Raon Digital Vega UMPC reviewed
Even though it's been just a week since we saw a hands-on with the Raon Digital Vega UMPC, the first complete review has already come in from Carrypad. As a quick refresher, the Vega has an admirable compact form factor, a 4.3-inch screen, a max resolution of 1,024 x 768, 256MB of RAM, 30GB drive, and will stay juiced for three to four hours. Carrypad liked the Vega overall, but was deeply dismayed at the lack of WiFi and Bluetooth on the device, something that many of its rivals, including the Catcher, the Sony UX and the Asus R2H all have standard. The Vega does have a standard WiFi dongle that connects via USB, but that's not a very elegant solution, now is it? The site was also miffed at the missing stylus slot (which attaches via a lanyard?) and no key backlighting. That said, we can understand this panning, but it's probably worth noting that this is one of the most inexpensive UMPCs that we've seen thus far. No word on if like its namesake, the Vega either has a nuclear fusion core or has a fist-mounted claw. If not, we're pretty sure that Raon Digital is working on combining those features -- along with WiFi -- into the next version.
Update: Carrypad now reports that official prices for the Vega have been announced. MSRPs for Oceania are AU$1300 ($978) for the 256MB RAM version and AU$1350 ($1016) for the 512MB version. For Europe, Vegas will start hitting the streets by late October or early November and will cost €815 ($1033).
