Finally a breath of fresh air in an area of computing where the only major difference in products was appearance and price!

I’m really glad to see some interesting new stuff from MSI. We recently talked about the MSI Wind U120 [Portal page] which is just like the original U100 but with 3G and some increased storage options, but that isn’t very exciting is it?

Now news is spreading that MSI will be releasing two additional netbooks some time around January. The netbooks will be the U110 and U115; I’ve put the interesting things in bold:

• 1024×600 10" screen
• 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z530 CPU - which is a more expensive but less power hungry chip (2w) than the Atom N270 (2.5w) which is in almost every netbook you see today
• Poulsbo US15W chipset - most netbooks are using the Intel 945G. Poulsbo in combination with the Z530 CPU will make for a total chipset drain of 4.3w
• 6-cell battery
• Up to 250GB HDD for the U110
• Hybrid Storage - The U115 will feature SSD and HDD combinations. The idea is that the OS and programs can go on the smaller capacity SSD (8/16/32GB) for quick booting and program launching, then there will be plenty of room for media and other storage on the HDD (80/120/160GB). Computers such as the VAIO TZ have used a similar storage configuration. It will be important to the success of the U115 that this doesn’t consume too much power running both drives.
• Wi-Fi B/G/draft-N
• The rest is pretty common; Bluetooth, 1GB of RAM (up to 2GB on the U115), 3x USB 2.0 ports, 2.0MP webcam etc.

Like I said, all of this is new and exciting to see in a netbook. However, after reading this I can’t help but wonder how they plan on keeping the prices down. Nearly everything in this list will run the price up over current netbooks: new CPU+chipset, two storage drives, and draft-N Wi-Fi. We’ll have to wait and see but I would image the top end U115 will run you somewhere around $700 if not higher.

[Blogeee] via [Liliputing] [Electric Vagabond]

Umid of Korea have kindly sent over a set of new images and the official specs of the nice looking clamshell device we saw a few weeks ago. It’s due for official launch in ‘early of 2009′ which hints towards CES or CeBIT. Pricing is unknown but with those pro-level specifications I would expect it to be more than the Aigo MID variants.

We’ve added all the details to a new UMID product information page so feel-free to browse the specs, the gallery, the links, see what devices are similar in specification (Fujitsu U2010 is probably the closest competitor in terms of form-factor but the Aigo MID comes closer in size) and take note of a few things. 1 - The battery is 17Wh which, given the lower processing power and smaller screen when compared to the U2010, should give it a 4hrs+, active-online battery life. 2 - The size. It’s much smaller than a U2010 so this one should be easier to slip in a jacket pocket.

Thanks to UMID for sending the details over. The device isn’t on the UMID website as we publish this but there’s obviously a placeholder there. No pricing or territorial info available at this stage.

Getting closer to the ever-green PSION 5 design is this PC, yes, Atom-based, design that Aving have just published news about.

Looking just slightly bigger than an Aigo MID, this 315gm device looks like it covers all the angles with 3G and digital TV options, a 1024×600 4.8" touchscreen, 8-32GB SSD options, 1.1 or 1.3Ghz CPU and an SD slot.

It looks like it’s due for release in 2009 according to the translation that you can find here. [Original]

Via JKKMobile

If you look at the UMID website, you’ll see a placeholder for the MID but there’s no info there yet. You’ll find an interesting 7" UMPC slate though that’s also a new one on me.

Fennec, the small-screen version of Firefox, is important for ultra mobile fans. Not just because its a small-screen, finger-optimised browser but because it has been chosen as one of the browser options (the other being Firefox 3) for Moblin 2, the latest version of the Intel-led core operating system for MIDs planned for first release in Spring 2009.

Fennec has support for add-ons but unfortunately, it doesn’t support the mainstream add-ons that are available for the Daddy of the pack, Firefox 3. Thank goodness people are starting to jump on board then because add-ons help a lot with individual tailoring, an important part of the ‘personal’ part of the UMPC equation. ReadWriteWeb reports that the URL Fixer add-on is now ready.

Exactly what the add-on does isn’t really as important as the signal it sends out to developers and adopters. Fennec is starting to gain traction and awareness amongst developers.

For more about the browser choices on Moblin check out this part of the Moblin website. While you’re there, don’t miss the clutter user interface demo video. Clutter is the new 3D-capable UI architecture that will replace Hildon. The demo looks fantastic. Oh, one more thing I noticed. It looks like they are working on open source hardware-driven video decoding based on libva APIs. In fact the whole Moblin project is looking far more organised than it was 6 months ago and there’s quite a few exciting things to check out on the site if you’re interested in Atom-based MIDs.

Remember though, Moblin 2 is for OEMs to brand and enhance.  Its not an end-users distro.

Lets not beat around the bush here. The Aigo P8860 MID is a slightly unpolished, slightly locked-down, slightly thin-app, early-adopters Mobile Internet device. Almost everything in the application suite is underwhelming and after the initial unboxing high, the experience takes a sharp dive. Thank goodness then, that the only real problems are software-related, fixable and have nothing to do with the excellent form factor and superb Intel Atom platform which make this device truly breakthrough. I can’t put it down!

We’ve all seen small devices before. High-end smartphones and low-end UMPCs have been around for a while but none of them have managed to combine true pocketability with acceptable battery life and a top-notch Internet experience. The Aigo does though. 4.8″ 800×480 screen, check! 3hrs online battery life, check! Useable keyboard, check! Powerful processor, check! In ‘Internet’ power-to-weight ratio terms, this is a winner. Read on…

(more…)

One of the distributors of the Wibrain i1 has got hold of a Wibrain i1, snapped a few pics and made some comments in the forum here. If you’re looking the the ultimate Windows XP mobility device with the best battery life and best connectivity for, potentially, a very interesting price, keep reading.

The 1.3Ghz Atom-based device is based on the old Wibrain B1 design which was, quite frankly, an ugly brick to most people. There are some styling improvements which help it a little but don’t expect young geeks to be fainting at your feet when you whip it out. However, this is an action UMPC, not a flowery style-icon. It has the same easy-to-learn control layout (the touchpad is the best I’ve ever tried on a UMPC for example) and the same extremely high quality and brightness screen in a package that weighs 500gm. That’s 1.1lbs. It runs XP, has a 60GB hard drive, new SD card slot and re-positioned USB port. The real kicker is three-pronged though. 6hrs+ battery life on the standard 30wh battery, a 3G module and what looks like it could be an amazingly good price for such a setup.

Wibrain claim 7hrs on the standard battery. I’ve seen 6+ on the battery meter in hands-on testing and ‘Digital’, is now reporting 6.5hrs with wifi or 3G on. In marketing terms, this is an all-day UMPC in 500gms.

Final availability is still not 100% clear but early pricing indications at Mobilx look positive. 467 Euros ($600) pre tax without 3G and 532 Euros ($712) pre-tax with the 3G module. We’ll keep you updated on availability when we hear anything.

More links, news, details in the Wibrain i1 information page.

Christmas came early this week. I’ve had three new devices in 24 hours! Yesterday it was the Everun Notes, today i’ve got the Aigo MID. It turns out I might have a new software build too (V030 5005) as there is a software updater installed that others have not got on their Aigos. Naturally i’m going through a software update as I write and myself and JKK will be putting the old and new side-by-side in the session later to see what the improvements are. I’m impressed that a new software stack has been released so quickly and it bodes well for the future.

Personally I’m very excited about the device. I’ve already declared my love for the Compal-designed form factor a number of times but had a few reservation about the software (see the M528 hands-on weekend report.) Midinux on the Aigo seems to be working well though. Coolfox is working (although FF3 would be better,) media player and IM, basic PIM facilities, BT DUN and file transfer over my N82 all with a nicely finished (although not iPhone-standard) UI but the most exciting thing are the possibilities that lie ahead. It’s really stirring ideas about how and where I can use this device and most importantly, what the growing Aigo owners community is going to do with this device. With the SFR Mi PC and the Gigabyte M528 due to launch soon and the Benq MID already out there with a similar Midinux software stack, I can see a big community of people jumping on board. Eee owners, Nokia Tablet Owners and people looking forward to the Open Pandora devices will know exactly what I mean!

Aigo MID. Live session 2200 GMT+1 (post time + 3hrs) at UMPCPortal.com/live

Ustream live recording is available if you’re thinking about buying the Aigo MID.

Thanks to Mobilx.eu for sending this evaluation device over.

Update: Mobilx now have a pre-order page up.

USI have just sent us details of the USI MID-160 tablet-style Atom-based MID. Linux Devices reported on it a few days ago but it looks like they didn’t have the latest images. Pictures first, details afterwards…

Close-up and details follow.

(more…)

No prizes for guessing what company said that! ZDnet highlights it with "Intel slams ’slow’ iPhone ARM CPU."  Gizmodo follows up. Engadget too (along with a lot of comments) and now it’s reached the front page of Techmeme. Oops!

I’m all behind Intel for their work in squashing the X86 architecture down to smartphone-sized levels with Moorestown and there’s an element of truth in the fact the the iPhone is underpowered for Internet apps but the way I see it is that it’s not really about CPUs anymore and as such, it comes across rather uncool to focus on it, especially when your partners are behind schedule on getting mobile Internet devices out of the door and you still have work to do to reach smartphone levels of power efficiency.

Both ARM and Intel have reached similar (consumer acceptable) territory in terms of watt/performance [*1] with their respective core architectures and yes, Intel’s solutions are probably more powerful and will definitely be attractive to the power-user but that’s a tiny part of the equation that goes together to make a thrilling consumer device. Intel’s main task now is about the integration of the CPU, GPU, controllers and radios into the smallest space possible with the highest platform efficiency. Both ARM and Intel’s ecosystem is highly capable of achieving that but there’s even more to consider. Industrial design,marketing and most importantly, software.

Intel are betting on one of the most fragmented software environments out there - Linux. They want to create a new, mobile-focused stack with it and surround it with quality ISVs. ARM’s partners want to use Linux too but they already have well-supported stacks with the same ISVs and big dev communities around them to. To drive a new Linux stack you need control, lead (in-house, paid, full-time) developers, Linux distribution partners and, if you want to take advantage of the existing application base, the skills of the people that wrote them. That means you need to be Linux-geek-cool and you need to show the dev community that you are a caring, sharing type. You also need to have an easy channel for them. An app, store. It’s critical now, not only for the developers, but to enable an important revenue stream in e-commerce for Intel and the partners. Moblin doesn’t have either of those two elements. Highlighting your advantages is one thing but making statements that attack the other side (where some of your community sits) won’t win you any hearts in the open-source world.

To be fair, I wasn’t there and haven’t been able to hear the comments in context and having interviewed Pankaj Kedia a few times, I know that he knows what he’s talking about. Add Steve Jobs’ recent comments into the mix and the stones that came from the ARM camp a few months ago and you can understand why these comments happen. Intel’s ultra mobile products are good and getting better and there may even be an Apple product in the works that gives Intel this confidence but when I hear comments like this, it just sounds cheap.

*1 The latest ARM-based devices have almost closed the 9-second penalty I demonstrated a year ago. See this article about the Archos 5.

Update. Intel has corrected its comments in a statemnet here.

Intel scored 3 wins for Moblin earlier this year when Linpus, Canonical and Xandros announced that they would all move to Intels, Atom-optimised Moblin core. Then, just a month later, Intel decided to make big changes to Moblin by changing the build architecture and moving to an RPM-based software packaging system. I’m sure that didn’t please Xandros and Canonical (who both run deb-based distributions) and can’t have helped anyone because since then, the only thing I’ve heard about Moblin (V2) is that changes will feed in until the full release in Spring next year. I also heard from one Linux vendor that the process would be very slow. With OEMs wanting fast response on solid, user-friendly OEM builds for, potentially, millions of machines, its not difficult to imagine that moving to a new core build is not their top priority.

Maybe that will change soon though as gOS are announcing that they are going to have a Moblin-based build by the end of the year and that they are partnering with a ‘major’ OEM. Whether that means we’ll see Moblin on a netbook by the end of the year is open to question. A press release from Good OS states that David Liu, the founder  "will announce details of a new partnership with a major OEM using Moblin for Intel® Atom™ Processor-based NetBooks. David will be speaking from 10:20-11AM in Room 201B at the Taipei International Convention Center, and will provide more details about a gOS based on Moblin that will be available at the end of this year."

gOS aren’t new to the netbook space as earlier this year they shipped their distribution with the Everex Cloudbook. It didn’t appear to go down to well. Since then they launched gOS Space which was received well at Laptop magazine in May.

Keep an eye out for the gOS announcements tomorrow.

gOS website.

Update: gOS will be working with Mitac.

Following up on the previous story I did about the 12" Dell Mini, it looks like it really is going to happen.

The size and form factor is of no interest to most readers but what’s going on underneath is very interesting.

Up until now, the performance of Z-series-based PCs running XP or Vista has been less than exciting. Video playback and 3D performance is almost non-existent in devices like the Kohjinsha SC3 and way below what people are seeing on the cheap Atom-based netbooks. In theory, it should be a lot better. Many people have been waiting for fresh drivers for the system controller hub (SCH, Aka Poulsbo) chipset under Vista and for XP-lovers, there’s absolutely nothing out there except rumours. Intel have no choice now but to ship good quality drivers otherwise they will have a big customer problem.

So why are Dell using the Z-series Atom processors? Battery life. Atom Silverthorne and the SCH offer much higher power efficiency so it gives Dell’s engineers the best possible chance to produce an 8hr device. The SCH also has the video decoding hardware built-in so we could be looking at a great long-haul video playback device here.

For those looking for Silverthorne/Poulsbo drivers, keep an eye on the Dell 1210 driver download page.

Source: CSM Report.

I’m in the middle of writing an article about the T-Mobile / ASUS 901Go (the free 3G-enabled netbook) and am looking at an unboxing video wondering who would buy the Aigo MID, the Mobile Internet Device that doesn’t include mobile Internet due to lack of a 3G module. I’m also asking myself, ‘Where’s the damn Gigabyte M528 that does have the 3G!’

After I’ve finished the 901 article and posted some more customer challenge responses, I’ll watch the 12-minute video and join JKK for a live session tonight. Hopefully we can work out how Midinux performs and see if the Coolfox browser and video playback work. Is it better than an Archos 5 for Internet browsing?

If Intel can prevent OEM’s from using the Dual Core CPU in their netbook and notebook designs, how come they can’t stop Dell using the Z-Series Atom in a notebook? Just as the Dual-core CPU could damage notebook sales, so to could putting a 12" screen on a netbook, even if it didn’t have a dual-core CPU inside.

I was alerted to this misnomer [hmmm wrong word perhaps. Anomaly?] today via a brief news item today from Tony Smith of The Register who draws the conclusion that the name of a leaked Dell device that will go on sale at UK supermarket Tesco,  the Z530, means it will have an Atom Z530 inside. Actually he’s right because if you look back to the early leaks, you find a 12.1" ‘E-Slim’ device based on Silverthorne. Dell are actually going to throw a device right into the middle of the consumer laptop arena and give it netbook-style pricing. This is the danger zone and possibly the beginning of the end for netbooks as we knew them.

Why the Silverthorne CPU and Poulsbo chipset though? Style, Battery life and video. It’s going to be a normal laptop aimed at ‘pro-sumers’ and the ‘Youth social networking/entertainment’ customers. They are aiming for a cheap, super-slim device with ‘all day’ battery life with high-end video playback support and the only way they can do it is to move to the latest Intel MID silicon. I like the idea myself. I have a UMPC (Still haven’t pulled the trigger on a new Q1 U HSDPA yet though) and a stylish, 12" ultralight with long, long battery life and high-end hardware decoded video playback would suit me as a partner device to take to conferences and to use for hot-desking.

Why am I even talking about this 12" notebook on UMPCPortal though? Apart from it further bluring the edges of the, once well-defined, netbook category, there are a number of other reasons. The main one for us is that it will be running XP and that means drivers! Those of us waiting for drivers for the SC3, D4, SX3, M528 and Aigo MID are going to finally have XP drivers for the chipset. One can assume that if Dell is the customer, the device will have working drivers too! The second point is one that I alluded to earlier and one that I’ve just detailed in an email report to UMPCPortal sponsors and donators. The netbook market is going to be damaging because consumers are finding that they can use a netbook in place of a normal laptop. It IS powerful enough for many. Consumers are truly finding peace with netbooks. When devices like this Dell cross over into the larger netbook market, they bring with them the low-cost pricing and that immediately damages the main notebook market. We end up with a pricing war that, in the long run, reduces funds for R&D, quality engineering and niche products. While the 12" Dell netbook device may look good for consumers now, it could cross over into the danger zone and cause real problems for the future.

You may have seen some news over the last few days that Intel has started to ship a dual core variant of their Atom processor. To some of you that may sound like good news for the mobile world as nearly every new netbook seems to be running on Atom, and who doesn’t like a boost in performance? Well, as jkk points out, unfortunately the dual core Atom CPU is not for netbooks, they are actually for nettops, or low cost desktops.

In the beginning, there were two types of Atom chips, the kind that focused on low power consumption, low heat output, and small size, and the others (which we see in all the recent netbooks), focus on low power consumption, low heat output, and low price. Now the Dual Core chips present a new focus, which is primarily keeping prices low and performance high (relatively), or course keeping the low power consumption/low heat output out of the focus means that you have a CPU that isn’t suitable for a netbook, which has minimal cooling, and limited power to be consumed. For comparison, the Atom CPUs that we are used to seeing in netbooks, have a TDP of 2.5w, while the dual core version has an 8w TDP. So not only does that mean more power drain on your battery, but also there might not be enough cooling to keep the chip from overheating in a netbook.

On top of all of this, jkk says that he has gotten word that Intel is actually telling OEMs not use Dual Core Atom CPUs in netbooks. Looks like we’ll need to wait for the next round of Atom CPUs in order to see anything new for the netbook wave.

Checking out a mini-review by Andario, one of our members on the forums today made me realise that I should put together my own objective long-term review of the Akoya Mini that I’ve been using off and on for a while. It deserves it as its been working well and trouble free since I queued up for it at the beginning of July.

I’ve already called the Akoya Mini ‘near perfect’ and I haven’t changed my mind. Having played with most of the netbooks its clear that it hits the consumer mark more centrally than any other netbook. Its cheap, stylish, has a keyboard that really shouldn’t be that good for that price and the 10′2" screen makes for very comfortable tabletopping. In short, if you need a low-cost, small notebook, you really won’t be unhappy with the XP/Hard drive version of the MSI Wind, Medion Akoya Mini, Zen ID, Advent 4211 or any of the variants that are available. [Article continues after the images...]

(more…)