Lenovo Smart Phone K800 with Intel inside: first-look review

Wednesday, January 11th, 2012

I’ll get one thing out of the way immediately: this is a blisteringly fast phone. Using it reminded me of moving from Windows Vista to Windows 7: everything just snaps into place, with no judder and no hesitation.

You might ask, “so what?” And that’s a fair argument. I’ve never heard an iPhone 4 owner moan about the speed of the interface, or anyone who’s bought a recent Android phone for that matter.

But there is something psychologically satisfying about using a phone that jumps in response to commands; going back to my usual phone afterwards, things seemed to be in slow motion.

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It takes more than a new processor to fix the Windows tablet

Thursday, July 7th, 2011

Intel’s “Oak Trail” Atom processor refresh has finally arrived, claiming to reduce heat and power consumption enough to power the next wave of tablets. On those promises it appears to deliver, with the Motion CL900 lasting almost eight hours on one charge – despite the bloat of Windows 7.

But if tablet manufacturers think this is the turning point for the Windows tablet – which, judging by the press releases arriving in my inbox, they do – they’re missing the mark by a mile. Yes, Oak Trail lowers the TDP to 3W to better suit handheld devices. But in doing so it takes a step backwards. (more…)

ViewSonic ViewPad tablets review: first look

Thursday, September 2nd, 2010

With many of IFA’s halls still resembling something more akin to a building site than a cutting-edge technology show, we were surprised to find that ViewSonic’s stand was already up and running. And, to a chorus of heart-stopping crashes and bangs from the grumpy Germanic workmen nearby, ViewSonic gave us a hands-on look at its latest 7in and 10in ViewPad Tablets.

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All eyes on Nvidia as GTC kicks off

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

After last week’s Intel Developer Forum, it’s now Nvidia’s turn. Later on today the company will open its three-day GPU Technology Conference in San Jose – a more formal affair than last year’s flashy “Nvision” expo, but still a high-profile international event, and one which yours truly is lucky enough to be attending.

(The picture, in case you’re wondering, is a strange engine-type affair that’s been set up at the entrance to the delegates’ hotel, apparently to welcome us as we arrive. I guess that’s how they communicate with one another down here in the Valley.) (more…)

Nvidia Ion netbooks: first look

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

The first Ion-based netbooks are beginning to trickle in, so yesterday Nvidia took the opportunity to introduce the technology to us formally. And if there was any doubt as to the focus of the demo, it was quickly made clear by the presence of a gigantic 1080p Sharp Aquos TV with a tiny netbook attached.

The netbook in question was HP’s Mini 311, announced today, and it offers a very similar core spec to others we’ve already seen from the likes of Samsung. The usual 1.6GHz Atom N270 and 2GB of RAM are joined by an 11.6in 1,366 x 768 LED screen and that shiny new Nvidia Ion GPU, which also allows manufacturers to include an HDMI port for hooking up to an HD TV. The Mini 311 is pencilled in for a £349 launch price, which is actually a rather competitive price for its size and spec. (more…)

Hands on with Nvidia Tegra

Friday, June 19th, 2009

Nvidia’s Tegra was first introduced in June 2008, touted as a “computer on a chip” that would saunter into numerous types of device – most notably MIDs – and beat Intel’s Atom at its own game. It’s been all quiet on the Tegra front since, but we’ve finally had the chance to go hands on with Nvidia’s exciting new technology.

The ARM11 core (which is also used in the Zune, several Nokia phones and the HTC Dream) is the main processor but, for tasks that have specialist demands, several other chips are included: a GPU handles gaming and 3D tasks, an audio unit is optimised for mp3 and radio playback, a 2D graphics chip can handle a camera.

Separate chips tackle video encoding and decoding, with Nvidia promising the ability to encode and decode 720p video simultaneously. The board also houses flash and system memory, which are the larger chips towards the bottom of the PCB.

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First look: the 370g nettop PC

Tuesday, June 16th, 2009

Almost a year ago I blogged about a tiny PC, the Space Cube, which had landed in the PC Pro Labs and got quite a bit of attention – but, while that machine was undeniably impressive, its usefulness was limited to those who happened to own space shuttles and were familiar with its obscure version of Red Hat.

The latest miniscule computer to turn up, though, is far more practical for those who don’t engage in interstellar travel. The Anders Fit-PC2 may only be 27mm tall and weigh just 370g, but it’s a fully-fledged nettop with an Intel Atom processor lurking inside its tiny frame.

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First look: Dell Mini 10

Friday, April 17th, 2009

The Dell Mini 10 hasn’t had the smoothest of births thanks to grocery juggernaut Tesco, which accidentally revealed its existence before the machine could be officially launched. We haven’t yet been able to get our hands on Dell’s latest netbook until this morning, though, when one arrived in the Labs.

First impressions are good, with the Mini 10 oozing class: the screen sits flush with the wide bezel, the red lid looks inviting and classy rather than garish, and the lack of chrome around the rest of the case, aside from the small power button, leaves the Dell looking more mature than most netbooks.

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Just in: Lenovo’s netbook – the IdeaPad S10e

Friday, December 19th, 2008

It’s been a long time coming, but Lenovo’s entry into the netbook fray, the IdeaPad S10e, has finally landed in PC Pro’s labs.

As the name suggests it’s a 10in netbook and – yes, you guessed it – it’s got an Intel Atom N270 inside and 1GB of RAM. So far, so very, very familiar.  

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MSI’s new-look Wind U120 – now with integrated 3G

Thursday, October 9th, 2008

MSI’s Wind U100 has earned quite a few admirers in PC Pro’s offices, but if there’s one thing lacking from it and all the current crop of netbooks, it’s integrated 3G. 

Right on cue, MSI have just sent us a few shots of their forthcoming Wind U120, which will be officially launching in January. Draft-N and HSDPA 3.5G will be integrated as standard, and we presume the rest of the specification will be the usual netbook fare. So you can expect an Atom N270 processor, 1 or 2 gigabytes  of memory and probably a 120GB hard drive as a bare minimum given MSI’s propensity towards mechanical disk drives in their notebooks. We have a gut feeling that it might even be the first netbook in the range to sport Intel’s forthcoming N330 Dual-Core Atom processor.

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