Toshiba unwires the desktop

 

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By Simon Aughton

Posted on 26 Jul 2007 at 11:16

Toshiba has taken wireless desktop one step further with the release of a laptop that can can connect wirelessly to a nearby monitor.

The new addition to the company's R400 range of Tablet PCs is equipped with ultrawideband (UWB), a high capacity wireless technology that enables large amounts of data to be transmitted over short distances. The Portégé notebook will connect to a similarly equipped docking station, which then links physically to peripherals including a monitor, external drives and a mouse and keyboard.

But with UWB using frequencies for which it is not yet licensed in most of the world, including the UK, due to concerns over interference with other signals, the laptop will only be available in the US.

Video is sent as up to SXGA resolution, 1280x1024, supporting uncompressed video, such as home videos, music and video CDs as well as compressed content from the internet. However such is the limitation of UWB that the docking station can be no more than a metre away.

The docking station - or Toshiba Wireless UWB Port Replicator - automatically detect and connect when the Portégé R400 comes within range. It can also be configured to allow several users to share a peripheral, though not at the same time. Toshiba notes that in a conference room, for example, it could be connected to a projector or large display.