Laptop battery life is something that we all can’t seem to be happy with. No matter how long the battery is able to last, there are always times when we curse into the wind when we get that dreaded battery warning while on the road. However, a new Ubuntu laptop looks to solve those problems […]
A blazing sun and the outdoors don’t exactly make for an ideal computing environment — unless you’re toting a ruggedized laptop that harnesses energy from sunlight like the Ubuntu-running Sol. Created mainly for use in developing countries with intermittent (or non-existent) electricity, it’s equipped with solar panels that soak up the sun when unfolded. According to OMG Ubuntu, its creators from Canadian company WeWi Telecommunications claim Sol’s battery, which can last for up to ten hours, only takes two hours to charge via solar energy.
The device’s official website reveals little else, but according to the nuggets of information we’ve stumbled upon, Sol will pack an Intel processor, WiFi connectivity and an HD display, with an optional satellite module for internet connectivity. While full availability details have yet to be announced, a countdown timer on its website hints at more info in just under two days. Ghana will reportedly see the hardware arrive first with an accompanying $300 price tag. Though the notebook isn’t exactly wildly affordable, it’s at least a bit cheaper than Samsung’s 2011 take on a sunbeam-fueled laptop.
Filed under: Laptops
Via: OMG! Ubuntu
Source: Sol
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
At last: the laptop buyer’s guide we wanted to write three months ago. You see, when it came time to publish our spring edition, Intel was on the cusp of releasing its fourth-generation Core processors, which meant almost everything we were recommending was destined for a refresh. So we basically said, “Wait for Haswell,” and called it a day. By now, though, most of said companies have upgraded their notebooks, if not released brand-new ones, so we can finally recommend stuff without any caveats about obsolescence.
Of note: we’ve eliminated the “touch” and “non-touch” sections since most Windows notebooks (save for gaming machines) now come with touch, or at least offer it as an option. We’ve tried to make it obvious which of our picks have that feature and which ones don’t. Oh, and if we’ve left something off the list, it might be because we don’t yet have enough details about pricing or availability (the new Acer Aspire S3 comes to mind). Enjoy, and as always, if you have a favorite laptop yourself, feel free to tell us about it in the comments.
Filed under: Laptops, Apple, Samsung, Sony, ASUS, HP, Dell, Acer, Lenovo
MSI tentatively entered the world of thin and light gaming laptops with the GE40. With the newly launched GS70, the company is leaping in with both feet. The 17.3-inch portable is clearly built to take on the Razer Blade Pro, mating a big screen with a chassis that’s even lighter — at 5.7 pounds, the GS70 is a flyweight next to its 6.6-pound rival. While the system’s quad-core, Haswell-based Core i7 CPU, GeForce GTX 765M graphics and 128GB SSD match what Razer offers, MSI doubles the RAM to 16GB and complements its storage with a 750GB hard drive. That makes the GS70’s $1,800 base price a potential bargain — if you don’t mind losing the Blade Pro’s touchscreen trackpad, you’ll get more PC for the money.
Gallery: MSI GS70 (2013)
Filed under: Gaming, Laptops, Intel, NVIDIA
Source: MSI
We feel for engineers who have to build budget machines. After all, with a limited component budget, do you splash out on a long battery or a better keyboard? Toshiba’s Satellite U845 was designed to navigate those pitfalls, doing “just enough” to combine a reasonable battery life with decent performance and unspectacular build quality. The results is a dependable and solid device for a cash-strapped back to school type, but was it the one for you? Did you think that Toshiba made the right calls here? Welcome to How Would You Change, where you get to lob suggestions over the company’s garden wall and see if they listen.
Filed under: Laptops
Stop worrying: BearExtender is not in the business of enabling the bear population, but rather WiFi signal strengthening. The company’s two latest products — the BearExtender 1200 and BearExtender Turbo (how’s that for a name?) — offer that service in two different flavors. The 1200 is a much stronger version of the company’s previously released BearExtender, adding “70 percent more power” to signal boosting, while the Turbo is specifically designed to bring 802.11ac functionality to Macs. Both arrive this fall, with the 1200 ($50) landing in mid-August and the Turbo (not priced yet) available in October. Again, neither is designed to extend the reach of murderous bears, nor is the Turbo designed to speed up said murderous bears. That said, it’s best to keep an eye out and stay vigilant.
Filed under: Laptops, Networking, Internet
Source: BearExtender
The DockPort standard is only just getting off the ground with support in AMD’s Elite Performance processors. TI could soon make the technology fly, however: its new (if awkwardly named) HD3SS2521 controller handles all the tasks of DockPort on a single chip. The hardware is both simpler and cheaper than past multi-chip designs, and makes it easier for laptops and tablets to deliver DisplayPort video, USB 3.0 and power through a single cable. Whether or not we see more DockPort-equipped mobile gadgets is another matter. While the TI chip is available today, device builders still have to choose DockPort over a more established standard like Intel’s Thunderbolt.
Source: Texas Instruments
The MacBook Air’s integrated graphics all but rule it out as a serious gaming machine. However, Larry Gadea at the Tech Inferno forums has found a way to make the Air a powerhouse through an ad hoc external GPU. His design mates a PCI Express video card to the Mac’s Thunderbolt port through a combination of two adapters, a Boot Camp installation of Windows 7 and third-party software. The performance improvement is appropriately dramatic, leading to frame rates up to seven times faster than what Intel’s HD 5000 can manage. Just don’t expect to buy a pre-assembled version anytime soon — the peripheral needs a desktop-class power supply just to run, and Intel won’t issue the licenses needed to commercialize Thunderbolt GPUs. If you’re absolutely determined to get a Crysis-worthy ultraportable, though, you’ll find Gadea’s instructions at the source link.
Filed under: Gaming, Laptops, Peripherals, Apple, NVIDIA
Via: MacRumors
Source: Tech Inferno
While Toshiba already outed its Haswell plans, the company has chosen today to unveil a few more PCs. The outfit’s refreshing its Satellite U and M range in the UK, with the U50t being equipped with a 10-point touchscreen and Windows 8 onboard. The Satellite M50D and M50Dt, meanwhile, boast AMD’s latest APU processors and Radeon graphics. The whole line (which is slated for dispatch in Q3) ships with Intel’s fourth-generation processors and HD 4400 graphics, while those needing a bit more oomph on the pixel pushing side can opt for NVIDIA’s GeForce GT 740M. As you’d expect, Intel’s WiDi and Miracast technologies are infused, and each machine arrives with a full-size HDMI port, Bluetooth 4.0, an SD card slot and a pair of USB 3.0 sockets. Tosh isn’t talking pricing just yet, but you can dig into the specification list just after break.
Filed under: Laptops
Source: Toshiba
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