Category: Laptops / Notebooks
HP's new TouchSmart tx2 notebook PC twists into a tablet
HP has introduced its latest notebook, the TouchSmart tx2. As the name suggests, it has touchscreen technology built in, allowing users to interact with various software using finger or stylus rather than the keyboard.
Featuring capacitive touch, the display can distinguish between one or more finger presses, and can disregard accidental touches, making for more accurate and versatile input…
Prototype Macbook Air from mid-2007 surfaces on eBay
I can’t make up my mind whether Macrumours forum member Brett33 is lucky or not. He bought an ‘as is’ Macbook Air off eBay, and it showed up with a black aluminium base and no ‘Macbook Air’ written on the bezel of the display. On further investigation, Brett discovered that it was a very early prototype of the device, built in May 2007.
The laptop was running a build of OS X 10.5, and the device was produced six months before it was announced to the public. It’s rather unusual to see one of these prototypes in the wild, given how secretive Apple is as a company. If I were Brett, I’d stick it straight back on eBay at double the price.
Forum thread (via Macrumours)
Related posts: Apple beefs up MacBook Air with more storage and better graphics, but it’s still thin | What’s this? A Macbook Nano? Er…
More netbook competition on its way as Ubuntu embraces ARM processors
A version of Ubuntu, the popular Linux distribution, will be developed for the ARMv7 processor, Canonical announced last week.
This could bring to market netbooks and other portable devices based on the more energy-efficient ARM processors, and challenge both Intel and AMD.
The Ubuntu Linux netbook version will be officially available from April next year. ARM processors are already used in mobile phones such as the iPhone and G1…
UPDATED: Carphone Warehouse discontinues Linux netbook after unpopularity
The Carphone Warehouse, in a display of extreme lameness, has withdrawn the Elonex Webbook from sale, because it reckons that its customers can’t cope with Ubuntu Linux. Perhaps it’s a reflection on the kind of people who buy computers from Carphone Warehouse, but return rates were up to about 20 percent.
Carphone Warehouse has been promoting the netbook on X-Factor, and they’re going to keep selling a version with Windows XP on. They also offer an Eee 701 deal. The netbook, which comes bundled with Ubuntu (presumably Hardy Heron), has sold approximately 60,000 since launch on a ‘contract’ deal where customers pay £19 a month and get 3G internet access.
Carphone Warehouse (via ITProPortal)
Related posts: Carphone Warehouse and Best Buy launching MEGAHOUSES to flog the UK electronics this year | Carphone Warehouse announces unlimited download Nokia PAYG ‘Comes With Music’ phone
BATTERY DEVELOPMENTS: Korean scientist claims eight-fold leap in power-up time
It is a bit of a shame and quite an embarrassment for mankind that batteries haven’t come on in leaps or bounds since the 1970s, with modern Duracells only being marginally better than the Duracells used to power a Big-Trak for about 35 minutes on Christmas Day, 1981.
But that might possibly be about to change – thanks to a man called Prof. Cho Jae-phil who works at the Department of Applied Chemistry at Hanyang University, in South Korea…
Orange to offer Eee 901 with 3G for £25 a month
Cautiously speaking, this looks like a good deal. If you’ve been thinking about getting a netbook then you’re probably familiar with the Eee 901, which is one of the best on the market. Well, Orange are poised to start selling the Eee for £25 a month on a two year contract with a 3GB-a-month data cap.
It’ll only be available in black and pink, but you also get the ability to send 100 texts from the device, too. The only problem? The device will probably be looking very long in the tooth in two year’s time, given that it’s nearly a year old already, and data will be considerably cheaper by then, too. Plus £25 a month over 24 months is £600. That’s a lot of cash for a machine that Asus are phasing out.
Orange (via Electric Pig)
SHINY VIDEO PREVIEW: Asus Bamboo Notebook
In the video above, Lucy takes us through Asus’s all-new, very green, energy-saving Bamboo laptop. It’s made almost entirely of recycled materials, and everything in it can be recycled after the laptop becomes obsolete. It’s a sustainable laptop, if you will.
Related posts: EcoDigital Audioengine A5N bamboo speaker system – sustainability & sound | Asus “Bamboo” EcoBook laptop now just slightly laminated on the inside
Tech company in 'not bringing out a netbook' shocker
Well, this is a turn-up for the books. NVidia and VIA are NOT, repeat NOT, bringing out a netbook. In a world where brands are getting resurrected solely for the netbook market, it’s notable when a technology company decides that it’s not going to release its own pint-size laptop with no cd drive.
Originally, it was hoped that the two companies would produce a netbook featuring a mobile version of the VIA Nano chip, rather than the industry-standard Intel Atom chip. Those plans are now on hold, as are plans to build MIDs using the chips. Nvidia and VIA’s plans to build desktop machines together are, you’ll no doubt be pleased to hear, firmly intact.
NVidia and VIA (via TrustedReviews)
Related posts: Asus discontinues 700 and 900 range of Eee PC netbooks | HP announces Mini 1000 and Compaq Mini 700 netbooks, including designer option
Asus planning 12" S101 high-end ultra-thin laptop
Originally, the S101 wasn’t planned to be part of Asus’ Eee PC netbook range, but it was shoehorned in at the last minute because the company wanted a high-end Eee. The S101 features a 10.2″ screen, but it looks like the Taiwanese company are planning an ultra-thin 12″ model, too.
The new machine will have a 16:10 aspect ratio, and very similar specs to the S101. ‘Sources’ reckon that the machine could be out as soon as before the end of the year. Thankfully, though, the company aren’t planning to stick an Eee badge on this one – the company president has said that he won’t call anything with a larger-than-10″ screen a netbook.
Related posts: Kinda thin and kinda brown – the original S101 | Virus alert! Asus Eee Box ships in Japan with malware
Fujitsu announces Lifebook N7010 with a second tiny touchscreen
This is the new Fujitsu Lifebook N7010. Its most notable feature is the tiny 4″ touchscreen mounted just above the keyboard. You can use it like a second monitor – dragging programs and stuff down there, or you can use it as an app launcher, or control for DVDs and CDs.
