[Update - Added VX3 data sheet to the product portal here.]

The mobile PC design company, Mo-Bits, are working on a new UMPC, The VX3 ruggedised 7″ UMPC.

We’ve seen the X15 design before (the 7″ version shown below is due to go into production in September but we still don’t know how its going to end up looking or who will brand it.) and the VX3 looks to be based on the X15-7 original design. The specifications (pdf download here) are excactly the same apart from the ‘ruggedisation’ and re-style.

We’re talking about a VIA C7-M / VX700 based UMPC here. The VIA VX700 being the space saving, advanced integrated north/south bridge that is, as far as I know, in the DualCor cPc and capable of mpeg-4 and WMV hardware acceleration. The fingerprint sensor is show on the picture along with a camera and a docking port. There are no left-hand mouse buttons shown so I hope that the pointing stick integrates a left hand button ‘push’ sensor like on the eo v7110/easybook P7.

In these clothes, the VX3 looks far better than the X15. Our suspicion that the X15 case shown was just a test moulding looks to be right.

‘Ruggedised’ always means higher production costs and niche target market so don’t expect this version to turn up in your local electronics store. In fact, it appears that this ruggedised version is a late edition to the X15 family and could have been specified by the company financing the production run. To me, that almost confirms that this device won’t be branded by a mainstream electronics company. At a guess, we could narrow it down to brands like Motion Computing, Roda Computer, Itronix, GoRoo or DRS Technologies who already work in sectors which might be interested in a ruggedised UMPC.

Thanks to Mo-bits for the new information.

Mo-Bits VX3 Data sheet and links
Mo-Bits X15-7 Data sheet and links
Mo-Bits X15-5 Data sheet and links.

Steve / Chippy.