Hasta La Gadget!

We know, we know — you’re probably still waiting for the Apple tablet that’ll never come, but how’s about a prototype alternative from said outfit’s arch enemy to tide you over? Gizmodo has just let slip details surrounding what was previously a top secret project deep within the lairs of Redmond, but given that this is more of an advanced proof of concept than anything else, we’re doing our best to curb our inner enthusiasm about a near-term release. We’re told that the folding device could eventually ship with dual 7-inch displays, both of which support multitouch gestures and can also be controlled via a stylus. It should too boast a camera and possibly an inductive charging pad on the rear, though we can’t help but be a wee bit frightened by hearing that the user interface is “complex.” Essentially, the Courier is a touch-friendly, two-screen tablet that can’t let go of the tried-and-true pen input method, and your guess is as good as ours when it comes to purpose. Though, something tells us ASUS might just have the answer. Video’s after the break.

Continue reading Microsoft’s dual-screen Courier booklet emerges, isn’t near production

Filed under: Handhelds, Tablet PCs

Microsoft’s dual-screen Courier booklet emerges, isn’t near production originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Sep 2009 19:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Right on cue, Mary Jo Foley has chimed in with her expert opinion on the latest Project Pink rumor. Weekend gossip that has Microsoft and Sharp “unleashing” a pair of slider phones codenamed “Turtle” (pictured above) and “Pure” in January (likely at CES). JoFo thinks that it’s possible that the rumored handsets could be announced in January, but any phone from Microsoft’s Pink skunkworks project wouldn’t launch until Windows Mobile 7 was ready, an OS not expected to ship on consumer devices until the end of 2010. Still, a January announce certainly aligns with the modern product buzz life-cycle: the iPhone landed six months after its unveiling while the first Google co-branded phone — T-Mobile G1 — took almost a year to bump hands of anxious consumers.

Foley also addressed 9to5Mac’s tease of a “much, much bigger and juicier” rumor related to a Microsoft tablet in the late prototype phases. According to her sources, a new Microsoft tablet is part of something called “Alchemy Ventures” and contains at least one exec from Microsoft’s Surface team and is presumably led by our buddy, J Allard. You’ll recall that Microsoft was already rumored to be working on “Oahu” a Surface-based tablet for consumers. So when might we see it? Mary Jo speculates that Microsoft could be waiting to see what Apple’s working on before showing off Redmond’s competing design. In other words: February.

[Via WMPowerUser]

Read — “Turtle” pic
Read — Mary-Jo Foley on Pink and Tablet

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds, Tablet PCs

Microsoft’s Turtle and Pure ‘Pink’ phones and Surface Tablet: take 2 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Sep 2009 04:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Windows 7 is almost here, and we get the feeling that the multitouch revolution (at least in the consumer realm) won’t be too far behind. Lenovo just dished out a pair of new touch-friendly laptops, Fujitsu spruced up its LifeBook T5010 with a multitouch panel and now Wacom is kicking out a finger-friendly Bamboo tablet. Just in case you figured that yesterday’s sneak peek was nothing more than an imaginative Photoshop, we’ve got another round of closeups today to prove otherwise. Tipster Jesus claims that he’s been using the $69 device on his Snow Leopard-equipped Mac for a tick, and he’s had no issues getting things working. There’s also mention of a full interactive tutorial that helps you setup customer application-specific gestures, which frankly, sounds like oodles of fun.

[Thanks, Jesus]

Filed under: Displays, Peripherals

Wacom Bamboo multitouch tablet is real, we’ve got pics to prove it originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Sep 2009 16:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

In an all-too brief teaser at a press conference across the pond, Archos decided to give a few more details and a teaser pic of the Android phone it announced back in February. According to the slide, it’s got a 4.3-inch touchscreen with 854 x 480 resolution, a 1GHz ARM processor — likely comparable to Archos 5, but pretty powerful considering what all other Android phones have so far arrived with — and a 10mm-thick shell. Size and specs-wise, it matches up quite handily to the Snapdragon- and Windows Mobile-powered Toshiba TG01, although that one’s already taking up retail shelf space, and it looks like we’ll be waiting for some of those infamous Archos leaks if we want any more information the phone tablet in the near future.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Archos phone tablet teased: Android, 4.3-inch touschscreen, 1GHz ARM processor originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Sep 2009 15:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sinchun got the price right: 2999 Yuan (about $439 US), and the netbook-style specs make a lot of sense for this form factor. Unfortunately, Windows XP does not. Paired up against a stylus-driven 1024 x 600 touchscreen, Atom processor, 1GB of RAM and a variety of smallish SSD options, there’s plenty of room for 7’s touch enhancements to shine on the UMPC-891A — but not enough expanse for them to choke up. Of course, there’s nothing stopping you from slapping it on yourself. The biggest point of caution here is the 2 hour quoted battery life — let’s hope the Archos 9pctablet brings us a truly helpful amount of battery life in the UMPC space.

[Via Cloned In China]

Filed under: Handhelds, Tablet PCs

Sinchun’s 8.9-inch UMPC-891A holds onto the past with XP originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Sep 2009 05:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments