Are you waiting to see how that 1Ghz dual-core AMD Fusion platform benchmarks before buying your next 10” device? I am. As someone who’s had a netbook for nearly two years now I am probably in the same boat as millions of other people – I’m looking for an upgrade. I’m not buying until i’ve assessed Fusion though which means I’m scouring the web for information every day.
I’ve seen reports on the 1.6Ghz dual-core Zacate E-Series devices but they’re not targeted at the 10” segment. The one that’s going up against the Atom is the Ontario series. The C-50 being the dual-core 1.0Ghz version, the C-30 the single-core 1.2Ghz version. While the latter has been benchmarked, its the C-50 that is more interesting for day-to-day work.
The Toshiba NB550D has just hit the German online channels in the last week and is showing up for around 325 Euro (lowest price.) which puts it head to head with the ASUS EeePC 1015PN (with ION graphics.) The question is, which platform has the better day-to-day performance. The two platforms has a similar total TDP but the AMD part is going to be a lot better in 3D and HD video performance. With Flash 10.1 and HTML5 canvas elements taking advantage of GPU, the AMD advantage might be more significant that it first seems for non-gamers. For gamers, the advantage is clear.
Enough of the pre-amble. What have I found?
Well we’ve got a price as mentioned above. It’s Windows Starter 7 and 1GB of RAM for the 325 Euro price which doesn’t impress me so assume a 400+ price for 2GB and Windows 7 HP. The EeePC comes in at a minimum of 429 with those specs. That’s the entry point you want to be looking at if you’re upgrading though.
Secondly, we’ve got some unboxing pics.
The unboxing comes via eprice (translation link) and there are more images available. The keyboard reminds me instantly of the one on the Toshiba AC100. That’s good. I like the look of the speakers too.
Unfortunately the author doesn’t go as far as to benchmark the device (although I’d expect it to happen soon) but there are some YouTube tests. I’m looking at the results thinking, hmmm, that’s very similar to what I saw on the Samsung N350. The 720p videos are playing with >50% CPU load.
720P video playback time when most of the water is running between 56 to 68% will go to 7X% or even to 9X% off
All I can say at the moment is that given the C-30 performance data and this YouTube performance data it’s going to be a very close match between the CPU performance of the C-50 and N550 but as I said earlier, if you get the extra 3D performance and it translates to noticeable improvements in web and UI speed, Cedar Trail is going to have to really bump up the GPU performance in order to compete. (Unless, of course, it brings in significant power savings. Intel’s Oaktrail platform indicates that it might.)
Let’s keep an eye out for more data points, and battery life figures, over the next week.
One of them costs €299, one of them costs €360 and the other, €999. All of them weigh between 867gm and 1060gm. One runs on ARM/Android, one runs on Windows/Intel Atom and the other runs OSX/Intel Core 2 Duo. All are ‘instant’ on.
At the MeeGo conference last week I had the chance to check out the Apple Mac Book Air. I had the lightest Intel Netbook (Samsung N350) and lightest ‘smart’ book (Toshiba AC100) with me at the time. I knew the Apple Mac Book Air (11.6”) was small but I was quite shocked to feel exactly how light it was. Ultra Mobile for me starts at about 1KG and the MBA fits in nicely. Battery life for me starts at 4hrs and the MBA fits in nicely again. Computing power for me must include a full web browser, a desktop OS and some video editing capability. The MBA fits in nicely, again, again!
We need to talk more about the MBA on UMPCPortal and I’ll be looking for a test sample soon so that we can get down to the detail but in the meantime, have a think about portability and capability with these images I took and feel free to comment below. This isn’t your ‘mobile’ UMPC but it’s a fine competitor to the traditional netbook. Price is a huge factor but in return you get some amazing electronic and design engineering…
Jenn of Pocketables has a Libretto U100 from Conics.net and in her unboxing and first impressions there are definitely getting some good vibes being sent out. ‘The cool factor is off the charts’ she says. I tend to agree but is it actually usable?
I had a chat with the guys from Wow Pow blog yesterday and there’s some good vibes coming from them too. Certainly the keyboard software seems well thought out and provides for some unique flexibility. Heat and battery life are flagged as issues and of course, there’s the price to think about too. $1100 for a 2hrs device! (W105 in the USA only comes with standard battery and no 3G or 4G, the W100 import from Conics is more expensive but comes with the large battery in addition to WiMax.)
Two very interesting UMPC designs. HTC Shift and W100
International users will be happy with the different language keyboard layouts (video) although both Jenn and Pow-Wow say that the full keyboard layout is too small to touch type on. I get the feeling that the Sony Vaio P would be a better choice is you need to input a lot of text on a sub-800gm device although the comparison image of the HTC Shift above highlights another very interesting design.
The CPU power on this can’t be understated though. It will bring Windows 7 multitouch features to life. If only there was a VGA or docking port then you’d have a really nice mobile desktop set-up.
Shame. While the Libretto W100 looks good and opens the mind, that second touchscreen is obviously more for the marketing than for the people that were attracted to the original Librettos. Like a diamond-encrusted iPhone, the W100 seeks out media attention rather than addressing the issue of getting things done when on the move. Not only is the hardware keyboard missing but the battery life is going to be an issue as this appears to be running on a laptop processor. Imaging trying to use this anywhere near a window – the backlight and CPU requirements would be huge.
I’d love to test it out and maybe I’m being too harsh and blinkered but I can almost see the summary now: “Great concept…for marketing. Now let’s stop trying to impress the touch-friendly media and get back to some serious mobile productivity.”
Much like the Pepperpad and SmartQ7. Much like the Crunchpad and EeePC keyboard much like the Archos range of media players, the Toshiba Journe Touch is a tablet aimed at the home zone.
Its not a UMPC (no productivity. Very little application flexibility) and until I see that its able to provide a full, fast internet experience (unlikely) I won’t call it a MID. The sofa is a very forgiving place though; a place where the user is relaxed, open minded and under no time pressures. You can get away with slow browsing and input in these scenarios. I found that out myself.
Its focus is really media control and playback. Both in standalone and HDTV-docked mode. Apparently the Journe will be able to play back HD content. I’m wondering if it’s an Nvidia Tegra platform they’re using.
As time goes on, more and more of my time is being taken up reading very interesting smartphone news. WVGA, Android, WM6.5 and Cortex are the important keywords and every time a device comes up it becomes clearer that the push towards the MID market is greater from the Smartphone manufacturers than it is from the Intel-based MID and UMPC market. With Menlow in a strange UMPC-like state (with no Moblin support now) there’s a long wait until consumer-focused MIDs come out on the Moorestown platform in 2010. It’s even clearer than before that ARM will have the upper hand in the MID space in 2009 by building up from existing products and brands that already sell millions of devices. Intel will have to sit back and wait for the time being.
Today has been particularly active in the ‘MIDPhone’ space.
As I was updating myself on the status of my Samsung Omnia order (no delivery date in sight) I took a quick look at other options that are available and the Toshiba TG01 (soon available in the U.S.) jumped up at me. With a screen size of 4.1”, a resolution of 800×480 and processing power that is 2-4 times as much as the Nokia N800 / N810, it’s difficult to ignore. Pricing is now under 500 Euro for an unlocked version and 02 in Germany are selling it for 150 Euro with a 25 Euro / month contract. Add 15 Euro on top for Internet and you’ve got an interesting option that you I could walk out and buy tomorrow. Chris over at SlashGear has just finished his review and although he wasn’t impressed with the UI and predicts that the WM operating system could be an issue, I still think that the device represents great value for mobile internet fans. When Windows Mobile 6.5 comes along it could make it even more interesting, especially if Opera 9.7 works on it. I’m looking forward to seeing some browsing speed tests on this one. Note: No keyboard!
As I was finishing up reading Chris’ article a news item about an HTC Leo popped up. The Ai.rs blog has posted what they say are the specifications for this new HTC device. I don’t know who Ai.rs are but everyone seems to be following up the story. WMPowerUser (a blog I frequent more and more these days) says that the device is the HTC Firestone. All I know is that it’s rumored to have a 4.3” screen and run a Snapdragon platform at 1Ghz. This is definitely another one to add to the MID list. Again, it looks like there’s no keyboard.
Only a few minutes later I read the news that the Samsung Mondi is launching. The Mondi is an even bigger device with a slider form factor and a 4.3” screen. Samsung are dropping a WiMax module inside and handing it over to Clearwire for a launch in Las Vegas. It’s an ARM11-powered device running Windows Mobile again. No pricing, No availability details. Style and feature-wise it’s not too exciting and in fact it doesn’t even support voice so this is really focused at mobile internet activities.
The Mondi’s compact design provides the user with a more mobile form factor and ease-of-use than the typical laptop or netbook. While it is small enough to fit into the user’s hand or pocket, the Mondi packs an impressive Web browser, powered by Opera 9.5, which takes full advantage of the device’s 4.3-inch touch screen.
I’d like to see this with HSPA, Android, a high-end CPU and a big fat battery for all-day mobile internet use!
Finally, in addition to all that, there’s news about a Sony Xperia X3 which had previously been known at ‘Rachael.’ Dutch blog ‘All About Phones’ found the information in an Expansys we page and it’s quite the interesting read, largely because it’s going to be running Android and will have a 4” 800×480 screen. As yet, the CPU information is unknown. If you’re thinking about an HTC Hero, you might want to wait for final specs and pricing on this one.
None of these devices represent the ultimate MID yet but you can see where things are going. The 4” to 5” space is getting very busy already. I’ll beadding some of these (if not all!) to the database very soon.
News is breaking about a new 4.1 inch smartphone (same screen size and res as the Nokia N810) that will be running on the Snapdragon platform from Qualcomm.
It’s another cross-over between MIDs and smartphones and I don’t care what anyone wants to call it. If it performs well as a browser (Its running Windows Mobile 6.1 so Opera Mobile 9.5, Fennec and other options could work well on this) then it’s well worth considering.
We’re tracking news from a press events (PocketLint, ElectrigPig) but in the meantime, check out this presentation video from MegaWhat.tv
The word ‘concept’ is not an easy word to write here. I want to say ‘product coming’ instead!
This image is from Pocketables.net who have a few more that you should take a look at. I have a feeling that by using the best available display technology and platforms like Menlow designers could come up with some incredible umpcs and e-reader devices. And when I say connected e-reader devices I mean everything from locally stored ebooks and PDFs to live webpages. The modern-day newspaper. I’m imagining a slick UI and a capacitive touchscreen and an OS and hardware that offers the normal desktop PC experience. MmmmmID-Tastic!
