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Kohjinsha PA series reviewed, found lacking
It's well established by now that the Kohjinsha PA series tablet is one peculiar creature. It has the internals and OS of a netbook, with a 1.33GHz Atom CPU and Windows XP Home, the 4.8-inch display of a portable MID, and the convertible capabilities of an internet tablet, while its price (around $770) seems to imply it performs all three roles with aplomb. The Pocketables crew have followed up their unboxing of the quirky little device with a full-on review, and their conclusion has been that sadly it's more of a chump than a champ. Poor build quality and substandard input controls dragged this contender down, in spite of its swiveling screen and decent performance thanks to a 32GB SSD. Ultimately, it's the price that dooms the PA series to ignominy, and it seems like only a miracle -- or a timely RilakKuma rebadge -- will make it commercially successful. Hit the read link for the full story.
Dell Mini 9 modded into motion sensitive, touchscreen tablet (video)
True, this ain't the first Dell Mini tablet hack we've laid eyes on -- but what we do have here is a pretty sweet mod by MyDellMini forum member "rock99rock" (must be his confirmation name). In addition to replacing his Dell Mini 9 display with a touchscreen kit, our man re-jiggered an ActionXL motion sensing controller to allow the screen to rotate as you rotate the device. Not bad, eh? Hit that read link for some real radical instrucciones -- but not before checking out the enthralling video after the break.
Eston's 7-inch Android MID believes it's an N97, can play full HD
We'll go out on a limb here and suggest that Nokia probably doesn't care about Shenzhen Eston's N97-branded device, but what really matters is whether you should care about it. Positioned slap bang in the middle between smartphones and netbooks, this Android-driven MID offers 7 inches of viewing real estate and 4 hours of battery, as well as integrated WiFi, 3G, Flash player, web browser, and ebook reader, plus the purported ability to play back full HD content. Don't ask us how anyone can squeeze that kind of processing power out of a Marvell PXA303 chip, but if you want to know more, the read link is your ever-loyal best friend. [Via Cloned in China]
eviGroup's Pad is a 10-inch 3G tablet with personality
Time to freshen up the old netbook market with a dash of Windows 7, a pinch of touchscreen functionality, and a generous helping of... Seline10? eviGroup, the crew responsible for the attractive 5-inch Wallet MID, has announced the 10.2-inch Pad, whose pièce de résistance is the Seline10 artificial intelligence software that's been in development for a decade, if you can believe it. Its purpose is to act as your secretary / assistant, and while the novelty's good, we all know how well Clippy worked out. Fret not though, it's just an optional extra and shouldn't detract from the appeal of a device that offers 3G and a/b/g WiFi connectivity, one VGA and three USB ports, multicard reader, webcam, microphone, and the old faithful 1.6GHz of Atom power. A price of under €500 is being touted, with further details set to emerge over the coming days.
Dell Streak is a 5-inch Android 2.0 MID, packs 3G and WiFi (video)
Well, hello there! Those Dell MID rumors we've been hearing have finally received vindication in the form of a nice, picture-heavy leak courtesy of some industrious folks in Vietnam. What we know as of now is that there's an 800 x 480 capacitive touchscreen display (with multitouch zooming), WiFi, Bluetooth and 3G WWAN connectivity, all riding atop an Android 2.0 (aka, Donut Eclair) install. A dual-LED flash 5 megapixel camera adorns the back, and there's a 1,300mAh battery to power all that goodness. See pics below and a video awaits after the break, where an old friend of ours plays with the jumbo smartphone. [Via SlashGear; Thanks, Nicky N.] %Gallery-76104%
Archos 5 firmware 1.1.01 rights all wrongs?
Charbax of ArchosFans.com reports that the majority of issues encountered by early adopters of the Android-equipped Archos 5 Internet Tablet (not to be confused with the older Internet Media Tablet, ugh) have been remedied by the caped crusader that is firmware revision 1.1.01. Forum members do seem to corroborate that the previously habitual lockups are no more, but the complex update procedure has already (probably temporarily) bricked one user's device, while another still has random disconnects when transferring files from his PC under the new firmware. Still, if you've been among the unfortunate victims of the sloppy original software, this is a ray of light for you, and the read link -- featuring input from a source within Archos -- should be considered required reading.
Dell Mini 9 modded into an internet tablet
MyDellMini forum member Rob928, take a bow. This honorable gentleman has only gone and transformed an aging 9-inch netbook into a new-fashioned internet tablet. it might still be a chubby little thing, but there's no denying the usefulness of using the entire screen to navigate instead of the usually cramped netbook touchpad. With a 16GB SSD upgrade alongside the venerable Atom N270 and 1GB of RAM, this device will even boot faster into Windows than your run-of-the-mill netbook. The read link will reveal all, including more shots of the hardware laid bare. [Via SlashGear] %Gallery-75545%
Nokia N900 unboxed, and no, you can't unbox your own (yet)
So it seems like the new thing for manufacturers is to gather a bunch of platform champions (read: developers and bloggers) in a room, wax poetic for an hour or two about strategy, and -- here's where it gets awesome -- give out or loan hot, new devices to everyone in attendance. Google's done it, Palm's done it, and now Nokia's getting in the game by handing out pre-production N900s on extended loans at its Maemo Summit event last week, and that inevitably means that we're going to be seeing a ton of unboxings and reviews over the coming days. This particular unboxing comes to us courtesy of Slashgear, which notes that the devices are currently running non-final firmware even though the hardware is the same stuff we'll be seeing on shelves in the next few weeks. It's looking great so far -- but then again, so did the N97 in its muted black box prior to release, so we'll withhold final judgment until this one's been thoroughly vetted for awesomeness.
Archos 5 has 99 problems and a glitch is one, 160GB version pulled by Amazon
It was only just allowed out to play, but Archos' five-inch, Android-sporting internet tablet has been called back in by its fastidious mother, a role played by Amazon in this case. Only the hard drive-based 160GB model is affected at present, with the 32GB version selling as normal and the half terabyte option out of stock already. Charbax of ArchosFans.com, a man in the know on this subject, has suggested this might have been caused by a firmware update wiping out some pre-installed Android apps, which is now being addressed. His site's forums and Amazon customer reviews, however, paint a different picture: there are consistent complaints about bugs and lock ups -- software issues that could well affect the other models in the line -- with some going so far as to suggest Archos has used its customers as Beta testers. There doesn't appear to be anything structurally wrong with the device, meaning a robust firmware update could remedy all ills, so now it's just a matter of waiting for Archos to do what it should have done before release. [Via Pocketables] Read - Amazon product page Read - Archos Fans forums
Lighthouse SQ7 MID brings voice recognition to Facebook, Twitter
If you're savvy enough to want to use the Facebook Mobile app, we're guessing you're savvy enough to get it up and running on your phone or portable -- so buying an additional device for responding to friend requests seems a little silly. Hopefully, AdelaVoice (a company that develops voice-enabled apps for the Internet and social networks) has more plans for its Lighthouse SQ7 than what we see here. Based on the Linux-powered SmartQ7 Internet tablet, the heart of this bad boy is a UI that allows you access to Facebook, Twitter, the web, and an image slideshow. But that ain't all! Taking advantage of Webkit's integrated voice recognition, this thing will let you input text through the mic -- perfect for posting to Facebook or tweeting sans stylus. Perhaps for some people these features might be a big deal, but we've been asking around -- and we have yet to find anyone who'll 'fess up. We have to admit, though -- what this thing does do, it seems to do pretty well. Tell you what, AdelaVoice -- add JDate and Classmates.com and we'll give the thing another shot, okay? Video after the break. [Via Best Tablet Review]
Archos store is down, you know what that means?
Here we go again... it's Tuesday and the store's been taken off-line as rumors of a new touch-screen tablet flood our tips box. That can mean only one thing: a new Android tablet from Archos. What, were you expecting something else?[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Nokia N900 now up for $649 preorder in the US of A
Nokia fans know the drill -- if you happen to live in the vicinity of the New York or Chicago flagship stores, you're almost certainly better off holding out and camping in front of the store as the launch date draws near -- but now that they're being taken, the rest of the States might strongly consider filing an preorder with Nokia USA's official online store if they want an N900 as soon as humanly possible. That's a good deal less than the US equivalent of $860 currently being asked by the company's German and Italian outposts, so we guess we should be thankful -- provided, of course, that the US launch isn't delayed into oblivion by some combination of T-Mobile drama, firmware issues, distribution problems, or swarms of locusts destroying trucks as they attempt to make deliveries. A pessimistic way to look at it, yes, but remember: a pessimist is never disappointed. [Via Cell Phone Signal]
Video: Nokia N900 put through its paces... in Italian
We're sure to see a whole lot more of the Nokia N900 as Nokia World gets underway this week, but in the meantime we're super into this video walkthrough posted up by Kiamanokia.it -- and not just because the Italian narration makes using the N900 seem absolutely delightful. Nope, we're much more into the extremely-responsive interface, the rotary-zoom gesture in the browser, and the overall slickness of Maemo 5. We'll withhold judgment until we spend some time with an actual production N900, but things are looking promising -- head after the break to check the video for yourselves. [Via The Nokia Blog]
Android-based Archos gets pictured, briefly priced by B&H
We still gotta wait until September 15th for the whole scoop, but B&H has gone ahead and spoiled some of the mystery of Archos' Android-based Archos 5, giving the internet tablet its own listing in a number of different storage capacity options, pictures in tow, as well as a $130 DVR station. Prices are currently listed as TBA, but fortunately it looks like the fine fellows at ArchosFans managed to capture the page when there were more concrete dollar signs on each model, to the tune of $294 for 16GB SSD, $370 for 32GB SSD, $320 for 160GB HDD, and $420 for a 500GB HDD. In the DVR station pic we spotted "HD" listed in the video names, which gives us hope that even more of those February leaks are coming to fruition. Screenshot of the with-price listings after the break. [Via ArchosFans; thanks, Steve and Axel] Read - 500GB HDD listing Read - 16GB SSD listing Read - 32GB SSD listing Read - DVR Station
MacCores iTab Mini mod gives us a taste of the future
Given that September 9 is unlikely to finally reveal the fabled Apple tablet, this might be the nearest thing we have to it for a while yet -- and it has one other advantage: it's real. The iTab Mini is a mod project of the "more time and energy than sense" variety (our favorite kind) that melds together a 12.1-inch resistive touchscreen display with the remnants of an old PowerBook and a decidedly modern Core 2 Duo 2.16GHz, 2GB RAM, 160GB HDD spec. The outcome is, in a word, stunning. You can find a full run-through of the build at the read link.
Nokia N900 puts on makeup, does hair for leaked press shot
Normally, we'd take a look at something like this and say, "yeah, could be real, could be fake." Goodness knows there are enough mega-talented graphic designers in the world with the free time to craft this. Here's the thing, though: this phone / MID hybrid -- the latest in Nokia's Internet Tablet series -- has already been outed enough times so that we know this has to be a genuine press shot. If we had to guess, Espoo fashioned it in preparation for its Nokia World event in Germany early next month where the N900 will presumably be announced into officialdom; there's no sign on when or how the T-Mobile USA version will be unveiled, but we're getting pretty amped for it. Update:Here's another N900 press shot, courtesy again of BeGeek, after the break. [Thanks, Allen!]
Nokia's Maemo 5 RX-51 / N900 tablet gets exhaustively previewed
Eldar Murtazin at mobile-review teased us with that shot of Nokia's RX-51 / N900 Maemo 5 tablet earlier today, and now he's back in force with a detailed preview. We're talking tons of hardware pictures and screenshots of what stands to be the standard-bearer for all Nokia devices going forward, and while we'd love to tell you all about how impressed we are with what we're seeing of Maemo 5 and how disappointed we are in the Rover's resistive touchscreen, we won't hold you back -- hit the read link and dive right in.
Nokia's Maemo 5 tablet shows up again, ready to play
We're calling it: this N900 / Rover / whatever it's called is the best looking device yet in Nokia's Internet Tablet line, which is an encouraging thing to be able to say considering we haven't seen any ultra-polished PR shots yet. Granted, we might be influenced a little by the rumored HSPA support with voice, T-Mobile USA availability, and Maemo 5, but really, what's wrong with that?
Android-based Archos 5-inch Internet Tablet coming September 15 with (you guessed it) an AppsLib store
See that? It's an Android-green invitation to the unveil of the 5-inch Archos Internet Media Tablet. The September 15th date isn't new (it was announced back in June) but it's still good to see things moving ahead as planned. To whet the appetites of would-be developers, Archos has also announced its AppsLib application store for "advanced Android devices." The development guidelines, however, describe just a single, 5-inch 800x480 pixel device with accelerometer, OpenGL 3D graphics support, and HDMI output pushing an oddball 1160x652 pixel resolution to your TV. Right, specs already rumored for the Archos tablet. While not mentioned, we still expect all the other details -- 500GB storage, 10-mm thickness, 7-hours of battery when playing video, voice and HSUPA data radio, and OMAP3440 processor -- unexpectedly announced (by TI!) for the tablet way back in February to be in place when this thing gets live in Paris next month.[Via Pocketables]
Keepin' it real fake, part CCXXX: Inkia 500 is a mutated, hamstrung N810
How do you cook up the perfect KIRF product? Well, you take a well-loved device, say the Nokia N810, and start chopping off the things that made it a winner, like that oh-so-bulky QWERTY keyboard, until you get a device cheap enough to be sold as "the world's first MID under $300." The painfully unoriginal Inkia 500 -- which isn't even the first to rip off Nokia's internet tablet -- isn't entirely without merit, as it comes with a 5-inch touchscreen plus a ULV Atom processor, and once you pony up for 3G and GPS options it might even be useful. All that's holding it back now is the tiny issue that you can get a real N810 for the same price. [Via Shanzai]
