Archive for October 7th, 2009

Look, the upcoming VAIO X might be all fancy with its 11.6-inch screen and all day battery life, but Sony’s not ignoring its original underpowered-and-overpriced funky laptop — three new VAIO P configurations just went up on Sony’s UK site today, all sporting Windows 7. The big news is that the top-end configuration will now sport a 2.0GHz Atom Z550, but there’s also two low-end models with the 1.86GHz Atom Japanese P’s have had for a while now but only the $2,000 Signature model carried Stateside. Apart from that we’re not seeing much else — this certainly looks like a modest Win7-related spec bump and not the VAIO P mark 2 that’s been rumored. No word on pricing or US availability yet, but we’re sure to find out more very, very soon.

[Thanks, Liam]

Filed under: Laptops

Sony UK site unveils new VAIO P with 2GHz Atom and Windows 7 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 16:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft has a pretty good track record with its peripheral lineup, particularly when it comes to keyboards and mice, and it seems this latest crop is no exception. We got a quick look at the goods, and we’d say that new Bluetooth Mobile Keyboard 6000 (pictured) could find a place in our hearts with little trouble. It’s deliciously thin, but feels closer to a regular Microsoft Comfort keyboard than just another transplanted laptop keyboard. Key presses are shallow, to be sure, but they feel much meatier than on Apple’s keyboards, for instance. The Wireless Comfort Desktop 5000 keyboard is less of a surprise, and we’re not sure if we’d really find much use for those shortcut keys to taskbar icons, since they’re all the way at the top of the keyboard, but it’d take some practice with the board to find out. Lastly, the LifeCam Cinema HD is a fairly nice bit of hardware design for a webcam. From the footage we were seeing, it’s not going to make you loathe your laptop’s built-in camera, but it’s probably a fair step up in image quality.

Filed under: Peripherals

Microsoft Mobile Keyboard 6000, Comfort Desktop 5000 and LifeCam Cinema HD hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 16:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While Dell’s partnerships with MLB and OPI are content with merely printing new designs onto the laptop lid, creative director Douglas Little of D.L. & Co. took things a lot too far with this Swarovski Crystal-embedded sterling silver snake — adorning an etched Adamo 13 lid. We can’t decide if we’re offended by the gaudy display, or incredibly impressed with how audacious it is, so we’ll just leave our mouths hanging open and let you decide for yourself. What we do know is that it’s part of a series of one-offs produced for Bergdorf Goodman retail in some capacity, and we’re sure with a bit of recession-style haggling you should have no trouble squeezing one of these onto a second mortgage.

Filed under: Laptops

Douglas Little’s Adamo series: the most expensive snake you’ve seen glued to a laptop all week originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia just posted up some of the first official details on the launch of the Booklet 3G, and they’re… actually a little confusing. The aluminum netbook will hit O2 Germany for €249 ($366) on a €20 ($29) tariff over 24 months, but there’s also mention of a “flat rate data tariff” of €25 ($36) per month — we’re guessing the flat rate is for buyers who snag the Booklet for the full price of €699 ($1,029), but honestly, that’s not how the post on Nokia Conversations reads at all. We’re trying to get it cleared up, and we’ve got a feeling we’ll be hearing about availability in other markets including the States soon enough, so stick around.

Filed under: Laptops

Nokia Booklet to hit O2 Germany October 22 for €249 on contract originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 13:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’re expecting the official launch of Sony’s hot little VAIO X ultraportable later today, but Boy Genius Report claims to have some leaked specs and pricing to think over while we wait — and if they’re accurate, you’ll be staring down the wrong end of a $1,499 price tag when all is said and done. Yeah, it’s not unexpected, but still, ouch. For your trouble, you’ll be getting what Sony’s calling the “world’s lightest notebook,” weighing in a just 1.5 pounds of carbon-fiber with an 11.6-inch LED display, SSD, multitouch trackpad, and a 3.5-hour standard battery life that can be pushed to 14 hours using a “super-extended” battery. Okay, not bad, but what’s running this show? Well, we’ve got some potentially bad news to report — we’ve been told that the VAIO X will have a 2.0GHz Atom Z550 inside, just like the prototypes. Yep, that’s another $1,499 Sony Atom laptop — we’ll wait for the official announcement to confirm before we start wringing our hands, but we’re open to your lamentations in comments.

Filed under: Laptops

Sony VAIO X specs and pricing leak out — 2.0GHz Atom, $1,499? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 13:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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“What happens when every wireless user has an iPhone, a Palm Pre, or a BlackBerry Tour?” Speaking at CTIA Wireless IT & Entertainment in San Diego today, FCC head Julius Genachowski has said that he wants to “close the spectrum gap” — the difference between the spectrum it’s making available for wireless data versus enormous usage projections (400 petabytes a month by 2013, he says) that’ll be brought about by smarter, easier-to-use devices and ubiquitous high-speed data through a handful of initiatives including the promotion of the smart use of existing spectrum through the use of femotcells, WiFi, and smart antennas, and — more importantly — reallocation of existing spectrum. Genachowski says there are “no easy pickings” for reallocation, but the Commission is aggressively pursuing additional airspace that can help keep 4G rollouts on track. He’s gone on to say that they’ll be adopting the widely-discussed “shot clock” policy for placement of new towers, giving locales a limited window to protest placement of cell sites that’ll help spread 4G services over wider footprints. The guy seems genuinely concerned about keeping 4G rollouts rolling, so let’s see just how far the guys in Washington are willing to go to do that.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless

FCC says there’s a ‘looming spectrum crisis’ originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We really don’t need any more convincing that the Sholes is real, but what about the Torch? Oh, you don’t remember that one? Yeah, we had to look it up to refresh our memory — turns out this was the rumored market name for the Inferno, a touchscreen featurephone Moto apparently had in the works to replace the Krave on Verizon. The company has just published press shots of the battery covers of both the Sholes and the Torch — those are the names Motorola is using, though it’s not uncommon for them to refer to press shots by codename, so we wouldn’t make much of it — so if we had to guess, the Torch is still alive. Also notable is the fact that they’re showing two versions of the Sholes’ cover, one with a Verizon logo and one without, so this is a strong indicator that there’ll be a second model — most likely for overseas GSM markets. Or, you know, an unlocked US 3G version. Dare to dream, right?

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Motorola Sholes and Torch battery covers unearthed (hey, it’s something) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 12:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung just accidentally leaked a Sprint-bound Android QWERTY slider called the Moment in an otherwise totally boring press release about its OLED handset lineup — it’ll have an 800MHz processor, TouchWIz, a 3.2-inch AMOLED screen, optical trackpad and a 3.2 megapixel camera. We’re guessing this is the long-rumored “high-end” InstinctQ, but we’re not sure why Sprint and Sammy have dropped the Instinct branding in favor of Moment. Samsung has a press event scheduled for 2PM EST, so we’re guessing we’ll find out more shortly — stay tuned.

Continue reading Samsung Moment slider coming to Sprint, packing Android, TouchWiz

Filed under: Cellphones

Samsung Moment slider coming to Sprint, packing Android, TouchWiz originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 12:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Like the proverbial kid brother, Psystar has amused us for years now, following Apple around, mocking it, claiming some sort of moral high ground for its Open Macs. Now, hot on the heels of Snow Leopard, the company is back with yet another ambitious project. For a fee, Psystar will license you its Darwin Universal Boot Loader (providing you’re an OEM). By shipping machines with the DUBL pre-installed yet relying on the consumer to install his own Snow Leopard disk (which he obtained legally, of course) you should theoretically be able to avoid any sort of sticky legal situation of the sort that has dogged Psystar for years. If that weren’t enough, the boot loader supports up to six different operating systems per machine and apparently configures itself, ahem. “automagicly.” Is this the last nail in the coffin, the final puzzle piece that will bring us a world where third party machines running OS X fly off the shelves with abandon? Somehow, we doubt it. But it would be amusing to buy a computer with a “Psystar Certified” sticker next to the one that says “Intel Inside.” Your move, Apple. PR after the break.

[Via Apple Insider]

Continue reading Psystar licenses Darwin Universal Boot Loader to third parties, chaos ensues

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

Psystar licenses Darwin Universal Boot Loader to third parties, chaos ensues originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 11:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oh, Dell. The laptop maker piqued everyone’s interest for 30 seconds this morning with a glimpse of the upcoming Adamo XPS, but when push comes to shove all it has to sell anyone is some laptops with lipstick on them. Seriously. The company is partnered up with “renowned nail lacquer experts” OPI, and that means there’ll be 26 new colors and patterns in the Dell Design Studio for you to pick from the next time you buy one of Dell’s various adequate laptops. Colors will include 20 “classics” like “I’m Not Really a Waitress,” as well as some seasonal shades like “Dear Santa,” “Merry Midnight” and “Smitten with Mitten.” They will not include any specs or info about the Adamo XPS.

Filed under: Laptops

Dell puts OPI nail polish on laptops, forgets to announce Adamo XPS originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 11:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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