Laptops
September 10, 2006 Last November, we had a chance to test the new Z60t and Z60m Thinkpads. These devices were the first of Lenovo's 60 series products, and were the first to offer integrated EVDO service from Verizon in the US. They were also the first Thinkpads built to a new set of internal standards for docking station and power supplies that are compatible across the entire 60 generation of products. The Z60 was followed by the T60 and X60 Thinkpads in February, which added Intel's current generation of dual core processors, but unfortunately the Z60 was released too early to get these new gems, and an expected upgrade to the specs of the Z60 didn't materialize when we thought it would. The new Z61t and Z61m laptops refresh their Z60 forbearers, and the Z61p is a new wide screen workstation model based upon the Z61m chassis. Read More
June 1, 2006 One of the most intriguing products of the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show was Dell’s BIG SCREEN mobile concept which caused some interesting comment due to its expected weight. Yesterday, Dell unveiled its portable 20-inch widescreen entertainment PC, the XPS M2010. The system's multimedia features include a 20.1-inch, high-definition widescreen monitor, eight speakers plus a subwoofer, a detachable, full-sized Bluetooth wireless keyboard and gyroscope-enabled remote, a webcam and a slot-load DVD drive. The articulating hinges supporting the display double as a system handle when the system is closed. The XPS M2010 starts at US$3,500, and is available immediately and weighs in at 18.3 pounds. Read More
March 16, 2006 As computers reach ubiquity, which they inevitably will, it is equally as inevitable that we will find better ways to carry and protect them. Accordingly, we figure it’s giving Slappa a pat on the back for their latest creation, the Velocity PRO Spyder laptop backpack. Apart from looking good (and we recognise it won’t suit everyone’s style), the bag features a thick rubber exoskeleton with rainproof PRO Grade Scuba-prene offering reinforced storage protection for all of your digital gear. Read More
March 15, 2006 Back in January, we reported on Lenovo's announcement of their T60 and X60 series ThinkPad notebooks. Since then, we've had a chance to test the new devices as well as the new Z60 widescreen models. Read More
February 25, 2006 Gaming computer specialist Widow PC is set to announce the world’s first SLI-equipped gaming notebook in conjunction with nVidia, the developers of SLI. SLI takes advantage of the increased bandwidth of the bi-directional PCI Express bus architecture and uses multiple Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) to deliver up to twice the graphical performance of a single GPU configuration for an unparalleled gaming experience. The new notebook is to be called the Sting 919 and will come with a19in fast-response display and two of the latest 7800 series GPUs. nVidia and Dell showed the first-ever Quad-SLI PC at CES this year. Taking its acclaimed SLI technology to the next level, NVIDIA introduced support for FOUR GPUs. A Quad-SLI PC will enable games to be run at 2560x1600 resolution with silky smooth frame rates. In addition, support for a new 32x antialiasing mode and 16x anisotropic filtering enables stunning visuals. Read More
January 14, 2006 During the first Gulf War, I had the misfortune to be travelling around Asia and Europe carrying the very first Apple Macintosh portable – indeed, it was more a luggable than a portable, and with check-ins routinely three to four hours before international flights at that time, and personal computers eyed with great suspicion, I grew to both love and hate the machine for the trouble it caused me as I schlepped it around. More than a decade later, seeing Dell’s XPS Mobile Concept gave me the same autonomous shudders a Vietnam veteran gets when he hears a helicopter. The XPS is BIG – some reports place it at up to 18 pounds. The really weird thing is – I want one! Read More
January 7, 2006 LG.Philips used the CES to display what is undoubtedly the world’s largest laptop panel – a 20.1” SXGA TFT-LCD. Though the screen has yet to find a home, it’s only a matter of time as the laptop is one of the very few areas of computing that gets bigger and smaller as time goes by, as there are many people who value additional screen real estate as it promotes greater productivity. Read More
November 21, 2005 If education is the only sure-fire way to cure poverty, the world moved a step closer to solving many of its major problems this week when United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan unveiled a prototype hand-cranked US$100 laptop at the Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in Tunis. In what could turn out to be an event of major historical significance at some later date, the launch of the initiative complete with working prototypes could herald a new era of education for the world’s poor. The initiative was first announced by Nicholas Negroponte, MIT Media Lab chairman and co-founder, at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland in January 2005 and in late September when Negroponte showed the first prototype images and concept drawings to the world’s press. Negroponte and his group believe that education via the laptop, will help to alleviate many of the problems afflicting developing and chronically poor countries. Read More
September 22, 2005 The ScooterDesk is a design with an enormous future – a wheeled standing-aid with a built-in writing tablet, making it ideal for improving interactivity between co-workers in open plan offices, a smart alternative to relieve the static posture of workstations and the freedom to work and move in environments such as a factory, warehouse, or even outdoors. The utility of the ScooterDesk and the lighthearted way in which users toboggan around the office make it a delightful product to have around and one that helps to create a playful, group dynamic at the same time as facilitating collaboration and spontaneous group meetings. It also makes a great base for a wireless laptop! Read More
September 13, 2005 If you've never thought of your laptop computer as a way to distinguish yourself, your company or organization from another, this article might help. Laptop Design USA has been launched to commercially brand laptops with companies and organizations' colors, logos and trademarks. More than 15 million laptops were sold in the U.S. each year, with laptop theft running at half a million units. Most countries mirror high laptop sales and extraordinary theft rates – by turning your computer into an ambassador for your company, you also create a significant theft deterrent. Read More
