Hasta La Gadget!

When Qualcomm announced a pair of Windows 8-compatible ARM processors yesterday, we knew Texas Instruments wouldn’t be far behind. Sure enough, the company has just announced a new addition to its OMAP 4 family of ARM SoCs, with the 1.8GHz OMAP4470. TI’s new chip is powered by a pair of 1.0GHz ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore engines, as well as two, 266MHz ARM Cortex-M3 cores that handle multimedia duties. According to the company, this multi-core structure will enable faster web browsing and more frugal power usage, while putting the OMAP4470 in square competition with quad-core chips like NVIDIA’s Kal-El and Intel’s latest Sandy Bridge line. The SoC was designed for tablets, netbooks and smartphones running Android, Linux, or the next version of Windows, and can support a max QXGA resolution of 2048 x 1536, and up to three HD displays. There’s also a single-core PowerVR SGX544 GPU capable of running Direct X 9, OpenGL ES 2.0, OpenVG 1.1, and OpenCL 1.1. The OMAP4470 is expected to hit the OEM and OED markets in the first half of 2012, but you can find more information in the specs sheet and press release, after the break.

Continue reading Texas Instruments announces multi-core, 1.8GHz OMAP4470 ARM processor for Windows 8

Texas Instruments announces multi-core, 1.8GHz OMAP4470 ARM processor for Windows 8 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Jun 2011 04:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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First the ASUS Padfone, then the CMIT TransPhone, and now a third phone-docking tablet but with a little extra spice. Our latest contender comes from a Taiwan-based startup dubbed ICE Computer, who has just announced its partnership with ECS over its Trinity concept, a mobile display that lets you dock either a PC module or a smartphone (not necessarily an iPhone, let alone an iPhone 5 as reported by some sites; the dummy’s just for show and convenience). From our quick chat with ICE product manager Jaryson Wu, we learned that the company’s been working on this project for quite some time, though ike ASUS and CMIT, ICE also lacked a working prototype to show us.

So the idea is simple: slide in a PC module or phone of your choice, and you have yourself a fully functioning touchscreen tablet that has an upgradable core — that’s one tick for environmental friendliness, and another tick for potentially more powerful upgrades. But that’s not it, as ICE may also throw in USB 3.0 ports, additional internal storage, and even a fan inside the Trinity tablet, but that will depend on the clients’ needs. Jaryson indicated that there are no plans to launch products under the startup’s own brand, nor is it going to develop its own phone to go with the add-on any time soon — we’ll just have to wait and see what it’ll deliver in the first quarter of 2012. Video interview after the break.

[Thanks, @Stagueve]

Continue reading ICE Computer shows off Trinity modular tablet concept, aims for Q1 2012 release (video)

ICE Computer shows off Trinity modular tablet concept, aims for Q1 2012 release (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Jun 2011 05:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The foremost question in the hive mind of Android power users these days is typically whether to go with HTC’s 1.2GHz, dual-core, 4.3-inch Sensation or the similarly specced Galaxy S II from Samsung. Of course, neither of those is actually out in the US yet, so if patience is not your favorite virtue, T-Mobile just made that decision for you. The carrier has announced it’ll start selling the HTC Sensation 4G from June 12th at Walmart stores, after which it’ll be “exclusively” available on June 15th from T-Mobile retail stores. Pricing is your typical $200 on a two-year contract after a $50 mail-in rebate. Samsung’s superphone shouldn’t be too far behind, but it does look like T-Mo subscribers will get a good few weeks to familiarize themselves with Sense 3.0 before having to hear any gloating about Super AMOLED Plus displays and 8.49mm slimness. PR after the break.

Continue reading HTC Sensation 4G available on T-Mobile June 15th for $200, hits Walmart ‘as early as June 12th’

HTC Sensation 4G available on T-Mobile June 15th for $200, hits Walmart ‘as early as June 12th’ originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 May 2011 22:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AMOLED displays may be in relatively short supply nowadays, but Samsung is doing its best to bridge the gap. Today, the company’s Mobile Display unit announced that its 5.5th-generation AMOLED production line is now open, some two months ahead of schedule. The line uses glass substrates that are substantially larger than those found in its existing factories, allowing Samsung to increase output, while lowering costs. This increase in production comes in response to growing demand for the Galaxy S II and an AMOLED market that, according to DisplaySearch, should triple in value this year to $4.26 billion. For now, the production line is focusing on smartphone displays, since that’s where demand is growing fastest, but will eventually turn its attention to tablet PC displays, as well. The new factory assembling the displays can currently churn out about three million screens per month, but is capable of ramping that up to 30 million, at full capacity. No word yet on when it will achieve this rate, but if SMD continues to boost its output, we may even see that market surplus we’ve been hearing about.

Samsung’s new AMOLED production line should help ease smartphone display shortages originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 May 2011 07:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While ASUS’ Padfone was being launched with much sticker-clad-model fanfare at Computex today, CMIT’s TransPhone was apparently enjoying its third day of life, having first appeared on the web as early as Saturday. Both tablets include built-in docks with smartphones to match, but are otherwise unique in appearance and features. The TransPhone includes a bluetooth headset and a slide-in smartphone dock, while the Padfone’s handset is completely hidden by a flip-up rear door. The CMIT device reportedly packs a 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm processor and SVGA display, along with USB and HDMI ports, though we’re still unclear on which OS will be running on the tablet. There’s also no word on pricing or availability, but the TransPhone is in good company there, so don’t get ready to ditch those standalone gadgets just yet.

TransPhone pairs tablet and handset, emerged before ASUS Padfone originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 May 2011 17:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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