Microsoft to demo Windows 8 tablet interface in June?

At this point, the only thing keeping Microsoft in the tablet conversation are rumors of its Windows 8 or Windows Next, and lo and behold we’ve got another one to add to the pile. While we heard last week that Microsoft could release the beta of Windows 8 for tablets at PDC in September, “sources at Microsoft” have now told Business Insider, that the company is hoping to show a public “design demo” of the operating system’s tablet UI as early as June. The timing is interesting — and it actually lines up very well with Computex, where the company does have a big presence — but we’re also intrigued by the part that says Microsoft’s taking “a more Apple-like approach to interface design” and that it will use Metro UI pieces. That’s obviously similar to what Microsoft showed us at last year’s Computex (picture of that above) — except it was using Windows Embedded Compact 7 underneath. The article also mentions that it will draw on some Media Center-like styling, which also syncs up with some other whispers we’ve heard. Yep, there’s a lot of rumors, and well, with this talk of summer / fall it looks like we’ll be dealing with plenty more before we hear anything official.

Microsoft to demo Windows 8 tablet interface in June? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 22:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fujitsu’s Stylistic Q550 Windows 7 tablet: orders kick off tomorrow starting at €699

Expanding on some tidbits fleshed out last week, Fujitsu has dropped all the details on its Oak Trail-based Stylistic Q550 Windows 7 tablet here at CeBIT this week. Along with your choice of 30GB or 64GB SSDs, you’ll be able to select Windows 7 Home Premium or Professional atop a 10.1-inch WXGA IPS display capable of four-finger multitouch with stylus input, 2GB of RAM, and an optional Gobi radio that’ll push 14.4Mbps down and 5.76Mbps up over HSPA. Pricing will vary by market, but it’s starting at €699 (roughly $966) here in Europe when it goes on sale tomorrow. Follow the break for the full press release.

Update: We just snapped a few glamor shots of Fujitsu Technology Solutions CEO Rolf Schwirz showing off the Q550 here at the company’s CeBIT press conference — see ’em below!

Continue reading Fujitsu’s Stylistic Q550 Windows 7 tablet: orders kick off tomorrow starting at €699

Fujitsu’s Stylistic Q550 Windows 7 tablet: orders kick off tomorrow starting at €699 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 07:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AdvanceTC’s 4.8-inch tabletphone runs Windows 7 on a 1.6GHz Atom CPU

It may not sound like the most practical combination, but we’ve got to hand it to AdvanceTC — it’s shoehorned telephony into a Windows 7 tablet, fulfilling our dark desire for a spiritual successor to the xpPhone. Yes, that’s not Windows Phone 7 you’re looking at above, but rather full desktop Windows running on a sizable quad-band GSM brick, whose insides hold a 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z530 CPU, 1GB of RAM, a 32GB SSD, a 4.8-inch 800 x 480 touchscreen, a 1.3 megapixel webcam and a chunky 3200mAh battery to power the whole thing. Calls are handled via AdvanceTC’s custom UI layer and there’s some software trickery to keep that battery in check, as the device can automatically wake from sleep when it detects an incoming call or text message. We doubt we’d much enjoy navigating Windows 7 on a screen that small, but AdvanceTC also gives the Atrix a nod, claiming that the device can act like a full nettop PC when connected to an HDMI dock. We’ll let you know if the company gives us a price, release date, or any indication that it will actually hit retail at all.

AdvanceTC’s 4.8-inch tabletphone runs Windows 7 on a 1.6GHz Atom CPU originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 02:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola Xoom rooted in two hours flat, sinister transforming exoskeleton jetpack returns in Verizon ad

What’s the first thing you’re going to do with your Motorola Xoom? If you’re Koush, the answer’s clear — install your very own ClockworkMod recovery image and ROM Manager, and grant the latter superuser permissions. That’s right, on the very day of release, the Motorola Xoom’s all but ready for custom builds of Android and all the joy they bring.

Meanwhile, Verizon’s decided to bring us the latter half of the abruptly cut Xoom TV ad, which actually differs significantly depending on whether or not Spanish is your primary language. Either way, it’s a fairly sordid affair, with no Iron Man feats of stratospheric skill to be found, merely a quick demonstration of gaming with the accelerometer and a few quick swipes through Honeycomb. You’ll still watch it if we tell you it’s after the break though, won’t you?

Continue reading Motorola Xoom rooted in two hours flat, sinister transforming exoskeleton jetpack returns in Verizon ad

Motorola Xoom rooted in two hours flat, sinister transforming exoskeleton jetpack returns in Verizon ad originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 25 Feb 2011 02:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink PhoneArena, Droid-Life  |  sourceVerizonWireless (YouTube), Koushik Dutta  | Email this | Comments

Verizon charging for one month’s data with Samsung Galaxy Tab, too?

Looks like Verizon’s idea of levying mandatory data fees on tablet buyers may be a global thing — not only will new Xoom owners have to activate and pay for a month of data, but an eagle-eyed tipster sent in this image of a Best Buy price tag that confirms the very same for Samsung’s Galaxy Tab. There’s nothing to suggest that WiFi-only versions of either tablet would be subject to the surcharge — with these cellular variants, we can almost understand — but we don’t see 3G iPads carrying mandatory activations, so what’s the deal, Verizon?

[Thanks, Brian R.]

Verizon charging for one month’s data with Samsung Galaxy Tab, too? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Feb 2011 23:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fujitsu’s 10-inch Stylistic Q550 tablet to sport Oak Trail, Windows 7

We knew good and well that Fujitsu’s Stylistic Q550 was en route, but now we’re learning a few more dirty details as its official launch day draws ever nearer. Reportedly, the business-oriented slate will be fully revealed at CeBIT next month, with Fujitsu being one of the only outfits out there eager and willing to take a chance on both Oak Trail and Windows 7 Professional. Our experiences with existing Win7 tablets haven’t been stellar, but it’s possible that the added power in Oak Trail will cut down on the lag and make things a bit smoother to operate. We’re told to expect a 10-inch LED touchscreen, smartcard slot, fingerprint reader, trusted-platform module (TPM), front and rear cameras, a 32GB / 64GB solid state drive, USB socket and an optional 3G module. Most impressive, however, is the claimed eight hours of battery life, which we’ll quite honestly have to see to believe. If all goes well, it’ll start shipping this April to European nations, but there’s no word yet on how badly it’ll hurt your wallet (or when it’ll grab a passport and head to other continents). As you’d expect, we’ll be live from Germany digging for more just as soon as the show floor opens. A brief introductory vid is just past the break.

Continue reading Fujitsu’s 10-inch Stylistic Q550 tablet to sport Oak Trail, Windows 7

Fujitsu’s 10-inch Stylistic Q550 tablet to sport Oak Trail, Windows 7 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Feb 2011 03:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink PC World  |  sourceYouTube (Network World)  | Email this | Comments

Screen Grabs: Dell Streak serves as seismograph on Fringe, Android nowhere to be found

Screen Grabs chronicles the uses (and misuses) of real-world gadgets in today’s movies and TV. Send in your sightings (with screen grab!) to screengrabs at engadget dot com.

It ain’t the first time Dell’s Streak has been featured on a major network drama, but it’s probably the last where it’s used as a makeshift seismograph. Olivia managed to discover some fairly otherworldly facts with the use of this here handheld on a recent episode of Fringe, but mum’s the word on whether she’ll survive this season. You know — the Friday slot.

[Thanks, Michael]

Screen Grabs: Dell Streak serves as seismograph on Fringe, Android nowhere to be found originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 11:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dell Rosemount tablet will have Intel’s Oak Trail inside, stylus, removable battery and remote wipe

Dell means business with its upcoming Windows 7 slate, if the whispers we’re hearing are true — we have it on good authority that the recently-leaked Rosemount will be a Latitude. An inside source says that the 10-inch tablet will not only sport Dell’s storied business brand but will be geared towards enterprise through and through, with features like serviceable components (including a removable battery), software encryption and the ability to perform a remote wipe, and that it’ll have a dual-digitizer to support both touch input and a stylus for fine details. We don’t know about performance or battery life quite yet, but the slate will reportedly use an Atom chip, specifically Intel’s Oak Trail, so we’ll let you imagine the possibilities.

[Thanks, Anonymous]

Dell Rosemount tablet will have Intel’s Oak Trail inside, stylus, removable battery and remote wipe originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Feb 2011 22:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kno says some tablets will ship within 60 days, doesn’t explain pre-order delay

We were somewhat taken aback when Kno confirmed its textbook tablet had been delayed without a word on when production would resume, but the company now says pre-orders will experience up to two months’ delay before they ship out, and not all of them will. eBookNewser and CrunchGear report that shipments could be delayed until as late as April 14th, and that the first shipment will be restricted “to a limited number of students and teachers.” Kno still hasn’t provided a reason for the delay, but we think that the newly closed-off website says a lot. “You now need an invitation to get a Kno,” it reads, “There aren’t enough to go around.”

Kno says some tablets will ship within 60 days, doesn’t explain pre-order delay originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Feb 2011 04:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink CrunchGear  |  sourceeBookNewser  | Email this | Comments

Dell’s 2011 smartphone and tablet lineup leaked: Android Ice Cream, WP7 sliders, and a slate running Windows 8

Wrigley, Hancock, Millennium, Gallo, Sterling, Rosemount, Silver Oak, Peju and Opus One. What are we rattling off? Oh, just the list of codenames from one of the largest leaks we’ve ever seen out of Dell. WPCentral and Android Central got their hands on alleged smartphone and tablet roadmaps for the entire year, detailing the company’s plans for devices running operating systems that have yet to be formally announced, including Android Ice Cream (yes, Ice Cream!) and Windows 8 as well as the tablet-friendly Honeycomb. Here’s the full rundown.

Smartphones:

  • Things look pretty boring (and by boring, we mean beautifully curvy) until approximately mid-April of this year, when the Venue Pro gets some “additional features and enhancements” which we’re pretty sure we can name.
  • Then, Q3 brings the Wrigley, what looks like a vertical QWERTY slider identifying itself as “Windows Phone 7 Next Gen,” and sporting a 1GHz CPU, 4-inch 800 x 480 screen, and a 8 megapixel camera with 720p video recording. Nothing out of the ordinary, as far as we know.
  • By September, things should get very interesting as Android Ice Cream will apparently be out, and Dell’s Hancock will scoop it onto a 4-inch qHD screen with dual cameras, dual-core processing and 1080p recording.
  • Starting Q4, would-be Hancock buyers will have a dual-core multimedia slate alternative, as the Millennium drops the keyboard for a larger 4.3-inch screen and DLNA support (though the front-facing camera is limited to VGA resolution.)

Tablets:

  • Dell’s Streak 10 won’t keep us waiting for long: come April, the Gallo will reportedly be chomping away at some tasty Honeycomb. But that’s not all — Dell lists a handwriting update for the Gallo in October or thereabouts. There’s also a Streak 7 update scheduled for July — we imagine that’s the point when Dell believes it can shoehorn Android 3.0 onto its older brother.
  • Meanwhile, Dell’s 10-inch Windows 7 slate, internally known as Rosemount, is slated for June, with a 1366 x 768 resolution that should allow for native playback of 720p video.
  • We can’t tell you what the Sterling is, but it’s likely a mid-sized one, as it’s slated to take over the Streak 7’s duties in or about October with Android Honeycomb on board.
  • Finally, come CES 2012 in January, we now expect Dell to drop three new tablets at once: the Opus One and Silver Oak running Android Honeycomb, and the Peju with Windows 8. (The Streak 10 / Gallo will apparently soldier on.) Numbers on the left of the charge suggest that the Opus will be small, the Silver Oak mid-sized, and the Peju large.

As noted at the head of the slide, all details here are subject to change, but we’re sure as heck a lot more confident that Dell plans to do something with all those tacky mockups. One more chart after the break!

Continue reading Dell’s 2011 smartphone and tablet lineup leaked: Android Ice Cream, WP7 sliders, and a slate running Windows 8

Dell’s 2011 smartphone and tablet lineup leaked: Android Ice Cream, WP7 sliders, and a slate running Windows 8 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 17:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceAndroid Central (1), (2), WPCentral  | Email this | Comments