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Microsoft announces Next-Gen PC Design Competition winners
Taking a break from all the actual products being announced at this week's WinHEC conference, Microsoft has used the opportunity to announce the winners of its Next-Gen PC Design Competition, none of which you'll likely be able to get your hands on anytime soon. Taking home the $25,000 Chairman's Award was the MADE in China PC designed by John Leung of AARIVE Design (seen above), which was "specifically designed to bring computing closer to the world's 1.3 billion Chinese." Apparently, the surface of the device is actually a touchscreen, with the so-called "CHOPstylus" used for input. Among the Judge's Awards, the "blok" PC intended for use in kindergarten classrooms snagged first-place, incorporating building-blocks, keyboard mats, and digital markers into its design. Other winners include the BulbPC, designed to fit inside a standard grommet hole on a desk, and the Zeed+ for the Future PC, which is based on "Ikebana," the Japanese art of formal flower arrangement (upgrades are apparently done simply by replacing the "flowers"). Lastly, the People's Choice Award went to Zhu Fei's "Light up your Life" design, which consists of a "glowing cylindrical orb" that can act as a flashlight, portable multimedia player, or mobile phone. Check out the gallery below for a closer look at all the winners.[Via AARIVE]%Gallery-3165%
Intel shows off "metro notebook" concept
It looks like Intel has more than just wearable computers and newfangled UMPCs in mind for our future, with the company also recently showing off this slightly less far fetched "metro notebook," apparently aimed primarily at women. One of the most most conceptey elements here is the SideShow-esque e-ink display embedded in the laptop's lid, which promises to let you view your email, calendar, and other information even when the laptop's powered down. What's more, Intel also sees the entire laptop acting as a charging pad for your other gadgets, though it seems you'll still have to charge the laptop itself the old fashioned way. Even without those less-than-imminent additions, however, the laptop appears to be a pretty decent unit, measuing just 0.7 inches thick and packing a Core 2 Duo processor, along with Bluetooth, WiFi, and WiMAX connectivity. [Via Tech Ticker, thanks Benaam]
