Entourage Edge review roundup

The Entourage Edge is an interesting device that maybe points to a new form-factor we’ll start to see more of going forward. The $499 Edge combines two displays, one with a 9.7-inch e-ink screen and the other with a 10.1-inch (1024 x 600) colour LCD. It uses the Android operating system and comes with a SD card slot, SIM slot, two USB ports, Wi-Fi (b/g) and costs $499.

A number of sites have reviewed the Entourage Edge recently and the general consensus seems to be that it gets a lot of things right, but it is still let down by its awkward design, heavy chassis and sluggish processor. Check out snippets from some recent reviews after the cut. Read more

Hanvon’s 10-inch TouchPad BC10C gets video review

The Hanvon TouchPad BC10C tablet is one of the most desirable that we’ve come across. The 10-inch tablet has a flush glossy display and comes with a 1024 x 600 resolution capacitive screen, HDMI, two USB ports and a SD card slot. It is powered by a 1.3GHz ULV 743 processor, 2GB RAM and storage starting at 250GB HDD.

JKKMobile has put one the test in a video review that you can find after the jump. It will be available from March 24 with prices starting at $877 in China. European and US pricing has still to be set. Check out the video after the break. Read more

Chrome OS smartbooks to be more expensive than Windows netbooks?

Google ‘s Chrome operating system is not expected to launch until the second half later this year. Many question marks over OS remain, however what we do know is that Chrome OS will be heavily cloud based and Google is likely to dictate hardware requirements for devices running it.

Whilst the requirements are under wraps for now, it is believed to include relatively high performance graphics, SSDs and accelerometers. This has led Bob O’Donnell, VP of client s and displays at International Data Corp, to say that Chrome OS smartbooks will be even more expensive than Microsoft Windows-based netbooks. “PC OEMs say the hardware requirements—still under NDA–will make the systems actually more expensive than a Windows device, yet they don’t have anywhere near the applications support,” O’Donnell said. Read more

JooJoo’s trip to the FCC reveals N270 Atom, Nvidia ION internals

Specs for the JooJoo 12.1-inch tablet have been under tight wraps, until now that is. The JooJoo has passed through the FCC where it has been revealed that the tablet will be powered by a 1.6GHz N270 Atom processor and Nvidia ION chipset. It’s no wonder that those that have tested the video capabilities have talked of flawless playback.

Another interesting thing spotted is a SIM card slot that likely means 3G will be an option at some point down the road. The JooJoo will ship with a Linux user interface, however other pictures from the FCC show it running with Windows 7 that could point to future OS choice. The non-removable battery should last for 5 hours. The JooJoo is due to launch on 25 March. Check out some more pictures below. Read more

Toshiba launching own tablet line-up by Q1 2011

The craze for tablet devices is expected to explode when the Apple iPad hits the market next month. Many companies appear to be sitting on the sidelines and waiting for the consumer reaction to the iPad before launching their own slate devices.

Toshiba is one of them and plans to introduce a family of tablet devices by early 2011 at the latest. “It has proved to be a mistake to underestimate these new categories. And besides, we need new category creation to grow our industry,” says Jeff Barney, head of Toshiba’s U.S. notebook business. Now we just need to see whether there is an appetite for these upcoming slates.

Via Akihabara News.

JooJoo gets UI makeover, new colour & fully working Flash playback

We recently heard that the 12.1-inch capacitive JooJoo tablet had been delayed to the end of this month and it seems that Fusion Garage has been putting this time to good use. A number of improvements to the device have been made including a new user interface, improved text entry, fully working Flash video and even a change of colour casing from black to champagne.

The homescreen now has an icon grid that sits over customisable wallpaper. A vertical swipe reveals a status bar housing the home button, status indicators, navigation controls, and search. Two scroll gestures have also now been implemented. This includes a two-finger scroll (much like a scroll wheel) and a single finger “pan” that functions much like a mouse arrow. Read more

ARM expects 50 tablet devices due in 2010

The impending release of the Apple iPad tablet will cause a rush to market of similar devices says ARM. The company expects that it will see ARM-powered 50 tablet devices launching globally this year. Not surprising, considering that this years CES and CeBIT were swamped with tablet devices of one form or another.

This is set to continue at the Computex show in Taipei in June, with ARM renting more space than last year to show off various mobile devices including tablets, smartbooks and e-readers. “The first tablet devices will launch in the second quarter by [mobile network] carriers,” said Roy Chen, ARM’s worldwide mobile computing ODM manager. “You’ll see a lot more in the third quarter.” Read more

Pioneer DreamBook Lite: 12-inch netbook with next-gen ION

Australian company, Pioneer Computers, has released a new 12.1-inch netbook that sports next-generation ION. The ‘DreamBook Lite U12 ION2’ has a number of configuration options for either the 1.66GHz N450 or 1.83GHz N470 Atom processor and comes with a 12.1-inch (1366 x 768) display and 10 hour runtime from the optional 6-cell battery.

Other features include Wi-Fi (b/g/n), HDMI, three USB ports, 1.3MP webcam, and supports a number of different operating systems including Windows XP/Vista/7 and Ubuntu 9.10. No sign of seeing this turn up in Europe, but if you’re interested you can check out the full specs after the break. Read more

LG X300 ultra slim hits the streets later this month

The super-skinny LG X300 that boasts an 11.6-inch display will be launching in selected regions in March according to an official press release. Europe and US are out of the equation for now, the only regions mentioned are Asia, Middle East and South America for an undisclosed price.

The LG X300 won’t come cheap, it measures just 17.5mm in thickness and weighs only 970g. It eschews a bezel and comes with a fancy reflective keyboard and borderless touchpad. It will be available in both shiny white and light brown colours. Read more

Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 reviewed – positives outweigh negatives

The Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 is one of the more powerful 5.6-inch UMPCs on the market that comes with options for a 2.0GHz Intel Atom processor, Windows 7, 2GB RAM and a SSD. Jenn from Pocketables has been reviewing one for the last few weeks and found the UH900 to be a joy to use overall.

Getting the negative points out of the way first, the UH900 had quite poor battery life (2.0 to 2.5 hours of web browsing over Wi-Fi) from its 2-cell 1800mAh battery. Build quality also felt ‘toy like’ and the multitouch felt more to be a gimmick than of any real use. Read more

Microsoft Courier details leak: Dual-screen Tegra 2 ‘Digital Journal’

Details on Microsoft’s Courier device has been under tight wraps since the first rumours started to appear. Now Engadget has managed to get a whole host of details from a trusted source. Apparently the dual-screen device will function as a “digital journal” and will be less than an inch thick and around the size of a 5×7” photo when closed.

The Courier will feature the Tegra 2 chipset and the same operating system as the recently announced Windows Mobile 7 series i.e. Windows CE 6. Other hardware features include a built-in camera and headphone jack. The UI will be pen-based and will focus on drawing and writing. There’s no suggestion on pricing but the release date is said to be at some point in H2 2010.

Viliv S10 Blade unboxed and video impressions

The Viliv S10 Blade convertible netbook recently saw pre-orders open and whilst we wait for the device to ship, Chippy from UMPC Portal has received a final pre-production sample and given a video walkthrough of the device.

As such there’s no formal retail packaging, so it’s not a traditional unboxing video par se. Initial impressions are that the S10 has good build quality, a fast SSD and very good 3G reception. He suggests turning off Windows Aero as it seriously affects the performance of the netbook. Check out the video below. Read more

Alienware M11x gets video unboxing

The Alienware M11x is probably one of the most advanced 11.6-inch ultraportables on the market right now. Whilst we have already seen a very positive review, we were yet to come across an unboxing video. Slashgear has stepped up to the plate and have shown exactly what you get packaged with the M11x.

The model tested comes with a 1.3GHz SU7300 Core 2 Duo processor, 4GB DDR3 memory and a 256GB SSD. Graphics is taken care of by a GeForce GT 335M with 1GB of dedicated memory. Initial impressions are that it is all solidly built but the casing is a real fingerprint magnet. Battery life is said to last for 8.5 hours although this hasn’t been tested yet. Check out the video after the break. Read more

Sony Vaio M netbook unearthed

Sony is set to launch a budget netbook series under the Vaio M name. The specs are nothing to get excited about, it has a 10.1-inch (1024 x 600) display and is powered by a 1.66GHz N450 Atom processor, 1GB DDR2 RAM and a 250GB HDD. Other features include Wi-Fi (b/g/n), Bluetooth 2.1 and a webcam.

The Sony Vaio M will be priced around the £320 mark when it launches later this month. It is cheaper than the Sony Vaio W as it doesn’t have a chiclet keyboard and high-resolution display.

Via Engadget.

Hanvon TouchPad BC10C and BA10E: Win7 tablets with chic design

Hanvon has presented two Windows 7 Home Premium tablets, the Touchpad BC10C and BA10E at CeBIT in Germany. Both models sport a 10.1-inch (1024 x 600) multitouch capacitive display.

The BC10C is powered by a 1.3GHz Intel Celeron ULV743 CPU and is the bulkier tablet of the two. It comes with 2GB RAM, a 250GB HDD, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, HDMI as well as an optical mouse.

The BA10E will come with an active digitizer and electromagnetic stylus (to register commands on the capacitive display). It will be powered by a 1.6GHz Z530 Atom processor, 1GB RAM and a 120GB HDD. Prices are expected to start at €500 when these tablets ship at some point in the future. Availability is unknown at present. Check out some hands-on videos below. Read more

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