Portable

Panasonic Toughbook 74 Notebook Announced
More rugged than Chuck Norris in a suit of armour, Panasonic’s latest addition to their Toughbook notebook series is set to be introduced at the CTIA Wireless IT & Entertainment 2006 event next week.
Billed as the “ultimate road warrior PC,” the semi-rugged Panasonic Toughbook 74 Notebook is an upgraded version of the company’s Toughbook-73 13.3-inch XGA model and comes stuffed with connectivity options.
Powered by a beefy Intel Core Duo T2400 1.83GHz Dual Core Processor, the mean, mo’fo’ Toughbook-74 comes with a 13.3″ XGA TFT Touchscreen HighBrite (Outdoor Readable) display, backed up by 512MB of RAM.
The built-in Mobile Intel 945GM Express Chipset, DVMT (Dynamic Video Memory Technology) provides external video support for screens up to 2048 x 1536 at 16 million colours.
In line with its rugged ambitions, the lappie is packaged in a full magnesium case with carrying handle and sports a water/spill resistant keyboard and a shock-mounted 80 GB hard drive.
Running on Windows XP, the Panasonic comes with a combo DVD/CD-RW drive, Intel Tri-band 802.11a+b/g (Wireless LAN), optional built in EV-DO WAN and Bluetooth.
Battery life has been ramped up to a claimed Mobile Mark-tested 7 to 8 hours – enough for a full day stomping around in the Great Outdoors.
Not surprisingly, all this portability, power and durability doesn’t come cheap, with a basic configuration costing around $3,000.
Specifications:
SOFTWARE
Microsoft WindowsÆ Windows XP Professional SP2 Setup, DMI Viewer, AdobeÆ Acrobat Reader, On-Line Reference Manual, Hard Disk Data Erase Utility
CPU Intel Core Duo Processor T2400: 2MB L2 cache; Processor speed 1.83GHz (Dual Core); 667MHz FSB
STORAGE & MEMORY
512MB SDRAM (DDR2) standard, expandable to 4096MB, 80GB HDD Combo Drive (DVD-ROM/CD-R/RW) standard
DISPLAY
13.3″ 1024 x 768 XGA transmissive, daylight-readable TFT Active Matrix Color LCD with Touchscreen
External video support up to 2048 x 1536 at 16,770,000 colors
Mobile IntelÆ 945GM Express Chipset, DVMT (Dynamic Video Memory Technology) up to 128MB
460 Nit LCD Brightness
AUDIO
SigmaTel STAC9200 AC-97 v.2.3 Compliant Audio Codec
Integrated stereo speakers
Convenient keyboard volume and mute controls
EXPANSION SLOTS
PC Card Type I or II
Secure Digital (SD) Card
Express Card
MULTIMEDIA POCKET
Combo Drive (DVD-ROM/CD-R/RW) standard
Accepts optional DVD Multi Drive (DVD-RAM/DVD-ROM/DVD-RW/CD-R/CD-ROM/CD-R/RW)
KEYBOARD & INPUT
87-key with dedicated Windows key
Electrostatic touchpad with scrolling support
Touchscreen LCD
Stylus with integrated holder
INTERFACE
External Video: Mini-D-sub 15 pin Headphones/Speaker: Mini-jack Stereo
Microphone/Line In: Mini-jack Stereo
Mini Port Replicator: Dedicated 84 pin
Serial: D-sub 9 pin (UART 16550 compatible)
USB2.0(x2): 4 pin
10/100/1000 Ethernet: RJ-45
56K bps Modem: RJ-11
WIRELESS LAN
Intel PRO/Wireless 3945 Network Connection with respective drivers
Slide on/off switch
Security + Authentication: LEAP, WPA, 802.1x, EAP-TLS, EAP-FAST, PEAP
+ Encryption: CKIP,TKIP,128-bit and 64-bit WEP, Hardware AES
POWER SUPPLY
Lithium lon battery pack (11.1V,7.8Ah)
Battery operation: 8 hours
Battery charging time : approximately 4.5 hours
AC Adapter: AC 100V-240V 50/60HZ, Auto Sensing/Switching worldwide power supply
Intelligent power measurement for precise battery status reporting
Pop-up on-screen battery status reporting
POWER MANAGEMENT
Hibernation, Standby, ACPI BIOS
DIMENSIONS & WEIGHT
1.7″-2.4″(H) x 12″(W) x 10.3″(D) 5.9 lbs
Panasonic Toughbooks
28 March, 2006
Max-Joy MP3 Player For Kids
Back in our day, the only round thing that kids had in their pockets were marbles, conkers and gobstoppers, but German MP3 player maker Maxfield wants kids to shell out for their Max-Joy digital music player.
Targeted at pocket-money-rich young ‘uns between six and twelve years old, the Max-Joy offers comes in a playground tough, water-resistant shell.
Resplendent in two-tone red and yellow, the 50g, 8 x 5.6 x 2.6cm device sports chunky operation buttons and an “extra-luminous” two-colour OLED screen.
To protect the delicate ears of schoolkids from repeated plays of Sludgefeast, the Max-Joy limits the audio output to 60dB through the supplied Koss-designed earphones.
There’s 256MB of on-board storage, with the option to add more song space via a SD memory card slot.
In line with its kid-friendly aspirations, Maxfield is lobbing in a free 128MB MMC along with some music and audio books (which will no doubt be promptly deleted and replaced by death metal favourites like Decapitated, Devourment, Vomit Remnants, Cannibal Corpse and Gorguts).
The player supports MP3, WMA and WMA DRM with six EQ pre-sets allowing for some sonic adjustments.
The Max-Joy runs off a single AAA battery, which the makers claim will give up to 19 hours’ playback time, offering plenty of potential for parents to get a bit of peace.
The only thing that worries us is that the unit’s pebble shape just asks, nay begs, for it to be launched skywards. Or maybe that’s just us.
The Max-Joy is expected to appear on Amazon.co.uk soon for around sixty quid (~$105, ~€87).
22 March, 2006
Sony CD-U70/ U50 USB Voice Recorders Announced
As voice recorders go (and, let’s be honest, they’re not the most exciting of gadgets) Sony’s new CD-U70/ U50 devices look to be quite natty numbers.
Sporting Sony’s usual design flair, the voice recorders come in two flavours, the top of the range ICD-U70, touts a hefty 1GB of flash memory, and its smaller brother the ICD-U50, which comes with 512MB of memory.
You’d have no bother losing these fellas down the back of the sofa as the recorders are pipsqueak-sized, measuring just 30x20x99.7mm and weighing in at a trouser-untroubling 64g.
Touted as a ‘three in one’ gizmo, the Sony IC recorders can be used as a mass data storage drive, an MP3 player and a voice recorder, with the thing plugging straight into the USB port of a PC.
For voice recording, there’s three modes on offer – LP/SP/HQ, with the built in monaural microphone offering high and low sensitive settings.
Battery life is listed as an impressive 140 hours for voice recording and 6 hours for MP3 playback, with the unit offering Digital Pitch Control, Digital VOR (Voice Operated Recording) and 5 message folders to keep your perambulating wafflings filed away neatly.
For playing back your words of wisdom, there’s a tiny 10mm speaker onboard with a teensy-weensy 35mW output as well as a headphone socket (and bundled ‘phones).
The ICD-U70 comes in silver only while the ICD-U60 comes in groovier blue and white finishes.
Availability should be from mid March, 2006, with prices around $179.00 for the and $129 for the ICD-U70
Sony
14 March, 2006
USB Hub Vanity Mirrors, Ashtrays, Coffee Warmers And Heated Gloves
You know the problem: you’ve rushed into work late, sat yourself down at the desk only to realise that there’s not enough USB ports on the machine so you can’t plug in your DVD backup.
And – even worse – there’s not a mirror around so you can’t check if the chocolate topping from the cappuccino you hastily slurped down on the train into work is smeared all over your face.
And the boss is coming in at any minute!
Well, thank goodness for the thoughtful folks at Brando, who have designed just the thing for you – a combination USB hub and vanity mirror!
The ‘Mini Mirror Hub’, described as “the most tiny, fashionable USB 2.0 HUB,” can connect up to four USB 2.0 (or USB 1.1) devices, supporting 480Mbps, 12Mbps and 1.5Mbps speeds.
Powered by the host USB computer (or via an optional adapter), the teensy-weensy hub measures just 40 x 40 x 10 mm, which makes it of rather limited use as a vanity mirror – although we could imagine some city types finding an, err, somewhat alternative use for its shiny surface.
The Mini Mirror Hub is available from here for $14 (~£8, ~e12).
USB Ashtray
If your company has a no-smoking policy and you’re desperate for a sneaky drag at your desk, once again the diligent designers at Brando have just the gadget for you.
Their USB Ashtray – inexplicably shaped as a little blue car – promises to, “minimise smoke and odours” by passing the smoke through a carbon-absorbing filter – and it’s yours for just $22 (~£13, ~e18) – details here.
USB Cafe Pad
With the winter snap still carrying on, there’s always the chance that your coffee may go cold just a little too quickly for your liking, so once again we are grateful for Brando’s engineers for dreaming up the USB Cafe Pad.
Simply plug it into your USB port, switch it on and slap your beverage of choice on top for permanently hot drinks – for just $15 (~£9, ~e13)!
USB Heating Gloves
Finally, we found ourselves unable to resist mentioning Brando’s USB Heating Gloves.
“Ever experience that your hand freezing and slowing down your reaction when you are playing game?”, asks their Website.
Well, we can’t say we ever have, but we can sleep easy in the knowledge that should we ever suffer any heat-related problems when ‘playing game’, we could shell out $22 and slip on their natty heating gloves.
More details here: USB Heating Gloves.
13 March, 2006
M.A.G.I.C Windows Smartphone Has Everything!
Currently hovering betwixt prototype and retail status, Advance Tech Communications new Windows Mobile smartphone market looks hot! hot! hot!
The MAGIC (Mobile Advanced Global Integrated Communicator) comes stuffed to the gills with connectivity and multimedia options, and is powered by a beefy Intel Xscale 624 MHz CPU with graphic accelerator 2700G3 and Video RaM – fast enough to leave all current Windows Mobile phones coughing in the dust.
The 10.5 ounce (300 g) Windows Mobile 5.0 device comes with more connections than a street spiv, offering GSM quad band, GPRS, Wi-Fi 802.11b, EDGE, Bluetooth 2.0, IrDA FIR 4 and, of course, USB.
There’s also a built-in Global Positioning System( GPS) and, apparently, a Biometric Sensor.
On board storage is taken care of courtesy of a generous 8GB hard disk, backed up by 512MB RAM and 512MB ROM, with a micro-SD expansion card slot.
There’s two 2.8″ QVGA (320×240 pixels) displays onboard and – you’ve guessed it – there’s also two cameras, both offering a healthy 2 megapixel resolution.
Wrapping up the extensive feature set is a very useful VGA Out port and a small QWERTY keyboard for the tippity-tap action.
With all this functionality crammed in to the phone, it seems that Advance Tech felt that describing the ultra-premium device as a ‘smartphone’ would be like calling a Leica camera a point’n’shooter.
Instead, the company are proclaiming their new device to be a “laptop computer miniaturised to the size of a handheld device,” which perhaps isn’t the snappiest description they could have come up with.
With its ten-mile long spec sheet, it’s not surprising to find both price and physical size are going to be on the b-i-g side, with the MAGIC measuring up at 125 x 70 x 32 mm and the price hovering around the high end $1,000 mark (£575, €838) .
The MAGIC is expected to roll out next quarter.
www.advancetc.com/
9 March, 2006
Origami Smart Display
The London book fair, just finished. At it, there was no sign of an e-book reader from Microsoft – which is odd, because all the stuff Microsoft has been teasing us about with Origami looks exactly the sort of thing that the Book Fair would have got excited about.
Unless, of course, it’s the long-awaited portable XBox? Good question. What is Origami, then?
Origami is another “Smart Display” – but one which imitates the Nokia 770 Internet Tablet. You probably missed the Smart Display, anyway; and the 770 was only really revealed last week, at a Linux show, but both are weird devices.
Smart Display: it was a flat display. But instead of being stuck on your desk, it was portable. You pulled the screen out of the stand, and took it downstairs; it had WiFi inside it, and as soon as it noticed it was mobile, it looked for the host computer.
It was back in late 2003 that Microsoft canned Smart display, and at the time I remember writing: “The problem with it was pretty simple. If you got the small one, it was actually smaller than most Tablet PCs – and no cheaper. If you got the big one, it was really too heavy and clumsy to carry around.” And also, if you took it away from the home WiFi, it died. It was ONLY worth playing with indoors, while the WiFi was working. It had zero function out of range.
Origami is smaller still. But it works out in the open. An ideal device for a portable electronic book reader? We’ll find out tomorrow if the hardware is up to it, and one key question will be “can you read it in sunlight?” – but the real reason to be sceptical is “What will be available to read on it?”
That’s where Microsoft loses out. Sony’s Librié may be disappointing, but it will (I promise!) have ten times the battery life of Origami, be readable in bright sun, and easier to read generally. And even if none of that was true, it would still win, because Sony has done an iPod on it, and signed up all the book publishers.
Microsoft can’t do that, because it isn’t making Origami. It has designed it; people like Samsung will actually make it.
So Origami isn’t an e-book reader. It’s not a pocket PC either, and it’s not a phone. It’s a light-weight Smart Display, with a “go anywhere” wireless. Who wants it?
Clue from PopCap Games. Bejeweled 2, Zuma, Bookworm. Is this, finally, the answer to the Playstation Portable by Microsoft?
9 March, 2006
Toshiba Announce M100 Series And Qosmio G30 HD-DVD Laptops
Toshiba is rolling out its first Satellite models with Intel Core Duo and Core Solo processors.
The new M100 series includes a 14.1-inch display, CD, DVD or DVD SuperMulti Double Layer drive, hard drives running from 40GB to 120GB, maximum memory of 2GB, WiFi and a 5-in-1 memory card reader.
A handy Express Media Player lets users access DVDs or CDs without the palaver of booting up Windows.
The notebooks include Intel’s 945 Express chipset employing Intel Centrino Mobile Technology to reduce power consumption while and give a kick up the backside of the laptop’s graphics to wireless performance.
Running on a choice of XP Home or Pro and fitted with 256MB to 2048MB of RAM , the new Satellite M100 comes in three colours, all with silly names: Peacock, Mist Gray and Sunlight Copper.
Satellite M100 Example Configuration:
Processor: Intel Centrino Duo Mobile Technology featuring the Intel Core(TM) Duo Processor(a) T2300 (Dual 1.83 GHz, 667 MHz FSB, 2MB L2 cache)
Display: 14-inch diagonal widescreen TruBrite(TM) TFT active-matrix LCD display WXGA with 1280×768 native resolution
System Chipset: Mobile Intel 945PM Express Chipset
Graphics Controller: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950
Memory: 512MB (2x256MB) DDR2 SDRAM memory
Hard Drive: 60GB (5400 rpm) Serial-ATA (SATA) hard disk drive
Optical Drive: DVD SuperMulti Double Layer drive supporting +R and -R double layer formats
Wireless: Integrated Intel Pro/Wireless Network Connection 3945ABG (802.11a/b/g)
Ports: 4 USB 2.0, TV-Out (S-Video), RGB, RJ-11 modem (v.92), RJ-45 LAN, headphone and microphone ports
Slots: 5-in-1 Bridge Media Adapter (Secure Digital(R), Memory Stick(TM), Memory Stick PRO(TM), Multi Media Card, xD Picture Card); PCMCIA PC Card slot
Audio: harman/kardon(R) stereo speakers
Battery: 6-cell (4700mAh) Lithium Ion
Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition 2005
Dimensions: 13.5- x 9.53- x 1.5-inch
Weight: Starting at 5.20 lbs
Qosmio G30 HD-DVD laptop
Toshiba have also announced their first laptop computer with an HD-DVD drive, due to be launched in April.
The Qosmio G30 is part is of Toshiba’s multimedia PC line and will come with a TV tuner and Dolby Home Theatre support.
Costing from $2,410 upwards, users will be able to watch HD-DVD content on the laptop’s screen or hook it up to a compatible high-definition monitor or television via a HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface).
HD-DVD is currently doing battle with Blu-Ray to become the de facto standard for high-definition content such as movies.
Backed by Toshiba and NEC, it faces heavy competition from the Blu-Ray corner, whose hard-hitting supporters include Sony, Matsushita, Panasonic and Samsung.
Although HD-DVD will initially only be offered in Toshiba’s expensive Qosmio notebook range, the company some models in the cheaper Satellite line may offer HD-DVD by the end of 2006.
Background to HD-DVD/Blu-Ray battle:
Paramount To Offer HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc Movies (Oct 2005)
Unified DVD Format On Rocks (Aug 2005)
Sony, Toshiba May Create Universal Blu-Ray/HD DVD Standard (Apr 2005)
Toshiba
8 March, 2006
Seiko’s BT Bluetooth Watch
Seiko Instruments has announced their first Bluetooth watch, known as either the BT Watch or the rather less snappy, CPC TR-006 ver.1.0.
Although the thing appears to be in its early stages, there’s some interesting technology on show here which we may find filtering into our everyday lives in a year or two.
Designed to be an extension of your phone, the hi-tech watch promises to integrate fully with your phone’s functionality.
If you get an SMS or email on your phone the watch can alert you, and if your phone’s ringing, you won’t have to rummage about in your bag or pockets to see who is calling – the number will appear on the watch.
Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be the ability to talk into the watch, Dick Tracy-style, but the display will warn you if you lose the Bluetooth connection.
Now, much as we like the idea of cool high tech toys buzzing away on our wrists, we have to say that this watch looks more than a bit silly – it’s so big you may as well strap your mobile onto your wrist and be done with it!
But unlike those rubbish pens that light up when you get a call on your mobile, we can actually imagine this gadget being quite a handy thing to have – if it was shrunk down to about a tenth of the size, of course.
We reckon it would be cool to have text messages, news headlines, RSS feeds, football scores and other short bursts of info appear on your watch – particularly when you’re stuck in a dull meeting.
But no matter how cutting edge the technology, no one in their right mind is going to strut about with this ten-ton brick on their arm, so we’ll wait for a bijou version before we can take it seriously.
You can see a Real Video demo of the brick in action on WBS TV Tokyo’s Website
6 March, 2006
LG LG-KF1100 One Phone II And XNOTE TX Laptop
Those clever Koreans at LG are at it again, releasing the ONE PHONE II, a smart new Bluetooth home/mobile phone and the XNOTE TX, a tiny laptop with a built in DMB module.
ONE PHONE II
Also known as the LG-KF1100, this cordless-cellular phone can be used as a mobile phone outside your home and then switch to a cordless phone when you’re at home.
Details are still a bit scarce, but it seems that it offers similar functionality to BT’s Fusion phone, using Bluetooth to switch phone connections when the user comes within range of a Bluetooth hub.
It appears that this phone, however, uses the technology to automatically switch to a landline and not a Wi-Fi home network like the Fusion.
Precious other details have been released yet, although the compact handset offers LG’s familiar slide-out keypad design and comes with 1.3MP camera onboard.
XNOTE TX EXPRESS
Cuter than a fluffy kitten all curled up in a ball, LG’s latest XNOTE laptop is an attractive, ultra-portable laptop weighing in at just 2.4-pounds, but managing to wedge in a ton of technology into its Twiggy-esque dimensions.
Packed inside its ultra-thin body is 12.1-inch, 1366×768 pixel LCD, a 1.3GHz Intel Pentium-M processor, Geforce Go 7300 graphics, a healthy 60GB disk with support for up to 2GB RAM.
There’s also a ton of connectivity in the shape of 802.11a/b/g, Bluetooth 1.2, BlueCore 4, three USB ports, and a 5-in-1 memory card slot and – most interesting of all – the ability to shove in a DMB-module to turn the lappy into a mobile digital TV receiver.
Battery life is quoted around a disappointing 2 hours (up to 8 hours with additional battery), although this plummets down to just 1hr 12 mins if you’re using the attached optical drive.
For power users, there’s also a core duo version called LG XNOTE S1. This comes with a larger 100GB HDD, upgraded video card ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 and comes with a remote control for sofa-lolling, channel switching action.
We have to say we’re mightily impressed with the desirability factor of the so-small-you-want-to-pat-them-on-the-head XNOTEs and it’s great to see LG coming up with design to rival Apple/Sony’s finest.
No European release or pricing details released yet, but we’re definitely looking at wallet-pummelling prices.
XNOTE TX EXPRESS
6 March, 2006
Samsung SGH-i310 – World’s First 8GB Hard Disk Smartphone
Samsung has announced the world’s first 8GB Hard Disk embedded smartphone, the SGH-i310, which is expected to start shipping in Europe during the second half of this year.
With a hefty 8 gig of onboard storage you can leave your iPod at home, with the Samsung offering capacity for around 2,000 songs.
The phone comes in a familiar ‘candy bar’ form (we’re still looking for a UK equivalent of this American phrase – ‘Mars Bar shaped’ doesn’t sound quite right!) and is compatible with the GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) and EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution).
The i310 is powered by the latest version of Windows Mobile 5.0 for Smartphone which makes it easy for users to transfer their music libraries from their desktop machines via USB 2.0 connectivity and a Plug & Play feature allows the phone to be used as a removable hard disk.
A fully featured smartphone, the i310 comes with a 2 inch, 240 x 320, 65,536-colour display, onboard 2 megapixel camera with flash, microSD memory expansion slot, document viewer and TV output.
The camera can also record video (MPEG4/H.263), and there’s enhanced music functionality, with Bluetooth stereo (A2DP), high quality digital power amp, dual speakers and support for MP3, AAC, AAC+, WMA, WAV and Ogg music file formats.
The smartphone seems pretty pocketable too, measuring 111.9 x 48.5 x 19.8 mm and weighing 120g.
Will HD-smartphones kill off dedicated music players?
Pundits are expecting an onslaught of mobile phones using hard-disk drives as manufacturers continue to pack in memory-hungry functions and features into handsets.
Cornice, a US-based maker of mini-hard drives used in portable music players and mobiles reckons that the mobile phone disk drive market will explode at a compound annual growth rate of 325 per cent between 2004 and 2009.
The company expects to see around 72 million mobile phones with embedded drives shipped in 2009 out of a global total of around 1 billion handsets – making it bigger than the personal storage and portable audio player markets (Cornice predicts these to stand at 10 million and 43 million shipments, respectively, in 2009.)
The i310 will be shown to public at CeBIT in Hanover, Germany from March 9th to March 16th. No pricing for the handset has been announced yet.
6 March, 2006