Packard Bell busts out new Puma laptops, trio of new desktop lines

Packard Bell unleashed a big ol' set of machines in Italy today. Among the new laptops, the EasyNote RS65 13.3-incher cued some unusual design elements like red and chrome highlights and circular touchpad. It packs an Intel Centrino 2 and dedicated video card with DVI and HDMI. Other machines include the multimedia-friend ML (15.4-inch) and SL (17-inch) based on the Puma platform. Also of note are the MT (15.4-inch) and ST (17-inch) laptops, which include a "Battery Boost" button that allows you to switch between dedicated video and integrated Intel GMA chipsets in order to conserve unwired time. Finally, the TN line (pictured above) is set to appeal to a younger audience with low prices and multimedia features. In the desktop category, Packard Bell intro'd new i-Media, family-Extreme, and i-Max machines that run the gamut from diminutive budget boxes to gamer-friendly powerhouses. Peep the read link (in Italian) to get a deeper scoop.

[Ryan Cady @ Jun 10th 2008 10:53AM]

Packard Bell still exists?

[Flashpoint @ Jun 10th 2008 10:57AM]

I haven't heard that name since my uncle bought a 233mhz Pentium with 64 MB RAM from SEARS.

My entrance into PC Gaming. I was able to run Quake 2 in Software mode.

[j_g_puff @ Jun 10th 2008 11:02AM]

This was my first reaction too. Last time I used one of their machines must have been 2002...and I was amazed by how bad it was.

[OneLove @ Jun 10th 2008 11:11AM]

thats what i said.

[NHAnimator @ Jun 10th 2008 11:32AM]

Of course Packard Bell still exists. I just got a cheesy beef gordita from them the other day. Oh... wait...

[zeroburn @ Jun 10th 2008 11:34AM]

Packard Bell is actually still a fairly large brand outside of America from what I recall. Like when I went to the UK, Philips, Packard Bell, Sony, and a few other brands were more available than Dell or HP, which flood us here in the states for obvious reasons. Had the same reaction and mild disgust when I saw a rather nice looking Packard Bell outside of a Wal-mart where I wasn't in the year 1994

[Will @ Jun 10th 2008 11:34AM]

Packard Bell is "big" in Europe. They are not sold in the US.

[zephead @ Jun 10th 2008 11:35AM]

Haha, that's the same thing I said. The last time I used a Packard Bell, it was my dad's and I was maybe 6-7 years old, and the thing was running Windows 3.1! I even remember having to type "win" after the C:\> prompt to start up Windows, and occasionally "dosshell" to play Gorilla (type in speed/velocity, throw explosive banana). :D

[Mobius_1 @ Jun 10th 2008 11:39AM]

What's Packard Bell? I think I've never seen one in my entire life

[Mike @ Jun 10th 2008 11:47AM]

for the US, packard bell more or less designs stuff and then has it rebranded.

i remember that from a set of 5.1 headphones i bought....

[j_g_puff @ Jun 10th 2008 12:16PM]

Packard Bell: End.

[compuguy1088 @ Jun 10th 2008 1:17PM]

I remember packard bell....we owned two of those comptuers. One from 93' or 94', and one of hte last ones they made in 98' (an old cyrix based machine). They worked well for what they were made for. Though the first one we had the power switch broke and had to be fixed, otherwise it worked fine.

[TVGenius @ Jun 10th 2008 3:21PM]

Packard WHA???

[teej @ Jun 10th 2008 5:49PM]

before scrolling down, i said to myself, "Packard Bell still exists...will be the first comment." ilu

[youngcalihottie @ Jun 15th 2008 4:23AM]

i know it was already stated 50 times, but i still have to get it out too...

WOW!

i cant believe they are still around either!

f'n crazy!

C:\>PARK

[gabe @ Jun 10th 2008 10:53AM]

didn't know packard bell is still around.

well whatever

its still a nissan

[Dman25 @ Jun 10th 2008 10:54AM]

Does it Come with Naviagator! If so count me in.

[mikejcrowell @ Jun 10th 2008 10:55AM]

y

[Dman25 @ Jun 10th 2008 11:07AM]

Who doesnt like that cozy house...

[bohsocks @ Jun 10th 2008 10:58AM]

It does look good except...... circular trackpad?

What a country!

[Lamp @ Jun 10th 2008 10:58AM]

stop trolling.

[JerseyBricklayer @ Jun 10th 2008 11:00AM]

...test....

[Lamp @ Jun 10th 2008 11:01AM]

I dont understand the point of having a circular trackpad
when screens are clearly....rectangular.
It catches my eye for maybe 2 seconds,
and then I start moaning in frustration at it.

[bohsocks @ Jun 10th 2008 11:03AM]

Didn't you just call me a troll a minute ago when I made the EXACT same point?

[David @ Jun 10th 2008 11:08AM]

He was talking to Black

[Splunkster @ Jun 10th 2008 11:10AM]

He was talking to user "black," not you, Lamp. :-)

[Splunkster @ Jun 20th 2008 3:40PM]

Typo and redundant (though only after I posted my comment did I see David). My apologies, everyone. I'll not do that again.

[stardash @ Jun 10th 2008 11:15AM]

I love how people are scared of things changing. You know that you can adjust the sensitivity of your touch pad right? Hence you can make it work just fine for how you use your pad on your laptop regardless of the shape.

[happy_penguin @ Jun 10th 2008 11:42AM]

Key shape is irrelevant to trackpad shape. The trackpad needs to mimic the screen shape.

[Skry @ Jun 10th 2008 11:04AM]

I don't get why manufacturers are suddenly using circular track pads... they've appeared on a few other brands as well, and why do you need a circular track pad with a rectangular screen? it makes no sense, and to me looks awful.

[David @ Jun 10th 2008 11:09AM]

Packard Bell have been using circular trackpads for a while

And I have always wondered that same question

[David @ Jun 10th 2008 11:11AM]

The worst thing about the circular trackpad is that not only is the screen rectangular, but in windows much of the most used stuff is in the corners (just look at your screen now)

RET

[JerseyBricklayer @ Jun 10th 2008 11:15AM]

what? is the screen supposed to be round then... would that make it better?

[WarMouse @ Jun 10th 2008 11:53AM]

Think of it this way: if you have a circular mousepad, is it impossible to reach the corner of the screen?

The question isn't about it being circular, it's about it being large enough. If the circle is big enough, then it's fine. Obviously, however, it will be an inefficient use of space, given that you might as well have the corners, rather then rounding them off. But if it's big enough, then it's just an aesthetic quality, not one of functionality.

Side note: there was a really long ongoing conversation started by Clak, and I posted a nicely detailed comment, responding to the idea that Mac OSX is the best. But I think Engadet pulled the entire thread. Anyone else notice this?

[WarMouse @ Jun 10th 2008 12:07PM]

haha, wow, ignore my side note. this is finals week at my university, and the three days of not sleeping haven't been kind to me. I got confused between two different posts I commented on.

good lord, I'm an idiot.

so, circular trackpads, eh?

[ndroberts77 @ Jun 10th 2008 11:14AM]

PLEASE STOP PUTTING AUDIO PLUGS ON THE FRONT!!!
Its not convenient to have a plug and wire there when you plug the lappy into external speakers. And don't get me started about having VGA plugs on the side. Since when was it bad to have plugs on the back of a laptop?

[pepitoe @ Jun 10th 2008 11:30AM]

Completely agree, I wouldn't buy a laptop with the audio plugs on the front as I want to leave it plugged in to decent speakers when at home.

[josearoldan @ Jun 10th 2008 11:43AM]

Yeah I hate that about my cheap acer, it has the damn audio on the front and Im a afraid I might break the plug one of these days while typing! Also the damn VGA port on the LEFT side! What happened to placing it on the back? It was way better that way on my old thinkpad!

[RichardBronosky @ Jun 10th 2008 1:07PM]

THERE IS NO PROPER LOCATION FOR A VGA PORT!!!!
http://www.bronosky.com/?p=54

[TMFAN @ Jun 10th 2008 11:28AM]

Ok, spill it. Who's paying you?

[CaptSaltyJack @ Jun 10th 2008 11:31AM]

Packard Hell died long ago for a good reason: they suck. I don't expect their comeback to last too long, either.

[tanooki2003 @ Jun 10th 2008 11:33AM]

For those of you who are wondering if Packard Bell still exits, they are still around...etc, do not compare them to the failed and miserable former Packard Bell company of the USA. Unlike the USA Packard Bell, the company overseas has been thriving with a lot of business and a great customer satisfaction record.

[FRZ @ Jun 10th 2008 1:14PM]

Apparently oversees, anything sells.

[Ryan Cady @ Jun 10th 2008 11:36AM]

No, what do you mean?

[Timmy @ Jun 10th 2008 11:38AM]

Crapperd Bell....ick, back in the early 90's i was one of the first PC Techs when Best Buy started having them in their stores and we always had a stack of returns 2 deep as high as the ceiling waiting to be sent back to the manufacturer. (I know they sold their name to a different company but that does not help any.

[tanooki2003 @ Jun 10th 2008 11:39AM]

Believe it or not if you have actually seen, operated, or own one of these PB laptops from overseas you will see that the quality far surpasses the Acer/Gateway/Emachine equivalent conglomerate based laptops.

Unfortunately the burned image of PB in the USA will prevent anyone from actually taking a second look at the overseas models.

[Thi mam(kris120890) @ Jun 10th 2008 11:48AM]

Packard bell is quite a good manufacturer like you said the outsell quite a lot of us manufacturers because of supperior quality.

[tanooki2003 @ Jun 10th 2008 11:51AM]

I also forgot to mention that PB overseas has a totally different company structure than what the former US company did.

[Dubb @ Jun 10th 2008 12:40PM]

I think Acer owns Packard Bell/Gateway/eMachines

http://www.cbronline.com/article_news.asp?guid=9508ABB7-62D4-43B1-95E8-1C54BB0F9102

[thedesolate1 @ Jun 10th 2008 11:46AM]

Wait u mean they still exist???