Intel's Metro laptop prototype is "world's thinnest"

Watch out Sony, it looks like your Vaio X505's title for thinnest / lightest laptop ever is about to be challenged by some new Intel-sponsored Ziba designs intended to push the envelope of portability. The 0.7-inch thick 2.2-pound Metro features an external e-ink display, and might actually stand a chance at redefining slim computing -- if it's ever built, anyway. Enjoy the eye candy, it's going to be a while before you get any closer to a laptop of this caliber than some pictures on the internets.

[bob e @ May 24th 2007 3:53PM]

My girlfriend would LOVE one of these! Is that a large side show display !!!

[scooter @ May 24th 2007 4:03PM]

I am GREEDY and NEEDFUL for QUALITY and DESIGN in a notebook. I DEVOUR news on the Vaios and Thinkpads. My own T60 is CHERISHED, yet I HUNGER for MORE. ENGADGET... SUBDUES my DESIRE but does not SATIATE it. This is one I want TODAY, Intel. Bring it on, you will make MONEY.

On a side note, Macbooks don't do it for me.

[wWw @ May 24th 2007 4:14PM]

Metro?? They mean CHOCOLATE

[Mark @ May 24th 2007 4:16PM]

OMFG!!! I WANT ONE NOW!!!!

[Dp462090 @ May 24th 2007 4:17PM]

That is the coolest looking laptop.

[fredmant @ May 24th 2007 4:20PM]

Where's the track point? Lenovo rules!

[boe @ May 24th 2007 4:21PM]

Any info on exactly which processors/speeds it will support? Will it have an optical drive in it?

[Alex @ May 24th 2007 4:27PM]

That is gorgeous. Better than any Apple notebooks, and that really says something.

[scott @ May 24th 2007 4:27PM]

dude, it only has USB ports and a headphone jack, that sucks... at least stick one port faster than 480 Mbps on it...

unless it has a dock, which would kick ass

[Chuckles McGee @ May 24th 2007 4:28PM]

Looks awesome. I had no idea that e-ink was being used to display moving images. The keyboard style vaguely reminds me of Logitech's Dinovo Edge.

[Rick @ May 24th 2007 4:35PM]

Wow, great idea. Oh, it's not in production? We have no idea about real-world durability?

Yeah, great IDEA.

[brendan Sheehan jnr @ May 24th 2007 4:39PM]

I hope Apple is paying attention. This is the kind sub-notebook MacBook people would eat up.

[HamiltonGuy @ May 24th 2007 4:40PM]

re comparisons to Apple laptops...

Since Apple joined the Intel fold, both have supposedly been working together on "insanely great future projects". This design is not typical "Intel" so...

Who's to say this isn't close to a (revised) MacBook(Pro) to come?

Rumour has the Apple portables due for a refresh come June WWDC... we'll have to see :-)

...

[Dean @ May 24th 2007 10:54PM]

how bout cuz it has a windows keyboard and is running vista

[Macboi @ May 24th 2007 4:41PM]

It would be perfect if it didn't run crappy Vista software. I mean, who can stand using that gigantic bloatware on such a computer. There's always something wrong with the latest technology. Linxu all the way baby.

[patsy @ May 24th 2007 4:48PM]

That keyboard looks utterly unusable. Other than that, I want me one of them!

[John Gully @ May 24th 2007 4:51PM]

I'd like to see more of the e-ink displays...

[donut @ May 24th 2007 4:55PM]

"re comparisons to Apple laptops...

Since Apple joined the Intel fold, both have supposedly been working together on "insanely great future projects". This design is not typical "Intel" so...

Who's to say this isn't close to a (revised) MacBook(Pro) to come?

Rumour has the Apple portables due for a refresh come June WWDC... we'll have to see :-)"

agreed. There are definitely subtle Apple styling features built into this laptop. For example, the hinge is very MacBook/Pro-like. The clean lines, large trackpad etc also look to be partially inspired by Apple. Not to mention the backlit keyboard.

Also, there have be rumors of a ultra-portable 13" MacBook Pro that doesn't have a built in optical drive, so could this be a sign of things to come?

[Colin @ May 24th 2007 4:56PM]

Dayum! Now THIS is a sexy design. It's nice to see a PC laptop that gets rid of all the legacy stuff, and isn't covered with flaps and bumps and vents all over the place.

The bezel around the LCD seems larger than it needs to be, especially at the bottom. That huge Side Show display is awesome though. The purse strap is maybe a bit silly looking, and I could do without the fake gold, but this is a solid design.

[Kieran @ May 24th 2007 5:02PM]

Ummm is it me or is it running a beta version of vista? And if so how old is that image?

[tnkgrl @ May 24th 2007 5:05PM]

Wow! That new MacBook mini is awesome...

[antyquadrat @ May 24th 2007 5:07PM]

Sorry but for me it looks like macbook pro on diet with black keyboard, palm rest and lid. Why didn't they (PC makers) copy Apple design when it was time to (years ego)?

[Chris @ May 24th 2007 5:29PM]

Antyquadrat, clearly you're related to Rick.

Your comment may as well have been, "It looks like a Macbook Pro, but different..."

And the Macbook Pro looks like the notebooks that preceded it, but different as well, just like the Motorola RAZR looks like the mobile phones that preceded it, but different.

The Macbook didn't mark the beginning of the notebook design paradigm, and neither did the RAZR for mobile phones. They both made had designs that were less utilitarian, but their overall functionality wasn't fundamentally different from the devices that preceded them in their respective product fields.

I think it's pretty obvious that Intel's purpose is to show that laptops can be made thinner, lighter, and more stylish without necessarily trading away much of its essential functionality.

[Chris @ May 24th 2007 5:10PM]

Rick,

You either have a vision problem, or you're just stupid.

The title of the article is, "Intel's Metro laptop prototype is "world's thinnest"" Can you guess what the word, "prototype" means??

Use the link below for a handy reference:
http://mw1.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prototype

[Alex Marchuk @ May 24th 2007 5:27PM]

Fake. 100%

Take a look at the keyboard, it's the Macbook Pro keyboard. If it was real, they could atleast design their own keyboard.

[Jeff Lewis @ May 25th 2007 8:04AM]

If you took the time to follow the link and look at the closeups in the gallery - you'd see the keyboard looks nothing like the MacBook's keyboard.

[antyquadrat @ May 24th 2007 5:48PM]

Chris,
Have you seen PC notebooks when Apple released Alu Powerbook. If you want to have nice looking laptop you need to use the same kind of lid closing that is used in Apple Power(alu)/Mac/Mac Pro/book. Of course I write it as Apple memeber of the cult, but the fact is that before first Powerbook I used to love PCs and crying that there was no PC notebook with Apple design. So you are wright and wrong - depends on point of view.
BTW as a comment to your other post - beeing rude brings nothing good to conversation. ;-)

[crescentdavid @ May 24th 2007 5:32PM]

Let's see, it's got always on wireless connectivity with cellular, wi-fi or wi-max networks; a diary-like folder which also is a wireless charger and has a screen to display a picture, calendar or schedule; rimless screen with autobrightness, a magnesium case ALL in a 2.25 lb, .7 in. wide form.

It looks as much like an macbook as a 2nd generation Clix looks like a Nano.

It's as beautiful and edgy as fanbois are ill-informed and provincial.

Hint: read the article(S).

[TJ @ May 24th 2007 5:33PM]

I wonder how the keyboard feels. It looks hard to type in. But overall its a nice looking machine. I just hope they didn't trade in comfort with looks.

[Sir Issac Newton @ May 24th 2007 5:53PM]

New Headline Suggestion:

Metro Laptop prototype is the worlds most flimsy and fragile laptop in the world!

lawls

[js @ May 24th 2007 6:24PM]

Fujitsu Q2010 anyone? Been out for a year. Nothing revolutionary here.

NEXT!

[Richard Lai @ May 24th 2007 6:52PM]

Huh? The keyboard is nothing like the MacBook Pro's. What are you guys on about?

[ark_v2 @ May 24th 2007 6:56PM]

That's...the most beautiful laptop I've ever seen. WOW

[Sam @ May 24th 2007 6:59PM]

I'm sorry this thing smacks so much of Apple design. The hinge, in vents, the webcam, the trackpad, the keyboard. It's beautiful and indeed unique in many aspects but to deny any influence by Apple is just ignorance. The fact that this post will be voted to the bottom doesn't make it any less true.

[RIFRAF @ May 24th 2007 7:06PM]

I wouldn't mind getting one, but they never said how much it's going to be? Not cheap I bet..

[Chris @ May 24th 2007 7:20PM]

Intel would not want to jeopardize its relationships with its customers by going into direct competition with them.

Unless what we're seeing is actually the product of an unnamed third-party, I doubt that this particular device will actually be productized and offered its current form (sadly.) It'll probably end up with the other interesting design studies that Intel has done in the past to get its channel customers to consider new directions. (But I still want one!!)

[Mesonto @ May 24th 2007 7:27PM]

Why is it whenever some other design group designs something, the Apple idiots come a calling whatever it is "apple-like"?

Back-lit keyboards, thin, trackpad, etc... were all done by a PC company before Apple gets around to it. Apple products are always behind the technology curve.

Admittedly Apple puts these features all in one package, and they do look good. But my God (not yours), this notebook from Intel blows any Macbook out of the water. At least this image does.

And before the Macheads attack the last comment, your iPhone is also just a picture.

Anyway, the Intel machine looks truly fantastic, similar to the thin machine Sony came out with a few years earlier (that wasn't vapourware - maybe the next Macbook will be like the old Sony laptop... woohoo fan boys, you will be first again, isn't Apple great!!!).

Either way, I like the new machines that get rid of the old legacy ports... it is about time!

[donut @ May 24th 2007 7:42PM]

mesonto, maybe instead of being a blatant apple hater, you should actually look at the picture and compare it to what Apple has done since aluminum PowerBooks were first introduced years ago. Right now, the MacBook Pro's are only 1" thin, and Apple can easily reduce it down to less than that by removing the built-in optical drive and use for ex the thin hard drives used in iPods. Don't be surprised if Apple actually come out with something in production sooner than this prototype.

Legacy ports? Apple hasn't used those in years....

[darter9000 @ May 24th 2007 8:13PM]

The must be some limit to how thin laptops can get before just tapping on the keyboard is just as risy as carrying them around. >.>

[BigD @ May 24th 2007 8:29PM]

If this thing had an Optimus-like keyboard, it would fill the stratosphere with vapor, and several world governments would have no choice but to force its production.

[Rene Fournier @ May 24th 2007 10:22PM]

Not bad. But my brother's MacBook Pro is even thinner:

www.gpspolice.net/blog/2007/05/24/i-loved-my-macbook-pro-part-1/

[Mitch @ May 24th 2007 10:38PM]

It's a TiBook not a Macbook

[Nick @ May 25th 2007 12:38AM]

Is it just me or does that computer only have one USB port?

[Brian Wenger @ May 25th 2007 1:28AM]

Oh yeah

[Ethan Duffy @ May 25th 2007 4:31AM]

I'd rather manufactures worked on making their laptops thinner widthways and lengthways, which would make the screen smaller, but would mean you could just chuck it into a bag.

[HamiltonGuy @ May 25th 2007 10:03AM]

Mesonto... you're full of it.

Before slamming Apple supporters for inaccuracies you should get your own "facts" right. The early Apple laptops determined the industrial/ergonomic design of todays laptops.

Apple (1991) was the first to move the keyboard to the back of the unit (which allowed for built-in wrist-rests, now an industry standard design); first with a built-in trackball (while "PC"-based machines started using the IBM "eraser"/pointer if at all) which later became a first with the introduction of a usable track pad; despite M. Dells claim, first with built-in wireless; (I believe) first with backlit keyboard as a option (with auto adjust brightness for keyboard and screen); first with a "large" (17") screen; etc.

http://inventors.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/powerbook/stats/mac%5Fpowerbook100.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PowerBook
(se "Early Powerbooks"... Powerbook 100/140/150/170)

And proof of your delusions... "Apple products are always behind the technology curve." Apple is often first while others follow and if not first, usually shows how to do it right (ie, iPod & iTunes).

Apple laptop have generally been well designed and distinct vs Windows-based units (which, with the exception of Sony, practically all look alike. For the most part, could you tell one from the other without a company logo on it?)

As others have stated, there is more of an Apple influence shown than from your present, typical Windows-based laptop design.

And it's ironic that Windows fanboys (and OEMs) have been so critical of Apple in the past for stressing design (form over function) yet as of late, they're falling over themselves trying to create and push "knock out" designs.

How times and beliefs change.

re Dean... "windows keyboard and running Vista"... possibilities

1. which OS is Intel's biggest "customer"; 2. which computer exec doesn't like his future products revealed; 3. it is just a concept

...