Since preparation is key, Apple has apparently put Pegatron in the spotlight. The report from EDN says that Pegatron has nabbed 50 to 60 percent of Apple’s iPad Mini orders, which means that the company will be a pretty big supplier of the new, smaller iPad. Before the iPad Mini (provided that this is all true), Foxconn was the only manufacturer of the iPad.

But this isn’t necessarily at the expense of Foxconn. Instead of taking away Foxconn’s iPad duties entirely, Pegatron will merely be helping to carry the load. Foxconn will still be putting iPad Minis together for Apple, and with both of these companies working in tandem to push new tablets out the door, Apple can supposedly count on 5 million iPad Minis being produced each and every month.

That definitely isn’t bad, and Pegatron’s assistance apparently extends beyond just the iPad Mini. We’re also told that Pegatron will be jumping in to help with iPhone 5 production later this year. With iPhone 5 pre-orders hitting 2 million in the first 24 hours, it sounds like Foxconn could use the help, and that’s especially true if Apple hopes to ship 53 million iPhone 5s this year alone, as the Economic Daily News states. That, ladies and gentlemen, is an absurd number of iPhone 5s, so you can be sure that Pegatron’s talents won’t be going to waste.

[via Engadget]

[Image via Ciccarese Design]

Microsoft’s guidance on sticker price was vague, only suggesting that the NVIDIA-powered Surface would be akin to any other Windows RT tablet, while the Intel-powered Surface Pro would be more in line with an ultrabook. With no other Windows RT tablet manufacturer actually confirming what they’ll be charging for the iPad rivals, however, eyes turned to the elephant in the room – Apple’s slate itself – with suggestions that Microsoft, like any other OEM, would need to be competitive against the $499 iPad WiFi starting price if it hopes to take any significant share of the market.

According to arch rumor-merchants DigiTimes, however, information from Surface manufacturer Pegatron suggests that the ARM model will cost from $599, while the Ivy Bridge based Surface Pro will cost at least $799.

That chimes with some analyst suggestions that Microsoft will struggle to deliver its premium-bodied slate at something which matches Apple’s prices. Part of that is economy of scale, with Apple making huge investments in locking down competitive deals for its iPad components, but there are also questions about the impact of Microsoft’s own Windows RT/8 licensing fees.

Although Microsoft could of course exclude itself from those fees – believed to come in at roughly $85 per license – it would run the risk of claims of anti-competitiveness if OEMs building their own Windows tablets were forced to charge more so as to accommodate the tithe. “We do not view these devices as competitive or as a threat to the iPad” Jefferies & Co. analyst Peter Misek said of Surface, Fortune reports. ”Though pricing details are unclear, we believe Microsoft will need to significantly undercut the iPad to be competitive.”

Microsoft is unlikely to announce final numbers until closer to the Windows tablets’ release dates, themselves expected later in Q3 2012 when Windows 8 goes on sale. More on Surface in our hands-on.

This is an extension of what Microsoft calls their “commitment to licensing intellectual property” and will not be the last time the company finds its way into the companies around the world that are running Android devices. Microsoft in this case has now licensed four of the top five Taiwanese ODMs and certainly plans on continuing down this path until they’ve got them all. According to Horacio Gutierrez, corporate vice president and deputy general counsel, Intellectual Property Group at Microsoft:

“We are pleased to have reached this agreement with Pegatron and proud of the continued success of our Android licensing program in resolving IP issues surrounding Android and Chrome devices in the marketplace” – Gutierrez

Microsoft has a website dedicated to IP Licensing which you can check out if you feel you might someday be working with them or for them in some sense or another. Microsoft will indeed be receiving royalties from Pegatron under this newest agreement though final details have not been released.

[via Microsoft]

Long-time Apple supplier Foxconn is up first for FLA inspection, not least because the company has seen several worker suicides over the past 18-24 months and come in for criticism over production line conditions. Apple said that Quanta and Pegatron would be next in line, with their investigations coming sometime in the spring.

It’s possible that Apple’s comments that all of the suppliers “pledged full cooperation with the FLA, offering unrestricted access to their operations” relate to the company’s general contractual conditions, rather than any specific notification of the new investigations. Quanta declined to comment on the audits.

Apple’s decision to request independent checks by the FLA come after widely-reported criticism which singled the company out over poor treatment of supply chain employees. Executives at the company, it was suggested, were aware of problems experienced by staff at Foxconn, Pegatron and others, but chose not to act upon that knowledge because it could impact manufacturing timelines and costs. The allegations prompted “outrage” from CEO Tim Cook.

Pegatron, perhaps unsurprisingly, opted to stick with Apple’s contract rather than that of ASUS. The OEM won iPhone construction contracts last year, and is apparently angling for iPad 3 contacts now. Zenbook production is expected to cease with Pegatron at the end of March, and switch over to either Compal or Wistron.

ASUS is said to be trying to keep news of Apple’s OEM machinations low-key, with a spokesperson only telling the paper that it always attempts to be flexible in its supply chain.

Pegatron was not responsible for the Zenbook design, which was supposedly carried out entirely in-house by ASUS’ own teams, and so Apple’s pressure is not believed to connected to any reusing of ideas on the OEM’s part. However, it’s suggested that this insistence on suppliers “choosing sides” between Apple contracts and those of other companies that fail to meet with Cupertino approval is not likely to end at the Zenbook.

[via DigiTimes]

Although none of the machines are expected to be either as eye-catching or as well marketed as the top-tier ultrabooks from Dell, HP, Lenovo and others, what they will have in their favor is affordability. Intel is pushing for $599 to $649 machines, accounting for around 6- to 7-percent of the notebook market overall in 2012.

The new models are coming in Q2 2012, the sources say, as part of a 15m 2012 push for second-tier vendors as the ultrabook market takes off.

Meanwhile, Quanta Computer – believed to be manufacturing HP’s ultrabook for the company – has apparently bought its own CNC machines so that it can create unibody casings in-house. The investment is being seen as an attempt to cut manufacturing costs, reducing the need to outsource chassis production. Rival Wistron, though, is apparently looking to non-metal options, which would open the door to alternative color ultrabooks.

The last Foxconn explosion killed 3 workers and injured 15. This time’s explosion did not cause a fire but it injured 61 workers with 23 having to be hospitalized for observation. The China Labor Watch, an independent not-for-profit organization that works with unions and labor groups to assess factories in China, released a statement about the blast.

“The blast in Riteng is a result of aluminum dust in the workshop where iPad cases are polished,” said CLW in its statement. “A similar blast happened in the same workshop of a Foxconn’s factory in Chengdu, killing 3 workers and hurting another 15.”

CLW also emphasized that “there is a sharp contrast between the strong performance of Apple and the poor condition of the worker working on its assembly line in China.” Apple is said to be working closely with Pegatron to understand the cause of the accident.

[via 9to5 Mac]

Today Pegatron has announced that one of its subsidiary plants in Shanghai, China had a small explosion over the weekend. The explosion happened at a plant belonging to Riteng Computer Accessory Co, and 61 workers were injured in the blast. Of those 61 workers, 23 needed to be hospitalized for observation. None of the injuries are reported to be life threatening.

According to Pegatron, the plant where the explosion occurred was new and was not in operations yet. A portion of the plant had started trial production and was being inspected. Safety concerns continue to circle around Chinese plants where industrial accidents are not uncommon.

[via Reuters]

That’s on the way to targets of 5-6m units in September, ramping dramatically to a total of over 22m units in Q4 2011. At the same time, iPhone 4 units are expected to dwindle, with both the GSM and CDMA versions losing popularity as the end of the year approaches. Foxconn’s potential output may well be the limiting factor on supply, at least initially; while Pegatron is tipped to have scored 15-percent of the iPhone 5 manufacturing orders, it may not actually begin shipping until 2012 the sources claim.

As for what the iPhone 5 will bring, so far much of the detail is still speculative. Images believed to have been taken with an iPhone 5 prototype leaked earlier this week indicate an 8-megapixel camera paired with a particularly impressive lens, while a leaked case suggests the handset will be thinner but broader than the existing iPhone 4. That could be to accommodate a larger display, as Apple follows rival smartphone vendors and boosts screen size.

According to Taiwan Economic News, Apple may switch its iPad 3 manufacturer from long-time partner Foxconn to Pegatron, another Taiwan-based contract manufacturer. Pegatron has reportedly already won an order of 15 million units of Apple’s iPhone 5, which is a big shift in Apple’s supply partnerships for up until now, Foxconn had been exclusively assembling iPhones and iPads.

Perhaps partly due to the plant explosion as well as the many cases of reported worker suicides, Apple no longer wants to keep its eggs soley in Foxconn’s basket. Apple also wants to ramp up production to avoid supply bottlenecks like it experienced with the iPad 2.

However, it’s not certain if the contract win by Pegatron is exclusive or if the assembly would be split among the two manufacturers before a complete transition. All other supply chain partnerships for iPad components are expected to remain the same.

Just earlier today, there was a new report that the iPhone 5 will likely arrive in the second week of September with the iPad 3 delayed until November.

[via CEN]

There’s no word on what, exactly, Foxconn has done to avoid another company swooping in, with the report only specifying that it “exerted its efforts” and “persuaded Apple … for the moment.” However, Apple has reportedly been pressing its supply chain for fresh cuts in component and production charges, asking for as much as a 10-percent reduction in what they are charging. That could suggest Foxconn may have negotiated a cheaper deal for Apple in return for some exclusivity.

Whether that will be enough to satisfy Apple remains to be seen. According to the original reports, the company’s motivation was to secure consistent iPad supplies, after accidents at Foxconn’s Chengdu plant in western China impacted on production rates. It’s only recently that availability of the iPad 2 has shifted to 3-5 days.

Pegatron, it’s said, is now looking to the iPad 4 and notebook/desktop orders from Apple in an attempt to secure future business. The company is already believed to be involved in a 15m unit order for iPhone 5 handsets for delivery in September.

“Apple’s sales estimates of the new iPhone is quite aggressive” one anonymous supplier informed the paper, going on to suggest that the Cupertino company said “to prepare to help the company meet its goal of 25 million units by the end of the year. However, “the initial production volume will be a few million units… we were told to ship the components to assembler Hon Hai in August” they continued, echoing reports from late last week about the state of Foxconn’s order book.

Even Hon Hai’s chairman, Terry Gou, has admitted that production difficulties have held the company back. “The touch-screen devices are so thin. It’s really difficult to install so many components into the iPhones and iPads,” he suggested at the company’s annual general meeting last month. “We hope to raise the yield rate and volume in the second half which will help improve our gross margin” he continued.

There’s also corroboration for the iPhone 5 using Qualcomm wireless baseband chips, which are expected to be used to make the fifth-gen smartphone a so-called World Phone capable of using either GSM or CDMA networks. Earlier this week, rumors suggested Pegatron had also received next-gen iPhone orders for a handset markedly similar to the current CDMA model it produces for Apple. That led to suggestions that Apple might be bisecting the iPhone range into two models, a basic evolution of the current iPhone 4, perhaps the iPhone 4S, with Pegatron producing it, and then a high-range iPhone 5.

The new leak echos talk from Friday, though that suggested Foxconn had clinched the next-gen iPhone production contract. Until now, Pegatron has been responsible for CDMA iPhone 4 production, the handsets used on Verizon and other carriers outside the US, though previous leaks have suggested the iPhone 5 will be a so-called World Phone offering both GSM and CDMA compatibility in a single device.

If that’s the case, then Foxconn and Pegatron could well be producing the same device, with Apple hedging its supply chain bets across two companies so as to hopefully avoid any bottlenecks. Alternatively, one manufacturer could be responsible for the advanced iPhone 5, while the other could be producing the more affordable iPhone 4S which has also been rumored.

Teardowns of the CDMA iPhone 4 actually confirmed that Apple had used Qualcomm’s MDM6600 radio chipset, itself capable – with the right firmware and software – of utilizing both CDMA and GSM networks. However, Apple purposefully decided to limit the handset to CDMA-only. It could well be the case that Pegatron is producing the iPhone 4S, ostensibly similar to the existing iPhone 4 (some rumors have tipped the inclusion of the dual-core Apple A5 processor as in the iPad 2) only with new World Phone support.

That could leave Foxconn to produce the iPhone 5, said to be a more significant departure in style and functionality. As well as the dual-core CPU, rumors have suggested the iPhone 5 will have a larger, 3.7-inch display, an 8-megapixel camera and potentially NFC connectivity. Foxconn is also expected to begin next-gen iPhone shipments in September.

Last month, rumored specs for the Flyer emerged, tipping the 7-incher to have a single-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and a 1024 x 600 display. It’s also believed to have HSPA connectivity and DLNA support, while the new HTC Sense was described as feeling more “desktop like” than previous versions.

[via DigiTimes]

Meanwhile the manufacturer has also been busy producing CDMA iPhone 4 handsets for Verizon, with Pegatron chairman TH Tung going so far as to cancel the holiday 2010 break and placate workers with triple salary. The company is expected to shift some Apple production to its Suzhou plant, which has until now been focused on notebook production.

However, Verizon is unlikely to be the sole recipient of the CDMA iPhones. China Telecom and India’s Tata Teleservices are expected to be among the international carriers interested in the smartphone, while Verizon’s confirmation that its deal with Apple is non-exclusive means it’s possible we could see a Sprint iPhone 4 at some point.

Pegatron, meanwhile, say the new employees are to handle the company’s growing smartphone business in general, with CEO Jason Chang declining to comment on specific client orders.  Still, the sources reckon the CDMA iPhone 4 will drop in December 2010.

Meanwhile Verizon is busy installing iTunes 10 on its network of in-store PCs, though it’s not CDMA iPhone related – at least not yet.  PhoneArena scored a screenshot, but it’s most likely to do with the roll-out of the iPad in Verizon stores today; the carrier will obviously need iTunes in order to do in-store activations and demonstrations.

In fact, the sources at manufacturers claim that only two or three of Taiwan’s smartphone producers may actually decide to make Windows Phone 7 devices.  The decision could be seen as an attempt to pressure Microsoft into reducing their licensing fees, a move which is nonetheless seen as unlikely.

The screen is tipped at 1280 x 720 resolution, complete with the expected multitouch support, while there’s also apparently 2GB of RAM and the expected wireless options: WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS for a start.  As well as the Android OS there’d be Chrome web-app support and access to the Android Market.  Some form of 3G has also been mentioned in the past – Verizon as a potential carrier partner too – and given HTC has already built relationships with carriers that would certainly make sense.

It would also open the door to carrier subsidies, and given the rumor-mongers are talking about a NT$25,000 ($789.75) sticker price that’s probably a good thing.  Earlier this month a Q1 2011 launch date was suggested, which would imply that HTC were looking to use Android 3.0 Gingerbread.

Unsurprisingly Apple themselves aren’t saying anything about the possibility of a CDMA option, though if the AT&T problems experienced in recent days haven’t got them at least pondering an alternative carrier partner then we’d be very surprised.  Of course, it’s not unheard of for manufacturers to seed rumors themselves for their own benefit; Pegatron are apparently set to be listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange come June 24th, and a strong industry profile certainly wouldn’t hurt that first day share price.  For now, we’ll just have to wait and see.

iPhone 4 hands-on:

As for timescales, with the impact on Pegatron’s financial reports expected in August or September, it again sows the seeds that Apple may announce both GSM and CDMA handsets later this year, for a simultaneous release on both AT&T and Verizon in the US.  The company is expected to announce the fourth-generation iPhone – aka the iPhone HD – at WWDC 2010 in early June.

Of course, this could all be guff ahead of Pegatron’s official spin-off from ASUS, which is expected to be finalised on June 1st.  Indeed, the manufacturer has apparently been seeing order cuts from existing clients; a good Apple rumor would likely do them – and their share price – the world of good.  SlashGear will be liveblogging the WWDC 2010 keynote, so join us then for all the details – CDMA or otherwise!

The most obvious suggestion is that Shih is referring to the ASUS Eee Pad tablet, discretely shown at CES 2010 as part of NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 display.  Rumors following the show suggested a June launch date, Pegatron manufacturing and a sub-$500 price tag.

As for the ASUS/Pegatron split, now that process has been set in motion the two firms will be listed separately from June 24th.  Pegatron is one of a small number of key OEM/ODM firms responsible for the production of electronics hardware for various big-name companies; recently they were tipped to have secured the fourth-gen iPhone manufacturing contract from Apple.

As-yet unnamed, just like HP’s model, the Pegratron slate has an 11.6-inch touchscreen and runs Windows 7 Home Premium on an Intel Atom CPU.  There’s also 1GB of RAM and a 32GB SSD, along with a webcam and HDMI connectivity.

Their hands-on opinion is that the slate is certainly thin and light, and fits neatly into the hands, but that Windows 7′s UI – even with all the touchscreen-centric work Microsoft have done on it – still needs fettling to play nicely with finger control and input.  With CES being dominated by tablets this year, we’re expecting to see various custom GUIs being rolled out over the coming months, as software houses attempt to cash in on the next hot segment.

[via Best Tablet Review]

According to Shanzai, it’s a 10-inch unit with a fanless ARM processor – no word on whether that’s Qualcomm’s Snapdragon – that the company expect to have always-on connectivity and speedy boot times.  Meanwhile battery life is deemed to be sufficient for “all day” use, and while we’re still more than mildly sceptical about such claims, we’re definitely hopeful that it turns out to be true.

The Pegatron machine looks slightly thicker than the Quanta prototype we played with earlier this week, though given the amount of flex in the Quanta’s keyboard that’s probably no bad thing.  Only Lenovo have publicly confirmed that they’ll be pushing a Smartbook out the door in January.

The initial models will use generic Linux OSes, but Google Chrome OS versions are expected to figure highly in the second half of next year according to Shu.  As for pricing, there’s a decent chance that the initially-vaunted $200 sticker could pan out.  Shu wouldn’t reveal any specific clients; so far the only confirmed Smartbook we’re expecting is the Snapdragon-based Lenovo model which should make an appearance at CES 2010 in January.

It’s also fanless and comes with integrated WiFi b/g and Bluetooth 2.0; there’s no sign of the 3G WWAN initially lauded when the niche-within-a-niche segment was first launched.  Other connectivity for the 8.9-inch 1,024 x 600 machine includes a VGA output, two full-sized USB 2.0 ports and another micro-USB.  Storage is all on an SD card, which does put a limit on how much you can carry around, but the idea with these Smartbooks is that you rely a lot on the cloud for the bulk of your data.

ITProPortal report a few issues with the prototype – which is running Ubuntu 9.01 – but seem generally satisfied.  The aim is still to get the machines onto the market by the holidays, and if they can keep to the roughly $200 price tag first mentioned then they could steal a whole lot of netbook buyers.

[via Netbooked.net]

After the cut: details on the D400 specs and why the IdeaCentre Q100/Q110 are rebadged Pegatron nettops

We Got Served did some sleuthing and found that the D400 has actually been on sale in Asia since August 5th.  Running Windows Home Server, it has four hot-swappable drive bays together with four USB ports and an eSATA port, and total power consumption is tipped at just 40W.  They’ve also found quite a few live photos of the D400, which you can see here and here.

As for the Lenovo IdeaCentre Q100 and Q110 nettops, there’s no such early launch to go by.  However, regular SlashGear readers may have spotted that it’s strikingly similar in appearance to Pegatron’s recently shown nettop reference designs, which have been demonstrated both with and without NVIDIA Ion graphics.  Each uses an Intel Atom 230 processor, so we’re crossing our fingers that Lenovo made the right choice and plumped for the Ion model.

[via Engadget]

The Cortex A8-based prototype first showed up back at Freescale’s stand during Computex in June, and Pegatron – a division of ASUS – were talking about up to 8hrs runtime and integrated 3G UMTS and GPS along with Bluetooth and WiFi.  According to Crave UK, though, things still aren’t looking so hot for an actual release.While

The hope, though, is that positive feedback from this pre-production unit will encourage ASUS to greenlight production of the netbook, likely as an Eee PC model.  By relying on a processor more usually associated with smartphones, the overall price could be kept low, making this a true companion device rather than a netbook compromise.

Video overview after the cut

Either way, while the G-Box can hang nicely off the VESA mount on the back of your TV or monitor, there’s no HD output for media playback.  Other ports include six USB 2.0, ethernet and audio in/out, and there’s meant to be a 160GB hard-drive inside.

To be honest, it looks very much like the Ruvo Mini Cap 7 nettop that we saw unboxed back in June.  That would certainly fit with the pricing, too; according to Pocket-lint, EMTEC have said the G-Box will go on sale in the UK for around £179 ($293), with an HDMI version to follow.

The OEM was named by the Chinese-language Economic Daily News as one of two suppliers contracted by Sony to produce the new, more-compact console.  According to the paper’s report, Foxconn will be responsible for manufacturing 50-percent of PS3 Slim models, with Pegatron supplying the other half.

Mentioning “customer confidentiality” sounds, to our suspicious ears, like a roundabout way of saying “yes, but we’re not allowed to confirm it.”  Images purporting to be of the PS3 Slim and its packaging leaked back in May; while initially regarded with suspicion, the producer then gave speculation a shot in the arm by issuing a cease & desist notice to sites featuring them.  The most recent rumors have suggested that Sony will wait until the end of September 2009 before releasing it, so as to give existing PS3 stock levels time to reduce.

Video demo after the cut

Spotted at Computex a few weeks back, the Vivid also has a matte-finish display and an integrated battery.  The speakers are squeezed into a metal-mesh cylinder in the hinge, and there’s the usual array of audio in/out and USB ports.

The Vivid also runs a full version of FireFox and can play YouTube video.  As well as having the long runtime promised by Tegra, it can also output 1080p through the HDMI port.  Still no word on when we can see the Pegatron Vivid on shelves; we’re also hoping it’ll come in a few different colors.

While it may use the same casing as Pegatron’s NVIDIA Ion based IPP7A-CP, the Ruvo Mini Cap 7 doesn’t have the GPU prowess.  Instead the graphics are courtesy of SIS, though they do support DirectX 9.  Other specs include 1GB of RAM, either a 16GB SSD or 160GB hard-drive, and gigabit ethernet; ports include six USB 2.0 (two up front, four on the back), audio in/out (plus a headphone socket on the front), and either a DVI or D-Sub video output.

The fanless Mini Cap 7 measures just 172.5 x 153.5 x 20mm, and according to Frank from UMPC Tips came without cables or an installed OS.  The latter seems to be the case at online retailer Farandsoft, where the Ruvo Mini Cap 7 is available to order for €236.25 ($330) before taxes.

Among the more interesting devices are Pegatron’s IPP7A-CP, which we saw as the Ultra Slim last month, which is a super-compact nettop, and the ET2002 Eee Top upgrade which should finally give the touchscreen all-in-one the graphics grunt it deserves.  The full list of new products is available in the press release below. 

Ion is capable of not only 1080p video but 7.1 surround sound audio, DirectX 10 graphics and video acceleration and transcoding with NVIDIA’s own CUDA technology.  More on the physical hardware when we get it.

Press Release:

NVIDIA Energizes Computex With New ION-Based PC Products

Highly Anticipated Platform Takes Off With 21 New Products for Small PCs

NVIDIA ION graphics will soon be available in the compact, all-in-one ASUS eeeTop ET2002.

The AsRock ION 330 is a small, energy efficient desktop PC with a dual-core Atom CPU and NVIDIA ION graphics.

The Pegatron IPP7A-CP is one of the most compact ION PC designs yet introduced.

Funtwist is bringing an ION-based desktop to the market.
COMPUTEX, TAIPEI, TAIWAN—JUNE 2, 2009—NVIDIA, the world leader in visual computing technologies and the inventor of the GPU, announced broad adoption of its award-winning NVIDIA® ION™ graphics processor at the Computex tradeshow today. The new products – introduced at an NVIDIA press conference in Taipei and on display at the show – include small desktop PCs, thin and light notebooks, all-in-one PCs, and low power motherboard solutions which all deliver a full PC experience in a small, low-power system.

The new products include:
Acer Desktop AspireRevo
AsRock Desktop ION 330
ASUS Motherboard C2N7A-I
ASUS All-in-one eeeTop ET2002
Colorful Desktop iHTPC
ECS Desktop 7AT-3L
ECS All-in-one Morph-I
Flextronics All-in-one Cobra-2
Flextronics Desktop Dove-2
Funtwist Desktop FION 330
ICD All-in-one Kitchen PC
Lenovo Notebook IdeaPad S12
MSI Desktop Windbox D200
MSI All-in-one Windtop AE2201
Pegatron Desktop IPP7A-CP
Pegatron All-in-one IPP7A-DF2
Pegatron Motherboard IPX7A-ION
TCL All-in-one Ruiyi 1010
Telcast Notebook TL-1000N
Weibu Notebook N10A
Zotac Motherboard ION-ITX

See the new ION products on display at Computex at the NVIDIA partner booths in the Nankang Exhibition Hall.

The new NVIDIA ION-based PCs and platform solutions are great for high definition video, mainstream gaming, and GPU-accelerated video and photo editing applications that take advantage of NVIDIA CUDA™ technology.

ION also supports DirectX Compute as part of Microsoft’s upcoming Windows 7 operating system. DirectX Compute running on NVIDIA’s CUDA compute hardware architecture delivers a major boost for small form factor PCs because it accelerates applications like video editing that run poorly or not at all on today’s low-powered PCs. Other GPU-accelerated applications like vReveal and Badaboom let users quickly edit video and convert it for use on a portable media player like an iPod.

“NVIDIA is really shaking up the small form factor space with ION graphics,” said Rob Enderle, Principal Analyst for the Enderle Group. “Netbooks and nettops are the hottest selling items in the PC space right now, but most are severely limited. ION removes the major chunk of that performance limitation allowing PC vendors the perfect blend of design, performance, and value that drives sales in hard times.”

“Consumer interest in the Acer AspireRevo featuring NVIDIA’s ION graphics has been overwhelming,” said Gianpero Morbello, senior vice president of corporate marketing for Acer. “The Acer AspireRevo clearly demonstrates the power of ION to deliver a full and unique multimedia experience for an amazingly low price. We see strong consumer demand in this space.”

NVIDIA ION graphics processors deliver big performance from small PCs with up to 10X faster graphics than similar systems1. ION graphics support:

Windows 7 and Windows Vista Home Premium
Low-power CPUs including Intel Atom, Intel Celeron, and Via Nano processors
Outstanding 1080p HD video with true-fidelity 7.1 audio
Popular games including The Sims 3, Lego Batman, World of WarCraft, and Battlefield Heroes
DirectX 10 graphics with advanced digital display connectivity
Accelerated video enhancement and transcoding using NVIDIA® CUDA™ and DirectX Compute technology

About NVIDIA
NVIDIA (Nasdaq: NVDA) is the world leader in visual computing technologies and the inventor of the GPU, a high-performance processor which generates breathtaking, interactive graphics on workstations, personal computers, game consoles, and mobile devices. NVIDIA serves the entertainment and consumer market with its GeForce graphics products, the professional design and visualization market with its Quadro® graphics products, and the high-performance computing market with its Tesla™ computing solutions products. NVIDIA is headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif. and has offices throughout Asia, Europe, and the Americas. For more information, visit www.nvidia.com.

1 Based on 3D Mark ‘06 results on Atom 230 CPU with NVIDIA ION GPU, versus Atom 230 CPU with Intel 945 graphics.

Small enough to piggy-back onto a flat panel LCD, the Pegatron Ultra Slim Atom Nettop will nonetheless include WiFi, a PCI Express 1x interface, six USB 2.0 ports and DVI video output.  It will support high-definition audio, but still use under 22W and be fanless. 

Those specifications don’t quite match up with what we heard from the recent launch in Taipei, where the Pegatron nettop – there referred to as the “Cape 7″ - was promoted as using NVIDIA’s Ion GPU.  It also was pictured with an HDMI port, rather than DVI.  It’s possible that Pegatron have developed two versions of the nettop, but the company so far is yet to comment.

[via Notebook Italia]

MSI’s model is expected to slot into the X-Slim X340 range and is codenamed the MS-135X.  It has a 13.4-inch display and uses the Celeron 723 processor and GS40 chipset; integrated WiMAX will be an option, and shipments are expected in June.  Clevo will also use the Celeron 723 and GS40 in their two models: the W8x0V has a choice of 13.3-inch or 14-inch display, while the R130x has a 13.3-inch panel, and production will begin in August and June, respectively.

Meanwhile ECS will use the Celeron 723/GS40 pairing for its 13.3-inch ECS 130 model, hitting mass production in August, and the 1.6Ghz Core 2 Duo SU9600 and GS45 chipset in their T30, production of which kicks off in June.  Compal will have their own 13.3-inch ultraportable, codenamed NTUCO, about which little is known aside from the production schedule, which begins in September.

Pegatron have already demonstrated their CULV notebooks, the 13.3-inch DC3e, RX8 and DC2, as have Mitac with their 13.3-inch 9213 and 12-inch 9212 (which both use the SU9400 CPU and GS45 chipset).  However Mitac will follow that in June with the 13.3-inch 9223, which has the SU2700 processor and GS40 chipset.

Meanwhile, Motorola’s Calgary was tipped to be the company’s first Android device – and Verizon Wireless’ first, to boot – which made up for the manufacturer canning two other upcoming handsets.  Samsung’s Omnia HD i8910 was reviewed, and managed to whet our appetite for the rumored Omnia Pro complete with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard.  If that wasn’t enough, leaks from the Palm camp tipped the upcoming Eos, a candybar-format replacement to the aging Centro.  Remember, you can keep up with all the latest Android and Palm news at Android Community and My Pre, respectively.

Apple have made their usual rumor round this week, with word that the company have been negotiating with Verizon for an exclusive cellphone.  Hot speculation tips it as an LTE iPhone, though there’s also talk of an “iPhone Lite” and a UMPC-rivaling Apple Media Pad.  Just to keep us on the very edges of our seats, a fan mockup of the latter managed to make us forget the name and manufacturer of every Windows UMPC on the market from the past two years.

Acer’s Aspire One nettop hit review benches, and proved a mixed bag.  The NVIDIA Ion 1080p-capable GPU is every bit as impressive as we were warned to expect, but it’s let down by the single-core Intel Atom CPU they’ve paired it up with.  Not everyone is disappointed with Atom, however: this stunning Filofax MID concept is based on the low-power Intel chip, while ASRock and Pegatron have both based NVIDIA Ion nettops on the processor.

Meanwhile Acer’s Aspire One 751 11.6-inch netbook launched officially, finally including a full spec list, and Microsoft released Windows 7 RC to MSDN subscribers; the general public can expect the OS RC on May 5th, while Acer tip the full release as happening on October 23rd.  While you’re waiting for that, you can read our review of the AAXA P1 pico-projector; can you see it fitting into your life?  Our A/V expert Daniel Lim wasn’t sure.

Pegatron Cape 7 nettop photo & details after the cut

As for the Pegatron Cape 7, full specifications are unknown – including which processor the company has used – but it’s a more compact nettop than the ION 330 and closer in appearance to Acer’s machine.  Connectivity includes HDMI, ethernet and at least four USB 2.0 ports, though we’d doubt there’s room for an optical drive of any sort.

There’s no word on pricing or availability, but NVIDIA have previously claimed to have several Ion customers looking to release products using the GPU this year.  Considering early criticism of the Aspire Revo is that its Atom CPU lets down the nettop’s overall performance, the dual-core ASRock ION 330 could well prove to be the better machine.