Sanwa Direct released the Bluetooth compliant backlight keyboard “400-SKB036″ series. There are 2 models: Japanese keyboard (400-SKB036J) and English keyboard (400-SKB036E).
It’s 13cm thick and weights 269g. It’s almost the as same size as an iPad mini and easy to carry around.
You can select “Keyboard input mode” or “Mouse input mode”. When you select “Mouse input mode”, you can control the cursor or right/left click by touching on the surface of the keyboard.
The “Vibration function” is a way to get feedback from the keyboard, where vibrations are felt when keys are pressed.
Price: 6,980 yen (including tax) Compliant models: Windows computer, HIS profile compliant Smartphone/Tablet with Android OS Compliant OS: Windows 8/7/Vista/XP, Android Ver. 2.3 or later Size: 191x115x13mm Weight: 269g Communication distance: About 10m Accessories: USB cable for charging
On this quiet Monday, Samsung decided to do a little teaser for its upcoming “Premiere 2013” roadshow event in London on June 20th. The above poster only mentions “Galaxy & ATIV,” which suggest the event will mainly feature Android and Windows-based devices. The remaining tiles show partial shots of three mysterious devices — possibly a tablet or phone, a convertible laptop (à la Sony VAIO Duo 11) and a camera (maybe the rumored Galaxy S 4 Zoom?). Obviously, we’ll be at the event to solve this mystery, so stay tuned for more.
Samsung will bring a new batch of Galaxy and ATIV phones and tablets to play in a launch event in late June, the company has confirmed, teasing the new range ahead of its UK debut. The event, to be held in the evening of June 20 at London’s Earl’s Court Exhibition Center, has been dubbed “Samsung Premiere 2013″ and will presumably see at least two devices added to the company’s line-up.
The Galaxy range needs little introduction, being headlined of course by the Galaxy S 4. One possibility is that Samsung could use the London event to reveal the Galaxy S 4 mini, the rumored smaller version of the flagship.
As for ATIV, that branding is a little less known than the Galaxy series. On the one hand, there are the ATIV tablets, which have so far included Windows 8 and Windows RT models; that’s been underplayed in recent months, especially after Samsung opted not to launch the RT-based ATIV Tab in the US.
The other possibility is a new Windows Phone, since Samsung uses the ATIV name for that series of devices as well. The company’s mobile emphasis has so far been predominantly on Android, but a new Windows Phone 8 device, perhaps with some of the specifications of the Galaxy S 4, could be one possibility.
However, thanks to some brand streamlining, ATIV also covers Samsung’s all-in-ones and laptops, in addition to its Windows-based tablets, so the London event could well see a broader line-up unveiled.
We’ll know for sure on June 20, with the show kicking off at 6pm BST (1PM ET/10AM PT) and livestreamed at the Samsung Mobile YouTube channel.
We have recently spent some time working (and playing) with the HP Spectre XT TouchSmart notebook computer. Specifically, we have been using the 15-4010nr Ultrabook model. This is a Windows 8 machine and it happens to be sporting a 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display and as implied by the TouchSmart in the name — this one is a touchscreen notebook. The notebook looks good, feels solid and has specs to match. Of course, on the flip side of that, the HP Spectre XT TouchSmart isn’t the lowest priced notebook on the market. The pricing starts at $1,399.99 and while we cannot say whether this notebook will be needed by all, we can share some opinions that will help you answer that question for yourself. With that, read on for our full HP Spectre XT TouchSmart 15-4010nr Ultrabook review.
Hardware
Before we get into the specs of the notebook, lets first talk bout the notebook itself. The TouchSmart looks really nice, albeit a bit similar to the HP Envy Spectre XT, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. HP has the TouchSmart decked out in an aluminum and brushed silver finish. The lid of the notebook has a shiny silver HP logo and there is also the “Hewlett Packard’ branding on the side. While the outside is pretty muted in terms of brands and logos, the inside has a little bit more going on. That is not to say HP went overboard, but there are two Beats Audio logos and two HP logos on the inside.
Otherwise, the notebook has what you want and need and it has all the items in places that seem to make sense. You have the standards such as the keyboard and trackpad, however the speakers, power button, air vents and all ports are nicely placed. And in the case of the ports, they are nicely laid out for easy access. Take for example, we found it a plus to have USB ports on both sides of the notebook.
The keyboard itself was nicely spaced and to be honest, rather comfortable to type on. The keyboard is also backlit. The same can be said about the trackpad (which happens to be glass) as it just worked nicely. The trackpad performed well for everything from scrolling to Windows 8 gestures and it even has an integrated left and right click option. Of course, while the trackpad can be used for gestures and scrolling — this particular notebook does ship with a touchscreen display.
In this case you will be getting a 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080. Touching (pun intended) a bit on the display, while we are not fully convinced of the need for a touchscreen display on a notebook, it did manage to get quite a bit of use during our testing.
In fact, after using the HP Spectre TouchSmart for a while, we found ourselves reaching up to touch other notebook displays. Basically, this notebook proved comfortable and powerful enough for our everyday needs. In fact, the power was probably a bit overkill for our use case which consists mostly of web browsing, documents and some light image and video editing.
Looking at the notebook you will see the webcam sitting centered above the display. Specifically, the webcam is an HP TrueVision HD webcam with an integrated dual array microphone. Shifting to the sides of the notebook and you will find Ethernet, full-sized HDMI, Thunderbolt and pair of USB 3.0 ports on the left side with a full-sized SD card slot, 3.5mm headphone jack, one USB 2.0 port, charging connector and a Kensington lock slot on the right hand side.
Software
Shifting over to the software and we start with a 64-bit edition of Windows 8. That of course is to say that you will see the now familiar array of tiles. In this respect there isn’t much in terms of surprise, the notebook has the usual array of shortcuts such as Games, Music, Video and Camera as well as Internet Explorer, Mail, Messaging, Calendar, SkyDrive and the Store. Plus, you will find some third party goodies including Netflix, Kindle, eBay and a few others.
Perhaps the nicer part here is the additional software that has been installed. HP ships the Spectre XT TouchSmart with the full versions of Adobe Photoshop Elements and Premier Elements. Users will also be able to find help in the form of the HP Support Assistant app, which is a default tile.
Otherwise, there is a trial version of Microsoft Office. Norton Internet Security is also included, and free for the first two years. Basically, there is Windows 8 with the expected goodies as well as a few extra perks for those looking to do some image editing or movie creating.
Performance
In terms of the performance — the keyboard feel solid, the trackpad was smooth and the display is bright and crisp. There was also Beats Audio along with those previously mentioned four speakers. As far as the sound quality, while the sound certainly was not what you are going to get from a full set of desktop speakers, we would describe it as being above what we would consider good for a laptop.
System – Hewlett-Packard HP Spectre XT TouchSmart PC
Manufacturer
Hewlett Packard
Product Type
Notebook
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 8 (64-bit)
Motherboard
Hewlett-Packard 1886
Processor
Intel Core i7-3517U
Processor ID
GenuineIntel Family 6 Model 58 Stepping 9
Processor Frequency
2.39 GHz
Processors
1
Threads
4
Cores
2
L1 Instruction Cache
32.0 KB
L1 Data Cache
32.0 KB
L2 Cache
256 KB
L3 Cache
4.00 MB
Memory
7.90 GB DDR3 SDRAM 799MHz
FSB
99.8 MHz
BIOS
Insyde F.04
Along with, the Spectre XT TouchSmart ran rather nice to use day to day. Our unit was equipped with a 1.9GHz Intel Core i7-3517U processor, 8GB of RAM, a 500GB (5400RPM) hard drive and Intel HD Graphics 4000. Looking at those specs and we probably would have been more surprised had the notebook not run smoothly. Our usage included everything from streaming a movie from Netflix and some television with Hulu Plus, to watching a movie stored locally, to some music and audiobooks and of course, web browsing. Plenty of web browsing.
There was also a little bit of light video editing and plenty of image editing. Battery life on the other hand felt lacking. We were able to get a few solid hours, but it seems to be short as compared to some of the other currently available notebooks.
Benchmark Score – Hewlett-Packard HP Spectre XT TouchSmart PC
Section
Description
Score
Total Score
Windows x86 (64-bit) – Microsoft Windows 8 (64-bit)
Integer
Processor integer performance
6188
8357
Floating Point
Processor floating point performance
11274
Memory
Memory performance
7591
Stream
Memory bandwidth performance
7271
Wrap-Up
Aside from the HP Spectre XT TouchSmart’s battery life, the overall experience was rather pleasant and comfortable. Not only did the notebook perform well, but it did so looking really nice — both in terms of the exterior casing and the quality of the display. While we wouldn’t hesitate to offer a recommendation, we could see the price being an issue for some. That is not to say the Spectre XT TouchSmart isn’t worth what HP is asking, but just that there are plenty of less expensive options to choose from.
There are plenty of cloud storage options out there which offer some initial amount of free space — including Dropbox (2GB), Google Drive (5GB), Box (5GB) and Microsoft Skydrive (7GB). While these services usually provide additional free storage via referrals and special deals (bundled with device purchases for example), Microsoft is doing something different with Skydrive by gifting students an extra 3GB of free space for one year. If you have a valid .edu email address you can visit the URL below to receive a free storage code. The offer is limited to one per person and the code must be redeemed before December 31st 2013. It’s unclear what happens to your data after the year’s over but it presumably remains available in read-only form. Considering the price of tuition, this deal isn’t quite as juicy as getting 100GB of free space for two years on Google Drive with the purchase of a Chromebook — still it’s a no brainer.
This week SlashGear is having a peek at the Acer Aspire R7 notebook – that rather unique piece of machinery you saw advertised last month aside teasers for the newest Star Trek movie. It’s no surprise that this device was chosen to take on that role as its mysterious – and here we find rather enticing – abilities allow it to look like a rather familiar starship. With Acer’s “Ezel” hinge, the Aspire R7 can take on several shapes – including that of the Kirk-captained Enterprise.
Up in front the user will be working with a 15-inch display at 1080p resolution, this run by an 3rd generation Intel Ivy Bridge processor – we’ve got i5 but you’ll have the option of i7 as well, depending on when you check the device out. Inside is Windows 8 right out of the box, and the display has 10-finger touch sensitivity.
Also inside you’ll find 6GB of RAM and a 500GB hard drive, not to mention a 24GB solid state drive as well. The whole machine weighs in at approximately 5.5 pounds, which is right there on the edge of “this is kind of heavy” and “oh this isn’t as heavy as it looks”.
Under the machine you’ll notice some rather sizable bumpers. These pieces of rubbery material hold the notebook hybrid in place while you’re swiveling your display around and offer a bit of a bump so your speakers can blast out the bottom and the sides. You’re also working with some Dolby technology there for sound – and we’re already sure it’s loud.
As it was with the Star Trek Into Darkness film, so too was this machine available starting on the 17th of May. It’ll run a prospective owner $999 USD, and we’ll be letting you know if it’s all worth it soon – stay tuned for SlashGear’s full review!
SQUARE ENIX revealed that they will release the PS3 and Windows versions of “Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn” on August 27.
Advance orders started today, May 24. A bonus, as part of making an advance order, is “Early Access” where you can log in to FFXIV in advance and get 2 limited items that you can use in the game.
Also, “Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn Collector’s Edition” will be out on August 27 as well. It comes with a special box designed by Final fantasy series illustrator Yoshitaka Amano, as well as other bonuses including a visual art book and special sound track, etc.
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn Price: PS3 – ¥3,300, Windows – Open price
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn Collector’s Edition Price: PS3 – ¥10,290, Windows – Open price
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.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
