Hands on With Google Chromebook: Samsung Series 5 Chromebook
Techcrunch was lucky enough to get their hands on the upcoming “Chromebook”. Acer and Samsung will be producing the Chromebooks and here are pictures of the Samsung Series 5 Chromebook.
Archive for: Netbook
Jolicloud Reaching Final Version this Week
Jolicloud, the operating system developed originally from Ubuntu OS especially for netbooks, will reach the final 1.0 version by the end of this week, as was announced in Jolicloud blog.
The open source community as well as the non-open source really loves this operating system, mainly for the simplicity which is offered and the small footprint making very suitable for netbooks (maybe for tablets later?).
The name already says it, this operating system will be “cloud-friendly”. Here are some of the specs:
- Built in HTML5.
- Over 700 apps available for download. Including the most important ones for Gmail, Facebook, Twitter, Chrome, Skype, etc.
- Applications are installed with one click.
- Applications updates are simplified.
- Install Jolicloud on as many devices as you’d like, and they will always be automatically synchronized. Any app you download, delete, or move around will be the same on all other machines with no extra work on your part.
The download will be available from here.
Toshiba libretto W100 Challenges Apple’s iPad
Laptops are becoming so 10 years ago, netbooks are becoming so 3 years ago, tablets are now becoming a dime a dozen. Not to say that any of the aforementioned devices have reached their peak or are going away anytime soon, but it seems in the race for innovation and style, the resurgence of tablet love has grown thanks to Apple’s iPad. The world seems to be on an iPad craze, but there are still many, even amongst the supporters, that wish it did more.
Perhaps Toshiba has created that “more” device in the recently announced Toshiba libretto W100. What looks like the bizzarre love child between a Nintendo DS and a netbook, the Toshiba libretto offers a dual touchscreen interface to create an experience unlike any other. The libretto sports two 7-inch touchscreens inside a 1.5lb laptop-like form. There is no traditional keyboard, rather, the device makes use of a virtual keyboard instead, Bluetooth 2.1, and a built in webcam.
The libretto also offers viewing in both the traditional landscape mode (think traditional netbook) and portrait mode providing a variety of unique viewing experiences depending on the type of content the user is viewing. The portability factor is a huge plus considering the iPad does not fold or close, this device becomes even more appealing once it’s closed as seen in the image below.
Three New Asus Eee PCs Coming Our Way
News is spreading that the most popular netbook creator, Asus, will be launching three new Eee PC netbooks at CeBIT next week in Germany. The three new machines are said to be 10 inch screen models and have some exciting features.
For one thing, 14 hours is rumoured to be the battery life of one of the business models and will have an aluminium chassis with a brushed effect as seen above. Another model will have some premium features such as a fingerprint reader for increased security and will be the thinnest netbook Asus has ever created. USB 3.0 will also be standard on the netbooks.
Finally, matt displays and wider touchpads are the order of the day over at Asus.
I for one am becoming more and more fond of netbooks. They fill the gap between smart phone and laptop to keep us happy on the train or just act as a backup. What OS these new machines will be running is sill to be announced. More next week when we get some more information from CeBIT.
ASUS New Netbook with Multi-Touch Screen
There is no doubt that the ASUS Eee PC netbook models were some of the most important keys to get the micro computers in the daily market. Now they are innovating once more by introducing the Asus Eee PC T101MT with revolving display and multi-touch screen.
You can also be certain that the iPad impact made a few weeks ago set a new scope for computers. That’s why anything that looks like a tiny tablet will have its place in the market. And what can we say about netbooks with multi-touch screen?
This piece of hardware contains also some important features:
- Multi-Touch display with a revolving 10.1” screen.
- Intel Atom N450.
- 1GB DDR2 RAM, baseline. But with the 2GB possibility.
- 160GB HD, baseline. 320GB possibility.
- Bluetooth 2.1.
- Wireless adapter b/g/n.
- Webcam.
- VGA output.
- Card reader.
- 6.5 battery autonomy.
- Weight around 1.3kgs.
There’s nothing certain about neither the price nor a release date.
Here’s also a video where you can see it in action:
New Samsung Slate Netbook: Best Netbook On The Market
The Samsung Slate Netbook is definitely one of the best netbooks I’ve seen on the market so far for three main reasons.
The Price
It’s only $299 and that isn’t bad at all for a netbook from Samsung. Especially when you take into account what this netbook has to offer. This price is well within reach for students and home owners alike so I can see this being a popular Christmas present.
Looks
I think you already know what I’m going to say. It’s the slate blue casing isn’t it? It just looks fantastic with the white keyboard and base. It’s not shiny, rather it has a matt finish and rounded corners. Stunning.
The Specs
It has 1Gb of ram and a 1.66Ghz processor. The screen has a matt finish to avoid glare and it has a 160 Gb hard drive. Windows XP SP3 is also installed when the netbook ships. The six hour battery life may also be something that attracts you to this model.
Definitely a netbook that you should consider wrapping up and putting under the tree this year.
Not A Netbook, the Litl Is A Webbook
When I first say the Litl, I was somewhat underwhelmed, and the name alone does not lend itself to thinking of anything grand. It was not until the Litl is unboxed and set up that you start to see just how powerful this little device really is. Coming in at approximately $700 is “a mix between a netbook and a [digital] photoframe on steroids,” says the site.
While under the hood it packs the same hardware that a standard netbook would offer, it’s what you can do with it that makes this device so unique. Take for example the OS. The OS that comes packaged with this device is proprietary and completely customizable. Make it fit your mood, your style, or your event, no matter how you slice it, it’s the OS that can represent your needs. Now pair that with the fact that the screen goes beyond the 180-degree tilt and completely swivels back on itself to prop itself up.
The screen remains completely functional can can display data such as weather reports, Facebook feeds, photos from Flickr or Shutterfly, or just about anything that can run independenty while you and/or your audience can watch. If you’re looking to take your netbook to the next level and get something a bit more out of it, then I highly suggest the Litl and let us know what you think.
HP Pushing the mark with the Mini 311
Netbooks are becoming cooler by the day. I you’re going on holidays, on a journey or just need something light that can get the job done then a netbook is your best bet. However, they have their drawbacks – namely that they run an outdated OS, have bad graphics and are slow.
However, HP is looking to change all of that with their Mini 311 seen here in the picture. Basically, they have amped up the graphics and all of the other innards so that they’re approaching laptop specs (see list below). What’s more, it will soon begin to ship with Windows 7 instead of the current OS on the system – XP.
One bad bit is that you have to pay extra for a white lid and for a netbook, the price is already steep enough at the $400 mark.
Specs:
RAM: 1GB
OS: XP (soon to be Win7)
Hard Drive: 160GB
Processor: Intel 1.6GHz
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What do you think about the HP Mini 311?
Nokia to Build Netbook
Nokia has always been a company to diversify. They started out as a logging company for god’s sake and now they’re making the worlds greatest smart phones. Now, company bosses have confirmed that Nokia is currently looking into the netbook market to see if they can get a slice of the action.
The Nokia CEO said “the PC and the mobile will continue to come closer and merge.”
NetBooks are becoming increasingly popular over the past few years. People need more mobility than ever. When their smart phone doesn’t quite pack the punch they need they can take out their thin 11” netbook.
A netbook from Nokia might not be such a bad idea. I would imagine it would run windows XP given the limited computing power available on netbooks. If they were to release one, their very image as a mobile phone company would certainly rub off on a small, portable netbook.
However, I wouldn’t get my hopes up just yet until we hear back from Nokia. Many times companies have announced plans that have never bore fruit.
Jolicloud – The Netbook OS
Netbooks are taking the market by storm. While they haven’t overtaken the laptop or notebook in many areas including sales they are ideal for family environments where each person has a netbook for e-mail, internet etc… and perhaps one central computer when you need performance and reliability. Syncing and even using those net-books with a Windows OS can be annoying because the screen is small and there isn’t a lot of RAM to keep you ticking over.
This is where Jolicloud comes in. It’s a new OS designed especially for netbooks. The desktop OS is designed like the main screen of a smart-phone with large icons taking you to your main programs and websites such as Twitter, Google, RSS feeds, E-mail and Skype. This is a great feature. Think about it. On a netbook you haven’t got a lot of things that need to be done. Just basic things so you might as well have them all up on the home screen along with some great search tools and tabs.
The netbook is based around the app idea. You can run a number of apps right on the desktop even if they are web based. For example, Wikipedia and Gmail are all available to open on the desktop. Twitter and Facebook are also available for your social needs. The interactivity and smart-phone feel of Jolicloud makes it so much better than what others would have left it at.
It’s also very easy to install and is designed to be installed on Netbooks with limited performance capabilities. The layout and the themes look great. Its basic but has great colours and is finished nicely. All in all, this is a great OS filled a gap in the market and I’m sure that many will flock to it. 8/10
