Microsoft on Thursday unveiled details for ultramobile personal computers (UMPCs), a new category of mobile computing devices that features small, lightweight, carry-everywhere hardware designs coupled with the full functionality of a Windows PC and a choice of input options, including enhanced touch-screen capabilities.\r\n\r\n
Samsung’s Q1, which debuted at the CeBit show in Hannover, Germany, has a 7-inch 800-by-480-pixel TFT touchscreen, is powered by a 900MHz ultra-low-voltage Celeron M processor with 512MB of RAM, and has a 40GB hard disk. Samsung says the European model, due in May, will cost about $1,200.
The new Via C7-M ULV mobile processor powers Japanese manufacturer PaceBlade’s Ultra Mobile PC, fusing PC flexibility with the usability and cost associated with consumer electronics.
The R2H from Asus includes a high-resolution Webcam, a fingerprint scanner and–in the deluxe model–a built-in GPS receiver with a flip-out antenna.
Few details are available on the minitablet from Chinese company Founder, which did not exhibit at CeBit. Shown here is the on-screen thumb keyboard provided by Microsoft’s Touch Pack add-on for Windows XP.
Samsung showed off practical applications for the new portable devices. Here the Q1, connected to an external GPS receiver, is running navigation software.
Wide-area connectivity is not built into the Samsung Q1. Here, it’s connecting via a Bluetooth GPRS phone.
The Samsung Q1 shows off digital TV via a rather awkward-looking USB-stick solution.
Intel showed off two prototypes of ultramobile PC devices at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco on Tuesday. The models are examples of full-featured, low-wattage minitablets that can run a variant of Windows XP, developed as part of Microsoft’s Origami Project.\r\n\r\n
This prototype mobile PC, about the size of a paperback book, has a 7-inch touch screen and standard x86 processors. It can run full versions of desktop operating systems beyond the XP variant from Origami.
This Origami-like model has a QWERTY keyboard that swivels out as needed. There is also a navigation panel.
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The hardware includes Intel’s ultralow-voltage chips.
This Origami-like device is shown with its keyboard and panel tucked away. The product can slip easily into a large pocket.
Bill Detwiler is the Editor for Technical Content and Ecosystem at Celonis. He is the former Editor in Chief of TechRepublic and previous host of TechRepublic's Dynamic Developer podcast and Cracking Open, CNET and TechRepublic's popular online show. Previously, Bill was an IT manager in the social research and energy industries. He has bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Louisville, where he has also lectured on computer crime and crime prevention.
