Archive for December, 2009
Acer claim to become first to launch Chrome OS Netbook!
Dec 3rd
The world’s second-largest PC maker has designs on being the first to offer a Chrome OS Netbook.
Acer Chairman J.T. Wang said in an interview with Digitimes that he’s “confident” his company will be first out of the gate with Google’s open-source operating system pre-installed. The earliest it would be available is mid-2010, according to Digitimes’ unnamed sources.
Acer was just one of several hardware makers previously announced to be working with Google on implementing Chrome OS, along with Asus, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, and Toshiba. Dell, which hasn’t committed to it fully yet, has released an experimental version of Chrome OS based on the source code that will work on the Dell Mini 10v Netbook, though it’s not an official product.
Though Wang didn’t offer details or specifications for Acer’s Chrome OS Netbook, the guys behind Chrome OS have already let on what they’re expecting.
At the OS’s first public demonstration last month, Google said its vision includes slightly larger keyboards and screens than what’s currently available, x86 or ARM processors, solid-state drives, and 802.11(n) Wi-Fi chips.
Motorola Sholes Leaked Pics
Dec 3rd
It feels like rumors about the Motorola Sholes have been around forever, but the mysterious Android-based slate looks to be finally emerging from the geeky shadows. Mobile01 have acquired some images of the device, though not a full shot, together with some specifications: apparently the Sholes will have a 3.7-inch 854 x 480 touchscreen (just like the DROID) together with an 8-megapixel autofocus camera with Xenon flash and – in a first for an Android smartphone – an HDMI output.
That HDMI port will apparently be used to output 720p HD video (or perhaps even higher). There’ll also be a 3.5mm headphone jack while, under the hood, a TI OMAP 3430 Cortex A8 processor potentially clocking in at 800MHz should keep things running smoothly. There’s also multitouch support and Motorola’s Crystal Talk DSP system for voice calls, and while right now it’s running Android 2.0, the expectation is that it’ll get Android 2.1 by the time it launches.
Since it’s a slate rather than a slider like the DROID, the Sholes is tipped to be even thinner. Connectivity is apparently UMTS/HSPA – no word on bands – and we’d guess there’ll be WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS in there too. Given how impressive the DROID turned out to be, we’ve got high hopes for the Sholes.
