The e-Loam F7: it will drive you completely insane with jealousy

Been hankering for a cheapo UMPC? Perhaps the folks at e-Loam can answer your strained prayers. Enter the F7, a VIA C7-based handheld with a 1.2GHz CPU, 1GB of RAM, a 8GB (or 80GB) hard drive, WiFi, and... not much else. The teensy device boots XP, has Bluetooth, a 0.3 megapixel webcam, and features a resistive 7-inch touchscreen (cool stylus included). There's not much more info on this guy right now, but based on the pictures, it appears to have stereo speakers, and Pocketables speculates there may be an optical mouse somewhere in this mix. Regardless, we spent this whole post trying to figure out how loam -- a fertile soil of clay and sand containing humus -- fits into the picture.

[Via Pocketables]

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 8:53AM]

8 or 80GB?

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:15AM]

8GB would probably be a SSD while the 80 GB is probably a HDD. Given those sizes, they're probably using a 1.8" drive.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 10:50AM]

WHAT THE HELL is THAT LONG PEN-LIKE THING ????????????????


My iPhone doesn't have one of those !!!!!

[Ross McLean Posted Jan 17th 2009 10:57AM]

Flashpoint meet capacitive touch

Capacitive touch, meet Flashpoint

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 1:13PM]

@Ross

Correction:
Flashpoint meet resistive touch

Resistive touch, meet Flashpoint

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 1:15PM]

Ughh @Genomalice... :(

Correction:

iPhone meet capacitive touch

Capacitive touch, meet Flashpoint

P.S. Engadget needs to add a delete post function

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 1:17PM]

OMG...iFAIL

Please disregard my last post...aka the one above this one... I'm at work pulling off another 14 hour-er..

P.S. We Reallllly need that delete function Engadget!!

[ChrisAre Posted Jan 17th 2009 1:45PM]

@Geno

If Engadget did that people would be able to go back and delete the stupid shit they say that gets them low-ranked.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 11:07PM]

That would be great tho... you wouldn't have to see/read all them "FIRST!!!" posts and those iPhone posts that have abolsolutely nothing to do with the post they're commenting on.

[SHEAesthetic Posted Jan 18th 2009 4:20AM]

@Flashpoint:
Take a look in your pants. It much like that thing Steve Jobs has his hands wrapped around in there.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 18th 2009 12:05PM]

If 7 inch screen is like 16 colors, I'll pass.
Unless its like $50

[SpeedySurfer Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:01AM]

It doesn't look very pretty. Actually, it looks a bit dated.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 18th 2009 7:07AM]

The camera seems kind of dated at "0.3 megapixel"...

[saintdavid Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:05AM]

Im going to give this to my unborn child on his 21st birthday

[saintdavid Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:06AM]

or her

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 10:36AM]

Unless they already know it's a boy...

[FordGTGuy Posted Jan 17th 2009 7:35PM]

Knee to the Groin is the reason he can't have kids...

[A7 Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:04AM]

stylus? how does that work for text input? Does that mean it will it be sporting xp tablet edition... and if so....ugh :(

astro

[Mike Cerm Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:06PM]

I know that Vista has handwriting recognition, but I don't know whether XP Tablet Edition has it or not, or how well it works.

Windows also has a built-in on-screen keyboard. On a 7-inch screen, the keys might be so small that you need the stylus for accuracy.

[Electromodo Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:14AM]

Looks nice, what is the price?

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 12:36PM]

your soul.

[Ohse Posted Jan 17th 2009 4:54PM]

Cool, I'll take three.

[r34p3r Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:14AM]

When are companies going to ditch the resistive screens and move over to capacitive technology?

Though to be fair, the benefit of resistive tech is the fact you can use it under any circumstance, even if you have gloves on. Something I'm sure iPhone users can attest to having troubles with in cold or inclement weather...

[PhoenixFox Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:34AM]

because capacitive isn't precise enough for using for handwriting input and precise options in Windows and stuff :P

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:49AM]

Seriously, you need a stylus to do proper computing without a mouse or a keyboard. Either that, or a 22-inch screen with 800x600.

[r34p3r Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:15AM]

Secondary post:

Does the design of the hardware remind anyone else of the Creative Zen Vision: W?

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 18th 2009 12:22AM]

I have the W and yes, it does. Pretty good player, IMO.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:21AM]

Probably due to the touch built in to Win 7 the UMPC will make a reappearance this Fall joining the netbook and creating a new category of devices. Bill had the idea right but the tech wasn't up to the task in 06.

Lets put Win 7 on this and see what happens!
Or how about Win 7 on the original Sammy Q1?

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:21AM]

if it cost a 10'er it's a great product!

... if it costs more.. not so much..

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:41AM]

OED FTW ^^
e-Loam looks peculiar, mind.

[superhobo Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:41AM]

It's electronic loam, duh.

Awesome!

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:45AM]

FWIW, I think the e-Loam may come from the actual Chinese name "liang tian" which is literally "good field" (loosely, "fertile ground"). Maybe they see their company being a source of great ideas!

Dennis

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:58AM]

Does it mean you need to take out an e-loan to get an e-loam?

[/bad joke]

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 10:03AM]

Loam is where you bury it when you tired of its no-name Chinese crappiness.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 10:27AM]

That's SO funny! I was laughing so hard, it brought tears to my eyes!

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 10:37AM]

Wait, really? I mean I'm not saying that it is definitely going to be bad because it's Chinese, but that it hypothetically could be, and that that eventuality would suit the purposes of the joke.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 10:16AM]

i still prefer iPhone. Windows is too outdated in user friendly interface

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 10:39AM]

Really engadget, no price? Really?

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 11:15AM]

Do you expect them to just make something up?

[PhoenixFox Posted Jan 17th 2009 10:47AM]

Isn't loam a kind of soil? e-soil?

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:23PM]

Dirt, as in dirt-cheap.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 10:54AM]

I've been waiting for a decent umpc/Mid device for 2 years. It seems every other week a new one that is exactly (well close enough) to what I want is debuted. But.. and its a big but .."THEY ARE NEVER AVAILABLE" and when one is release its like the r50a... um 1400 bucks ...Really .. I mean Really???? What happened to affordable.. If I wanted to spend that kind of cash I'd have gone OQO or Sony UX a long time ago. I want something about as big as a PSP or smaller.. sorry Samsung Q series.. yer big mid is almost a slate in size. Can Anyone else demo and release a product in the same quarter??.. Geez. I saw the Wibrain I1( gimme a break the new ones pretty nice) in Jan 08 and its now Jan 09 and other than samples ...nothing. I am completely frustrated.. If I were a woman I could live with a netbook. It would fit in my purse, but being a guy I need something that will fit on a belt holster/case or in my jacket pocket.. Come on a little market research will probably show we want a reasonably priced system with a keyboard capable of running XP/Linux/Windows 7(sorry vista u suck) that is of reasonable size. I have never met anyone who owns a Samsung Q series umpc.. Anyone wanna step up and release one This Q1Q2?? Anybody... grrrrr oh and Raon everrun, we could been real good friends.. but what the hell is up with that keyboard... sigh

[thethirdmoose Posted Jan 17th 2009 9:14PM]

...

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 11:20AM]

Wouldn't the connection have to do with dirt, as in cheap as dirt?

Perhaps it's aimed at the gossip girl market - so they can share their dirt....

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 11:35AM]

"loam" might just be asian-engrish for "roam"... that wonderful r/l mixup they got going over there :-Ð

[superhobo Posted Jan 17th 2009 12:12PM]

I thought emoticons were racism free...thanks for proving me wlong :D

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 18th 2009 1:13AM]

R / L switcharoo, that's what I was thinking as well.

After all, who wants Top Ramen when you can have Top Lamen.

[Zorat Posted Jan 17th 2009 11:38AM]

EWWWW SexBar! lolz. Thanks for the unrelated Craptastic link!

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 1:06PM]

You do you keep advertising Porn links?

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 17th 2009 1:43PM]

There's no way I'm going to be "insane with jealousy" over anything that runs windows. Sorry.

If you want something that will make people insane and jealous, get a Samsung Q1 Ultra and put Ubuntu-UMPC on it. Everytime I go into a meeting and start taking notes on that, I get curious looks from people all around the room. Even ones who have seen it.

Unfortunately, the new one that was at CES this year doesn't have the thumb keyboard :-(