Hasta La Gadget!

Google certainly has its sights set on the notebook market. It has targeted the high-end niche with its latest notebook, the Chromebook Pixel. The company will also be releasing cheap, Intel Atom and Android OS powered notebooks that are expected to carry price tags as low as $200. In Google’s bid to dominate the notebook market, its partners are also playing a major role. According to supply chain sources, Asus and Acer both are planning new Chromebooks that will be released later this year.

Details about Asus Chromebook are vague right now, it is expected to make its debut in either the third or fourth quarter of 2013. As far as Acer’s Chromebook is concerned, it is said to have a 11.6 inch screen and expected to go on sale in July. No further details about these Chromebooks are available as yet, but they are supposedly going to be mid-range devices with price tags substantially less than the Chromebook Pixel. Even Lenovo and HP are rumored to be pondering over the idea of entering the Chromebook market, with so much support from its partners, Google can really focus on making the software side of things amazing so as to establish a respectable footing in the notebook market.

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Acer has just announced a spanking new notebook for the masses, where it comes with a rather tiny display, although it will not break the bank – which is a good thing, of course. The notebook’s name? It is known as the Acer Aspire V5-122, where it will run on the Windows 8 operating system alongside a processor from Intel’s once-mighty but now seemingly vanquished rival, AMD. The AMD Temash processor should be able to get the job done for most of your basic and daily tasks, where it features an 11.6” display at 1366 x 768 resolution, with a starting price point of a mere $450, clearly making this one of the most affordable touchscreen notebooks in the market at the moment if you do not need an “Intel Inside” sticker, of course.

Other hardware specifications in the Acer Aspire V5-122 include a Radeon HD 8280 graphics chipset, 2GB RAM, a 500GB hard drive, WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity, VGA, HDMI, USB 3.0, and gigabit Ethernet. The 3-cell battery underneath the hood would bring the entire notebook’s weight to approximately 3.3 pounds, leaving us rather curious as to whether there are any backers for this puppy or not.

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Lawsuits are nothing new the technology world, if you follow tech at all, you’ll know that fact. It’s even rather common for class-action lawsuits to crop up against technology companies for one reason or another. Consumers often turn to class-action when there’s a widespread issue with a particular product that the manufacturer doesn’t want to address.

It seems that was the case with a lawsuit filed against computer maker Acer. It’s unclear exactly how long ago this lawsuit was filed, but considering the core of the suit has to do with Acer notebooks running Windows Vista, this case has to have been in the courts for a long time. Microsoft already has two versions of Windows that were available after the launch of Vista, including Windows 7 and Windows 8.

The crux of the class-action suit against Acer had to do with allegations that Acer advertised and sold notebook computers that didn’t have enough RAM to support pre-installed versions of Windows Vista. Naturally, Acer denies the claims but has agreed to a settlement to avoid the costs and risks associated with a trial. Any US resident who purchased a new Acer notebook that came with Windows Vista Home Premium, Business, or Ultimate and 1 GB or less of RAM are eligible for the proposed settlement.

Acer is specific that the machine had to have come with 1 GB of RAM or less that was shared with both the system and graphics. The computer also had to be purchased from an authorized retailer and can’t have been returned for refund. The proposed settlement will give people who purchased these machines a 16 GB flash drive with ReadyBoost technology.

Instead of that free flash drive, buyers could opt for a $10 check or a check for up to $100 for reimbursement of any repair costs incurred before April 25, 2013 that have to do with resolving performance issues related to insufficient RAM. Class members who still own the computer can also alternatively get a 1 GB or 2 GB RAM stick to allow the notebook to operate with up to 2 GB of RAM. The court presiding over the case plans to hold another hearing on October 4, 2013 to consider whether or not to approve the settlement.

[via Acerlawsuit.com]

Acer offers to settle Vista class-action suit with flash drive apology is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

We haven’t heard much from Acer on the smartphone front since it announced a pair of handsets at Mobile World Congress, but the company’s now back with another that it hopes will improve its standing in markets outside North America: the Liquid E2. Expectedly, this one is an update to the E1, and includes a bump up from a dual-core to a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, and the addition of an optional dual-SIM card slot (availability of it will depend on the particular market). Otherwise, you’ll get a 4.5-inch qHD IPS display, an 8 megapixel camera that promises “zero shutter delay,” the same dual-speakers ’round back found on the E1, and stock Jelly Bean for an OS. There’s no word yet of this one making its way over here, but you can look for it to hit the UK, France, Germany and a number of other countries in early-to-mid-May for €229, or just under $300.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

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This afternoon a device has leaked from the halls of Acer with an 8-inch display and a keyboard dock attached along its longest side. This device is an 8-inch display-toting tablet that’s being reported to be carrying Windows 8 Pro 32-bit and an Intel Atom Z2760 processor under its hood. This tablet appears by all means to be detachable from its keyboard base and may be revealed along with the Star Trek-promoted transformable notebook we saw this morning at the start of next month.

This device has appeared in several photos, some as a tablet, some as a one-piece machine with a tablet bit being detachable. What’s able to be seen here is the machine’s ability to take on more than one form. As we’ve seen from Acer in the recent past, the ability to work as a notebook or a tablet is not something the designers at this manufacturer are afraid of.

UPDATE: MiniMachines appears to have had a takedown notice issued – take a peek while you still can!

Perhaps the most intriguing image is the one you see below. Here you’ve got the 8-inch tablet set against the back – or is that the bottom – of a notebook. This notebook appears to take on a form that’s just a bit different from the docked version you see above. Is there more than a couple of forms of machine here?

If you compare this device with what we saw this morning in the Star Trek Into Darkness teaser, you see that it’s not necessarily impossible for this device and that device to be completely separate releases. Here in this tablet amalgamation you’ve got what very well could be in one case a keyboard dock attached to a large display (like a standard notebook) and in the other case a dock for this smaller tablet.

Could this be a device that takes the idea of a multi-display machine like the ASUS Padfone and makes it happen with a notebook/mini-tablet combo rather than with a detachable full-size tablet or phone? Stay tuned as we get the full story on May 3rd (if not before!) Stick with us here on SlashGear through our big Acer tag portal as we keep on digging!

[via TabletGuide.nl]

Leaked Acer 8-inch tablet suggests transforming product line is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.