Hasta La Gadget!

Tablets may be attracting all of the attention right now, but it’s clear that Intel‘s keeping a broad focus on mobile computing. During today’s PC Client keynote at Computex, the company took a moment to talk up Canoe Lake, an experimental platform that’ll enable 720p video playback on a machine that’s barely thicker than a couple of envelopes stacked together. We got a chance to peek the prototype on hand in Taipei, and we were told that Intel designed the device you’re peering at above completely in-house as a way to sell PC makers on the idea. They also affirmed that a GMA 3150 GPU was inside, and that the platform was capable of handling high-def multimedia. The machine was indeed functional, but few tricks were shown — the 10-inch display looked suitable enough, though it would certainly take us a few days to stop noticing that monster gap between the keyboard and LCD. But hey, you’ve got to cram those components / battery / fairy dust somewhere, right? Look for a plethora of Canoe Lake-based systems (probably fashioned like the gapless netbook at the tail end of the gallery below) to start shipping in “the second half of this year” from companies that Intel simply can’t name as of yet.

Intel ‘Canoe Lake’ prototype netbook preview originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Jun 2010 05:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft isn’t kidding around about showing Apple it’s serious in regard to competing in the tablet space, and while most of the devices surrounding its Computex booth were locked down tight, we were able to spend a few exclusive minutes with a brand new LG that showed some serious promise. Boasting a 10.1-inch LED capacity touchscreen, the UX10 was one of the most solid tablets we’ve had the opportunity to touch. The prototype on the floor was equipped with an Intel Atom Z530 processor, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, Windows 7 Home Premium, a 1.3 megapixel front-facing webcam, an SD card slot, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, a 7200mAh battery and a micro-HDMI output. The entire front was smothered in glass, with an itty-bitty bezel and a striking pearlescent white paint job around back. Though, we couldn’t help but notice the similarities in the logo when thinking of a certain Streak. Microsoft representatives couldn’t comment on an estimated price, though they did affirm that the device will escape the prototype stage and ship to consumers at some point in the future. Hit up the gallery below for a closer look, and peek past the break if you’re a fan of videos.

Continue reading Exclusive: LG UX10 tablet preview at Computex

Exclusive: LG UX10 tablet preview at Computex originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Jun 2010 04:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s no secret that I like bijin (美人, “beautiful girls”). In the past we’ve blogged here about apologetic bijin but this time the development has more of a web marketing spin.

The popular Bijin-Tokei (美人時計, or “beautiful girl clock”), a website that showcases different young ladies telling you the time every minute, has collaborated…with a new instant noodles product.

All right, so perhaps you were expecting a fashion brand? It seems that even yakisoba in a plastic container can be made to look glamorous when it’s held by a pretty girl.

For one hour every night on Bijin-Tokei, the time will be told by a revolving set of 15 girls indulging in JanJan noodles. Every minute there’s a new lady, which even for instant noodles might be a bit too fast to prepare and eat. Tune in from eleven for your dose!

Bijin Tokei has been a big success since it started nine months ago, accruing some five million unique users and 2.5 billion page views. It has also spawned imitators (the “Gal Tokei“, another in Korea, plus an adult one!) and the site even has an English version. The widgets are particularly popular and mean you can ogle girls whenever you look at your own blog!

Hitachi announces its new 7mm slim 2.5-inch hard drive for ultraportable applications.

Oh yeah baby, Qualcomm‘s finally shipping its first dual-core Snapdragons. To whom, is the big question. Its third-generation Mobile Station Modem MSM8260 and MSM8660 Snapdragon chipsets for high-end smartphones — originally announced in February 2009 — are now sampling and capable of running at up to 1.2GHz. The MSM8260 supports HSPA+, while the MSM8660 brings support for multi-mode HSPA+ and 1xEV-DO Rev. B. Both integrate GPS, a GPU with 2D / 3D acceleration engines for Open GL ES 2.0 and Open VG 1.1, 1080p video encoding and decoding, a dedicated low-power audio engine, and support for 24-bit WXGA 1,280 x 800 pixel displays. Anybody at Computex care to step forward with a reference design?

Update: We just spoke with company representatives here at the show, and try as we may, we couldn’t convince anyone at the company to show off a dual-core reference design. We were flat-out told that the only people at Computex getting a glimpse at the new silicon were prospective customers, though we did manage to pry out a few interesting details about the chip itself and the future of the line. For one, these new chips have two application cores and a single modem core, whereas existing chips have a single application core alongside a single modem core. We were also told in no uncertain terms that an even quicker version of the Snapdragon would be launched before the year’s end, and as you’d likely surmise, it’ll be aimed at “larger screen” devices — you know, like slates and tablet PCs.

[Image courtesy of Carina Larsson]

Continue reading Qualcomm ships first dual-core Snapdragon chipsets clocking 1.2GHz

Qualcomm ships first dual-core Snapdragon chipsets clocking 1.2GHz originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Jun 2010 01:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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