With the recent launch of Intel’s Atom processor and the explosive proliferation of Apple’s iPhone 3G, there’s been an uptick in breathless discussion around the potential for Mobile Internet Devices and Netbooks as a class of personal computer that will gradually displace laptops as most users’ principle computing and communication tool – what might eventually be the swiss-army knife of the web worker.

The arrival of Apple and Intel’s foundation technologies are just one part of the infrastructure needed to support such a step change; as Apple’s own botched launch of Mobile Me has illustrated, appropriate and highly reliable services aren’t a trivial step.

The recently launched Oosah is another service that aims to provide services ‘in the cloud’ for the emerging class of mobile internet devices. Optimised specifically for the iPhone at http://m.oosah.com, the service pitches itself as ‘1TB in the palm of your hand’ with its range of media storage features for photos, music and video.

A defacto 1TB iPhone is a bold claim to make – and coupled with always-on access to media stored at Oosah, is a compelling proposition. The execution of the service seems a little mundane, organised into files and folders, requiring users to upload files one at a a time to the web service for later access via the iPhone-optimised mobile interface. How about a Googley or Spotlighty search metaphor?

Living your life in the cloud requires web-based services to reach deeper into the guts of mobile internet devices; iPhones need to synchronise with services like Oosah and enable client applications to reach back into Oosah programmatically. My MacBook should sync up with Oosah as invisibly as Time Capsule continually backs up my hard drive. Conversely, iPhone applications such as ‘iPod‘ and ‘Photos‘ should be able to pull their data from remote sources. I won’t even get into the impact on unlimited data plans on telcos, though perhaps they stand to benefit from a PC-as-a-Service, or PCaaS, model…

Ultimately, the ecosphere of technologies and services that’s neccessary to make for a useful mobile internet device requires all parties to commit to a sharp degree of openness. Right now, large parts of the iPhone are off-limits to developers, cellcos are still hobbling unlimited data plans and the iPhone developer programme can appear to be quite draconian to some unfortunate third party developers.

However, I’m optimistic that as Apple evolves its developer relationships, services like Oosah might well evolve into extraordinary services, that do indeed bring 1TB to the palm of your hand.

Recently there has been quite a bit of activity in the world of Mobile Internet Devices (MID).  What does this new class of computing device have to offer the web worker?

Lets begin with hardware.  For the most part, MID’s include:

• Large, bright screens that are high resolution (for their size)
• Built-in Wi-Fi
• Touch screen or hardware based-keyboard
• Media expansion through SD Cards
• Bluetooth for use with wireless keyboards and other devices
• On-board camera

Mix this fantastic array with the right software and the result is a productive device for staying in touch with your business contacts wherever you can get a Wi-Fi signal.  MIDs allow workers to easily communicate via email, IM, Chat, and blogging.  Additionally, with office productivity applications you can create and edit office documents, gain web access, and watch audio/video files for entertainment.

Nokia was an early leader in this category of mini computers with their N770 device.  After this the company refreshed the line with the N800 and the newly released N810 (covered before).

Focusing on the N800 and N810, these devices run a version of the Linux operating system and have a full suite of available applications that allow users to: interact with email, browse the web, conduct VoIP calling with Skype/Gizmo Project, and many other tasks.

The N800 and N810 look very similar, but the N810 features a slide out QWERTY keyboard and a faster processor.  Nokia released a new version of the N810 with WIMAX capabilities earlier this week at CTIA.  The inclusion of WIMAX technology will mean when the WIMAX networks are built out, you’ll be able to access the net when outside of the reach of Wi-Fi signals.

Intel is also jumping into the MID fray with the release of their Intel Centrino Atom processor.  These devices will be made by multiple manufactures and are being debuted at the Intel Developer Forum in Shanghai, China.  The new MID devices are mostly running Linux and are being aimed at a variety of audiences: from those seeking business connectivity to users looking for entertainment options.

It will be very interesting to watch the near-term developments in this part of the computing world.  Mobile internet devices, with their small size and vast array of capabilities have much to offer to the mobile web worker.