Jul 19

Netflix to stream natively from HDMI-equipped tablets, enable local storage with hardware DRM module

Posted in: android tablet, AndroidTablet, GoogleAndroid, honeycomb, lenovo, netflix, Software, stream, tablet, Today's Chili, watch instantly, WatchInstantly

You read that correctly — Netflix streaming is about to get really real on impending Honeycomb tablets. One of the nuggets that makes Lenovo’s newly unveiled IdeaPad K1 so special is the internal DRM module that allows it to play nice with a fresh build of the Netflix app. As we saw back at MWC with the LG Revolution, future Android 3.x tablets (with an unspecified hardware inclusion) will not only support native Watch Instantly streaming over mini-HDMI / HDMI, but it’ll also enable something totally new: local storage. The fresh build of the app — which will remain exclusive to Lenovo for “a short while” — will have a heretofore unseen option that’ll let subscribers store flicks locally for offline viewing. We’re told by Lenovo that files can be stored on the internal flash as well as on microSD cards, and while we’ve yet to get a hands-on look at the app, we’ll be doing everything we can to change that.

Just to answer the obvious question: no, your existing Honeycomb tablet won’t be able to support this goodness through a firmware update. You’ll actually need a slate with the requisite hardware within to take advantage, and it’s hard to say at this point who will follow Lenovo down the path. We’re hoping that the added functionality won’t lead to a boost in Netflix’s monthly rate, but given the history of the app, we can’t say we’re too terrified about that possibility. So, how fast will the APK be ripped from the fabric of a K1 and thrown out onto the web? Somewhere between “quickly” and “you’ve got to be kidding me,” we’re surmising.

Netflix to stream natively from HDMI-equipped tablets, enable local storage with hardware DRM module originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jul 2011 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 19

Lenovo’s Android 3.1-powered IdeaPad K1 tablet hands-on (video)

Posted in: Android, android tablet, AndroidTablet, hands-on, honeycomb, lenovo, slate, Today's Chili, video

Is the next major Honeycomb tablet play seriously coming from Lenovo? Sure looks it, as the company has just taken the (final) wraps of its IdeaPad K1. For all intents and purposes, the K1 is a LePad dressed up in Android — this one’s packing a 1.0 GHz Tegra 2 chipset, a 10.1-inch (1280 x 800) capacitive touchpanel, Android 3.1, a two-cell battery (good for “up to ten hours”) and a few minor software tweaks that may or may not appeal to you. The Lenovo Launcher is the first of those, acting as a five-pane launchpad that’s completely customizable by the user, and it’s one that can even be disabled if you so choose. The other is the introduction of the Lenovo App Shop, yet another venue to suck down applications for Google’s tablet OS. The reason for its inclusion? According to reps here at the show, it’s there to provide a secure, safe haven for people to download from — the software that makes the cut here has been tested in Lenovo’s labs for stability and security, though the company did confess that certain app developers may fork over a bit of cash to have their program(s) considered for inclusion. More after the break…

Gallery: Lenovo IdeaPad K1 Honeycomb tablet hands-on

Gallery: Lenovo IdeaPad K1 Honeycomb tablet (press images)

Continue reading Lenovo’s Android 3.1-powered IdeaPad K1 tablet hands-on (video)

Lenovo’s Android 3.1-powered IdeaPad K1 tablet hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jul 2011 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 14

IDC and Gartner: US PC sales still sluggish, Apple, Toshiba see jumps in market share

Posted in: Apple, business, HP, ipad, lenovo, market, market share, marketshare, money, PC, statistics, tablet, Today's Chili, Toshiba
IDC and Gartner have once again released dueling reports on the state of the PC market and, according to their numbers, the landscape’s looking a little different. Gartner estimates that overall PC shipments during Q2 of this year increased by 2.3 percent from the same period last year, more or less concurring with the 2.6 percent global increase that IDC found. Things are looking a bit bleaker in the US, however, where quarterly year-to-year shipments are down (5.6 percent for Gartner, 4.2 percent for IDC), but have increased from Q1 of this year. On the corporate level, HP continues to dominate global shipments according to both reports, followed by Dell and Lenovo, which overtook Acer for third place.

Stateside statistics, on the other hand, show a bit more severe shuffling among the top five, with Apple’s US market share jumping to nearly 11 percent (good for third place) and Acer tumbling to fifth, thanks to a greater than 20 percent year-to-year decline in market share (see the table, above). In fact, among the top five, only Apple and fourth-place Toshiba increased their market share from Q2 of 2010 — something that both research firms attributed, in part, to a weak consumer PC market and the rising popularity of tablets, led by the iPad. For a more thorough statistical breakdown, head past the break for a pair of comprehensive press releases.

Continue reading IDC and Gartner: US PC sales still sluggish, Apple, Toshiba see jumps in market share

IDC and Gartner: US PC sales still sluggish, Apple, Toshiba see jumps in market share originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Jul 2011 08:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 13

Lenovo IdeaPad K1 begins shipment odyssey, courtesy of Office Depot

Posted in: Android, android tablet, AndroidTablet, honeycomb, lenovo, ship, shipping, tegra 2, Tegra2, Today's Chili

The IdeaPad K1’s long, crazy journey of near-availability looks to finally be at an end. Lenovo’s ethereal Honeycomb tablet has been popping up in online retail sites since May, teasing us with availability in June, and finally offering the promise of pre-order earlier this month. It seems that the plucky 10.1 inch Tegra 2 slate has taken the final step separating itself from the hands of consumers: getting sent out for shipment. One tipster passed along shipping confirmation from Office Depot that has the device lined up for delivery today — assuming, of course that the recipient is there to answer the door in the eight and a half hour delivery window provided.

[Thanks, Dan]

Lenovo IdeaPad K1 begins shipment odyssey, courtesy of Office Depot originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Jul 2011 09:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 10

Lenovo U1 tablet arrives at FCC, finally

Posted in: intel, lenovo, tablet, Today's Chili, video, windows 7, Windows7

Well, hello there little guy. Did you get lost on your way to production? Many, many moons since we got our first hands-on with the thing it looks like the Lenovo U1 has found the way to retail reality, making a stop by at the FCC to ensure that it can, some day, be released — somewhere. When will that magical day come? We still don’t know, but if you’ve forgotten just what this little guy is all about, take a trip down memory lane in the video after the break.

Continue reading Lenovo U1 tablet arrives at FCC, finally

Lenovo U1 tablet arrives at FCC, finally originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 10 Jul 2011 20:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 07

Lenovo IdeaPad K1’s videos pair easy listening with helpful how-to’s (video)

Posted in: Android, android tablet, AndroidTablet, honeycomb, lenovo, Today's Chili, video

Know what really sells a Honeycomb-based tablet? No, not its 10.1-inch display, Tegra 2 processor, nor those 32GBs of storage space — it’s the background music, man. Someone in Lenovo’s marketing department must have an iTunes library chock full o’department store-worthy Lite FM jams, because that schmaltzy muzak is all over its dozen-plus IdeaPad K1 how-to videos. We’re kind of disappointed the company couldn’t get Lisa Stansfield for a voice-over cameo, but hey — who says we’re living in a perfect universe? Prospective IdeaPad owners should check the source, where they’ll be treated to such instructional, chart-topping gems like “Getting to know your Tablet,” or our personal favorite “Adding and Removing Shortcuts.” All kidding aside, we still don’t have a firm date on this tablet’s launch, but with its FCC presence cleared expect to see it sooner rather than later.

Continue reading Lenovo IdeaPad K1’s videos pair easy listening with helpful how-to’s (video)

Lenovo IdeaPad K1’s videos pair easy listening with helpful how-to’s (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Jul 2011 21:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 05

Lenovo launches 11.6-inch ThinkPad x121e for Europe, the Japanese market

Posted in: Japan, japanese, lenovo, thinkpad, Today's Chili, ultraportable
It’s a curious thing about consumer electronics: they often disappear as fast as they hit shelves. That’s kind of what happened with Lenovo’s ThinkPad x120e: months after our glowing review, it vanished from the company’s online store, never to return. (You can still find it through Amazon and other retailers.) And though it remains MIA, Lenovo did just unveil the 11.6-inch ThinkPad x121e for Europe and the Japanese market — a clear preview of what’s on the horizon for us Yanks. This time around, it packs an Intel Core i3-2357 CPU, an AMD Fusion E-350 chip, or a Fusion C-50 APU. Other specs include a 1366 x 768 panel, up to 320GB in HDD storage (or a 128GB solid-state drive), HDMI and VGA out, three USB 2.0 ports (one of them powered), a 4-in-1 memory card reader, and, in some configurations, a WiMAX radio. Depending on the model, it comes with a three- or six-cell battery, the latter of which promises a max of eight-plus hours of battery life if you pair it with an Intel-based system. It’s on sale now for Japanese business customers with general availability coming at the end of this month, and it’s also listed on various European sites. Lenovo’s US division told us it doesn’t yet have a timetable to share, so for now you’ll just have hit the source links and settle for a vicarious thrill.

Gallery: Lenovo ThinkPad x121e

Lenovo launches 11.6-inch ThinkPad x121e for Europe, the Japanese market originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 05 Jul 2011 17:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 01

Lenovo IdeaPad K1 up for Amazon pre-order, still toting $500 price tag

Posted in: amazon, Android, honeycomb, lenovo, pre-order, slate, tablet, tegra, tegra 2, Tegra2, Today's Chili

The IdeaPad K1 is really living up to its name these days, existing merely as an idea and a visualized concept, but not a real deal purchasable commodity. That’s changing ever so slowly, however, with an appearance among Amazon’s pre-order inventory, where the Tegra 2 Android slate is accompanied by the $499.99 price tag we saw just over a week ago. The major specs are as we’ve heard them before: a 10.1-inch screen with 1280 x 800 resolution and 300 nits of brightness, a microSD card reader, micro-HDMI out, and, interestingly, a SIM card slot. The latter doesn’t quite confirm that we’re looking at a 3G tablet, but comes close to it. Also close should be the K1’s release date, which isn’t spelled out by Amazon, but is expected to arrive any time now.

Lenovo IdeaPad K1 up for Amazon pre-order, still toting $500 price tag originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Jul 2011 04:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jun 29

ThinkPad Tablet shown off with keyboard-laden folio cover, could ship within a month

Posted in: android tablet, AndroidTablet, GoogleAndroid, honeycomb, leak, leaked, lenovo, rumor, rumors, slate, tablet, thinkpad, Today's Chili

Well, lookie here! Seems that ThinkPad Tablet’s getting more real by the hour. For what it’s worth, Lenovo hasn’t exactly done a laudatory job keeping its next major Honeycomb tablet under wraps, but flaunting it in public? Now that’s just asking for it. According to ZTOP, the enterprise-centric Tablet will arrive within three to four weeks boasting Tegra 2 silicon, a 10.1-inch display (1280 x 800) and an optional folio / cover that might just steal the show. According to the report, it’s a leather-wrapped case that contains a full-on keyboard and optical tracking sensor, presumably using a USB connector to make the magic happen. Think Clamcase, but tailored for Lenovo. There’s no mention of a price on that one, but we’re guessing it ain’t gonna be tossed in gratis. Tap the source for one more look, and expect to hear more on the whole kit and kaboodle as July draws closer.

ThinkPad Tablet shown off with keyboard-laden folio cover, could ship within a month originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 06:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jun 26

Lenovo ThinkPad, IdeaPad tablets coming later this month?

Posted in: lenovo, release, Release Date, tablet, tablets, thinkpad, Today's Chili
Lenovo ThinkPad, IdeaPad tablets coming later this month?

Well, what do we have here? From the looks of it, we’ve got ourselves launch dates for a slate of new Lenovo tablets. A little note from the outfit’s Affiliate Program, pictured above, shows the Android-packing IdeaPad K1 will, unsurprisingly, debut in late June or July, with a June 28th arrival being pegged for its rumored ThinkPad tablet. What’s more, we could see a refresh of the company’s IdeaCentre nettop coming our way August 30th. Looks like this summer could be a hot one for Lenovo, but we’ll just have to wait and see how things pan out.

Update: We just heard from the folks at Lenovo, and they’re saying the dates here are “no longer valid.” Unfortunately, that sounds like an unwanted delay to us, but we’ll keep you posted as we hear more.

Lenovo ThinkPad, IdeaPad tablets coming later this month? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 26 Jun 2011 11:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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