ViewSonic To Show 4G Tablet/Phone

ViewSonic is just a monitor company. Not so fast – the Wall Street Journal is reporting that ViewSonic is going to introduce a 4G Android tablet/phone at CES next week.
The Wall Street Journal calls it a hybird phone/tablet, but the alleged 4-inch screen size really isn’t anything to write home about, considering we’ve seen bigger phones and tablets. In addition to that ViewSonic will be showing two other tablets, according to the WSJ. ViewSonic introduced their 10-inch G Tablet this year, an Android tablet running on NVIDIA‘s Tegra 2 technology. Despite an appealing price point, many seemed to be discouraged by the user interface on the device. While ViewSonic isn’t a brand name (outside of monitors) like a Sony or Samsung, the fit and finish of their tablets has gotten high marks from critics.

Further, the WSJ article says that the tablet will connect to 4G networks. Apparently, the source didn’t specify if it was Verizon‘s or Sprint‘s (or T-Mobile‘s) 4G network. The folks at IntoMobile seem to believe that could mean the ViewSonic tablet could do 4G for multiple networks. That would be crazy, and I sort of doubt it.

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Samsung Looks To Show Off Next Generation AMOLED

Samsung’s looking to show of a 4.5 inch flexible AMOLED panel, which not only shows in WVGA (800 x 480) resolution, but can also be rolled down to as little as a one centimeter (.393 inches, roughly, for the non-metrics in the crowd). That alone is some pretty impressive stuff, but it doesn’t stop there, as they’re also looking to bring out a 19 inch panel designed for computer monitors and even televisions, offering up a full 30 percent transparency, even when activated. Last but not least, they’ve also got a 14 inch panel in mind for notebooks.
Basically, what this means for us is a whole slew of new devices coming up in the not too distant future that will likely incorporate these panels. Because they’re still pretty transparent, even when active, look for them to be used in cars as well, possibly even incorporating with, say, an augmented reality program that would let you see exactly what you were driving by at the time, or possibly even as a great early-warning system for those suicidal deer that jump out in the road every so often when you’re driving, especially at night.

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LG ST600 Looks To Smarten Up Your Old Television

Cheer up, because the folks out at LG want to help you get your old television on line with their LG ST600 smart TV upgrader.
Doubtless this is freaking out all the bandwidth providers out there–at least, if you believe what they’re saying–but what the LG ST600 will do is take your “dumb” display and turn it into a smart one. You don’t need an LG television, either; the LG ST600 will work with, apparently, most any television out there (oddly, I can’t quite pin down just what port you’ll need, so take that last with a grain of salt as you may need an HDMI input in order to make it work) and allow you access to, not surprisingly, the LG Smart TV apps system. You’ll get special content, an internet browser, and even DNLA streaming, all for what LG describes as “an affordable price”.

It makes some sense that LG isn’t pegging a price point just yet to give them something to show at CES next week. I’m actually impressed by the sheer amount of home theater options they’re offering up, and I’m honestly wondering if that LG ST600 might also be useful for home theater projectors

as well. Stop and wrap your head around that for a second, folks–YouTube videos fired onto a hundred or so inch screen? Are you ready, as a people, to watch a guy do a jump off a high dive in a kayak (warning: I am not making this up, this is an actual video) in almost lifelike dimensions in the comfort of your own home?

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Grace Digital Lends Color Displays And More To Three Internet Radios

It’s been a while since we’ve had the opportunity to talk about much out of Grace Digital, so I’m glad to see they’re still working. First out of the gate is the Mondo, offering a 3.5 inch touch screen display with an actual alarm clock contained within (even down to the snooze button, an all too necessary feature for any alarm clock owner), as well as a USB port. This one’s set to cost $169.99.
Second up, we’ve got the Bravado X, which offers a 2.7 inch touch screen display, RCA input and output, and a USB connector. This one costs just ten bucks more than the Mondo at $179.99.
Last up is the Solo Touch, which now boasts a 4.3 inch touch screen display with additional remote, an Ethernet connection, RCA outputs, and a headphone jack when you don’t want to wake anybody up. That one will set you back $249.99.
All three of these have color displays (which wasn’t the case previously), and they can be controlled via an iPhone app. Plus, you’ll get a wide variety of content available with these–apparently each is capable of receiving a laundry list of radio items like Pandora, Sirius XM, WeatherBug, CBS Radio and a whole slew of others.
How subscription issues and the like are resolved on these is a bit unclear, and apparently some have had issues in the past with the touch screen’s functionality.

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Sharp Galapagos Tablets Expected To Arrive In US Market In 2011

Well, flash forward till today and while we are still waiting on something slightly more official, or at the very least — from Sharp, we do have word that Sharp has plans to release the Galapagos line of tablet readers in the US in 2011 and follow that up with a release in China, India and Brazil. The details are fairly vague at the moment and are coming by way of The Mainichi Daily (a newspaper).
So far the details include that Sharp has plans to bring both the 5.8 inch and the 10.8 inch models and that they will come with at least one new feature and one change in file support, both of which sound like a smart move in the US market.
Lets first mention the new feature, built-in 3G. Of course, these will likely be tied to the carriers which could potentially mean contracts, or hopefully month-to-month contract free data plans. That said, it is nice to at least have the option to get always on data for a tablet. Still, while we could expect that, so far there has not been anything announced that would clue us in to which carriers.
Moving onto the change and this comes with some good and maybe some not quite as exciting. First, the change, the Galapagos is expected to arrive in the US with support for Epub as opposed to the proprietary XMDF that they have now. But while that sounds like it makes perfect sense, there is also word that Sharp plans to unveil that with an Ebookstore offering of their own.

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University of Glasgow Researchers Create Thousand Core CPU

Yes, that’s right…a thousand core processor. I had to read that one a couple times myself, but apparently, they’ve done it. And how they got to that point is by using systems that are commonly found in plasma and LCD televisions called Field Programmable Gate Arrays, or FPGAs.
An FPGA is a microchip with a bunch of transistors in it, and what the folks out at the University of Glasgow did was build their own FPGA, wiring up the transistors just how they wanted them and effectively turning it into a CPU with 1000 cores. From Dr. Wim Vanderbauwhede, the project’s leader:

“This is very early proof-of-concept work where we’re trying to demonstrate a convenient way to program FPGAs so that their potential to provide very fast processing power could be used much more widely in future computing and electronics.”

Interestingly, Intel was also working on a similar project, though just how much connection the University of Glasgow project had with it is unclear. It actually sounds like the University of Glasgow group may well have beaten Intel to the punch by actually creating the chip while Intel was working on theirs.

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LG Set To Show LW6500 Passive 3D Television

It’s a 65 inch television that will be running TruMotion operating at 200 Hz to give it a nice blur-free image, the capability to convert 2D to 3D, HDMI and USB ports, a variety of internet options like YouTube and Hulu Plus, and I’ve heard mention of a brightness booster to keep things looking nice and sharp. You can probably also figure it’ll have component and composite inputs, an Ethernet jack (or possibly outright Wi-Fi connection to have the internet options), and it’s a pretty good bet that this will be in 1080p.
But where the real surprises come on this one is from two key points: one, the LG LW6500 is using passive, as opposed to active, 3D glasses. According to reports, this says that the 3D will be flicker-free, since it’s roughly the same kind of 3D the theater uses. And two, this is set to be one of the first televisions to add on LG’s film-type patterned retarder we talked about not too long ago.
Now, we don’t specifically know prices and release dates on this just yet–but we can say one thing: based on a similar model of passive 3D television from Vizio, that’s even the same size, you can probably look for this one to weigh in around $3600.

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South Korea Has First All Electric Commercial Bus

It can be a bit interesting to watch countries that are considered behind the United States and Europe in power and influence still beat the world powers to the punch when it comes to things like having entire cities taking large steps to going green.

Seoul, South Korea has announced that it is the first in the world to roll out all electric commercial bus service for its city. While there have previously been several different pilot programs all over the world and there have been other electric vehicle forms of public transportation, this is the first all-electric commercial busing program.
The initiative is in concert with the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Hyundai Heavy Industries

and Hankuk Fiber. These particular buses are expected to be able to run for about 52 miles on a single charge (about 30 minutes of activity) and can hit a maximum speed of 62 miles per hour.

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Advanced X-Ray Camera Captures Lightning Bolt Strike

Most recently an X-Ray camera recorded what a lightning strike looks like when captured by a camera shooting 10 million frames per second.

The X-Ray camera 1,500 pound camera was built by researchers who wanted to learn more about these lightning strikes. Of course it is awful hard to predict where lightning will actually strike and because of this the researchers fired rockets into thunderstorms that were laced with metal lines geared towards drawing the electricity to the certain desired point.
While all this technology seems quite impressive the camera itself is extremely low resolution. With lightning moving as fast as it does it is pretty hard to take a high resolution shot even at 10 million frames per second. Still the photograph does show a pretty detailed look at a lightning bolt looks like when it strikes.

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HTC Thunderbolt 4G Pictures Come Out Early?

Life is posting what are allegedly the first pictures of the HTC Thunderbolt, aka the Incredible HD, aka the Mecha, aka the first 4G LTE phone on Verizon that’s expected to be unveiled next week at CES. According to Droid-Life, it’s very similar to the Desire HD / EVO 4G and will be called the “Thunderbolt”.

 Droid-Life seems conflicted on if the phone will carry the Droid branding. They say it’s possible that the phone will come default with Bing as the search engine – which would make it not a Droid-branded phone. But they also say that it could be called the “Droid Thunderbolt”. This will likely be a selling point for many people.

It looks very similar to the Desire HD / EVO 4G, right down to the kickstand on the back, which always seemed a bit pointless to me. Kellex also reports that the phone won’t be coming with a dual-core processor, so I assume it will have the same Qualcomm QSD8650 processor that’s found in the Desire HD. A fine processor, sure, but will it hold up to the rumored dual-core phones with Tegra 2 tech that we expect to see this year?
Obviously, LTE 4G compatibility is the big draw here. You’ve got to believe that HTC is are the big winners in that regard. They’ve quietly become the premier handset manufacturer on the planet with some of the most demanded phones worldwide. And, as their promo graphic states, they’ve come out with the “first 4G” phone on three major carriers, the HTC EVO 4G on Sprint, the T-Mobile G2 on T-Mobile, and, if these rumors are to be believed, the HTC Thunderbolt on Verizon.

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Onkyo Announces TA117 Tablet

The Onkyo TA117–which will come in sub-flavors the TA117C3 and the TA117C1–is set to offer (for both) a 10.1 inch touch panel display running at 1024 x 600 resolution, Android 2.2, an Nvidia Tegra 250 processor running at one gigahertz, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, a microSD slot, two USB ports (just 2.0, I’m afraid), an HDMI output for when ten inches just isn’t enough screen, 1.3 megapixel camera, and a docking port with optional stand.
The sub-flavors, meanwhile, really only differ in terms of RAM and storage space. The TA117C1 will pack 512 megs of DDR3 RAM and eight gigs of storage, whilst the TA117C3 will double the RAM to one gig and the storage to 16 gigs.
It’s actually, spec-wise, one of the better tablets out there, according to reports, so if you’re meaning to go tablet, you may want to lay hands on one of these. It’s got the Samsung Galaxy Tab beat display-wise, that’s for certain, but the Galaxy Tab has 3G while the Onkyo doesn’t. It’ll be interesting to see how the new Onkyos perform and if they’re really a match for the Galaxy Tab, and of course, the iPad. It’s also interesting that Onkyo’s working both sides of the tablet fence, offering up devices for both Android

and Microsoft. Kind of a strange move, I suppose, but at the same time not really, especially at this still-early stage of the so-called “tablet wars”.

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To help boost the IT literacy of the Japanese kids, Toshiba has rebranded and introduced its former Classmate PC Tablet created together with Intel for the Japanese market. The new tablet will be known as the CM1, an initiative reportedly aimed to “foster ICT environments in schools“.
Among the features that the Toshiba CM1 would carry include a 10.1″ LCD touch screen boasting of 1366×788 resolution with LED backlight. They will be powered by an Intel Atom N450 1.6 GHz CPU, NM10 Express chipset, a 160 GB HDD, 2GB of RAM, Ethernet, WiFi, a webcam and the usual USB ports.

The Toshiba CM1 tablet will measure 268x216x35.6mm and weighs about 1.8 kg. It will come with a stylus support and a pre-installed Windows 7 Professional 32bit OS. Toshiba will be marketing the said PC tablet with an open price model slates

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NEC Announces Three 3D Desktop PCs

NEC continues its drive to embrace 3D tech, this time announcing the release of three new 3D desktop PCs which are expected to invade Japan sometime this month. The three new 3D desktop PCs are the Valuestar VW970/CS, Valuestar VW970/CS and the Valuestar VL750/CS.

The NEC Valuestar VW970/CS will feature a Core i5-460M CPU (2.53 GHz) backed by 4GB RAM, 1.5TB HDD, a GeForce GT 330M, a 3D Blu-ray Disc drive, a 23″ 3D full HD screen, two TV tuners, a pair of 3D glasses and an HDMI port. It will retail for about $3,100.
Second we have the NEC Valuestar VN790/CS. It will come with practically the same specs as the VW970/CS except that it will have a 20″ 3D screen with 1,600×900 resolution, and one TV tuner. It is priced at $2,600.
Lastly we have the NEC Valuestar VL750/CS. This PC will come with a Core i7-870 CPU (2.93GHz), 8GB RAM, a 1TB HDD, a GeForce GT 330 video card, a non-3D Blu-ray Disc drive, a 23″ full HD 120Hz 3D screen, an HDMI port, three USB 3.0 ports, and eight USB 2.0 ports.

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Onkyo TW317A7 Tablet Set To Take Japan

The Onkyo TW317A7 offers a 1.66 GHz Intel Atom N450 processor along with  two gigs of RAM, and a 32 gig solid state drive, which is actually quite a bit better than some desktop PCs were putting out even three years ago (I should know, I actually bought a new one three years ago and it’s currently only about a quarter of that RAM count and no solid state drive). You’ll also get Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity (admittedly rather standard for anything going for the “mobile appellation), an onboard 1.3 megapixel webcam, a pair of USB ports, an HDMI output, and stereo speakers.
It’s also got a surprisingly large (for a tablet, anyway) 11.6 inch multitouch display (pinch to zoom fans, here’s one for you!) that offers a 1366 x 768 resolution and a card reader for extra modular storage.
Surprisingly enough, it also comes with a variety of software items, heavy on the Microsoft, that are designed for Windows 7, which is just what this tablet’s running. It even includes a dedicated app launcher.
And if you’re looking for one of these, better call your importer friends as this will be hitting shelves in Japan later this week, at last report…but here’s the strange part: Onkyo has yet to show its hand in terms of pricing.

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HTC EVO Shift 4G / Knight Specs & Features Leak?

The HTC EVO Shift 4G also known as the HTC Knight by true Android rumors connoisseurs has been spotted in various places so far and by the time the device will hit Sprint stores we’re probably know all there is to know about it. Today we have specs and features for you, and chances are they are the real deal.

So, without further ado, here’s what the HTC EVO Shift 4G is now said to offer you:

• Android 2.2
• Sliding QWERTY Keyboard
• 3.7-inch Screen
• 800Mhz Processor or 1Ghz Dual Core Snapdragon according to a different source
• 512MB RAM
• 5-megapixel Camera or 8-megapixel according to a different source
• Sprint 4G

The specs and features mentioned above are taken from a recent xda-developers post and they look exactly like what we’ve heard from BGR a few days ago. And, again, connoisseurs will tell you these specs and features look a lot like what the HTC Desire Z / T-Mobile G2 / HTC Merge has to offer; well, except for the Sprint 4G connectivity that is. So are we to understand (again) that the HTC EVO Shift 4G is going to be for the HTC EVO 4G what the HTC Desire Z is to the HTC Desire HD? A dependable sidekick?
We’re yet to find the answer to that question and we’ll definitely need a lot more details to crunch before telling you exactly what the HTC EVO Shift 4G will be able to do for you. In case you’re sitting on any information regarding this unreleased HTC EVO Shift 4G smartphone, rest assured we won’t mind receiving anonymous tips about it. What’s safe to say though is that Sprint is getting ready to launch a new 4G device, but the EVO Shift 4G doesn’t seem to be a super 4G Android smartphone.

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Dell Venue Shown Off In India

Dell had been promising publicly that they would be releasing an version of their Windows Phone 7 Dell Venue Pro that would be running Android. It was rumored to be called the “Dell Venue” and would be sans the keyboard that the Venue Pro carries. It was also believed to be the Dell Thunder concept that was leaked months ago. After being introduced by a carrier in Korea two weeks ago, it’s made another appearance in India.

It seems Dell is having the Venue make its rounds in Asia before being officially introduced to the US and European markets. As mentioned, the phone was introduced by Korean carrier KT two weeks ago as apart of their grand launch of four different new Android phones. Now, Dell India themselves are listing this device, along with some specs as well as a tagline: “Your own personal express lane to everything.” Catchy?
Here’s what they list as ‘specs’ for the Dell Venue:

• Android 2.2
• 1GHz processor
• 4.1-inch OLED display
• 8MP camera
• 1GB storage, 512MB RAM

That OLED display may be the biggest we’ve seen yet, and certainly the biggest not on a Samsung device – Samsung is one of the world’s largest OLED manufacturers and they make the screens for HTC, and others. Speaking of the display, the Dell Venue Pro (the Windows Phone) has a curved display. I’d expect the Venue (the Android phone) to feature a similar curved glass display.

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Samsung Bows Ultra-Definition 3D Television

I’ve always been fond of Samsung televisions–they’re big, often pack great quality picture and sound, and though I didn’t like those touch-panel controls at first I’m starting to get used to them and even appreciate them a bit more as they add to the aesthetic. But even I’m blown away by what I spotted today: Samsung’s new 70 inch “ultra definition” television.

Everyone’s talking about the Samsung Continuum and such, but Samsung’s got its fingers in a lot of other pies, and televisions are certainly one of them. What you’re looking at in the pic above is a 70 inch television, with a resolution of–I hope you’re sitting down because you’re going to want to brace yourself for this one–a whopping 3840 x 2160 pixels. Now, that does a number on most every television commercially available, and even a lot of projection 1080p units would have a rough time keeping up with this monster.
It also represents the first ever television made with oxide semiconductor technology, which in turn allows it to put out about four times the resolution of televisions made with silicon-based TFT technology.
In fact, Samsung itself even goes so far as to claim the television can support a refresh rate of 480 Hz with 3D glasses–and yes, I’m sorry to say it, but you will need the 3D glasses on this one, but it’s a small price to pay for that kind of resolution–and that by itself is a minor miracle.

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Internet Rumors Pin Sony As Preparing To Announce New Music Service, To Span All Sony Devices Including Bravia HDTVs and PS3]

could Sony be planning to steal the show out from under Cupertino?

According to newspaper Financial Times, a “source in the media industry” told them that Sony was preparing to unveil a major “new service” that would be media-centric and be capable of being used across multiple internet-connected devices. Allegedly, the PlayStation 3 will be the starting point. But expect this service to be on Vaio computers, Bravia TVs and Sony Ericsson phones and even Walkman MP3 players.
Could it be something related to their ‘Qriocity’ video-on-demand platform? Sony showed off Qriocity last year . It was to be a movie and TV rental service that would be available on any XMB-enabled device, which mainly includes the PlayStation 3 and some Bravia HDTVs (although interestingly enough, also includes the PSP and some Cyber-shot digital cameras.)
Sony used their own movie studio (Sony Pictures Entertainment) to leverage connections and get several big movie studios on board with the Qriocity project. Likewise, Sony also owns Sony Music Entertainment and , Sony has lined up music details.If the Financial Times is to be believed, you’ve got to believe that any Sony unveiling tomorrow will involve the Qriocity platform.

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Bose Enters HD Television Market With Surround Sound Television

The thought of a television from Bose was downright exciting. And that’s what I’m talking about today, the Bose VideoWave.

Spec-wise, you’re going to be stunned by this–the video portion brings out a 46-inch, 1080p LCD display. Nothing spectacular by itself, sure, but consider that it’s backed up by a whopping 16 speakers, with six woofers included in a magnesium enclosure.
Bose’s Adaptiq technology automatically sets the system’s levels according to the shape of your room, with its PhaseGuide operating almost like a bat’s sonar to simulate surround sound much the same way a surround sound bar does.
You’ll also get four HDMI ports, three component ports and a USB port to connect all your relevant devices.
But as is often the case with Bose gear, you’ll pay for this quality in spades–the Bose VideoWave is set to sell at $5349, but that does include a “white-glove delivery service”, which includes setup, installation, and recycling of the old television.

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LG E720 Android Smartphone Specs Leaked & Images

It looks like we have had yet another Android smartphone

spotted in the wild. The latest is the LG E720, which is said to be running Android 2.2.

First things first here, the LG E720 was spotted in the wild and there are images posted along with some specs. That said, the device has not been officially announced, which means we are still unsure if/when it will be released. Not to mention which areas of the world will see it or how much it will cost.
With that out of the way, the E720 appears to be a decent, but not a high-end Android handset. According to the Android.com.pl blog (out of Poland) the specs for the E720 will include a 3.2 inch capacitive touchscreen display and Qualcomm MSM 7227 processor.

Other specs that were given include the usual suspects such as Wi-Fi, GPS and a 5 megapixel camera. Furthermore, it was described as being similar in design to the iPhone. And not the iPhone 4. And judging from the images posted we have to agree. Though having a design similar to that of the iPhone is not necessarily a bad thing.
The nice part here is that is should arrive with Android 2.2, which is the latest and greatest. Of course, depending on how long LG takes to get this to market, even Android 2.2 will be outdated soon enough given the way Android is cycling lately.

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Microsoft To Announce 3D Plans For Xbox At E3?

Yes, more 3D news. Many expect 3D to be a big topic at the E3 gaming trade show next week – and now one developer hints that Microsoft may be planning to reveal their 3D gaming plans. Andrew Oliver, co-founder of UK-based Blitz Games Studios, said at a forum in London: “Microsoft are going to be making an announcement about it at some point soon.”

While the PS3 was patched through firmware to be 3D ready, Mircosoft has said little on the 3D front regarding the Xbox 360. Oliver had a few opinions on that:

On the Xbox it [3D] has been rather quiet. … Our game did come out in 3D on the Xbox 360, so 3D is possible, even through an HDMI 1.2 cable. Ubisoft created Avatar [on the Xbox 360], which includes a mode for 3D on a 3D TV.

Although Oliver didn’t say that Microsoft would make their announcement at E3, he did mention E3 when he talked about the large number of 3D games coming for the PlayStation 3.

There’s lots of games coming on the PlayStation 3 very shortly in 3D. There’s a big show on next week

Most of the rumors that have been reported recently regarding the Xbox have been referring to Natal and the possibility of a Slim Xbox 360. Almost nothing has come out regarding the Xbox’s 3D plans, although surely Microsoft is working on something as everybody in the technology space (except for consumers) is going crazy over 3D.

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New Samsung Galaxy Tab Tablets to Feature Android 3.5 Honeycomb in 2011

We’ve seen the 7-inch Galaxy Tab get official today but that’s not the only tablet Samsung plans for the immediate future. In fact, 2011 might bring us lots of other Galaxy Tab versions, and the more successful the Tab will be, the better Tab successors we’ll have.

Samsung has definitely realized how important the tablet is in the mobile business, considering how successful Apple is at selling the iPad. And while the tablet was reinvented by Cupertino this year, that doesn’t mean competitors can’t offer an iPad killer in the following months or years.
In 2011 the game will go to the next level. Apple will up the ante with a new iPad 2 and it’s quite possible to see a 7-inch version of the device too. Samsung confirmed that it will bring Android 3.0 to the Galaxy Tab and the future 2011 Tab version will come with Android 3.5 Honeycomb on board at some point in 2011.
Moreover it looks like Samung will have a full “tablet portfolio” in 2011 which means that other screen sizes are also being considered by Samsung, and probably that’s right approach too.
Analysts, and we know better than to always assume they’re right, say that in 2011 no less than 30 million tablets will be sold. A large share of this number would probably go to Apple, but devices like the Galaxy Tab, the Folio 100, the upcoming Stingray or BlackPad, will surely steal market share from Apple in the following 12 months.
Getting back to Samsung, we can only appreciate the direction their heading to. Android has become a huge part of their business, and if Android 3.0 Gingerbread and Android 3.5 Honeycomb are coming to tablets soon, then we’re definitely interested to see Android’s future versions equip Samsung’s the next Galaxy S models.

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ASUS to Join in With 12-Inch Windows EP121 Tablet

ASUS is joining in, with the introduction of 12-inch EP121.

ASUS has been working on a Windows powered tablet, and they are now putting up teaser videos for a tablet with a 12-inch display. The device will be called the Eee Pad EP121, which will launch during CES 2011 in January.
The EP121 will come with an Intel Core i5 processor, multi-touch input, and will run Windows 7. It will also feature an SD card slot, webcam, full HD playback, and HDMI output.

While no price has been announced yet, speculations put it at $599 or even more. History says that Windows powered tablets usually cost more than those powered by other OSes (like Symbian). The Eee Pad will likely be targeted at corporate and enterprise markets, as such

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T-Mobile Dell Mini 5 Tablet (Dell Streak) Release Pending this Summer?

we know that the Dell Mini 5 Tablet (possible to be know as the Dell Streak?) is headed to AT&T thanks to its initial FCC approval but now it seems that the 5” Dell Mini 5 Tablet is also set for release with T-Mobile, or so hints a new Dell Mini 5 FCC filing.

The new FCC filing concerning the 1GHz Snapdragon powered Dell Mini 5 (placed under product code M01M) offers an insight as to it potentially being headed to T-Mobile this summer thanks to the new filing detailing WCDMA Band IV frequency compatibility (as utilised by said network) – so it look as though, if you want to get your hands on the Mini 5 you’re going to have options with respect to network service providers.
For those unfamiliar with the Android based, Flash compatible, Dell Mini 5, the device, as mentioned above, sports a 5” multi-touch touting 800 x 480 (WVGA) resolution 16:9 aspect ratio display and will be voice capable or, in Dell’s language, will ‘double as a smartphone’. And, whilst Dell (or, specifically the head of Dell’s tablet program, Mr. Neeraj Choubey) initially made no bones about the fact that he saw the Mini 5 as directly competing against the iPad Dell have, since the launch of the iPad, markedly changed their tune following having made it perfectly clear that the iPad was not what they were expecting (or, rather, basically saying that the iPad is somewhat of a disappointment). But I digress…
Additional highlights also include a rear mounted 5 megapixel camera with autofocus and flash as well as a front-facing VGA camera, allowing for video conferencing, integrated Bluetooth and WiFi wireless connectivity and, yes, the Dell Mini 5 will also offer an Amazon Kindle book reader application with Amazon MP3 and video streams also being supported.
As noted above, the Dell Mini 5 Tablet is set to drop sometime this summer.

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LG Reveals 0.1 Inch Thick LCD TV

LG Display has revealed a new LCD TV that measures only 2.6mm thick (0.1 inches), possibly the world’s thinnest LCD TV on record.  This ultra-thin LCD may come in a low-profile package, but it maintains market standards with full 1080p playback and a 120Hz refresh rate.

LG’s 42-inch super-svelte TV is made thinner thanks to an edge-lit LED backlight and a new form of optical film.  This technology maintains image quality standards while shedding both weight and size in the LCD form factor.  This unit will offer the aforementioned 1080p resolution and 120Hz refresh rate in an LCD that will weigh around 8.8 pounds across a 42-inch screen.  Build that into a TV unit, says LG, and you can mount this on your wall in a heartbeat.
LG’s last record-setting LCD TV measured in at a hefty-by-comparison 5.9mm thickness.  We’re curious, just how anorexic can these televisions get, and is there a true consumer demand driving this trend of “thinner is better”?  

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LG To Show Largest LED Television

There will be no shortage of great things to see out of CES, and tops on my list of things I’d love to see myself is the current front runner for the title of “Largest LED Television”, a 72 inch monster from LG, the LZ9700, that sounds almost beautiful enough to make a home theater buff weep for the thought of it.

so it’s not quite as great as the legendary Weird Al Yankovic song “Frank’s 2000 Inch TV” might suggest televisions can actually reach (when the day comes that such a television exists, I’ll likely vanish off the face of the earth for a couple weeks just to get better acquainted–that’s almost a 167 foot diagonal!), but there’s no doubt that a 72 inch LED is something to see.  You might think that a massive set like this would be blurry and jaggy like no tomorrow, but word is that that won’t be a problem with the addition of TruMotion 480Hz systems, internet connectivity with a set of partner apps ready to go, and 3D capability, though we don’t yet know if the glasses used with this will be active or passive.
Plus, LG’s mentioning its “Magic Motion Remote Control”, according to reports, though they’re not mentioning a whole lot about just what the thing actually does.  In fact, a good way to describe most of the features and capabilities of the LG LZ9700 is “we don’t yet know”. 
Start taking back all the horrible Christmas presents you got and save your cash, because this one’s going to be available the first quarter of next year, according to reports, and you’ll be able to check out incredible LED clarity at sizes that, until now, had never before existed.

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LG Star Android Smartphone Images & Specs Revealed

Another day and another set of images and specs for a yet-to-be-announced smartphone have come available. The handset is the LG Star, which is said to be arriving as a flagship device for LG.

Of course, without an official announcement we have to caution, these specs may not be entirely accurate and assuming they are, things can still change. That said, the images offer a glimpse at a device that looks rather nice. But looks aside, lets dive into the specs.


The LG Star will reportedly feature a 4 inch display, dual-core NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor, microUSB connectivity, microSD card slot and a 1500 mAh battery. In terms of the camera, the one on the back is 8 megapixel with flash and the ability record video in 1080p quality. In addition there is the one on the front, though at present the megapixel number is not known.
Still plenty of details missing. But even with that, the LG Star looks like a device that will hit the market with a splash. One curious and possible killing point could come in the form of Android. So far there is nothing mentioned as to which version of Android the handset will be sporting. But on the positive side, according to the tipster from who Engadget received this information, the operating system is “nearly untouched.” Granted that does not mean it will not have some silly user interface on top or a few unnecessary apps pre-installed, however it does give some hope.
Lastly, as of now it looks like the LG Star could make a debut sometime in early next year, however there was nothing mentioned in terms of which carriers would be offering the handset. Not to mention which parts of the world the Star would even be available. With that, and given the expected timing on the release, quite possibly this could be an Android

3.0 device?

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Nokia E7

It looks like the general Nokia E7 release is going to be happening in early 2011, which is not as far off as Rogers, however still not great news for anyone that had been hoping to get one in time for the holiday season.
That said, the latest details are coming by way of a recent Reuters report in which they are citing word from a Nokia spokesperson. According to the details given, the delay was so they could “ensure the best possible user experience.” Still, while disappointing, this news seems to be a repeat of an earlier event — the delayed release of the Nokia N8 smartphone. And perhaps Ben Wood who is a research director at British consultancy CCS Insight said it best;

“This rounds out a miserable year for Nokia with regards getting the new generation of Symbian phones out the door,”

After all, this delay of the E7 makes for two flagship devices being delayed in just one year. With that, and for anyone still interested in the handset that may need a refresher, the Nokia E7 features a 4 inch (640 x 360) AMOLED capacitive touchscreen display, GPS, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, 3.5mm headphone jack, 16GB of internal storage, HDMI and an 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash and 720p video recording. In addition, the E7 is running Symbian^3 and features a full hardware QWERTY keyboard. And here is to hoping Nokia does not face any further delays on the release of this, not to mention, they have a better 2011 in terms of release schedules.

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Samsung Galaxy Player PMP

The player is going to be spec’d similarly to the Galaxy S line of smartphones and will fall in line as the iPod touch does with the iPhone — about as close as you can be to the phone without actually being a phone.

The player is dubbed the Samsung Galaxy Player and will be sporting the model number of YP-GB1. But perhaps a little more exciting than that is the specs which include a 4 inch Super Clear LCD, 1GHz processor and Android 2.2 Froyo. More specifically, the display will sport a resolution of 800 x 480.
Other specs of the Galaxy Player include Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, 3.5mm headphone jack, GPS, microSD card slot and a 3.2 megapixel camera on the back with a VGA quality front facing camera for video calling. Another perk comes in the form of the battery, which is 1200 mAh and removable. The portable media player will also have T-DMB and SoundAlive audio enhancing technology as well as access to both the Samsung Apps market and the Android Market.
Bottom line, it looks like the only thing missing from here as compared to a Galaxy S phone is the 3G connectivity. With that, while the specs were released, it looks like we still have to wait until CES comes so we can find out the pricing and release date. Not to mention, which markets the Galaxy Player YP-GB1 will see a release. And of course, being selfish, I for one an hoping to see this come to the US.
And while some may remember the last Samsung PMP, the Galaxy Player 50, we can only hope that the Galaxy Player YP-GB1 gets a warmer welcome. After all, that player hit the market and received some less than stellar comments after it made its way into reviewers hands.

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Toshiba Expected To Announce Three Tablet PC’s In January

Note: Image is of the Toshiba Folio 100

If Toshiba was not able to make up their mind in terms of which way they wanted to go. In other words, of those three tablets, they are going to be using three operating systems.

Sounds interesting, of course we will have to see what happens. Not to mention, we can only hope they fare better than the Folio 100 and the Libretto did. As for the details of what we are going to see come next month, so far the details are fairly light, though nothing really surprising in that respect. Anyway, the report is coming by way of the DigiTimes and call for two of the devices to have 10.1 inch displays with the third being 11.6 inches. In terms of those operating systems, for the most part you can likely guess — Android, Windows 7 and Chrome OS. Though that last one is a little surprising.
Toshiba is also noted as working on a 7 inch device that is being handled by the “company’s handset department” and although there is little known otherwise, it was said that this device is expected to “feature functions similar to smartphones.”

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