Dell’s Adamo XPS is certainly a striking piece of tech – any notebook that thin is going to grab our attention, and that’s before you add in a spytastic touch-strip to open it – but it turns out the company had even more ambitious plans initially. PC World managed to score some time with some of Dell’s Adamo XPS prototypes, including versions with multitouch LCD trackpads and even a zero-profile touchscreen keyboard.
According to ASUS UK, the company’s upcoming Eee PC 1201N complete with NVIDIA Ion graphics will be arriving in stores come December. Speaking to Electricpig, the company confirmed that the 12-inch Ion machine was imminent, but are yet to define the actual specifications. Meanwhile, ASUS’ first Smartbook has apparently been delayed according to a market specialist at the company, and is now not expected until Q2 2010.
We’ve seen it teased and we’ve seen the first photos, but today Dell is finally giving us the skinny (pun intended) on the thinnest notebook ever – the Dell Adamo XPS. The 9.99 mm thin notebook, which will be shipping in time for the holidays, will inevitably be compared to Apple’s Macbook Air and no doubt it is thinner, but the starting $1,800 price tag won’t make it cheaper.
After the cut: Dell Adamo XPS hands-on impressions, gallery, and video
Gigabyte have always thought a little different with their ultraportables, and their latest model is no different. The Gigabyte Booktop M1305, like the Booktop M1022 we reviewed back in June, comes with a desktop docking station; however, the M1305 is a 13.3-inch 1,366 x 768 machine and uses Intel’s CULV processors, rather than the paltry Atom N270, and squeezes an NVIDIA GeForce GT220 GPU with 1GB of DDR3 memory into the dock for improved graphics performance.
The Sony VAIO X super-slim ultraportable may be on sale in the US, but units actually reaching customers hands are still in short supply. That’s why we turn to Germany for our unboxing edification, with NewGadgets.de doing the honors in stripping the half-inch thick notebook from its bulky packaging.
Video unboxing after the cut
MSI have outed their latest ultraportable, and it comes as a pleasant surprise to find a chip other than Intel’s Atom under the hood. The MSI Wind U230 squeezes AMD’s 1.6GHz Neo X2 MV40 processor into a 12.1-inch 1366 x 768 chassis with AMD Radeon HD3200 graphics, up to 4GB of RAM and a choice of 160GB, 250GB or 320GB hard-drives.
Leading computer manufacturers along with Intel and Microsoft have inadvertently created a monster. And like Frankenstein, it is a monster they’d like to destroy. Although the industry’s hot-selling brainchild is physically quite small –perhaps more analogous to a gremlin in scale— with its small 10-inch screen, underpowered Intel Atom processor, cheaper version of Windows and under $400 price, netbooks are devouring corporate profit margins.
Lenovo’s latest IdeaPad ultraportable has finally got the official nod from the company’s Japanese arm. Yet to show up on the company’s US site, the Lenovo IdeaPad U150 has an 11.6-inch 1,366 x 768 glossy display, 1.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo SU2300 processor, 2GB of DDR3 memory (8GB max) and a 250GB hard-drive; there’s no 3G option, at least not in Japan, but you do get WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR and gigabit ethernet.
We’ve looked at other reviews of Sony’s VAIO X ultraportable, but while they’ve waxed lyrical over the notebook’s styling we’ve yet to see the hard performance stats that the X’s frequent-flyer target audience will demand. Thankfully LaptopMag’s review covers not just processor benchmarking but battery testing, pitting Sony’s claims of “a full day’s use” against a harsh, stopwatch-toting reality.
Acer have pushed a few new notebooks and thin-&-lights out of the door this past week, but their Italian arm have been saving something a little more special. The Acer Aspire 1820PT Timeline is an 11.6-inch convertible touchscreen ultraportable, packing a 16:9 1366 x 768 multitouch display, 1.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo SU7300 processor and optional integrated 3G. NetbookItalia grabbed some hands-on time, and the 1820PT Timeline certainly looks
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