Notion Ink Adam tablet renders surface, two versions considered

Of the many tablets shown off at CES 2010 in January, the Notion Ink Adam was one of the most interesting. It utilizes two of the most exciting technologies in the mobile computing space, the Nvidia Tegra 2 chipset as well as Pixel Qi’s 3Qi Hybrid 10-inch display. Whilst the device shown at CES was very much a prototype, Slashgear has managed to get their hands-on with renders of what the finished tablet will look like.

Interestingly, the company is considering two models, one that is 12.9mm thick and the other is 11.6mm in thickness (for reference the iPad is 13.4mm thick). Notion Ink hasn’t said what the differences are, but one version may end up excluding the Pixel Qi display that no doubt adds bulk and instead going for a vanilla LCD display on the slimmer model. Read more

DosPara preps 12.1-inch Blu-ray netbook

DosPara has teamed up with a game animation called Nitro+ to introduce a limited edition 12.1-inch “Yu-on” netbook that comes with a Blu-ray optical drive. The Prime Note Cresion NA Yu-Pon is quite full featured, armed with a 1.6GHz dual-core 330 Atom processor and Nvidia ION chipset.

You’ll also get 2GB RAM, 320GB HDD, Wi-Fi (b/g/n), HDMI and Windows 7 Home Premium. The Yu-On netbook will hit Japan later this month for 69,980 Yen ($784, £503, €575). It’s unlikely we’ll see this unique netbook hit western shores anytime soon.

Via Akihabara News.

Asus Eee PC 1201T reviewed – subpar battery life

Asus is certainly making the most out of its 12.1-inch netbook chassis. It currently has four netbooks sporting 12.1-inch (1366 x 768) displays. This includes the dual-core ION 1201N, the single-core ION 1201NL, the Z-series Atom 1201HA and finally the AMD Congo powered 1201T.

The guys over at Yugatech have tested the Eee PC 1201T. Whilst they liked the Seashell design, chiclet keyboard, crisp display and touchpad, they found it hard to get excited about its poor battery life and only slightly above-average CPU performance. Read more

NbC: MSI Wind U135 Unboxed [Video]

MSI were kind enough to send over the MSI Wind U135 netbook for us to test. Whilst we’ll be putting the 10-inch U135 through its paces over the next couple of weeks, we first shot an unboxing video along with our preliminary impressions.

I have to say I’m impressed with MSI’s efforts in its new range of Intel Pine Trail netbooks. Whilst the Wind U160 may be the head-turner, the U135 isn’t too bad itself. Whilst we’re never fans of seeing a glossy lid, it doesn’t seem to be as much of a fingerprint magnet compared to the other models. The chiclet keyboard also has proved to be comfortable and we really like the textured touchpad. It’s not the biggest, but the tracking is very accurate and the finger scrolls smoothly over the surface. The single rocker bar underneath also has good feedback.

We’re currently conducting our usual round of battery and performance tests and will come back with a review in due course. Until then, check out our unboxing video after the break. Read more

Apple iPad interest waning?

It was somewhat unusual that Apple launched a product without it being almost immediately available. When Apple launched the iPad tablet at the end of January, it did so knowing that it won’t be in consumers hands for another couple of months. One of the dangers of this is that people will stop caring, well at least until Apple’s marketing juggernaut is unleashed.

A survey by Retrevo has shown that Apple has not convinced people to buy the new Apple iPad as well as losing some potential customers following its official announcement. They conducted two surveys, one before and one after the announcement with 1,000 people. Unfortunately, the number of people saying that they weren’t interested in buying the tablet doubled from 26 percent before the announcement to 52 percent afterwards. Read more

ASUS Eee PC 1008P tested – great design, poor battery life

The Asus Eee PC 1008P-KR edition certainly looks different to most other netbooks out there. It marries the slim chassis of the previous generation 1008HA Seashell netbook with Karim Rashid’s exterior design influences.

Engadget put the Eee PC 1008P through its paces and found that it suffered from “performance issues at the expense of better design.” There’s no denying that the netbook is attractive and should appeal to the fashionistas out there, the brown model in particular. However, given its $499 price point, it offers less battery life than its cheaper peers including the Eee PC 1005PE. The model tested comes with a 1.66GHz N450 Atom processor, 2GB RAM and a 320GB HDD. Read more

Samsung N150 reviewed – battery life good, keyboard bad

Samsung has released four new Intel Pine Trail netbooks and amongst them is the 10.1-inch Samsung N150, powered by a 1.66GHz N450 Atom processor, boasting an 8.5-hour battery life. Cnet recently reviewed the Samsung N150 netbook and whilst they lauded its battery life, the keyboard fell short, a disappointment considering Samsung’s pedigree in this area.

The chassis comes with a glossy black lid (I really wish Samsung would go back to its matte lid on the Samsung N120) that is a bit of a fingerprint magnet. Samsung’s netbook keyboards have stood out in the past, however Cnet found the one in the N150 disappointing. This was due to close proximity of keys that caused errors aplenty. However, the touchpad made up for this with accurate tracking and mutt-touch gestures out of the box. Read more

Asus Eee PC 1005PE-H spotted in France with spec boost

Asus is prepping a revision of the Eee PC 1005PE netbook that will come with some improved specs. The 1005PE-H will come with 2GB RAM, 320GB HDD and Windows 7 Premium instead of 1GB RAM, 250GB HDD and W7 Starter found on the original.

Apart from that the rest of the specs are the same, including the 1.66GHz N450 Atom processor, 10.1-inch (1024 x 600) display, 6-cell 4400mAh battery, Wi-Fi (b/g/n) and Bluetooth. French retailer Fnac has it listed for €349 (€50 more expensive than the original), but there are no signs so far whether this will hit other regions.

Via Blogeee.

X2 intros iTablet, comes in two display sizes

Hot on the heels from Apple’s iPad launch, UK company X2 has introduced a new tablet. They’ve named it the iTablet (one of the rumoured names for the iPad), but takes one step ahead of the iPad by adding Flash, Windows/Linux versions, as well as a plethora of ports including HDMI and USB.

It will come in two display sizes, 10.2-inch and 12.1-inch (1024 x 768) displays with optional multi-touch. Not sure why they didn’t make it multi-touch out of the box, especially for a tablet that size. It will be powered by a 1.6GHz CPU (Atom?) and support up to 250GB of storage. Other features include built-in speakers, a 1.3MP webcam, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and optional 3G. Read more

MSI Wind U160 netbook gets official, full specs released

Official specifications for the gorgeous MSI Wind U160 netbook have been revealed. The company claims that the N450 Atom Pineview netbook will have a runtime of up to 15 hours, although I imagine that is on a 6-cell (or maybe extended 9-cell?) battery. If true, it likely means real-time use of around 10 or 11 hours, still nothing to sniff at.

Apart from that, there’s not too much that we didn’t already know about the 10-inch (1024 x 600) netbook. It’s one of the most attractive MSI Wind netbooks we’ve come across and measures an inch in thickness and weighs less than 1kg. The lid comes in two colours (Fancy Gold and Jet Black) and it also comes with a chiclet keyboard and seamless touchpad that is reminiscent of the Asus Eee Seashell series. Check out the full specs after the break. Read more

Viewsonic VNB108 netbook announced and handled [Video]

Viewsonic will shortly be releasing the 10-inch VNB108 Pine Trail netbook. The specs are nothing to get excited about (N450 Atom, 1GB RAM, 250GB HDD and W7 Starter), but hopefully it will come with a budget price to match.

It’s nice to know it will come with a matte (1024 x 600) display. NetbookNews got their hands on a pre-production unit and give us a quick tour of the device. Check out the video along with full specs after the jump. Read more

LG X200 netbook hits the FCC

The LG X200 was first spotted at CES just a few weeks back and now it has appeared once again passing through the FCC. The N450 Atom Pine Trail netbook certainly looks different to other netbooks and comes with a 10.1-inch (1366 x 768) display and chiclet keyboard.

It’s reasonably lightweight at 1.2kg (2.6lbs) and supports up to 2GB RAM, a 250GB/320GB HDD and Windows 7 Starter. Other features include a 1.3MP webcam, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, SmartOn 2.0 instant-on OS and optional 3G. Battery options include a 4-cell 2000mAh battery or 6-cell 2600 mAh battery. There are no pricing details but it is expected to launch during Q1 2010.

Via Wireless Goodness.

Alienware M11x reviewed – one of the best laptops tested

Whilst we wait for the 11.6-inch Alienware M11x to start hitting consumer’s hands, the folks over at HardwareHeaven have reviewed one of the first models off the production line. To say they were impressed is an understatement. According to them, the M11x is “without doubt one of the best laptops we have tested… if not the best. Not only that, it’s right up there as one of the best products we have ever tested, in any category.”

High praise indeed. The design carries on the aggressive lines of its larger brothers in the Alienware range, it also felt sturdy and robust. The backlit keyboard is comfortable to use as is the touchpad with near silent mouse buttons. The 11.6-inch (1366 x 768) display is bright and speakers have a good amount of volume. Read more

JooJoo Tablet gears up to full production; app store on horizon

All of the fuss may still be over the Apple iPad, however let’s not forget Fusion Garage’s JooJoo tablet that offers a larger 12.1-inch display and flash support for the same price as the iPad ($499). The company has confirmed that production of the tablet has “moved into full production” with shipments expected to hit consumers by the end of February.

It has teamed up with Malaysia’s largest OEM, CSL who will absorb the upfront manufacturing costs in exchange for a royalty on each JooJoo sold. CSL has also made a strategic investment in Fusion Garage. The company’s founder, Chandrasekar “Chandra” Rathakrishnan, has also said that a full app store is in the works. “We have a bigger ‘app store’ than Apple because we have the full Internet,” Chandra said. The company is certainly ambitious, not that I really understand why seemingly every manufacturer wants their own app store these days…

Asus Eee PC 1008P shipping with two batteries?

The Asus Eee PC 1008P-KR (Karim Rashid) netbook may be shipping with two batteries in parts of mainland Europe. The 1008P has been spotted as sporting two 3-cell 2900mAh batteries in Italian retailer Asus World.

This means buyers will get a quoted battery time of 12 hours (6 hours per battery). This hasn’t been confirmed yet so I’d take the news with a pinch of salt for now, but it’s great news for consumers if true. The Eee PC 1008P is available in the UK right now in low quantities for around the £340 mark.

Update: It looks like it is true, check the comments below (thanks Steffen and Stefano!)

Via Netbook Italia.

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