Hasta La Gadget!

Why does the ATIV S feel so elusive? It’s not that we don’t know its basic specs — it’s a 4.8-inch phone that brings some much-needed GS III technical glory to Microsoft’s OS — but it’s just never cropped up at the events where we’ve expected to see it. Fortunately, GSMArena was able to get hold of a handset and give it some early hands-on video treatment. At first glance it’s probably just what you’d predict: a familiar plastic and Gorilla Glass 2 build with a faux aluminum rear cover that peels off to reveal some micro SD joyousness and a big 2,300mAh battery. But it’s the software that really stands out — those re-sizable live tiles look incredible at this screen size and on such a bold Super AMOLED display, as does the whole aesthetic of the operating system. Check it out for yourself after the break — it’s like that first Titan buzz all over again.

Update: It seems GSMArena published too early, since they have now pulled the video. If you didn’t catch it in time — apologies!

Continue reading Samsung ATIV S Windows Phone shows off acres and acres of live tiles in video (update: pulled)

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

Samsung ATIV S Windows Phone shows off acres and acres of live tiles in video (update: pulled) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Oct 2012 05:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We knew we were going to get to spy some sleek new devices from AT&T today, but the company sprung a bit of a surprise on us at the last moment by announcing that it would also have a few Windows 8 tabs on hand running on its “blazingly fast” LTE network. The Samsung ATIV SmartPC, which has also gone under the name Series 5 Slate in a few other circles. The 1.5GHz Clover Trail chip inside hummed along in our brief hands on, chewing through the gorgeous don’t-call-it-metro UI with relative ease and loading a few apps and webpages with nary a pause. With 64GB of storage on board there should be plenty of room for basic productivity apps and a view movies. Though, if you’re a serious MP3 hoarder, we wouldn’t expect to carry your whole music collection with you.

Continue reading Samsung ATIV SmartPC for AT&T hands-on (update: video)

Filed under: Tablets, Samsung, AT&T

Samsung ATIV SmartPC for AT&T hands-on (update: video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Oct 2012 18:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Combing revolutionary design, the power of a notebook PC and the convenience of a tablet PC – the 11.6” Samsung ATIV Smart PC and ATIV Smart PC Pro are Samsung’s next set of smart devices. These provide computing power, with Windows 8 functionality as well as full Windows 7 compatability. Each device features a detachable keyboard-docking system that allows users to easily switch between a clamshell notebook PC and a tablet PC form factor. These devices allow for great mobility with maximum …

Would a Series 5 Slate be just as sweet under any other name? We’ve already got hands-on with the ATIV Smart PC Pro (called the Series 7 Slate in the US) and now we’re going to show you the wonder that is the ATIV Smart PC — aka, the Series 5 Slate on this side of the Atlantic. And what can we say? It’s a lot like the Series 7 we checked out, though this guy is of course a smidge thinner and lighter, given the fanless design and inclusion of an Atom-based Clover Trail processor instead of something in the Ivy Bridge family.

Another difference: that 11.6 inch display. It’s still bright, of course, but the resolution is a lower 1,366 x 768, as opposed to the 1080p panel used in the Series 7 / Smart PC Pro. That caveat aside, the Series 5 / Smart PC is still pretty sexy, with that vibrant display and brushed metal back — though, as mentioned in our hands-on with the dock, that beauty clashes a bit with the relative cheapness of the keyboard.

As you may have read, the two slates also have stylus slots, though the S Pen was nowhere in sight during our demo — perhaps to keep it out of the hands of sneaky bloggers. In the meantime, we’ve got some hands-on photos, but we encourage you to refer back to our Series 7 / Smart PC Pro hands-on to compare the designs, and get a better feel for the custom apps Samsung has bundled.

Dana Wollman contributed to this report.

Continue reading Hands-on with the Samsung ATIV Smart PC (aka the Series 5 Slate)

Filed under: Laptops, Tablets

Hands-on with the Samsung ATIV Smart PC (aka the Series 5 Slate) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Aug 2012 14:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung didn’t leave its ATIV introductions to just an ARM tablet and a phone. We first saw them as the Series 5 and Series 7 tablets, which will likely be their final US names; to recap, though, the newly branded ATIV Smart PC and ATIV Smart PC Pro both look to capture some of that Transformer-like aura by mating an 11.6-inch tablet with a detachable keyboard dock for a laptop experience. Some of Samsung’s own Galaxy Note vibe rubs off on them, too — both carry an S Pen and a bundled S Note app for some on-the-spot writing. They likewise share support for 3G and 4G as well as micro-HDMI and USB, but there’s a clear difference depending on what you buy. Going for the regular Smart PC loads in a modest Clover Trail-based Intel Atom processor and a 1,366 x 768 display, but offers a lengthy 13.5-hour battery life, 2GB of RAM, up to a 128GB flash drive, a rear 8-megapixel camera and a 2-megapixel front camera. Slap that “Pro” moniker on the front and you have to drop to eight hours of battery life and a 5-megapixel rear camera, but you’ll get a much faster Core i5 processor, a 1080p display, 4GB of RAM and as much as a 256GB SSD. Unlike the ATIV Tab, we do know the Smart PCs will be available in the US on October 26th at $649 for a base Smart PC/Series 5, $749 for a bundle with the keyboard and $1,119 for a Smart PC Pro/Series 7 with a 128GB SSD built-in.

Continue reading Samsung calling its dockable Windows 8 tablets ATIV Smart PC and Smart PC Pro outside the US

Filed under: Tablets

Samsung calling its dockable Windows 8 tablets ATIV Smart PC and Smart PC Pro outside the US originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Aug 2012 14:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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