Archive for September, 2010
Remember the Rockchip telephones that were on display at the IFA? Well, the above video (hosted on Youku so apologies to those blocked out) is of one of them in action, dialing a telephone call to another mobile. It's not earth shattering stuff - in fact, it's not even mildly exciting. What it is, though, is a display of Rockchip's rather anachronistic take on technology. Most people that I know cut off their home telephone lines long ago. Either way, it's quite nifty and perhaps more of a gimmick or proof-of-concept than anything else, and powered by Android is sure to help things along. One of the highlights will obviously be video calling. It can also function as a kind of "multimedia centre" in your living room, with WiFi access allowing web browsing, not to mention getting onto th
ViewSonic are steaming ahead with PMP releases, this time unveiling quite possibly the new 8-inch king. While previously Ainol's "Monolith" P810 held the title of most distinguished "big man" amongst a "point-guard"-laden pack, ViewSonic's MB-P801 looks to snatch that crown away, mostly due to its impressive 1280x768 screen resolution which, in conjunction with powerful 1080p video decoding capability, is bound to result in a nice video picture. To continue the Arthur C. Clarke referencing, this might very well be "Big Brother". The MB-P801 Big Brother will support all the standard video file formats, such as MKV, MP4, MPG, WMV, AVI, ASF, DAT, VOB, RMVB, etc., and will also have HDMI-out, not that you would really need to hook this thing up to anything bigger. Where it loses some groun
After what seemed like aeons of speculation, BlackBerry has at long last announced it's tablet, called the Playbook in an odd naming turn. The Playbook is a 7-inch 1024x600 device, sporting a dual-core processor with Flash 10.1 support. It all looks quite impressive, and there are some videos after the break that show off the tablet functionality of this device, which seems poised to compete in the tablet market rather than being relegated to the realm of "big phone" territory which I'm quite certain many feared would happen. We have to wonder what kind of pricing we'll see because, as expected, the Playbook could very well change the way the market prices top-level tablets... and not for the better as it is quite a likely possibility that this tab goes on to retail for more than the iPa
Another APAD lookalike seems poised to hit the market, apparently packing X86 hardware necessitating some pretty elaborate cooling for the heat-heavy architecture. What you see pictured above seems to be a prototype unit with a 9.7-inch screen that runs the Intel Atom Z510 processor clocked at 1.1Ghz, and sports along with it 1GB RAM as well as a 16GB SSD. What you see pictured below (after the break) is reportedly a 10.1-inch unit that packs the more power-hungry netbook chip, the Intel Atom N450 clocked at 1.66GHz, also along with 1GB of RAM but this time a 160GB 1.8-inch HDD - it's sure not to be light-weight. It is presumed that these prototypes will run Windows, either Windows 7 or XP as is common with X86 handhelds. Check the cooling vents... both impressive and oddly worrying, a
ViewSonic are releasing an upgrade to their original 4.3-inch 1080p player, the K432, with a new model, the K433. The K433 has the same 4.3-inch 480x272 form factor, can also do 1080p video playback, and the only real changes seem to be cosmetic with a thin silver trim lining the lip of the front of the player. The 1080p capable player will have HDMI functionality, plays all the major file formats, comes in 4GB flavour and has dimensions of 125x80x12.5mm, so it's quite compact. All in all, another solid player, but nothing hugely special here. Of course, that pretty much describes the Chinese PMP market...
via imp3
Bmorn's BM252 is the latest to enter the market with an e-book-reader-first, 1080p-player-second device, measuring in at 7-inches with support for twp popular e-book formats (PDF, UMD). It doesn't seem to have EPUB format support, which puts it at slightly less versatile than the other similar products we've seen. It can also do 1080p video, supporting most major video file types, such as MKV, AVI, WMV, MP4, RMVB etc. The BM252 packs a 7-inch 800x480 display. All in all, interesting, but perhaps not interesting enough to account for the relatively higher price.
via imp3
Window seem to have it down when it comes to the look of a player. Other companies have attempted to replicate the similar minimalist styling, but have met with relatively less success. Window's latest, the G90+, is another well-styled player featuring the Sochip SC8600 chip, otherwise known as the Boxchip F16, playing HD video up to 768p (1366x768). It's a 4.3-incher, plays the standard array of video file formats, supposedly has 8 hours of video playback battery life (though we'll ultimately see), and looks like a solid player all around. It's not 1080p or 1280p capable, which notches it below the top-end, but it's enough for anyone wanting a casual viewing experience.
via imp3
Bmorn's BM-580 is another 4.3-inch, PDF-reading, 1080p player to enter an overflowing market. With side buttons and quite a sleek look, we really can't complain, and the extra PDF reading to go along with 1080p is a plus. It's got TV-out, supports the standard array of video file formats (MKV, AVI, MPG, RMVB, MP4, WMV, etc.), has your typical functionality (image viewer, txt reader etc.) and looks like a solid all-around player. It fills no niche and its contemporaries are many, but either way, it's sits in a top tier of player in terms of functionality and power.
via imp3
The Neofonie WeTab has been going round and round on blogs like spinning rims on a blinged out bounce mobile, and it's MeeGo Linux OS is not only fresh, but risky. The above video shows the "pinboard" styile UI which runs very smoothly on the WeTab's hardware and, quite frankly, looks good. It's refreshing to see something different from the myriad Android UI's we're used to seeing and the endless clones of the iOS taking away from the iOS UI itself. To refresh your memory, the 11.6-inch device is powered by the Intel Atom N450 processor clocked at 1.66GHz, has 1GB of RAM and 16GB of on-board flash memory.
via pocket-lint
HTC's much alluded tablet has had a kind of unveiling of specs and pricing, like pulling the sheet off of a concept car, and it appears it is still on track to debut in Q1 2011 running Google's Android 3.0 OS. The HTC tablet will (apparently) be powered by the Tegra 2 chip that we've seen in many tablets announced recently, providing tremendous power and guarantees snappy response and quick web browsing, not to mention the jaw-dropping 3D capability. Hyperbole aside, the HTC tablet is expected to cost around $790, sneaking just under the most expensive iPad available... yet. Full specs after the break.
Specs are according to DigiTimes:
Display: 10 inch multitouch screen, 1280 x 720 pixels
Connectivity: WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth
Memory: 32GB SSD, 2GB ROM
Software: Chrome Web apps
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