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Inbrics M1 gets Android 2.1 and CPU bump to 1GHz, insists on being called an MID
It looks like a smartphone, it has a smartphone's form factor, operating system, and an extra-slim slideout QWERTY keyboard, yet Inbrics still insists on calling the M1 a Mobile Internet Device instead. When the company's not busy sinking its own battleships, it appears to be doing actually beneficial stuff, such as cramming a new 1GHz Samsung CPU inside its device. The original 800MHz unit was the thing that worried us most during our otherwise praise-filled hands-on experience with the M1 at CES, so it's a good sign to see it getting a bit of extra brawn ahead of launch. The software has also moved with the times, with Android 2.1 being the current OS on tap, which should look rather nice on that 3.7-inch OLED display. The M1 will have WiFi, but no cellular connectivity is planned just yet. It's all dependent on having a Western vendor pick up the hardware and infuse it with its own requirements. Although at CES we were told to expect the M1 in March, the current timetable is for a July launch in Korea and US availability by the end of the year, provided Inbrics finds a partner for the device. Netbook News have also finally squeezed a price out of the company and have been told to expect it in the "low $200" range. Sounds kinda promising, don't you think?
Lenovo CEO says mobile internet products will soon account for '70 to 80 percent' of sales
Lenovo may mostly be associated with laptops and all-business desktops these days, but it looks like the company's CEO hopes that won't be the case for too much longer. Speaking with the AP, Yang Yuanqing dropped the somewhat surprising statement that he expects mobile internet products to account for between 70 and 80 percent of the company's sales "within three to five years." Of course, Yang didn't specify exactly what constitutes a "mobile internet product" for Lenovo, but we'd assume it includes things like the company's new IdeaPad S10-3t (and possibly even traditional laptops), or else it really has its work cut out for itself. He further went on to add that Lenovo is focused on a "protect and attack" strategy over the longer term, noting that while China accounts for half of its global sales at the moment, it's now facing increased competition from the likes of Dell and HP both at home and abroad.
$92 MD500 Android tablet from Hott actually looks pretty cool
At this point we really need another tablet like we need another hole in the head, but when this one could cost around $100 and still look quite good, well, it's worth talking about. It's the Hott MD500, an Android device with a 4.8-inch, 800 x 480 screen and plenty of OS customizations to make it rather more media-friendly, including the ability to "play every codec" according to the guy doing the demonstration. We'll believe that when we see it, but it is shown playing a 720p clip from the cinematic masterpiece Tokyo Drift without too much trouble. The somewhat iPhone-esque design looks very nice and is much smaller than a comparable Archos 5. The price is $92 to distributors without any flash memory and, since you can get a 4GB microSD card for a few bucks these days (even a legit one), we wouldn't be surprised if these sell for $115 or $120. Whether they'll ever hit retail in the US is, of course, another question. Video demonstration is embedded below if you want to hear the hype, just try not to lose your breakfast every time this is enthusiastically called an iPad killer.
USmart's MC-1 claims 'world's smallest' title, certainly wins over our hearts
Some people have soft spots for puppies and panda bears; we have them for tiny laptops. Claiming to be the world's smallest computer, USmart's 4.8-inch MC-1 is about the size of a man's wallet yet manages to pack the guts of a netbook. That's right in that tiny little chassis is a 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z530 CPU, 1GB of RAM and 4GB of on-board storage. What it doesn't have is some sort of fan; when we put the little guy in our hand it was quite toasty. Wondering how in the world one would navigate Windows XP on such a small screen? Like the 4.8-inch UMID MBook BZ, it has a resistive touchscreen and comes with a stylus, but USmart will also sell an external touchpad / keyboard combo that's bound to be more comfortable. We're strongly questioning the practicality of this $300 device and its title of "world's smallest computer," but can you really argue with something so adorable? How about you tell us after checking out the video after the break. %Gallery-87370%
Mio stuns at CeBIT with ultra-sleek Moov V780 MID
Uh, folks -- we've an identity crisis on our hands. Is this a MID with a penchant for navigating? Is this a PMP with pre-loaded maps? Is it an ultra-sleek navigator that just so happens to play music? There's a fair chance the world will never know, but we'll soon be stopping by Mio's booth at CeBIT in order to get a view of things ourselves. At any rate, the Moov V780 is undoubtedly one of the most appealing things to come from the outfit in quite some time, offering up 720p multimedia playback, an HDMI output, digital TV support, a 7-inch (800 x 480 resolution) display, 600MHz CPU, 512MB of memory, 4GB of onboard flash and a pretty tremendous list of supported file formats. Sadly, it's humming along on Windows CE (rather than, say, Android), but at least it ships with WiFi and optional WiMAX. There's no mention of a price or release date, but we'll be on the hunt for those tidbits as soon as the show floor opens up.
Viliv S5 MID gets accuracy-boosting HID driver for Windows 7
Viliv's S5 MID, the little machine that packs the Vaio P's Z520 processor in a legitimately pocketable form-factor, just got a breath of fresh air. It's an HID (human interface device) driver for Windows 7, boosting the machine's touchscreen abilities and enabling the breadth of Windows 7's tablet functionality. According to Uber Tablet this greatly enhances usability by, amongst other things, presenting the Windows tablet keyboard rather than relying on the accessibility version and enabling better calibration. The driver being used here is legitimate according to reports we've read, but it is not signed and doesn't appear to be an official release from Viliv, so you may want to exercise a bit of caution before you install -- but don't wait too long. This sounds like a pretty tasty update.
LG GW990 shows up on video, competes with HTC HD2 for camera's attention
When people say the smartphone market is growing, they don't usually mean literally, but looking at the massive popularity of HTC's HD2 whopper, and the anticipation surrounding Dell's Mini 5 and LG's GW990, it's pretty safe to say there is a market for oversized and overpowered (is there such a thing?) handsets. The Moorestown-powered GW990 has made another video appearance, this time showing off its multi-screen functionality and not altogether smooth pinch-to-zoom skills. We're reminded this Mobile Internet Device (a title that's inscribed on its case) will run Moblin (now known as MeeGo), before a HD2 is whipped out for a showdown between super-sized smartphones. It's really quite a sight. After all that excitement is done, the video continues on to take a look at the forthcoming GT540 Android handset and Mini GD880, giving you all the more reason to click past the break for a viewing. [Thanks, Iacopo]
Viliv's S10 Blade netvertible priced at $699 and up
There's hardly a shortage of tablet news these days, but Viliv is managing to cut through somewhat with its relatively robust S10 Blade. Introduced (and toyed with) at CES this year, the Atom-powered device is now up for pre-order at Dynamism (sort of, anyway), with the big reveal being the heretofore unannounced starting price: $699. We get the feeling that some of the more well-appointed units will end up costing far more than that, but at least you know you can get 10.3-inches of resistive multitouch action into your life for less than a carbon fiber Mustang hood. Or pretty much anything else that cost over seven Benjamins.
Moblic E7 stuffs WiMAX, QWERTY, a gamepad, and all our dreams and wishes into a MID
"Remember the story about the boy who suddenly got everything he ever wanted?" asks the high-pitched man in a funny suit. Gene Wilder was probably referring to the Moblic E7. This 4-inch WVGA MID sports an unnamed 600MHz processor, 8GB of built-in storage, WiMAX, microSD expansion, but most impressively slides open to reveal a QWERTY keyboard and delicious SNES-style gaming controls. There's not much more info to go on, like OS, production plans, or price, but sign us up for a dozen.
Dell Mini 5 / Streak prototype impressions
Dell's puzzled the world for quite some time with its outlandish Mini 5 / Streak -- at first glance it's just another Android-based MID, but a quick fiddle with it reveals the full-fledged 3G phone inside. So will it fit in a pocket? Can we carry it around like a normal phone? Is this the future form factor that will bring the ultimate balance between portability and practicality? With such heavy dose of curiosity, we eventually traveled all the way to Shenzhen literally just to grab this prototype. Now, before you read on, do bear in mind that some of its features -- especially the OS -- may not make it to the final design when it comes out later this year, nor do we know what stage this prototype was at. We good? OK. Let's start with the basics: the main specs on our unit include Android 1.6 (which will definitely be obsolete for the final product), five-inch 800 x 480 capacitive touchscreen, Snapdragon QSD8250 chipset (with CPU clocked at 1GHz), Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS and WCDMA radio. Sadly, we have no info on whether the Mini 5 will have other cellular radio options, but it wouldn't hurt to send Dell a petition regarding this matter. For those who want the dimensions and weight in numbers, it's about 152mm x 78mm x 10mm at 8 ounces (including the battery, which lasts for almost a day for normal usage on 3G). Memory-wise there's 405MB RAM and 1.63GB of internal storage -- a slight let-down for the latter, so let's hope the retail unit will be given a more generous dose of silicon. You can add a microSD card next to the battery on the back, but it appears that the mysterious second card slot we saw in the earlier teardown only gave us false hope -- we couldn't find a way to get to it without prying open the housing. Connection to your computer relies on a proprietary port -- similar but slightly larger than the iPod's -- to USB cable, which may suggest that we will see some more peripherals made for the Mini 5 and its future siblings. %Gallery-85458%
Dell Mini 5: we have it (update: new pics and video!)
That's right! After all those quick and dirty appearances, we've finally got our own Dell Mini 5 (aka "Streak" or "M01M") prototype for a more in-depth look. Got a question about this mysterious beast? Drop us a line here and we'll try to answer all your queries in our forthcoming impressions post. Update: We've just added a bunch of new pics! Update 2: And now we have a quick video after the break. You're welcome. Update 3: Our review is up!%Gallery-85233% %Gallery-85249%
Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 now available in US for $850
Remember back at CES, when we got ahold of Fujitsu's LifeBook UH900? Well, it looks like you won't have to wait any longer if you were dying to get one of your own -- you can grab one up on Fujitsu's US website now. The 5.6-inch, multitouch-boasting little guy's got a 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z530 CPU, 2GB of RAM, a 62GB SSD, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPS, and it comes with Windows 7 installed. The suggested retail price on this puppy is $999, but Fujitsu's offering it right now for $849 -- that's a lot more than many MIDs, but the spec sheet is enough to keep us interested.
Dell 'Mini 5' tablet prototype shows up as M01M in Shenzhen black market
Who's got some love for prototype gadgets, eh? Apparently someone does in Shenzhen (surprise of the day?). PC Online managed to cuddle up with a black Dell Streak / Mini 5 prototype, which has "Model M01M" marked under the battery cover -- something not seen in the earlier teardown, and is probably the most official name to date. Spec-wise the M01M sums up what's been speculated all along -- 5-inch 800x480 touchscreen, Android 1.6, 1GHz CPU (presumably Snapdragon, as revealed by the teardown), WiFi, Bluetooth, 3G of some sort, 5 megapixel camera with dual-LED flash, front-facing camera, and the same 1530mAh battery as the one in the teardown. The price? ¥7,500, which converts to a whopping $1,098 in US cash, but bear in mind that this doesn't reflect the M01M's actual retail price for whenever it might launch. [Thanks, Shaun Wu]%Gallery-84143%
Cowon W2 shown in its natural tradeshow habitat, running Windows 7
Werefore art thou, UMPC? Oh look, Cowon found you. The Cowon W2 MID / UMPC / tablet / something has been spotted in the wild, running Windows 7 and thwarting typical efficient interaction methods. The Atom-powered device was caught by AVING running in both portrait and landscape modes, and even paired up with a pint-sized USB QWERTY keyboard. It does look a little chunky under those harsh tradeshow lights, but there's a certain charm to the device's OS optimism. Hopefully we'll be able to play with one soon, but there's still no word on a US launch.
Sungworld's Android MID fights the future
We don't think we're over-reaching when we say that this device, Sungworld's just-unveiled 7-inch, Android touchscreen MID looks a bit... well, Apple-ish, and we hear that the UI (which we haven't yet seen in action) will take cues from the company as well. Regardless, this thickish-looking puppy will boast an ARM926 CPU, 128MB of memory, 2GB of storage, and two USB ports. It's also supposedly going to be available in pink, blue, green, purple and black, and though we don't know pricing yet, we assume that if that tablet we've heard so much about in recent weeks fails to materialize next Wednesday, well... okay, this won't be a great stand-in. Sorry.
ARM-based processors to overtake x86 competition in netbooks and MIDs by 2013?
We suppose industry analysts must be paid on account of just how grand their prognostications are. ABI Research know-it-alls have come out with their own spectacular claim today by asserting their expectation that x86 processors -- still dominant the world over -- will be swept aside in the rapidly developing "ultra-mobile device" space by the ascension of ARM-based processing architectures. That the Cortex CPUs have grown in popularity (and power) is undeniable, but who realistically expects Intel to sit back and watch all this happen? The x86 patriarch has even gone and created an Atom SDK, so we hardly expect the forecast table above to become reality. We're just happy to see that ARM's lower power profile is attracting investment -- it's always good to see a threat to Santa Clara's chokehold on the CPU market, and AMD's sleepwalking through the past few months hasn't helped things. Now if only those Tegra 2 smartbooks were on retail shelves instead of inside prototype shells, we could get started on this supposed revolution.
ViewSonic VPC08 MID/phone appears on video, fails to steal xpPhone's thunder
Maybe it's all the talk of the ITG xpPhone that's made ViewSonic's VPC08 come out of hiding, but the phone/MID contraption is finally making a video appearance and revealing why it's so damn thick. Unlike the xpPhone the VPC08 is actually an ordinary feature phone with a 2-inch display stuck on top of an Atom Z500-powered 4.3-inch MID. Uh, innovative? Not so much since it doesn't appear that the two work in conjunction, but we do know that the phone supports EV-DO, and that the MID portion packs 512MB RAM, an 8GB SSD with Windows XP, and WiFi. For those that are at all interested in holding this mega-device up to an ear, it looks like it will be sold only in China for a whopping 4800 Yuan ($705). No word if that price includes pants with extra-large pockets. We'll be waiting for the Moorestown-powered LG GW990 to get Atom in a phone, but we do urge you to check out this beast of a "phone" in action in the video after the break.
Archos 5 gets Android 1.6 update, for real this time
Archos disappointed quite a few users last month by pushing out an Android 1.6 (a.k.a. "Donut") update for its Archos 5 internet tablet only to yank it shortly thereafter due to a "last-minute major issue," but it now looks like it's finally set things right -- the update is once again available for download, and it apparently works just fine this time. Among other things, the update optimizes applications for the Archos 5's high resolution screen, and adds features like Quick Search to help you find music, contacts and other information more easily. Hit up the link below for all the necessary upgrade details. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Quanta working on 3.5-inch smartbook-as-phone, hates our thumbs
Without pictures or firm form factor details, it's hard to tell exactly what Quanta is driving at here (or who it's driving at it for), but the concept of a "computer in an iPhone form factor," as Quanta Chairman Barry Lam so tactfully puts it, doesn't fill us with much hope for usability. At least it probably won't look as terrifying as this modded Dell netbook pictured above. Quanta says it's building a "smartbook" device with a 3.5-inch touchscreen, with voice calling and web browsing the primary functionalities. We're not really sure what even qualifies this as a "smartbook" if it's really in an iPhone form factor, but perhaps it's to run some sort of full-featured OS. Unfortunately, Moblin and Windows seem out, because there's Qualcomm and ARM under the hood. If this is indeed in some sort of fold-up form factor, our greatest fear is another Viliv N5 or UMID mBook BZ experience -- we just don't think we could relive that sort of pain.
Dell Mini 5 teardown reveals Snapdragon guts and 3G SIM (video)
As long as Dell chooses to be stingy with the details of its upcoming 5-inch Mini 5 (codenamed Streak) MID we'll just have to suss out the specs from more nefarious sources. And who better to fill in the blanks than the kids over at Tinhte -- the original source of the leaked Android handheld that got official at CES? The Vietnamese site did the world a solid today by tearing into a Mini 5 sample revealing a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, two microSD slots, and a bigger 1,530mAh battery than the original 1,300mAh baby we saw back in October. The site also confirms the SIM slot with 3G radio and taste for faux 80s metal. See what we mean in the video (and bonus pic) after the break. [Thanks, Tran Manh K.]
