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Nokia Belle earns corporate street-cred with Microsoft Office apps
Looks like the corporate bromance between Microsoft and Nokia is stronger than ever. The Finnish handset maker has announced a suite of MS applications that is making its way to select Symbian handsets right this very moment. Users rocking a Belle device are being given access to a handful of apps from Redmond, which will include: OneNote, Document Connection, Lync and PowerPoint Broadcast. A second wave of Office-centric wares, including Word, PowerPoint and Excel, will be made available at an undisclosed date in the not-to-distant future. Nokia E7, C7, C6-01, X7, Oro, 700, 701 and 603 owners should see the goodies appear in Symbian's software update application; the phone maker has promised to add support for the N8, E6 and 500 "soon." For more information on the Microsoft software infiltration, check the press release after the break.
Nokia's latest EDoF camera demonstrates improvement with macro shots
Nokia's second generation Extended Depth of Field (EDoF) camera was recently put through the wringer by the folks at All About Symbian, and for a technology that traditionally fails at macro shots, we're happy to see that the engineers in Espoo have made dramatic advances with this second go-around. Using the same lens and sensor as before, we're told the improvements come from a refined image processor alone. In a side-by-side comparison, this business was card snapped from 12-inches (30cm) away, first with a C7 and then a 701. While the new setup isn't perfect, the difference is certainly appreciable. Of course, Nokia has all but ditched EDoF in its high end smartphones -- as evidenced by our reviews of the N9 and Lumia 800 -- but the technology remains very much alive within its lower-end affairs, and really, who doesn't like to see improvement? For a complete breakdown of the new technology, be sure to hit up the source link below.
Nokia announces Symbian Belle alongside three new devices
True to Monday's teaser, Nokia unveiled its latest update to the Symbian OS as well as a few new devices. Belle is indeed coming, and it's heading to the Nokia 700, 701 and 600 in the third quarter of this year. The successor to Anna brings NFC sharing and pairing functionality to the table, along with three additional home screens (bumped up to six), a dynamic lock screen, live widgets in five different sizes, and a pull-down taskbar and notification menu. Fortunately, the new handsets announced today aren't the only beneficiaries of the upgrade: the N8, E6, E7, X7, C7, C6-01 and Oro will all get Belle at a yet-unknown later date. Join us after the break as we go more into detail on the three phones announced today, along with a video and press release. %Gallery-131567%
Crapgadget CES, round 3: Moneual's $45K HTPC
There are some that might challenge the very idea of anything this expensive being a "crapgadget," but closer inspection of this item leaves little room for doubt. Indeed, it looks like Moneual's still around with its jewel laden "luxury" PCs, and we were fortunate enough to come across this delightful specimen on the floor of CES. The 701 Jewelry HTPC is handcrafted with gold and brass and adorned with 3500 Swarovski elements -- as well as HDMI, Blu ray, and Windows Vista Home Premium. Your cost? A mere $45,000. "The price of gold is going up," the helpful chap at the company's booth pointed out. This isn't a media PC, then -- it's an investment. Before you call your broker, take a closer look at the gallery below. %Gallery-82394%
ASUS loops all the way around with the Eee PC 701SD
Hey, you remember the Eee PC 701, right? The original netbook, before the category even had a name? The machine we all just called the Eee PC before ASUS booted out an insane array of lightly-differentiated models with a somewhat random naming scheme? Yeah, well, it's still around, even if the 901 has taken over as the Eee of choice, and if those slides from earlier are to be believed, it's getting a spec bump. Laptop says the new 701SD will get an Atom processor to go along with a minor case redesign, and come in a few flavors (of course): 701, 701SD, 701SD(30GB HD), 701SD-4G. Sadly, there isn't any info about pricing available, but with cheap netbooks headed toward $299 and below, here's hoping ASUS gives us a reason to love the 701 once again.
Leaked Eee PC roadmap shows 23 models, redefines brand dilution
Engadget Chinese received the slide image above showing ASUS' Eee PC roadmap. Go ahead count 'em up, we'll wait... Right, 23 Eee PCs before they're done, some of which we've already seen. The "extreme slim and light" S101 and S91 models, however, are new and tantalizing Eee PC "Ultimate" series additions and should compete nicely with the Dell E Slim. Really though, 23 models ASUS? Guess we shouldn't be surprised, after all, this is the same company that offers more than 50 models (not just configurations) of laptops. Read -- Engadget Chinese Read -- ASUS Notebook list
Asus Eee PC 1000 vs Atom-based 901 vs original 701... fight!
There you have it, the hotly anticipated 10-inch Eee PC 1000 sized up next to the 8.9-inch Eee PC 901 (center) and original 7-inch Eee PC 701. Feeling. Misty. Here's the scoop from Engadget Chinese who just got out of the press briefing at Computex in Taipei: New 6-cell battery offers up to 7.5-hours of battery for Eee PC 1000, 7.8-hours for 901, 7 hours for Eee PC 1000H The "H" in the Eee PC 1000(H) model means hard drive, yes, hard drive up to 80GB. A first for an Eee. The Eee PC 1000 will max-out with a 40GB SSD Fully equipped with 802.11n and Bluetooth -- hoozah! Intel's Atom across the board More pics after the break.Update: Detailed pricing and specs now in.
EeePC keyboards different on black and white models
Okay, this is pretty much for the crazy keyboard aficionados out there, but the crew over at Laptop says there's a distinct difference between the keyboards on the black and white Eee PC laptops. They compared the 'boards on a white 701, black 4G Surf, and white 900, and while the two white Eees had identical keys, the black unit featured different switches with deeper keypresses and more tactile feedback, smaller spaces between the keys, and rougher plastic. (Of course, if you actually use any keyboard for long enough, the plastic eventually wears smooth, so that's probably not an issue.) We doubt the difference is going to really sway anyone's purchasing decision -- the tiny Eee keyboard isn't exactly ideal for hardcore typists, after all -- but if you're looking for a tiebreaker between the black and white 700s, well, now you have one that will bore the pants off people at parties.
Eee PC review roundup
We've already seen Laptop Mag's breathless review of Asus' diminutive Eee PC, but now that the thing is finally trickling out to the masses, it's time to check in with the best of the rest -- and it seems like the tiny wonder is living up to all that advance hype. CNET UK found the Eee to be "stonking value for money," complaining only that the keyboard is slightly cramped -- an overall sentiment echoed by PC Magazine, which called the little bugger a "tremendous bargain for people with general-purpose computing needs who don't plan on running any sophisticated software." TrustedReviews was even more positive, saying the keyboard is fine and that the Eee is overall "refreshingly innovative and scandalously cheap." On top of all this praise, NotebookReview has already started hacking away at the Eee and characterized their experiences as demonstrating a "ton of potential." Cheap, fun, and versatile: it certainly seems like Asus has a winner on its hands here -- now if only they'd ship a few more of 'em.Read -- CNET (7.5 out of 10: "... a near perfect choice for a highly portable second or backup laptop.")Read -- PC Magazine (4 out of 5: "Ample software and a substantial feature set that's well worth the money")Read -- TrustedReviews (9 out of 10: "The natural successor to likes of the Psion Series 5 and netBook."Read -- NotebookReview Eee PC Tweak Guide ("This little machine was as powerful as notebooks four to five times its price.")[Thanks, Corinne and Jerry]
