Viliv last showed new products back at CES 2011, where it brought two Android tablets – the X7 and X10 – along with a Windows slate, the X70. Subsequent to that, the company was a no-show at the traditionally tablet-centric Computex 2011 last month.

According to Viliv’s Korean site, the company is on its summer holiday at present and that explains the service center being closed; the department is supposedly due to reopen in early August. However, Viliv’s US support line has been disconnected, according to the prerecorded message.

Viliv follows fellow ultramobile innovator OQO in finding that its well-reviewed devices failed to gain traction amid consumers. Long before Apple introduced the iPad, Viliv and others were pushing their own tablet devices but, whether for reasons of pricing, performance or ecosystem shortcomings, they struggled to break out of their niche markets.

The image you see above is the scan from that print brochure. The Windows OS puts this more into the UMPC category than a normal smartphone. The device measures in at 125mm H x 61mm W x 19.8mm D and it has a 4-inch screen with a resolution of 1024 x 600. The processor inside the smartphone is an Intel Atom Z600 at 1.2GHz and the GPU on the smartphone is an Intel 600 GMA with Direct X 9.0.

Storage of the device is to a 32GB SSD, and it will accept microSD cards with up to 32GB. The main camera on the device is a 5.1MP unit with what is presumably a front camera with 1.7MP resolution. It will operate on GSM, FOMA/3G networks, and it has WiFi and Bluetooth as well. Other features include a micro USB port, audio jack, proximity sensor, light, A-GPS, and more. Its battery will last 350 hours in standby on phone mode and 1.6 to 2 hours in Windows 7 mode. Pricing and availability are unknown.

[via Pocketables]

In fact, while a smartphone might seem the obvious comparison, the OSC1 is more akin to a netbook. We obviously didn’t have the opportunity to check whether Intel’s latest-gen 1.5GHz processor lives up to their power claims, but we’re hearing 4-5hrs mentioned as a realistic estimate.

In use, it’s surprisingly fast even in this beta hardware/software stage. The capacitive touchscreen is responsive, and OCOSMOS’ custom UI is relatively basic compared to some we’ve seen, but still sufficient to turn the 5-inch 1024 x 600 display into a more finger-friendly proposition. It’s flanked by two multi-function directional pads, which can be programmed not only to user need but to change key assignment depending on what app is running. If you’re gaming on the OSC1 TC, for instance, they can be directional controls and trigger buttons – there are shoulder buttons as well – but in the browser they can navigate through pages and handle bookmarks.

Pricing will be the tricky point, and OCOSMOS are tight-lipped on what exactly the OSC1 TC will cost when it arrives roughly midway through 2011. We’ve got video of the OCOSMOS OSC1 TC running, and will add it in as soon as it’s processed.

That’s thanks to a separate 400MHz GPU with HD decoding, though we can’t imagine the OSC1 will be happy with more recent, high-profile gaming titles. There’s also WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, and a pair of cameras: 5-megapixels on the back, and 1.3-megapixels on the front.

More specs here, but we’re yet to be convinced that Windows 7 is the right OS to choose for a device of this size. Previously a Q1 2011 launch has been suggested, though as we saw with OQO, the premium MID/UMPC market is a tricky one to crack.

It wouldn’t be Samsung’s first Windows tablet device. The company was instrumental in Microsoft’s UMPC project, putting out the first device – the Samsung Q1 – as well as a subsequent version with a QWERTY thumb-board flanking the touchscreen, the Samsung Q1U.

According to the sources, Samsung is targeting a release in March or April of 2011. It’s unclear whether the keyboard would be intended for use while physically holding up the tablet, since the width involved with a 10-inch slate is going to make it pretty unsuitable for thumb-typing.

[via NewLaunches]

There are also dual cameras – 5-megapixels on the back, 1.3-megapixels on the front – and a QWERTY keyboard revealed when you slide the display up. Connectivity includes HDMI, USB 2.0 (with host support), a 3.5mm headphone socket and a microSD card slot to augment the 32GB internal SSD. The whole thing measures in at 174 x 83.4 x 15.9 mm.

Ocosmos apparently reckons the OSC1 will manage 10hrs of runtime from a full charge, though UMPC Portal expects that to be more like 3hrs with a regular battery or 5-7hrs if they fit a significantly larger power pack. The company is targeting a Q1 2011 launch and thinks AT&T or Korea Telecoms would be ideal carrier partners, but aren’t saying anything on pricing.

[via UMPC Portal]

It’s the handiwork of Anh from Micro PC Talk, and it’s certainly not as straightforward as upgrading your average desktop.  For a start, replacing the stock 1.2GHz Core Solo CPU with a 1.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo U7700 required reballing the new processors pins, and then in order to connect up all the various internal peripherals a tiny USB hub needed to be crafted.

Externally the UX looks just like it always did, which means you get a 4.5-inch 1024 x 600 touchscreen, slide-out QWERTY keyboard and WiFi b/g, only now Anh can use it to watch TV while on the move, hook up to 3G mobile data and more.  No word on what the new components have done to battery life, however.

For instance, as well as the standard 2,600 mAh removable battery – which is apparently good for 3-4hrs of use – Eking have fitted a second, internal power pack.  That makes the M5 hot-swappable, so you can quickly replace the dead battery with a new one without having to first shut the system down.

The display – which uses a Sharp panel – also gets praise, being bright, clear and, at 1024 x 600, high resolution for its compact dimensions; we criticized the PsiXpda for having a mere WVGA screen of the same size.  Unfortunately Eking used a resistive touch panel, and it sounds like performance and build quality aren’t much to write home about.  If you simply must have a keyboard then there are easier ways to do it, sadly.

Thanks to a UMPC Portal forum member, they just happened to find themselves at the official Chinese version of the OQO website, and, low and behold, there was a UMPC right there, staring at them. With some digging, and plenty of translation, that UMPC is actually known as the Model03, and yes, it apparently exists. However, there’s no mention of a release date. Though, there is plenty more to look at, with the included spec sheet.

The Model 03 will pack in Windows 7, a 2GHz Intel Atom Z550 processor, and a 4.8-inch LCD touchscreen. There’s also a 128GB SSD tucked away inside. The display is also multitouch enabled, which is great news. There’s also that slide-out full QWERTY keyboard. Unfortunately, there isn’t much else to go on here. What’s been figured out so far, is that while the US-based arm of OQO closed their doors, it looks like the Chinese arm went into hibernation, and it is now just coming out of hiding. Now, something else to take away is the price listed in that spec sheet. At 31,888 yuan, that’s about $4,700. So, obviously the Model 03 is still meant for those who really, really love UMPCs. Anyone out there intested?

[via UMPC Portal]

Update: According to the official OQO site (which is still showing the old, defunct Model 2+), this new Audiotone unit isn’t legit.  ”We did not sell out to Audiotone. Anything by them is a Clone” the message reads.

Update 2: Apparently the update was a hack to the OQO site; the message has since been removed.

The display slides and tilts away to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard, but there are plenty of bezel controls for using it while closed.  Despite the Windows XP screenshots it’s tipped to run Windows 7, and there’s at front-facing webcam for video calls and talk of a rear-facing camera for photography.

EKING may not be a household name, but products under the brand have seen releases in various markets across the world; the EKING S515 shipped as the PsiXpda, for instance.  No word on release dates or estimated pricing at this stage.

[via Pocketables]

It’s a decent selection, and reviewers have generally been positive about the Viliv line-up.  One of the more frequently repeated criticisms of tablet PCs, MIDs and UMPCs is that, since they never reached mainstream retail, would-be users never knew what they were missing out on.  With prices kicking off at $549 for the S5 (the X70EX starts at $879 and the S7 at $579) it’s not going to be an impulse purchase, perhaps, but the touchscreen functionality might sway a few people who were previously considering a netbook.

[via jkOnTheRun]

That’s because Mio are definitely looking at MID functionality to save them; the Moov V780 has a capacitive touchscreen, WiFi b/g and optional 3.5G and WiMAX connectivity, together with a mini USB 2.0 port and MicroSD reader.  It also has an external TV antenna input, for use with the optional DVB-T, TDMB or 1-Seg tuner.

Onboard storage is between 4Gb and 8GB, and there’s a 600MHz processor (type unknown) and 512MB of RAM; apparently that’s good enough for outputting HD video.  Mio will also offer you a snap-on QWERTY keyboard accessory, along with the usual in-car mounts, and you can use their Mio Spirit route guidance system just as you would on a dedicated PND.

OS is Windows CE 6.0 with Mio’s 3D UI sitting on top, and there’s a full run-down of specs and supported media codecs in the gallery below.  No word on pricing; hopefully we’ll find that out when the Moov V780 officially launches at CeBIT 2010 this week.

[via Best Tablet Review - thanks Andy!]

As for the specifications of the slightly iPhone-styled device, the Paddle uses the same Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz processor as the Pad together with a choice of 160GB, 250GB or 320GB traditional hard-drive or 16GB or 32GB of SSD storage.  There’s also a webcam and microphone, together with integrated WiFi and 3G; eviGroup have also added an external antenna connection, which while initially solely for extended WiFi range will – at some future point – be used for DTT digital television reception.

OS is Windows 7 or XP Home Edition, and Scale runs on top as an application; there’s talk of an SDK for developers, and existing Pad owners should be able to download it separately as well.  Pricing of the multitouch slate is expected to kick off at €699 ($952) for the “basic” version – no word on what exactly the specifications of that are – when it goes on sale in Q2 2010.

The hardware specifications look a little underwhelming, until you remind yourself of the scale of the PsiXpda itself. An Intel Atom Z510 1.1GHz processor is paired with 1GB of RAM and a 4.8-inch 800 x 480 WVGA resistive touchscreen; storage is a 16GB SSD and connectivity includes WiFi b/g, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, two USB 2.0 ports (one of which is a mini USB) and optional 3G via a readily-accessed miniPCI card under a panel on the bottom. There’s also a microSD card slot (labeled TransFlash), a 2.5mm headphones/headset socket and a proprietary port for a docking station (that doesn’t currently seem to be available from PsiXpda).

PsiXpda unboxing video:

The whole thing measures in at 174 x 84 x 25 mm and tips the scales at 430g, a fair chunk of which is the 1,850 mAh battery that slots into side of the UMPC. Most distinctive of the form-factor is the PsiXpda’s slide-and-tilt display; it’s a little like an HTC Touch Pro2, though obviously larger. The display is flanked by a VGA webcam and left/right mouse buttons on the left side and brightness buttons plus a trackpad on the right side, and there are LED indicators for battery and HDD activity just above. On the top edge there are two buttons, one for power and another to temporarily turn off the display, handy for saving power but keeping the UMPC ready for instant use.

Touch-typists aren’t going to be won over by the PsiXpda’s backlit QWERTY keyboard, but it’s sufficient for casual use. It measures 155 mm across, with each key a roughly 11 x 10 mm rectangle; travel is minimal and it’s a reasonably loud, clicky ‘board. We like the broad spacebar (35 mm across) but some may be frustrated by the absence of a right-side shift key and the offset cursor key layout. Various functions can be triggered with an Fn modifier, including page-up and -down, volume, brightness, wireless on/off and the traditional Function keys; more useful, perhaps, is being able to manually rotate the display for a longer, narrower portrait view that’s great for reading news site columns. Unfortunately there’s no accelerometer to automatically flip the orientation, and the required key presses themselves are unmarked.

The standard OS is Windows XP Pro (while PsiXpda encourage owners to load up different platforms, and will supply whatever hardware drivers they have available, in a worst-case scenario they’ll always instruct people to restore to the regular XP build) and it copes reasonably well with the low-power hardware. Geekbench benchmarking results are, unsurprisingly, on the low end of the scale: an overall score of 440 puts the PsiXpda at just half what a basic, Atom N270 netbook can muster. In day to day use the UMPC is fine for browsing with a few tabs open, perhaps playing music in the background, but falls short of smooth 720p video playback. We also noticed some pauses and brief freezes, though we’re yet to see the PsiXpda freeze altogether.

Unfortunately, one of the biggest usability issues comes from the display. While it’s reasonably bright and crisp, the 800 x 480 resolution is particularly low, even for a netbook. When you consider many smartphones run at WVGA (and in fact the Motorola DROID throws in a few extra pixels, despite having a smaller, 3.7-inch panel) the PsiXpda makes a serious compromise. We could probably cope with extra scrolling if it wasn’t for two significant bug-bears: Windows XP doesn’t handle WVGA well, and often puts OK and Cancel buttons off-screen, and there’s no F11 button for easily flipping into and out of full-screen mode in apps like the browser. It’s possible to force the display into interpolated 1024 x 768 resolution, using a system tray Intel app, but what you roughly gain in on-screen detail you lose in clarity.  A tiny, pull-out stylus lurks in a silo on the side, but it’s too narrow for comfortable use; we’re also disappointed that PsiXpda didn’t load up Windows XP Tablet Edition, which adds handwriting and voice recognition; instead you’re limited to the standard onscreen QWERTY keyboard if you don’t want to slide the UMPC open.

Windows XP handled connecting via WiFi b/g with no problems, though we had to do a little groundwork before we could use the 3G modem. PsiXpda fitted an Huawei EM730 HSDPA module – they have other options, depending on the choice of networks where you live – but we had to supply the network settings that Google turned up. There’s a list of common UK settings in the UMPC’s (downloadable) manual, but if you’re outside the country you’ll have to supply your own. Flipping on 3G is then a matter of using the preloaded Huawei app, which can also send and receive SMS messages and make voice calls (either using the onboard microphone and speaker, or with a hands-free kit).

Battery life is the bug-bear of any ultraportable device, and PsiXpda are being upfront about their UMPC’s limitations. The official claim is up to 4hrs runtime, wireless shut off, dropping to around 2.5hrs if you’re browsing over WiFi, and we found those figures to be broadly accurate. That’s obviously nowhere near all-day longevity, but with judicious use of the screen shut-off button and Windows XP’s standby mode it’s possible to go eke runtime out using the PsiXpda for occasional web queries and email. Happily the power adapter is reasonably compact (considering you’ll probably want to carry it all the time) and the company throw in a neoprene slip-case for the UMPC that left us a little more comfortable dropping it into a bag. Less impressive is the amount of power consumed in standby mode; left to its own devices for a day or so, in standby and with no actual use, the PsiXpda managed to suck down the majority of its charge.

If all this sounds like compromise on top of compromise, then welcome to the tablet world as it currently stands. For all we’ve critiqued, there’s also something immeasurably useful about having a full Windows computer to hand, and one which can be so easily used while standing up or without a desk in front of you. Holding the PsiXpda as you would a PSP, using the responsive trackpad with one thumb and the mouse keys with the other, makes for a nifty web-browsing experience, and the whole thing is ideally sized for thumb-typing with the screen pushed up. At such times we appreciated the soft-touch rubberised coating on the back of the UMPC, and its relatively light weight; having full access to Spotify over 3G and WiFi left us wishing for longer battery life.

PsiXpda video demo:

Like the Psion range its name coyly alludes to, the PsiXpda UMPC is a niche product that suffers from broad comparisons to the rest of the ultraportable market. Netbooks are, obviously, cheaper and faster, with more eye-friendly displays and bigger keyboards, but they don’t perform quite so well at true mobile use – standing in line at the store, browsing while walking (always making sure to keep an eye out for lampposts and open manholes, naturally). Problem is, today’s smartphones do an increasingly good job at delivering the desktop internet experience while in just that sort of mobile situation, and couple it with longer battery life too.

We’re not sure how many units PsiXpda need to sell in order to make good on their investment; the company has told us it’s a sensible number, and they’re not fooling themselves into believing this UMPC will change the world. They’re already thinking of version 2.0, too, which will hopefully address such shortcomings as the undersized headphone socket. This isn’t the UMPC to push the form-factor into the mainstream, but it’s a welcome addition to a segment that lacks native vendors rather than imports and eBay. Perhaps the next-gen model will be better suited to a broader audience, but at £499.95 ($821) the PsiXpda has a few too many compromises to be appealing to all but the UMPC-faithful.

The suspect section is called “Using the System as a Tablet”, and the guide explains to first open the display to 90-degrees from the keyboard.  However it then pretty much cuts off before mentioning any form of rotation.

Of course, those instructions are very similar to the instructions Fujitsu used to give for the U820/U810 UMPCs, both of which had rotating displays, and so it’s possible that the copywriter responsible for the UH900 manual was lazy in their cribbing from older versions.  Still, we’d not be surprised if Fujitsu launched a convertible version of the UH900 at some point in the not-too-distant future.

Instead, it seems that not only have consumers begun to finally figure out what they might use a tablet for (dare I say the iSlate hardware lust may have prompted some frantic justification as to why a tablet might be an “essential” addition to any Apple-fan’s armoury) but the hardware available has caught up to what’s being asked of it. Chips such as Qualcomm’s Snapdragon, Freescale’s i.MX515 and NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 use frugal ARM processors to balance strong multimedia performance with lengthy battery life, while capacitive touchscreens have proven their worth and even transitioned – if not known by their technical name but in terms of “just like the iPhone’s display” – to mainstream consumers. Equally important, we’re finally seeing maturity in core display technology; after AMOLED failed to provide the instant, low-cost, power-sipping boost to the sort of large panels you need for tablet, we’ve got Pixel Qi‘s excellent dual-mode display and alternatives such as Qualcomm’s mirasol headed to market later this year.

Recession or not, manufacturers made ample use of these new technologies to grab their share of the CES pie. Pixel Qi’s display (and the Android OS) was used to great effect in the Notion Ink Adam, while Freescale came up with a low-cost tablet reference design of their own. Meanwhile Lenovo hedged their bets with the distinctive IdeaPad U1 Hybrid, reminiscent of the much-loved HP Compaq tc1100, at work a regular notebook (with a regular processor) and at home a keyboard-less slate with its own, Snapdragon processor and touchscreen. Some of the growing names in tablets and MIDs – Viliv, UMID and others – brought along their new wares too, bostered by a better reception in the mainstream press and blog community than UMPCs could have ever hoped for.

On the face of it, then, it seems churlish to complain about the designs shown, but as a potential end-customer (and someone who owned a tc1100) I’m left wishing some of the final dots had been joined up. I’m talking about what sort of tablet I might spend my own money on, the kind of device that, before the review unit even goes back, I’m online buying for myself so that there’s no downtime in-between. Here’s my ideal tablet, based on the sort of technology we’ve seen over the past seven days, reckon is coming in the next 6-12 months, and takes into account some of the gaps I reckon will still trip up consumers.

I’d start things off with a form-factor in the manner of the IdeaPad U1. Lenovo’s hybrid neatly answers the question many would-be tablet buyers have – what if I need a physical keyboard? – and for my day job, however good handwriting recognition, speech transcription or on-screen keyboards get, a decent ‘board is essential. Of course we’ve had convertible tablet PCs for years, but because everything is permanently attached – albeit with a nifty swivelling hinge – the components in the keyboard section have to be lightweight enough to allow for comfortable carrying. That seems to have resulted in either low-powered components and a sluggish computing experience, or a heavier machine less suited to toting; faster CPUs guzzle more power, so need bigger batteries if you’re not to be tethered to an AC point every half-hour, and batteries add weight.

By adopting a mainstream CPU when the screen is docked in the laptop and a Snapdragon chipset when it’s slate-screen only, Lenovo have gone a long way in addressing that issue. The lingering problem I have is storage: docked, the U1 uses its capacious SSD, but the slate has a separate 16GB of its own flash. I’d be concerned that the files I wanted to access (most likely memory-heavy media) would have been left on the base section. Lenovo could pretty readily address this with a combination of some sort of intelligent sync app, cloud storage and a streaming media service like Spotify; right now, though, we don’t know exactly what happens in terms of data management.

Similarly unknown is power management. Both base and slate have their own battery – Lenovo reckon you’ll see 4-8hrs of runtime in the former mode and 4hrs in the latter – but, when you plug the IdeaPad U1 into the mains, which gets recharged first? I’m hoping Lenovo have prioritized the slate’s battery, after all there’s no point in the notebook base sitting fully charged when the separated display is left lacking.

It also seems a shame that Lenovo have picked a regular LCD display, and that’s where my next donor system steps in. Qualcomm’s mirasol panels are brilliant, if a little small right now, but equally impressive is Pixel Qi’s technology which offers a regular backlit LCD experience together with an electrophoretic reflective mode in which direct light (such as when outdoors) actually makes the display easier to view rather than harder. It’s been demonstrated on Notion Ink’s Adam tablet, one of SlashGear’s standout devices from CES 2010.

Unlike Lenovo’s U1 slate-section, Adam uses the Android OS (with a new, only partially previewed custom UI of Notion Ink’s own development) on an NVIDIA Tegra 2 chipset. Until Qualcomm’s next-gen Snapdragon chips arrive later in 2010 I’m leaning toward the Tegra 2 for my fantasy device, if only because – paired with the power-sipping Pixel Qi display – Notion Ink have managed to eke out up to a potential 160hrs of runtime from a regular 3-cell battery. Bear in mind that’s in electrophoretic, “outdoor” mode, in which the Adam is still capable of showing full color video at high frame rates. The company are positioning the Adam as a Kindle-killer, though not only for monochrome ebooks but digital magazines with embedded animation and video.

I’m greedy, though, and want my media tablet integrated with my laptop in some way. After all, what’s to say I won’t read your latest scoop while in slate mode and then want to blog about it myself? That’s why I want to be able to dock the Adam into a notebook base station, not just with a dumb QWERTY like Freescale demonstrated but a full computer with some extra grunt in case there’s video processing to be done.

Will the Apple tablet deliver all this? No, not likely. As Apple have shown with the iPhone and iPod touch, they’re all about onscreen keyboards right now, and any sort of dockable-slate they might come up with would stand too great a risk of cannibalizing the MacBook/MacBook Pro market. Judging by the ongoing rumors, Apple are focusing on media consumption – videos, music, ebooks and other digital content – rather than media production, a camp I’d like my dream-tablet to have at least one foot in. What’s right for me, though, is certainly not what every user is going to be looking for, and I’m curious to hear what SlashGear readers – some of whom I know are big tablet-addicts – might be looking for in a “perfect” device. Let us know in the comments what you’re looking for before you open your wallet.

Sony preload YouTube, Pandora, Epicurious, Crackle, Livestrong and Blip.tv apps, and there’s also a NAVTEQ app for traffic updates.  The dash can also show movie trailers from Sony’s film studio, along with a shared family calendar management app.  Bizarrely, though, there’s no battery, so wherever you use the dash you’ll have to be near an AC outlet.

Connectivity includes WiFi, a USB port – which can be used to plug in external storage or PMPs – and a headphone jack, and there’s an accelerometer for flipping between various orientations.  Interestingly, Sony have addressed the issue of multiple people in the household wanting to use the dash by allowing for various profiles each with their own presets and shortcuts.  The Sony dash will go on sale in April, priced at $199.

Press Release:

SONY’S NEW “DASHTM” PERSONAL APPLICATION VIEWER OFFERS PERSONALIZED WEB EXPERIENCE AT A GLANCE

New product provides instant access to news, weather, Internet radio and other applications

LAS VEGAS (CES Booth #14200), Jan. 6, 2010 –Sony confirmed its commitment to providing consumers with innovative networked products with the introduction of the new dash™ personal Internet viewer.

Featuring a vivid 7-inch color touch screen (measured diagonally) and access to over 1,000 free Internet apps, including news, calendars, weather, sports, social networking and more, dash utilizes an existing home wireless connection to continuously deliver Internet content to its viewers.

“In today’s connected world, Sony continues to look for ways to help enhance consumers’ entertainment experiences throughout the home” said Brennan Mullin, Sony Electronics’ senior vice president of the personal imaging and audio business. “With dash, we’re empowering consumers with a fun, interactive way to stay connected with their news, entertainment, interests and ultimately, their lives.”

By bundling favorite pieces of the Internet together, dash provides always fresh, personalized content at a glance. The new product offers free access to more than 1,000 apps from chumby industries, inc. as well as the robust audio and video content from Sony’s Bravia™ Internet video platform, including YouTube™, Pandora® Internet radio, Epicurious, Crackle, Livestrong™, Blip.tv and much more.

Other content includes a NAVTEQ® app for easily accessible traffic updates on a customized route, and a Cozi™ app for simple management and synching of family calendars. Further, Sony Music Entertainment and Sony Pictures Entertainment will be contributing exclusive dash apps for movie trailers, music videos, custom user themes and more, including an app from Dr. Oz offering daily health and exercise tips.

In addition, Sony dash can run multiple sources of content simultaneously, so for example, Internet radio can be enjoyed while browsing through online photo albums. Or, the alarm clock can be set to play selected online videos from music, sports and other news feeds. The device also allows users to choose apps either directly from the device or online through a PC, and new content for dash will continue to be added moving forward.

Within the device, an internal accelerometer supports vertical flip, allowing for two optional viewing angles: upright, ideal for a table or nightstand; and tilted, perfect for a countertop. It also supports multiple user profiles and channels, allowing several members of the household to create and maintain their own customized view of the Internet.

The dash personal Internet viewer also features built-in stereo speakers as well as a USB port for simple connection to a variety of external electronic devices. Additionally, a headphone output jack gives users the option to listen privately through headphones or through external speakers.

Sony’s dash will be available this April for about $199 at www.sonystyle.com, Sony Style® retail stores and a variety of authorized dealers nationwide.

Gruber describes it as a “cone of silence”, and it’s one that – despite talk of Apple discussing ebook and other deals with publishers – even content partners might be kept out of.  Apparently Apple goes into such meetings without prototypes, mock-ups, designs or even verbal confirmation that such a product is in the works; instead, they merely ask if the would-be partner is interested in getting involved “if we were to create a new platform”.

As for the potential functionality, Gruber reckons predictions of a Kindle rival, overgrown iPod touch or simply an HD media viewer all miss the point: the Apple iSlate (as we expect it to be called) will be all those and more.  Apple may illustrate its purpose – set its context to potential buyers, as it were – by highlighting two or three key uses, just as they did with the iPhone, but the iSlate won’t be limited to any such small subset.

That device, the unnamed sources tip, will be based on a Qualcomm chipset – potentially the 1GHz Snapdragon chip that HTC have already used in the HTC HD2, and that is expected to power Google’s upcoming Nexus One Android smartphone – and feature, unsurprisingly, a touchscreen.  It will also have “new software from Adobe”, which could be the much-anticipated Flash for Android plug-in.

Of course, the speculation then turns to the HTC tablet being an obvious competitor to the as-yet-unconfirmed Apple slate, believed to be called the iSlate and predicted to arrive – or at least see an announcement – on January 26th.  Whether or not that’s true, it looks like 2010 could be the year for Android slates; Dell are also predicted to be launching such a model at CES 2010, known as the Dell Streak.

[via Tablet PC Talk]

Updated: A second review is in, and it’s a whole lot more critical.  Check out why one Camangi Webstation pre-order customer is already looking at how he can return his device after the cut.

Other shortcomings include stuttering video playback and no access to the regular Android Market.  Instead, Camangi expect owners to use their own Camangi Marketplace, in which applications are all designed to work on the larger display and with the Webstation’s hardware; fair enough, except the actually range of apps on offer is relatively small.

The resistive touchscreen also gets criticised, though its handling of ebooks is good; similarly, media playback both through the onboard speakers and via headphones performs well.  In the end, the Webstation looks to be just as niche-satisfying as we expected it to be – and indeed any compact Android slate is likely to be; we’ll have to see how well Camangi manage their Marketplace as to whether it has any longer-term staying power.

Update: Steve Paine points to another review – this time by Tomorrowland’s Michael Smith – which is a whole lot less positive than Laptop’s.  Michael also critiques the speed and general performance of the Webstation, found that full-screen 30fps video playback was a complete no-go, was left bemused by the lackluster user guide and, in the end, describes the whole device as “about as powerful as a digital picture frame”.  In fact his suspicion is that it is, indeed, a digital picture frame with a cellphone build of Android slapped onto it, and he’s looking to get a refund.

Updated with video unboxing/hands-on after the cut

Build quality is reportedly high, impressive given the WebStation is reasonably budget for a tablet at $399.  Hardware specs included WiFi and Bluetooth, along with a 7-inch WVGA touchscreen, and Camangi have launched their own their own download store – the Camangi Market – to offer apps specifically created for the platform.

We’re holding off from final judgements until Gear Diary’s review and some real-world performance feedback.  Still, with CES fast approaching and a number of tablets – such as Notion Ink‘s – promised for the coming months, this looks to be an increasingly hectic segment.

The xpPhone runs Windows XP on an unspecified processor, and packs a full QWERTY keyboard along with a touchscreen.  ITG are offering preorders for the handheld, which can be specified with various modular radios making it suitable for various GSM 3G standards in both North America and Europe along with CDMA/EVDO and TD-SCDMA/TD-HSDPA.

It’s not entirely clear why the xpPhone has captured so much interest (relatively speaking) where other MIDs/UMPCs have failed; potentially it’s down to the company emphasising its voice-call capabilities.  Still no word on exactly how much ITG will be charging for the xpPhone, though.

ITG xpPhone video demo:

[via Pocketables]

That should pit it squarely against the ICD Ultra, a 7-inch Tegra T20-based slate expected to arrive in early 2010, along with the Notion Ink smartpad (which has a larger, 10.1-inch Pixel Qi display).  Both of those rivals use Android as their OS; so far we’ve not heard what platform ASUS might settle on for the Eee Pad.

[via Netbook News]

As the photos show, the U820 is significantly narrower than the UH900, which adds up to a smaller keyboard; the UH900′s looks positively expansive in comparison.  The UH900 is thinner, meanwhile, though the display on both devices is the same size.

Of course, while both models have a touchscreen, only the older U820 has a convertible display for use as a slate.  Whether that’s outweighed by the newer UMPC’s multitouch support is in the eye of the buyer.

The Notion Ink smartpad measures 6.3 x 9.8 x 0.6 inches and weighs 1.7lbs; as well as the triband (850/1900/2100) UMTS/HSDPA, WiFi b/g and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR it also squeezes in A-GPS, a digital compass, accelerometer and proximity, ambient light and water sensors. Connectivity includes USB, HDMI, a 3.5mm headphone jack and a microphone input, and there’s also a 3-megapixel autofocus camera with video recording support. Onboard storage is either 16GB or 32GB of SSD, and there’s an SD slot for augmenting that.

Initially – at least as it’s to be shown at CES – the smartpad will use the regular Android UI, with full gesture support. Navigation is either via the touchscreen or a trackpad, and Notion Ink have added a matte-finish anti-glare, oleophobic and scratch-resistant coating to the Pixel Qi display. Of course, the panel itself can be viewed indoors as a regular LCD, or outdoors in either transflective mode with reduced color vibrancy or fully reflective 64-level grayscale mode. Notion Ink say they’ve been developing a number of applications that should be added sometime after CES, including Office-style software, Flash-based titles and some graphics apps that include physics-based functionality. Ebook reading is also another possibility, and the company are in talks with several (unnamed) content providers.

Perhaps most importantly for a web-browsing tablet, battery life estimates are impressive. Notion Ink reckon the smartpad will be good for up to 48hrs standby on its integrated rechargeable Li-Ion battery, 8hrs of HD video playback and 16hrs of internet surfing over WiFi. It seems it’s the eight-core Tegra T20 chipset that’s primarily responsible for such longevity, though Notion Ink can’t share any more details on that SoC itself. Meanwhile media playback isn’t sacrificed, and Notion Ink have apparently played three 1080p HD videos simultaneously with only a small loss in frames.  The company is still working on optimizing the hardware, so we might see even greater runtimes and performance by the time the smartpad launches.

The big issue remaining is price, and so far we’re not sure exactly what sort of MRSP Notion Ink expect their Android Tegra tablet to command. The general consensus seems to be that a $300 price point is roughly what the market expects; however we’re not sure everything on the smartpad’s spec-sheet could be brought in for that price, at least not without carrier subsidies. We’ll update with more information when we have it, together with video.

Those unnamed sources reckon ASUS has been “inspired” by the ongoing Apple rumors, though there have been various whispers about such a device for many months now.  Cheap netbooks have become common donor-models for DIY tablet projects, and if ASUS price the Eee Pad right then they could have a reasonably nifty winner on their hands.

The filing also reveals that Fujitsu has both home and commercial sales in mind for the device.  The LifeBook is referred to as both the UH900 and U900, the “H” standing for “Home”.  Specifications of the UH900/U900 include a 5.6-inch sunlight-readable touchscreen with multitouch support, full QWERTY keyboard, 62GB SSD and an Intel Atom Z530 processor.  It measures just 20.4 x 10.65 x 2.4 cm and weighs around 500g, and is expected to launch early in the new year.

[via Gadgetmix]

He’s expecting to use the left panel for reading content – as you can see in the image above, there are shortcuts to different websites running across the bottom of the display – while taking notes on the right panel, either handwritten or pecked out on an on-screen keyboard.  Since the netbook is running Windows 7 there’s both handwriting recognition and voice recognition, and you can also flip the orientation of the two displays and use it in a more traditional notebook form-factor with touchscreen controls.

So far most of the system is functional, but it needs a dual-hinge casing and some cable work to slim everything down.  Still, we’ve a feeling pakkei will have his DIY Courier complete before there’s a whiff of the real thing on the market.  Ironically, too, Courier is tipped to have been originally inspired by another dual-screen mod, that time courtesy of Microsoft Research’s Ken Hinckley, which we wrote about all the way back in October 2008.

[via Netbooked]

First impressions are surprisingly positive, given the relatively lackluster specifications. An Atom Z510 processor – running at 1.1GHz – doesn’t exactly inspire confidence, but from a cold boot the Windows XP desktop was on-screen in around 35 seconds and usable ten seconds after. Programs load reasonably quickly – though the fan kicked in pretty much full-time when we loaded up TweetDeck, known for being somewhat system-intensive – and with the addition of the dragging add-on for Firefox we were able to browse with no problems.

PsiXpda unboxing video:

The relatively low screen resolution (for a PC) of 800 x 480 does present a few issues with onscreen dialog boxes, which sometimes can be cut off at the bottom. We’re also less than enthusiastic about the stylus, which has a very narrow barrel and only extends to a stumpy 3.25-inches. Happily the touchscreen itself seems pretty responsive, and the trackpad – which is integrated into the right-hand side of the screen bezel – works well (the left/right mouse buttons are on the left-hand side). Only the very middle keys on the full QWERTY are more than a slight stretch when thumb-typing, though there’s not a great deal of travel and the buttons are quite loud.

It’s possible to turn the WiFi/Bluetooth and 3G off independently, and with the addition of a SIM we had a connection up and running shortly after adding in the network’s APN details. The supplied WWAN connection manager also allows you to make voice calls and send messages, though the interface isn’t as friendly as a smartphone would be. Still, in a pinch you could use the PsiXpda for that.

We’ll be putting the PsiXpda UMPC through its paces over the next few days, and seeing whether there’s really a space in-between today’s capable smartphones and netbooks/notebooks for it to occupy. Until then, enjoy the unboxing video and the initial demo video below!

PsiXpda demo video:

That gets you a 7-inch WVGA touchscreen, WiFi b/g, GPS, a 624MHz Marvell PXA303 CPU and a battery apparently good for up to 4 days standby (with GPS and WiFi shut off) or 4-5hrs active use.  Since the OS is Android 1.5 there’s also the App Market for downloading new software, but you’ll get a browser, email client and media player as standard.

Availability is said to be limited, but if you order before December 16th Camangi say you should have the WebStation by the end of the year.  $399 is higher than our hoped-for target price of $300, but still seems semi-reasonable for a niche device; anybody tempted to get an order in?

[via The eBook Test]

There’s also standard WiFi b/g, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR and two USB 2.0 ports (one a mini USB), along with optional 3G – since PsiXpda will ship the UMPC around most of the globe, you can take your pick from WCDMA, EVDO or TD-SCDMA variants, which also support voice calls – while storage is an 16GB SSD.  They’re claiming two to four hours of runtime from the 1,850mAh battery, depending on wireless connectivity.  Size is 174 x 84 x 25 mm and weight is 430g, and there’s a touchpad built into the screen bezel (along with a webcam).

Eagle-eyed UMPC spotters will recognize the PsiXpda as the DigiCube MIDPhone-50, also available in China now as the Eking S515, and indeed it’s a rebadged version of that device.  Considering you’d regularly have to pay a visit to an importer (or buy directly from the manufacturer themselves, if they offer such an option) in order to buy something like this, however, we’re a little more confident about placing an order with a UK-based firm.  PsiXpda are also being upfront about the hacking potential of the UMPC, and are promising to support non-XP installs with drivers and the like as much as possible.

Of course, a niche product ends up with a niche price tag, and the PsiXpda UMPC comes in at £500 ($830).  That’s at the high end for netbook-style hardware, certainly, but we reckon they’ll find at least a few buyers (not to mention the vertical markets like healthcare).  SlashGear actually sat down with a prototype PsiXpda a few weeks ago, and the UMPC certainly has promise.  The whole thing is reasonably light, and the screen hinge felt solid despite the prototype status.  As you might expect, the QWERTY keyboard lacks travel, but it’s still large enough for comfortable pecking.

We’re expecting a review unit imminently, and will be putting the PsiXpda through its paces accordingly.  The team behind the UMPC are describing it as the spiritual successor of the Psion; we’ll let you know whether that’s the case in the full SlashGear review.

There’s also two USB 2.0 ports, 10/100 ethernet, VGA output, audio in/out, an SD card slot and stereo speakers.  Wireless connectivity includes standard WiFi b/g and optional Bluetooth and GPS.  A 1.3-megapixel webcam lurks up in the top left-hand corner, and as the image suggests you can use it in portrait or landscape mode (no word on whether there’s an accelerometer tucked inside for automatic orientation flips).

No word on runtime from the 4,800mAh battery, either, nor pricing.  If you have a need for ten of the HT560′s – that’s the minimum order amount – we’re sure Shenzhen Seed Industrial Co. would be happy to tell you some figures.

[via Gadgetmix]

There are cameras front and back – presumably for video calls and general photography, respectively – and what looks to be an optical mouse on the right-hand bezel; the mouse buttons are on the left, while there’s a scroll-wheel built into the top right-hand corner.  It’s not entirely clear how large the display is, but the current guesstimate is 6- to 7-inches.

We’re hoping that, as a brand with a pretty strong foothold in the US and Europe already, ViewSonic will have little trouble launching the N01 MID outside of China rather than leaving matters to importers.  No word on pricing as yet, nor release date.

[via Pocketables]

Two batteries are up for grabs, one with 2,800mAh and the other with 3,500mAh, for up to 4hrs runtime.  The rest of the specs are pretty much standard netbook news, with 1GB of RAM, a 160GB hard-drive, three USB 2.0 ports and a VGA port.  It’ll apparently go on sale in China for around 4,000 yuan ($586), and while it may be a little bulky at 226.3 x 166.9 x 24.7 mm and 2kg, we reckon there’d be quite a few people willing to join us down at the docks when that goodie-boat unloads.

[via Cloned in China]

Technical specs have also been finalized.  The WebStation is based on a 624MHz Marvell PXA303 CPU with 128MB of RAM and 256MB of flash NAND storage.  There’s also WiFi b/g, GPS, and support for a 3G USB modem via the regular USB 2.0 port; other ports include a mini-B USB connector, 3.5mm headphones jack and a microSD card slot (with an 8GB card in the box).  It has a 7-inch 16m color LCD resistive touchscreen running at 800 x 480, and a 4,000mAh battery good for up to 4 days standby (with GPS and WiFi shut off) or 4-5hrs active use.

OS is Android 1.5 with the usual apps, which means the WebStation works happily as an email terminal, web browser and mediaplayer.  Camangi also supply a stand for propping it up on a desk or end-table.  The whole thing measures 4.72 x 7.87 x 0.57 inches and weighs 13.75oz, and while it’ll only be available in white at first, the company plan black and pink models soon after.  The dual cameras originally vaunted seem conspicuous by their absence, however.

All of this sounds great, but it hinges on pricing.  If Camangi can bring the WebStation in at under $300 then they’ll have a real winner on their hands; under $500 and the whole thing will be a lot tougher to sell.

[via BestTabletReview]

Pricing isn’t clear from the site, but Pocketables are saying it’ll come in at around $399.  It’ll depend on how much you fancy a touchscreen internet tablet as to whether that sounds affordable or otherwise; your money gets you a Marvell 624MHz PXA303 processor, with onboard WiFi b/g, Bluetooth 2.0 and GPS.  A USB Host port should play nicely with an external keyboard and mouse, or alternatively you could slap in a 3G dongle.

There are also front and rear-facing cameras (0.3- and 2-megapixel respectively) and the battery will apparently last for between four and five hours of normal use.  We’ll believe it all when the first units begin shipping, but there’s a hopeful little spark deep inside of us that hopes Camangi can manage it.

[via Pocketables]

Instead of a 1.2GHz Core 2 Solo U2200 and 48GB SSD, the uber-UX490 has a 1.33GHz Core 2 Duo U7700 – overclocked to 1.438GHz – and a speedy RunCore Pro IV 128GB SSD.  A voice-capable HSPA modem has been squeezed inside, together with a/b/g/n WiFi.

Of course, all that hackery deserves at least four operating systems to play with, and so the UX490 now quad-boots into Windows XP Pro, Windows Vista Business, Windows 7 Ultimate and Mac OS X Leopard 10.5.7.  Best of all, battery life is pretty much unaffected, even with a more powerful CPU.  Not a mod process for the faint of heart, but an example of how far enthusiasts will go when the company themselves give up on a platform.

[via UMPC Portal]

Being based on the 1GHz Snapdragon chipset, the Mangrove is around as powerful as the Quanta Smartbook; however, and as we’ve seen with the HTC HD2 Microsoft’s smartphone platform can certainly whip along when it has that many spare CPU cycles to play with.  In use it certainly felt snappy, but we missed the HD2′s capacitive touchscreen – C-motech have used a resistive panel – and the resolution appears to still be WVGA 800 x 480 so you’re not really gaining a huge amount display-wise for the extra inches.

What you do get is a pair of USB ports which turns the Mangrove into a pretty decent netbook-alternative, plus integrated WiFi, 3G and WiMAX.  Niche is certainly our lasting impression of the C-motech slate, though we’ll need to know final pricing before we can give a final judgement.

That’s because Archos don’t expect the 8.9-inch Windows 7 UMPC to arrive in retail stores until Q1 2010, at which point it should start hitting Amazon together with Walmart and other bricks & mortar locations .  No specific reasons have been given for the delay, but it doesn’t bode well for the Archos 9′s sales success.  Intel are expected to push out their next-gen of Atom processors early in the new year, at which point the Archos slate’s 1.1GHz Atom Z515 CPU is going to look even more sluggish than it does already.

mirasol borrows the same elements that allow a butterfly’s iridescent wings to shimmer, using tiny flexible membranes that react to electrical charges, overlaid onto a mirrored surface. Light reflected back out through those membranes is refracted so that interfering wavelengths create colors, and because the membranes used are bistable, once they have been set to display a certain color they require virtually no power to maintain it, only if it needs to be changed. The system also needs no color filters, no strong backlighting to be visible in direct sunlight and no polarizing lenses.

It’s important to point out that the device you see here is merely a mock-up the mirasol team have put together, and while non-functional overall the 5.7-inch display panel is from their fab plant and an actual, working unit, its bistable pixels locked into a color image. Qualcomm are working with multiple OEMs – the names of which they wouldn’t disclose – on a variety of ebook reader devices, and while they couldn’t confirm any particular form-factors, they did say there are plans for units with and without QWERTY keyboards, together with touchscreen and non-touchscreen models.

Where mirasol shows its strength is in battery performance. A standard ebook reader – such as the Kindle – could last for roughly 20-percent longer if its monochrome e-ink display was switched for a mirasol panel, assuming the same sort of use. As the mirasol team explained, however, once you start pushing traditional e-ink panel refresh rates, up to the point you can display smooth video, and introduce color, power draw can actual go beyond that of a regular LCD display. A color e-ink video-capable Kindle would last roughly a day using the same battery; meanwhile the same unit with a mirasol panel would last around a week.

While they wouldn’t be drawn on specific figures, the mirasol displays – and the end products set to arrive from OEMs – are apparently roughly equivalent to what current e-ink panels and ebook readers cost now. Wireless connectivity is pretty much guaranteed, that’s certainly the model Qualcomm are pushing OEMs toward (and little surprise, given their wireless heritage), and while 5.7-inch panels are the current sweet spot, there’s no theoretical limit to larger displays.

There’s also no limit to the sort of devices we’ll see; if it has a display and a battery then you can use mirasol. The team there expect ebook readers to evolve into tablet-style devices, only this time with the sort of battery life the first generation of tablets lacked. With touchscreens, optional keyboards and integrated wireless connectivity, they’re betting users will more readily pick up a device they only have to charge weekly rather than every few hours. The 5.7-inch panel in the ebook reader mock-up is an ideal size for a MID or UMPC style handheld, and it’s worth noting that the runtime estimates Qualcomm have been making are based on a Kindle-style battery around 1,500mAh in size.  Smaller panels, meanwhile, could take the pain out of preview displays on digital cameras or camcorders.

As for image quality, like e-ink the mirasol panel performs best in bright lighting, though that’s not to say it’s tough to read in regular conditions. Our photos – which are of a working mirasol panel, remember – were taken in both direct natural light (on an overcast London day) and with halogen lighting, and the colors really popped. Text is crisp and readable, with the 5.7-inch panel running at XGA 1,024 x 768 resolution and around 220ppi.

Best of all, this isn’t some pipe-dream or research project. mirasol have Qualcomm as a parent company and LG as a key hardware partner, and their target of having devices ready and on sale by the end of 2010 seems eminently possible. The company recently won a Wall Street Journal prize for innovation, based on the fact that the mirasol technology is a completely fresh and unique approach to displays, rather than trying to eke color out of e-ink or ween LCD or OLED off their hefty power supplies. As they told SlashGear today, “imagine an e-reader with color and video, but no battery sacrifice”.

Update: Check out the gaming attachment here.

2.2-inch mirasol demo: