If you read my article about the Archos 605 Wifi PVR success on Carrypad a while back you’ll know how my wife, Claudia’s request for a bedroom TV has led me through a rather gadget-loaded path. My first test with the Archos 650 Wifi was very successful. So successful in fact, that I pulled out my (very) old Mini-ITX / MythTV-basd PVR and gave the 605 Wifi the prime position in the lounge. I haven’t looked back since but unfortunately I’m still left with the original problem of getting a TV into the bedroom. [Article continues below]

As JKK says, this is the most powerful 7″ UMPC you can buy at the moment. It also has the ‘improved’ keys but no-one has exactly raved about them yet so I’m assume they’re a little bit better than almost useless ;-) Battery life is good due to the extended battery. It would make a nice top-of-the range purchase if you have the money. Available with XP only at the moment although Samsung do advertise it with Vista (and a 2GB RAM option)

Part number:  NP-Q1U/P01 available at Buy.com and other sites. (Tip: Search for the part number on Google)

More specs and news on the Q1 UP product page.

It’s very interesting to see the physical differences between these two devices. The Mylo is a lot thicker and the screen much smaller. I already think the N810’s screen is too small for 800×480 browsing. The Mylo 2 keyboard looks better though. One of the issues I have with the N810 is the lack of separation between keys so the Mylo 2 could actually be easier to use. As Jenn says in her article though, these two devices are targeted at different people and don’t really need to be compared. […]

Two years ago I submitted the first post on Carrypad after spending weeks trying to analyse exactly what device I wanted when my 2 year Vodafone contract was finished. It turned out that nothing fitted my needs and so the definition of a Carrypad was born. Here’s the first few paragraphs of the first post: The simple fact is that you’ll never get everything on one device. It wont happen until we evolve better eyes and smaller fingers. You cant watch a video for any length of time on anything […]

The Cloudbook is shipping and people are unboxing. CloudbookUMPC.com are doing a good job of tracking the reviews and others are relaying info and thoughts as they read them.

The lean green Linux machine doesn’t seem to be getting a Wow! response from owners but that’s something I expected. The Packard Bell Easynote XS20 was rather uninspiring too. What I am seeing that is different is that the gOS installation is causing some negative comments from the early reviewers. Having first-boot dialogs that go off the screen is unforgivable. No web-cam support, an iffy WiFI stack and a fixed 800×480 resolution on external monitors is silly too. These problems are all attributable to the OS. Personally I think that many people people will tire of ‘going it alone’ on a niche operating system build and will look for that XP upgrade. Maybe Everex and VIA should just bite the bullet and launch the XP version for $50 more before it causes them a huge PR headache because the early reports on the web are the ones that are going to ‘stick’ in Google. If I was the product manager I’d get someone to contact the owners that are blogging directly to offer thanks and support.

Edit: It looks like the reports of problems are already having an effect. (Thanks JKK)

More Cloudbook info.

Taking stats from Google search keywords only (and not the mad number of hits that came from Engadget yesterday!) it looks like the HP UMPC is going to be an incredibly hot product. Expect it to climb to the number one position tomorrow. In the lifetime of the product portal only two other devices have made such an immediate impact. The HTC Shift and LG MID are still at the top of the tree so the future bodes very well for the HP UMPC as long as it lives up to expectations.

Based on the information I got yesterday it looks like the report from China about it being based on Intel was wrong. That also calls into question the release date (rumor: April) and the launch price (rumor: $600) which also came from this source. I haven’t received any information on these two points though so at the moment, it’s anyone’s guess. I can only imagine that if it’s VIA-based, pricing will be very competitive and as VIA keep talking about their CPU upgrade path (C7-M to Isaiah with a pin-compatible CPU) I guess it will appear in different forms with different CPU builds. 1.2ghz C7 to 2.0Ghz Isaiah (estimated four times the processing power of a 1.2Ghz C7) should be possible.

Personally I absolutely love the device and want one right now. It will be my expo-laptop and will partner the Everun and N82. Maybe I should pre-order [affiliate link] it now!

Update: Yes, it hit the top spot. Expect it to stay there for quite a while!

Jonathan Greene has written a nice piece on the Nokia Internet Tablets today. He makes some comparisons with Intel MIDs which is well worth reading and I agree with most of it. Nokia’s vision for the Internet tablet is good. The N810 is more pocketable than most MIDs Adding horsepower is not the answer to a positive user experience “the multi-part strategy in the Nokia Internet Tablet platform is very compelling for those seeking advanced connectivity, entertainment and productivity” This is not the whole equation of course, but the points […]

As pointed out by Mike Cane and reported by EeePCUser, the price for the Eee PC 8G is high. Over $500 in most cases with the black version going for $542 at Amazon.com. I think it’s too high for a lot of people.

At $500 you start to get into a market where 1) It’s a significant amount of money and 2) There will be new devices on the market soon. Personally I’d hold-off on the Eee PC 8G until CeBIT has passed.