Samsung confirms slate PC in the works
Well, the details are extremely thin here folks, but it looks like Samsung’s working on a tablet PC — or ’slate’ if you’re into the new fangled lingo — just like pretty much every other manufacturer on the planet. Speaking with APC (the website, not the clothier), Philip Newton, director of Samsung Australia’s IT division, said that the company is working on a slate PC for the second half of 2010 that will have “PC-grade processing power and connectivity” — two things Newton had previously cited as the main things lacking in the iPad. That’s really all there is to go on — no specs or features mentioned, though Samsung has been vaguely hinting that the tablet, when it appears, will run on Intel’s Atom platform, which sounds about right. We’ll have to wait and see, won’t we?
Samsung confirms slate PC in the works originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink 
JKK Mobile | 
APC | Email this | Comments
Homegrown Wacom Cintiq LCD tablet comes to life through prefab DIY enclosure
Dropped a stack of change on a premium Wacom drawing tablet, only to find yourself with Cintiq envy? Got an old laptop handy? If so, odds are good that you’ve occasionally (or persistently, for that matter) thought about hacking together an LCD tablet of your very own. Problem is, the mods we’ve seen require some serious shop time — building a custom enclosure isn’t for the lighthearted, you know? But if you’re in possession of a sizable Wacom Intuos and roughly $220 of post-tax cheddar, TabletMod.com has a purpose-built, laser-cut acrylic enclosure with your name on it. You’ll still need an LCD controller kit and CCFL extenders, and there’s still a chance you’ll be paying more for the whole kit and caboodle than if you just got a low-end $1,000 Cintiq 12WX to begin with — but if you’ve already got half the parts lying around (or you’re just dying to scratch another DIY itch), this project might be worth your while. Cheapskates like us, however, will continue to wait for the Bamboo variety, though you can certainly dabble in the source link if you’re scouting some instructional videos.
Homegrown Wacom Cintiq LCD tablet comes to life through prefab DIY enclosure originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Mar 2010 02:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink Hack A Day | Ponoko, TabletMod.com | Email this | Comments
ASUS T101MT gets the quick and dirty video review treatment
We’ve already witnessed ASUS’ netvertible undergo some hands-on testing, but the units inspected up until now have all been pre-production devices. Well, finally a retail T101MT has made its way out to online scribes and we’ve got the first video review for your delectation. We’re told that the machine is still pretty thick and a tiny bit too heavy to comfortably hold in one hand for long periods of time, but also that the previous touchscreen issues have been rectified — it is now “responsive and precise.” The general theme is that you shouldn’t expect too much out of it, particularly since a 480p YouTube clip gobbled up 95% of the T101MT’s CPU cycles and still provided only a choppy picture, but if your ambitions are sufficiently moderate, ASUS’ latest could prove a versatile little machine. Video awaits after the break and a summary review can be found at the source.
Update: The YouTube video played was a stop-motion animation running at 5fps and therefore shouldn’t be considered representative of the T101MT’s video performance. What should be taken as representative is the fact that it maxed out the CPU.
Continue reading ASUS T101MT gets the quick and dirty video review treatment
ASUS T101MT gets the quick and dirty video review treatment originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Mar 2010 08:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Dead iPad battery? Never mind replacing it, Apple just sends another iPad for $99
Whoa, Nelly! Isn’t this something? Apple has just posted details on its iPad battery replacement service, which is really not a battery replacement service at all. Check out the company’s opening line:
“If your iPad requires service due to the battery’s diminished ability to hold an electrical charge, Apple will replace your iPad for a service fee.”
Now, let’s compare that to the verbiage found in the iPhone’s battery replacement program details:
“If your iPhone requires service only because the battery’s ability to hold an electrical charge has diminished, Apple will service your iPhone for a service fee.”
We can see the puzzled look on your face from here, and we’re sharing in the same disbelief. Apple is actually saying that it won’t bother cracking open your withered iPad, replacing the battery and sending it back your way; instead, you’ll pay $105.95 (including shipping) for a completely different iPad, which certainly has its pros and cons. On one hand, you’re getting a new (or potentially refurbished, actually) iPad in around “one week,” but on the other, you’ll be waving goodbye to every morsel of personal data on the device that you send in — unless you backup beforehand, of course. Here’s Apple’s take on answering “will the data on my iPad be preserved?”
“No. You will receive a replacement iPad that will not contain any of your personal data. Before you submit your iPad for service, it is important to sync your iPad with iTunes to back up your contacts, calendars, email account settings, bookmarks, apps, etc. Apple is not responsible for the loss of information when servicing your iPad.”
Lovely, don’tcha think? Head on past the break for the full text.
[Thanks, David]
Continue reading Dead iPad battery? Never mind replacing it, Apple just sends another iPad for $99
Dead iPad battery? Never mind replacing it, Apple just sends another iPad for $99 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 13 Mar 2010 13:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Apple | Email this | Comments
Toshiba will have its own family of slates by this time next year
Before the iPad and before the Slate, the most exciting touchy tablety thing in our lives was Toshiba’s JournE multimedia tablet. Now that the Japanese compu-maker has seen what the competition has on offer, it’s proudly proclaimed itself back in the running with an entire family of slate devices it’s planning to introduce near the end of 2010 or in early 2011. “It has proved to be a mistake to underestimate these new categories” is the word from Toshiba’s Jeff Barney, which indicates that not even he sees that much potential in the form factor, but his company is pushing ahead with its plans for fear of being left behind. Also quoted in the Fortune piece is ASUS’ inimitable Jonney Shih, who makes sure to remind us that without multitasking, Flash support, or a webcam for videoconferencing, the iPad leaves plenty of room for devices richer in features to grab market share. All we know for certain is that the major players are falling in line to make 2010 truly the year of tablet — whether or not consumers will place their stamp of approval on this vendor-driven craze, though, remains to be seen.
Toshiba will have its own family of slates by this time next year originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Mar 2010 06:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Computing pioneer Chuck Thacker wins Turing Award
Chuck Thacker may not be quite the same household name as some other computing pioneers, but it’s pretty hard to overstate the influence he’s had on the industry, a feat for which he’s now be honored with the A.M. Turing Award — widely considered to be the “Nobel prize of computing.” While Thacker is now a “Technical Fellow” at Microsoft, he first made a name for himself at Xerox PARC, where he not only helped design and realize the very first modern computer, the Alto, but co-invented Ethernet, and contributed to a range of other projects that have had a lasting impact on computing to this day. Later, while at Microsoft Reseach, Thacker oversaw the design of the very first Tablet PC prototypes, and he continues to lead up a computer-architecture group at the company and be involved with various research efforts. Of course, that’s only scratching the surface — hit up the links below for a more complete background of the man’s work, and head on past the break for a short video put together for the occasion by Microsoft.
Continue reading Computing pioneer Chuck Thacker wins Turing Award
Computing pioneer Chuck Thacker wins Turing Award originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink The Register | Microsoft, ACM | Email this | Comments
Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t review
Who says you have to pick between a netbook and the coming onslaught of standalone tablet devices? Okay maybe some (eh hem Apple), but Lenovo’s trying to have it both ways with the IdeaPad U1 and the S10-3t. In clamshell mode the S10-3t looks like any old 10-inch netbook, but swivel around its capacitive mulitouch display and it turns into that slate device you’ve been dreaming of. That’s not all: the S10-3t is one of the first netbooks (or netveritbles) that has the new Intel 1.83GHz Atom N470 processor. But can the S10-3t straddle both worlds and do it well? And perhaps more importantly, is it worth the premium $649 price tag? That’s the question we’ve been asking ourselves for the last few days, so hit the break for some answers in our full review.
Gallery: Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t review
Continue reading Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t review
Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t review originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 10:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | Comments