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Focusing on multimedia features and fashion-forwarded colors, Sony introduces new line of ultraportable notebooks.
Sony today announced the Vaio CR series of ultraportable notebooks, focusing on entertainment and stylish design. Measuring 13.2 by 1.67 by 9.8 inches and weighing 5.5 pounds, Sony claims the uniquely configured keyboard on the new Vaio CR offers more comfortable typing.
Equipped with a 14.1-inch widescreen display with a 1280 by 800 pixel resolution, a CD/DVD player/burner, A/V controls and instant-on mode for quick access to entertainment apps without booting up the OS, the Vaio CR impresses in the multimedia department. For storage, the Vaio CR offers a 200 GB hard drive, as well as a multimedia card reader that supports Memory Stick Duo, ExpressCard and SD cards. Boasting a 1.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 2 GB of DDR2 RAM and 358 MB video RAM, the Vaio CR shouldn't have any trouble loading up multimedia content such as music and movies. Movies can also be watched on most televisions using the included S-video port. Powered by Windows Vista Home Premium OS (the Windows Vista Business edition is an optional upgrade), the Vaio CR also sports a built-in 1.3 Megapixel motion eye web camera. As for connectivity, the new notebook offers Wi-Fi 802.11n and three USB 2.0 ports, while Bluetooth, for easy connection with mobile phones, has been left out. Sony claims the bundled Li-Ion battery will offer up to 5 hours of battery life. The Sony Vaio CR notebook will be available in five different colors in late June, selling for approximately $1,350 US.
Panasonic today unveiled three new rugged notebooks, one claiming the "world's lightest 14.1-inch notebook" title. Panasonic today introduced three new business-centric rugged notebook computers designed for mobile executives, walking workers and road warriors. The new line is comprised of the ultraportable W7 the tablet alternative T7, and the thin and light Y7. All three notebooks sport Intel Core 2 Duo processors, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0 and optional built-in 3G mobile broadband solutions from AT&T (HSDPA), Sprint or Verizon Wireless (EV-DO Rev. A). The notebooks weigh from 3 to 3.7 lbs, and are all drop- and spill-resistant. More specifically, they offer magnesium alloy cases and chassis, shock-mounted hard drives and LCDs, and internal flexible connectors for additional protection. In order to optimally run the Intel Santa Rosa processors, engineers from Panasonic and Intel has created a proprietary implementation of Dynamic Power Performance Management technology, designed to continually fine-tune CPU usage based on system load and the tasks being performed. The Toughbook W7 comes with a 12.1" screen, 1GB SDRAM, 80GB hard disk and a claimed battery life of approximately 7 hours. Furthermore, the Toughbook T7 sports a 12.1" touch screen, 1GB SDRAM, 80GB hard disk and a claimed battery life of 9 hours. Lastly, the Toughbook Y7 offers 1GB SDRAM, 80GB hard disk, 5 hours of battery life and is claimed to be the world's lightest notebook with a 14.1" display. The Panasonic Toughbook Y7 is available now at an estimated price of $2500. The mobile broadband-ready Panasonic Toughbook W7 and T7 will be available in December 2007 at an estimated price of $2100.
Convertible 8.9-inch tablet now shipping with 1.2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo U7600. Fujitsu updated its P1620 convertible tablet with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor during CES, giving a performance boost to its 8.9-inch ultraportable touchscreen notebook. Designed for primarily for business customers in the healthcare, sales and supply chain industries that need the touchscreen interface and in a form factor that's highly portable, Fujitsu is also including its Portshutter "data leak prevention software" on the updated P1620. Weighing approximately 2.2 pounds, the P1620 includes embedded TPM and a fingerprint sensor for extra security, Microsoft Office OneNote 2007 and gigabit Ethernet. It's available from Fujitsu now, ranging from $1,750 to $2,225.
The Asus EEE PC 901, EEE PC 1000 and EEE PC 1000H offer Intel's new Atom processor and up to 7.8 hours of battery life. Upon reaching the milestone of surpassing 1 million EEE PC sets sold in just 6 months after its launch, Asus has now announced the release of the new EEE PC 901, 1000 and 1000H models. These new iterations of the EEE PC add more options to users, including a shockproof Solid State Drive (SSD) design, Super Hybrid Engine for providing up to 7.8 hours of battery life, web storage as well as large displays for easier viewing. The EEE PC 901, 1000 and 1000(H) models will be available on both Windows and GNU Linux platforms. The new EEE PC 901 offers a 8.9-inch screen while the EEE PC 1000 and 1000H models offer 10-inch screens. Furthermore, the EEE PCs come with a built-in 1.3-megapixel webcam. The EEE PC 1000 models also offer a keyboard that is 92% the size of generic notebooks, aiming to make it more comfortable to type. The new EEE PCs boast Intel's Atom processor as well as 12 or 20GB Solid State Drives (the EEE PC 1000 can be upgraded to a 40GB SSD, while the EEE PC 1000H can be upgraded to a 80GB HDD). For additional storage capacity, users will get up to 20GB of web-based storage. According to Asus, a 3.5G concept sample will also be displayed at Computex 2008, though there is no word on when 3G connectivity will be available to end-users. The Asus EEE PC 901, EEE PC 1000 and EEE PC 1000H will all be available in North America soon. Suggested retail prices have yet to be announced.
Acer's anticipated Aspire 8920 and Aspire 6920 are now available in stores, sporting Intel T9500 processors and high-end NVIDIA discrete graphics. Acer today announced the availability of the Aspire Gemstone Blue notebook PC series, which should be sold through Acer authorized resellers and select retailers in North America. Unveiled in March 2008, the Aspire Gemstone Blue range features the PC market's first 18.4- and 16-inch notebook form factors with full HD capabilities The 18.4-inch Aspire 8920 features an Intel Core 2 Duo T9500 processor, up to 640GB of hard drive capacity, integrated Blu-ray disc drive, memory card reader, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and NVIDIA GeForce 9650M GS (or NVIDIA GeForce 9500M GS) discrete graphics. The 16-inch Aspire 6920 features an Intel Core 2 Duo T9500 processor, up to 320GB of hard drive capacity, integrated Blu-ray disc drive, memory card reader, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and NVIDIA GeForce 9500M GS discrete graphics. Both the Aspire 8920 and Aspire 6920 notebooks include the second generation Dolby Home Theater technology, including CineSurround, Tuba CineBass boost, and up to five integrated speakers for 5.1 sound output. The Aspire Gemstone Blue notebooks ship with Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate or Home Premium pre-installed. The Acer Aspire 8920 and Acer Aspire 6920 begin at $1300 and $850, respectively, for basic configurations.
HP's new Voodoo Envy 133 notebook measures just over half an inch thin, and will start shipping for $2100 this summer. HP today announced a new portfolio of Voodoo-branded computing devices, initially including the ultra-mobile Voodoo Envy 133 notebook and the powerful Voodoo Omen desktop. Measuring just over half an inch thin and weighing less than 3.4 pounds, the Voodoo Envy 133 was developed using the smallest available Intel Centrino technology (compare the Voodoo Envy 133 to the Apple Macbook Air). Despite its small size, the notebook offers a wide range of functionality, and includes Ethernet and wireless connectivity, a selection of ports as well as a replaceable battery. The Voodoo Envy 133 features a 13.3-inch LED display, multiple gesture touchpad, external eSATA optical drive, backlit keyboard and the following ports: 1x USB 2.0, HDMI, headphone/mic and a shared eSATA/USB port. The Voodoo Envy 133 also come equipped with Voodoo Aura PowerConnect, which establishes a one-to-one wireless connection between the Envy 133 notebook and an Ethernet connector located on the power supply, allowing users to roam free from the wired connection. When it comes to storage, users can choose between a 64GB solid state drive and a 80GB 4200 RPM hard disk drive. The Voodoo Envy 133 will be available this summer for a starting price of $2100. The Voodoo Omen desktop computer supports up to four GPUs and sports advanced thermal engineering. The Voodoo Omen also features integrated copper liquid cooling pipes and a full-functional, secondary 7-inch LCD auxiliary screen. The Voodoo Omen can be configured with 3.2GHz or 3.0GHz Intel Core 2 Extreme Quad-core processors, and Nvidia GeForce 8800 Ultra or ATI Radeon HD3870 discrete graphics cards (includes support for next-generation Nvidia and ATI graphics cards). The Voodoo Omen also supports Seagate's 1TB 7200 RPM SATA HDD, and WD's VelociRapter 300GB 10000 RPM HDD. Built-in ports include 1x PS/2 keyboard, 2x eSATA, 1x Firewire, 2x Ethernet, 6x USB 2.0, 1x Clr CMOS switch, 1x Optical and 1x Coaxial S/PDIF output. The new Voodoo Omen will be available this summer for a starting price of $7000.
The brand new Toshiba Qosmio X305 and F55 laptops to be released this summer offer gaming-ready NVIDIA GeForce technology and GPS navigation, respectively.Toshiba has come out swinging with their newest Qosmio laptops, both in terms of the hardware design and the internal specs. At the Digital Experience show in New York City, we got another chance to play with these high-end multimedia machines All of the laptops come loaded with some nice standard options, including those deep well Harman Kardon speakers and login software that will recognize the user's face, using the built-in camera. New NVIDIA GeForce technology The Toshiba Qosmio X305 screams gaming laptop, and perhaps it's screaming a bit too loud. The machine's cover is painted in hot red flames, which is a striking look, but it won't be for everybody. With the laptop open, it looks a bit more tame, but there is nothing tame about what's under the hood. The 17-inch Qosmio X305 has options for an NVIDIA GeForce 9800M GTX graphics processor, with up to 1 GB of video memory, as well as dual hard drives for RAID configurations and storage up to 400GB.GPS comes to notebooks Even the lower-end Toshiba Qosmio F55 managed to distinguish itself from the pack. The machine looks like a smaller version of the G55, and under the 15.4-inch hood the laptop houses a GPS sensor. We definitely like the idea of GPS on a laptop. The sensors have been incorporated onto phones for years now, and a laptop seems like an even more natural fit. Price and availability The Toshiba Qosmio X305 and Qosmio F55 will start shipping in July 2008. Pricing has yet to be announced.
