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DEC's M5 makes an honest living with WinMo in China
Our own Engadget Chinese had an opportunity recently to play with the DEC M5 -- a phone that bears a passing resemblance to HTC's Magic, granted, but does enough to differentiate itself in its own right. How? Well, for starters, the area below the screen is a smooth, tactile response-free tundra of nav and call buttons, and if you're looking for a trackball, you're going to be sorely disappointed. It also steps down to WQVGA resolution from the Magic's HVGA, though WQVGA really suits Windows Mobile just fine -- something we can't say for Android. It's got EV-DO, AGPS, a 3 megapixel camera, and WiFi, too, so really, DEC, we're going to let you slide right on by without the KIRF label here -- not to say anyone outside Asia will have an easy go at getting one of these anyhow.
Polaroid's Digital Entertainment Center revealed in FCC documents
It looks as though Polaroid is about to get into the set-top box game with a new product the company has sent to the FCC for review. Apparently holding steady on its path away from cameras, Polaroid has cooked up an all-in-one, do-everything "Digital Entertainment Center" (or DEC, as they're calling it). The main purpose of the device will apparently be to store and stream your media to a TV, stereo, or any other old-world box you have lying around. The DEC will have a hard drive of indeterminate capacity, and will feature 802.11b/g, HDMI and component outs, two USB ports, as well as composite and S-Video ins and outs for video, with RCA ins and outs, plus coaxial and optical outs for audio. On the front you'll have access to a slew of slots (MMC, SD, MD, CF, Memory Stick), as well as additional USB, video, and audio jacks. So now the questions are when, where, how much, what kind of OS, and what is it compatible with? We'll be poring over the many, many pages of FCC papers while we wait on those answers.
Data Evolution's $799 Cathena CX UMPC with swiveling screen
UMPCs have been branching out from the original (and oft frowned upon) design for some time now, as manufacturers look for tweaks that may hook customers that were previously turned off by the idea. Data Evolution's Cathena CX managed to mix a swiveling LCD into the small frame of a UMPC, and should also catch quite a few eyes with the "aggressive pricing." Internally, the unit features a 500MHz AMD Geode LX800 processor, 512MB of RAM, your choice of a 40GB, 80GB, or 100GB hard drive, a seven-inch WVGA touchscreen, 802.11b/g, and Bluetooth 2.0+EDR. Moreover, you'll find the usual QWERTY keyboard, touchpad, five-way joystick, audio in / out jacks, Ethernet, a pair of USB 2.0 connectors, VGA output, a four-in-one flash card reader, and a Li-ion battery that purportedly lasts up to five hours without needing a boost. The 2.2-pound machine comes standard with Windows XP, and best of all, can be snapped up for a reasonable $799 if you're cool with the basics.[Via LinuxDevices]
RIP, DEC: HP drops Digital Entertainment Center line
HP's Digital Entertainment Center line of Media PCs has attracted its share of fans over the past few years, but it looks like they'll now have to look elsewhere if they want another set-adjacent box, with HP announcing that it's abandoning the DEC form factor in favor of its other media-centric options. In particular, HP says it'll now focus on its MediaSmart line of TVs with integrated Media Center extenders, as well as its standard desktop PCs with Media Center functionality. Of course, for the time being, the DEC units are still readily available, and could potentially wind up being quite the bargain if past product cut-offs are any indication.
