmare after a few minutes, and let's not forget the power factor. Official compatibility speaks of two CR2025 batteries (although there is no problem installing two standard CR2032), however, it is impossible to extract more than a day and a half of autonomy. In short, the Seiko Ruputer Pro is not very useful today, but it definitely deserves a place in any collection, and it's not the only weird watch made by Seiko. They even turned one into a portable television...
