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Inhon Carbon Tablet unfolds for a CPU boost, wields a Surface-style keyboard
Believe it or not, Inhon has a wilder concept up its sleeve than the extra-light Blade 13 Carbon laptop. Its equally new Carbon Tablet at first looks like it could pass for an IdeaPad Yoga, but the non-display half has little to do with input this time around -- besides USB 3.0 and Mini DisplayPort jacks, it's mostly about giving some breathing room to the Core i3, i5 or i7 inside. Keep the Windows 8 PC closed and it runs in a slower but quieter mode for handheld use; unfold it for some serious desk work, however, and a cooling fan inside ramps up to run the processor at TurboBoost speeds. Anyone who wants more traditional interaction has to attach an optional, Touch Cover-like keyboard and trackpad combo. We don't entirely grasp the logic when a convertible laptop might have done the trick, although estimated prices between NT $29,999 and NT $39,999 ($1,007 to $1,343 US) for the eventual launch in Taiwan will make it at least somewhat feasible to try Inhon's latest design experiment.
Ridiculously thin and light laptop unveiled in Taiwan: the 10.7mm, 1.9-pound Inhon Blade 13 Carbon
Never heard of Inhon? That might change with the Taiwanese computer maker's Blade 13 Carbon laptop, which it claims is now the world's thinnest and lightest. Tipping the scale at 870g (1.9 pounds) and 10.7mm, the company says it undercuts NEC's 12.8mm Lavie X by a whopping 2mm, while nipping the 875g LaVie Z by 5g. There are still weighty specs crammed into the package, however: a Core i5 or i7 CPU, 1080p screen, 128GB or 256GB SSD and 4GB of RAM. If you're looking for that kind of unencumbered power, the Carbon will also lighten your pocketbook to the respectable tune of $1,350, while a dialed-back 1,600 x 900 fiberglass version -- still radically lean at 12.6mm and 1,195g (2.6 pounds) -- will run a grand or so. These models will arrive in Taiwan in June, with no sign that it'll come to relieve us overburdened laptop users stateside. %Gallery-186195%
Intel looking to turbocharge its NUC with Core i5 and i7 CPUs, according to leak
It looks like Intel's planning on bringing its Next Unit of Computing (NUC) mini-computer upmarket, if a leaked roadmap from ComputerBase.de is to be believed. The documents look highly tentative, but if they come to fruition then Intel will start offering new NUCs (code-named "Skull Canyon" and "Horse Canyon") with Intel Core i7-3537U and Core i5-3427U processors along with its current Core i3 model during the first half of the year. New motherboards would be used that alter the slot configurations substantially: the Thunderbolt connector would be dropped in favor of USB 3.0 -- three on the i7 model, one on the i5 -- with DisplayPort 1.1a added to each along with HDMI 1.4a connectors. There's no pricing yet, but we found that you'd need to nearly double the price of the original NUC to create a working computer, so bear that in mind when you're looking at the leaked slides after the break. [Image credit: ComputerBase.de]
Samsung ships ATIV Smart PC Pro with AT&T LTE, 13-inch Series 9 Premium with 1080p screen
Samsung's ATIV Smart PC has been giving Americans a blend of LTE data and Windows 8 for some time, but we're sure that some would like a little more oomph. The company agrees -- it just released a version of the ATIV Smart PC Pro equipped with AT&T-capable LTE. If you've got a not-insubstantial $1,600 to commit to a tablet, you can stay online beyond WiFi while wielding a laptop-grade 1.7GHz Core i5, 4GB of RAM, a 128GB SSD and as much as eight hours of runtime. Ultrabook fans aren't left out from Samsung's upgrades. A newer Premium trim level for the 13-inch Series 9 swaps out the regular 1,600 x 900 LCD for a full 1080p screen. The higher resolution bumps the price to a slightly intimidating $1,900, although Samsung does outfit the PC with a 1.9GHz Core i7, 4GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD. Between this and the Smart PC Pro, it's safe to say that the company can accommodate the highest of the high end.
Dell XPS 13 with 1080p now stocked for $1,400 and up
If you're into the "more pixels" ultrabook mantra and suitably flush, the 3 pound Dell XPS 13 with a 13.3-inch 1080p display, now on Dell's shelves, may be your machine. The soon-to-be-private outfit flaunted it at CES 2013, saying it also had a much wider 72 percent color gamut (instead of 45 percent for the 720p models), which definitely jibed with the more brilliant display we saw. The barrier for entry will be a little dearer than Dell first said, though, as a 3rd-gen Core i5 model with 8GB of RAM, Intel HD 4000 graphics, Windows 8 and a 256GB SSD will run $1,400, $100 more than it first promised. A 3rd-gen Core i7 model will start at $1,600 with the same specs. You'll be able to grab the latter model by February 14th, while the Core i5 (and lower-priced 720p) versions are in stock and shipping by next day. Considering similar models and the imminent arrival of a certain Mr. Haswell, we hope it won't be a hard sell at that price -- even with the 1080p screen.
Sony details VAIO T15, touchscreen T14 Ultrabooks on their way to Japan
Sony was mum on most of the details of the VAIO T15 and a touch-upgraded T14 when they appeared at CES. We won't have to wait until the spring launch in the US to know what some editions of the Ultrabook will carry, though. At least for Japan's February 9th release, the T15 won't be running any Haswell-based parts -- the top-spec system carries a 2GHz Core i7 from the current generation, a BDXL drive and a 1TB hybrid hard disk. The touch-ready T14 will be just as modest with a 1.8GHz Core i5, a DVD burner and up to 750GB of hybrid storage. We wouldn't be shocked to see performance boosts to either PC before they cross the Pacific, but we at least know what to expect as a baseline.
LG intros 15.6-inch U560, helps stretch our definition of Ultrabook (video)
There have already been a few 15-inch Ultrabooks that have pushed the very limits of the thin-and-light category. Still, LG wants its turn at bending the rules. Its new U560 packs a 15.6-inch display and an optical drive that, together, contribute to the PC's 4.3-pound weight and 0.82-inch thickness -- really, it's a traditional laptop in a slimmer than usual package. Not that we'll complain too much when it involves an IPS-based LCD, a 1.8GHz Core i5, dedicated graphics (a support page suggests NVIDIA) and both a spinning hard disk as well as solid-state storage. The U560's launch is limited to South Korea so far, although we wouldn't be surprised to see Europe and other territories get their turn.
Samsung Chromebox Series 3 pops up in online stores with a Core i5
No one would accuse Samsung or other Chrome OS supporters of hardware overkill: the Chromebox Series 3 and other Google-based PCs often carry just enough processing grunt to browse the web properly. Imagine the resulting surprise when a Liliputing reader discovers an unannounced Core i5-equipped model listed as in stock at multiple retailers. The XE300M22-A01US carries a 2.5GHz, Sandy Bridge-era dual-core chip on top of the usual 4GB of memory and 16GB solid-state drive. That's far from cutting edge, but more powerful than the creaky Celeron reserved for those who didn't receive a Google I/O edition. Samsung hasn't confirmed the existence of the quicker Chromebox, and there's some question as to whether the system incorporates the sleeker 2013 redesign or sticks to the tried-and-true 2012 layout; we've reached out to both Google and Samsung and will let you know if there's more concrete information. Quoted prices suggest there's a premium over the original at $405 or more, as of this writing. It's a lot to pay for a PC without native apps, although those who want only the unfettered web might have something close to their dream desktop.
Gigabyte shows off an extra-tiny desktop PC with a Core i7, April release date
There was a surprise waiting alongside Gigabyte's Windows 8 tablet duo at CES: an exceptionally small desktop. The as yet unnamed mini PC is a minor marvel of engineering that's much smaller than a Mac mini at an 0.3-liter volume (10 fluid ounces), but still manages to cram in a Core i3, i5 or i7 processor. We're also looking at up to 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD for heavy duty tasks. Expansion is about the only sacrifice, as there's just two USB ports, Ethernet and a rather curious choice of two HDMI ports on the pre-production model we saw. Gigabyte didn't have the system ready to test, but it should ship worldwide in April, with a price to be set later.
Hands-on with Gigabyte's S1082 and S1185 Windows 8 tablets (video)
Gigabyte came to CES with a pair of Windows 8 tablets, the S1082 and S1185, in hopes of making a splash in a US market that still tends to associate the company name with PC motherboards. We had the opportunity to try both, and came away intrigued -- there's a handful of touches on each that separate them from the pack. Read after the break for our impressions and video tours.
Razer Edge vs. the competition: fight!
Audacious claims are starting to become a standard component of Razer hardware announcements -- following the Blade's claim to the title of "world's first true gaming laptop" is the Razer Edge: "a full feature PC and the most powerful tablet in the world." It certainly has the full feature PC aspect down -- with an Intel Core i5 (or i7 for Pro) processor at its heart, the Edge is more of a modular Ultrabook than your run-of-the-mill tablet. Then again, that seems to be the Windows 8 slate trend, doesn't it? We pitted the Edge against some of the category's recent stars, including two other tablets, a slider and a full featured convertible laptop. Read on to see how it stacks up.
Project Fiona becomes Razer Edge, starts at $999, sans controller
Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan has been dreaming about building a true PC gaming portable for years. He's cooked up prototype clamshells, controller-toting tablets, and built two top of the line gaming laptops along the way -- but now his dream is almost ready: the Razer Edge. Look familiar? It should. It's been handled, teased and even redesigned at the behest of Razer's social legions. It's Project Fiona evolved. Hoping to keep pace with community feedback, Razer is kitting out the Edge with a 3rd gen Intel Core processor, a 10.1-inch 1,366 x 768 display, an NVIDIA GT640M LE GPU, 4 to 8GB of DDR3 RAM, USB 3.0 and a 64, 128 or 256GB SSD, depending on the SKU. Min translated the slate's build into some digestible framerates: 59 fps in Dishonored, he told us, and 41 fps in DiRT Showdown. Sound intriguing? It gets better -- the baseline 1.7Ghz Core i5 variant of the Edge will sell for $999 and the beefed up 1.9GHz Core i7 Pro model will run for $1299, keeping the device well below the community's $1,300 to $1,500 price expectations. Even better, the whole shebang is going to be available in the first quarter of this year. Razer had to change more than Project Fiona's name to stay under budget, of course -- the prototype's handlebar controllers have migrated to an optional gamepad dock. It's a win and a loss -- fans in Razer's social media campaign demanded detachable controllers, but their absence makes obtaining the complete "Edge experience" a bit more of a chore -- one that will cost $249 on top of the price of the slate itself. Even so, the move to modular is a good thing, and allowed Razer to develop other accessories: a keyboard dock, life-giving 40Wh battery packs ($69) and a $99 docking station, replete with three USB 2.0 ports, plus stereo and HDMI output for a "home console" experience. Razer says the Edge has specific "modes" based around these accessories -- the tablet alone features the obvious multi-touch tricks of Windows 8, and the keyboard dock gives PC gamers access to the familiar WASD controls they're used to. The launcher we saw at CES 2012 is still there too, giving the docking station a pseudo-console interface befitting of your television (and Steam Big Picture Mode, of course). As we said, collecting the whole set is a tall order, but Razer is hoping to make the task a little easier for gamers after the Pro model -- offering the i7 tablet and controller dock for a bundled price of $1499 ($50 less than if purchased separately). Completionists will need to wait until Q3 to pick up the keyboard dock though, as its form and price still aren't finalized.
Intel, Plastic Logic and Queen's U build the PaperTab: a flexible e-paper tablet (video)
Plastic Logic may have bowed out of building its own e-readers, but that's not stopping the company from making its presence felt at CES. It's teaming up with Intel and Queen's University on the PaperTab, a 10.7-inch tablet concept built around a flexible, e-paper touchscreen. The prototype runs a Sandy Bridge-era Core i5 processor that lets it stand on its own, but it's ultimately designed to work as part of a team: position awareness lets multiple PaperTabs join together to share a work area, and tapping one tablet with content can send it to a waiting document in another. The bendy nature isn't just for durability and a paper-like feel, either, as readers can flip through pages just by bending the relevant side. A fuller reveal is planned for January 8th, but you can get an initial sense of how the plastic slate works through the video after the break. %Gallery-174952% Follow all the latest CES 2013 news at our event hub.
Razer announces crowdsourced specs for upcoming 'Project Fiona' gaming tablet
After Razer easily scored the requisite 10,000 Facebook likes needed to proceed with its "Project Fiona" 10.1-inch Windows 8 gaming tablet, it asked potential players to decide for themselves how to spec it. And here's a shocker: the consensus was to go hardcore or go home. Voters said it should be similar to the prototype with at least Intel Core i5 or i7 processing zip, mid-tier discrete graphics for max pixel-pushing and weight be damned -- twice the heft and thickness of an iPad was a-ok with the group, for power's sake. Detachable controllers were also considered a must (as we thought earlier), and for all that, wannabe gamers on-the-go were willing to pay somewhere between $1,300 and $1,500. A firm ship date has yet to be announced for the device, though a variant has already made it past the FCC -- which usually bodes well for a timely arrival.
Intel Y-level Ivy Bridge chips may dip below 13W, lead to speedy Windows 8 tablets
Intel historically swings its attention to its latest generation of processors along with a new year, very nearly leaving the old platform by the wayside. There's hints, however, that the current Ivy Bridge architecture may have one last gasp. VR-Zone has published claimed specs for the Y level, a new tier of Ivy Bridge chips that would draw less energy than even the ultra-low voltage U roster. A range of processors from a 1.1GHz Pentium through to a 1.5GHz Core i7 would normally demand 13W or less of power, already lower than the 17W we know today, but step down further depending on the situation -- to a downright miserly 7W, in some scenarios. While the semiconductor giant hasn't confirmed the reasons for the new tier, it's suspected that the line is destined for Windows 8 tablets that need more grunt than an Atom without steep drops in battery life. If talk of early 2013 availability proves true, there may be a few computing surprises to be had in Las Vegas.
Project Inverted turns a gaming PC inside-out with hand-made casing
While we've seen some exotic PC mods in our time, most of those still dutifully stuff all the computer parts into a box, hiding them from the outside world. Martijn Laman isn't one for that kind of traditionalism. His recently completed Project Inverted, just highlighted by ASUS, puts most of the hardware on the outside: the Sabertooth Z77 motherboard, Core i5 processor, fan cooling, memory, Radeon HD 6870 video card and watercooling pipes all sit in plain sight. Everything is joined by a unique, hand-cut case whose backbone and elevated base hide the custom wiring, the watercooling pump, two solid-state drives and controllers for both fans and lighting. And did we mention the 7-inch touchscreen? The result is a truly special gaming rig that's relatively quiet and pristine despite baring its heart and soul for all to see. Building a replica won't be quick, nor will it be cheap at about €1,500 ($1,909), but Laman's detailed assembly process could well be the inspiration for a few more extroverted PCs.
MacBook Pro with Retina display review (13-inch, late 2012)
Look down the aisles at any Apple launch event, across the laps of dozens of journalists liveblogging or in some other way documenting the goings-on, and it's inevitable that you'll see MacBooks. A lot of MacBooks. And, since many of those laps are irrevocably linked to owners who spend their days jetting around the globe to other companies' events, those laptops are quite often the travel-friendly MacBook Air. So, while we were excited to see a thinner, lighter 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display unveiled earlier this year, many of us were left asking one question: "Where's the 13-inch version?" Now, a little over four months later, here it is. Why the wait from one to the next? That's for Apple to know and us to speculate about (supply chain concerns? engineering issues?), but the important thing is that it's available now and it is, in many ways, an uncompromised, slightly smaller rendition of the 15-inch version that came before. It's thinner and it's lighter than the current 13-inch Pro but promises better internals and the same battery life as the 13-inch Air. Perfect portions of portability and performance? Let's find out.
Hands-on with MSI's S20 Slidebook, a $1,099 Windows 8 convertible Ultrabook (update: video)
We just got more hands-on time with MSI's S20 Slidebook, which we first spotted at Computex 2012. This ultra light (2.3 pounds / 1kg) and thin (0.78-inches / 19.8mm) convertible Ultrabook runs Windows 8 (naturally) and packs an Intel Core i5 processor (Ivy Bridge), 4GB RAM and a 128GB mSATA SSD. In front, there's a gorgeous 11.6-inch 1920x1080-pixel IPS display with a 10-point capacitive multitouch layer plus an HD front-facing camera. A glossy white plastic bezel surrounds the glass panel and incorporates the MSI logo and the Windows button. The back cover is made of a silver magnesium alloy with matching plastic antenna covers for the built-in WiFi b/g/n, WiDi and Bluetooth 4.0 radios. Most of the ports are on the right edge along with the power / lock key and LED indicators -- this includes the power input, a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, a mini-HDMI output and a pair of USB 3.0 connectors. You'll find a gigabit Ethernet port on the left side plus an SD card reader, orientation lock button and volume rocker in back. Of course, what sets the S20 apart is its ability to switch instantly from a tablet into a usable laptop. The screen slides up and tilts forward to reveal a chiclet keyboard with excellent key travel and decent spacing. You're not limited to any specific angle here -- the display is fully adjustable from flat to almost perpendicular with the keyboard. The sealed 3-cell 3900mAh battery is rated for 7 hours of continuous operation. We spent several minutes using the Slidebook and came away pretty impressed -- it's incredibly light for its size, the screen is bright and crisp, and the keyboard is comfortable. Even in prototype form, performance and build-quality are top-notch. MSI plans to make its convertible Ultrabook available late November for $1,099 through major US retailers both online and in stores. The company expects to sell other configurations in other markets as well. Take a look at our gallery below and hit the break for our hands-on video.
Digital Storm Bolt stuffs full-power graphics into a mini gaming desktop, stretches laws of physics
Attempts to create truly small gaming desktops usually involve at least some kind of performance hit. Even HP's category-bending Firebird, one of the few stand-out examples, had to use toned-down graphics to succeed in a tiny enclosure. Digital Storm might have broken the trend towards sacrifice with its new Bolt desktop: although it's just 3.6 inches wide and 14 inches tall, the Bolt can cram in as much as a GeForce GTX 680 and will even let gamers upgrade the graphics like they would in a full-size PC. The seemingly logic-defying (if also finger-defying) case still allows room for as much as an overclocked 4.6GHz Core i7, 16GB of RAM and storage options that meld a spinning hard drive with up to two SSDs and a DVD burner. Digital Storm isn't even setting an absurd base price, but it's in the cost that we finally see the catch to the miniaturization tricks. The $999 entry-level Bolt carries a modest 3.1GHz Core i3, 8GB of RAM, a 1TB hard drive and GeForce GTX 650 Ti, while it takes a staggering $1,949 to get a fully decked-out Core i7 system with a GTX 680. Those prices might be worthwhile for anyone who has ever strained while lugging a traditional tower to a game tourney. %Gallery-169137%
Apple unveils next-generation iMac with slimmer design and Ivy Bridge, starting at $1,299
Who said Apple's event was all about the little things? Apple just unveiled its first redesign to its iMac desktop in three years. The new all-in-one makes the widely expected leap to Intel's Ivy Bridge Core i5 and Core i7 processors, but also represents a much leaner and meaner replacement for the 2009-era template -- its edges are just 5mm thick, and it's constructed with "friction stir welding" as well as a gapless, less reflective display that's laminated together with the glass. Screen sizes remain the same and include both a 21.5-inch, 1080p model and a 27-inch, 2,560 x 1,400 model -- sorry, no Retina displays this year. They share 720p-capable front cameras with dual mics as well as NVIDIA's GeForce 600-era graphics, up to 32GB of RAM and a panoply of storage options that peak at 3TB of spinning storage, a 768GB SSD or what Apple calls a Fusion Drive that mixes both 128GB of flash with 1TB or 3TB of conventional storage (a hybrid drive, for those of us who've seen it before). There's no optical drive unless you plug in a USB option. The 21.5-inch model ships in November, and will set you back $1,299 for a 2.7GHz Core i5, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive; pony up for the 27-inch model at $1,799 and you'll get a 2.9GHz Core i5 as well as the same memory and storage. Apple's larger iMac doesn't ship until December, however, which will give some impulse buyers at least a brief respite. %Gallery-169056% For more coverage, visit our Apple Special Event hub!
