Hands-on with Asus' Eee Tablet eReader/Writer with Integrated Digicam

by Mathew Miranda
from: http://hothardware.com/

Without a doubt, mobile computing is making its mark over at Computex 2010. After announcing their Eee Pad tablet PC, Asus gave us a closer look at their slick looking e-Reader/e-Writer creation designed for students and mobile business professionals. The little slate's features include a 10 hour battery life, 2450 dpi touch resolution screen, pen writing and input controls, a fast screen refresh response time, 2MP camera, USB port, and a MicroSD slot. With a $199 asking price and a September release date, we came away impressed with the new gadget form Asus, but don't just take our word for it. Hit the our hands on video here to see for yourself...

We're rather curious to see how this new device will impact the eReader market, along with Asus' strong partnerships with Amazon. Kindle books on the way perhaps? You can read between the lines there a bit for sure. We haven't gotten anything but a few hints on that front but if we were the betting type, we'd say keep your eye on how Asus will handle content distribution on this one.

CES Showcase: Asus Announces Four New Laptops

by Mathew Miranda

from: http://hothardware.com/

It's CES time and that means a flurry new products will be hitting the streets soon. Today, we attended the Asus 2010 CES Event at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas where company chairman Jonney Shih revealed the company's latest products and technology.  Here's a quick preview of what was on display... 

   
Asus NX90 Bang & Olufsen Notebook

Let's get right to the good stuff. The NX90 is a multimedia notebook that combines modern design and cutting-edge technology. Designed by Bang & Olufsen Chief Designer David Lewis, the NX90 features a polished aluminum exterior and palm rest that contrast the matte-black keyboard and dual touchpads. Two speakers featuring ICEpower technology flank a large display. Exclusive Sonic Focus technology helps to ensure that all audio is reproduced as flawlessly as possible, according to Asus. The NX90 also offers a unique way to interact with the system, in the form of dual touch pads. These work in concert with the Rotation Desktop software to provide users with an intuitive DJ-like control. Specific hardware options consist of Intel's Core i7 820QM or 720QM processor, up to 12GB DDR3 1066, 18.4" LED display, NVIDIA GT 335M, dual HDD support, Blu-Ray, and USB 3.0. Expect to drop well over $2K for this beast.

 
 Republic of Gamers G73Jh Notebook

You knew a high performance gaming laptop was coming and here it is. The Republic of Gamers G73Jh was inspired by the angular lines of stealth fighter jets, much like some desktop enclosures released last year. High end components will be readily available to match the cutting edge exterior as consumers will be able to configure the G73Jh with Intel's Core i5 / i7 processors, up to 8GB of DDR3 memory, a 17.3" display, and ATI's Mobility Radeon HD 5870 graphics. We plan to take this baby out for a spin as soon as samples are available, so stay tuned.

   
Eee PC Seashell Karim Rashid Collection

Karim Rashid is a renowned designer based in New York. Don't worry if you've never heard of him, we hadn't either. The goal of the Eee PC Seashell Karim Rashid Collection is to marry high tech with high fasion and realize Karim's vision of hip computing. The high gloss case you see is soft to the touch and available in two colors - hot pink and brown gold.

U53 Notebook - U Series Bamboo Collection

In an effort to protect the environment and be more green, Asus reveals the latest model in the environmentally friendly Bamboo Collection. The U53 Series laptop is thin, light, and clad in bamboo that is warm to the touch. It features a unique design thanks to the subtle variations in its manufacturing material and will sport USB 3.0 and Intel's Core i5 processor.

For more information on the NX90 and G73Jh notebooks, check out these videos:

New Asus Color E-Reader Folds Like a Book

• By Priya Ganapati

Computer maker Asus, known for its line of Eee PC netbooks, is working on an e-book reader that will have two touchscreens and when laid open will resemble a hardcover book.

Asus showed a prototype of the device at the CeBIT trade show in March. But now additional details have trickled out.

An Asus representative confirmed to Wired.com the company will probably show the device at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.

Asus’ e-reader will likely have color touchscreens, a speaker, a webcam and a microphone, along with the capability to make inexpensive Skype calls. Despite all those features, Britain’s Sunday Times reports, somewhat unbelievably, that it may be priced lower than its competitors from Sony and Kindle.

The e-reader market is one of the hottest consumer product categories this year. Just the last few months have seen a slew of new product announcements. After introducing Kindle 2, the updated version of its e-reader, Amazon launched a broadsheet reading device called the Kindle DX. Last month Sony introduced a $400 wireless e-reader with a 7-inch screen and cut the price on its older models to offer the cheapest e-book reader in the market. Meanwhile, two other companies — iRex and Plastic Logic — plan to offer new large-screen readers later this year or early next year.

But all e-readers, available and planned, are black and white. Asus’ product will likely be the first to offer a color screen. The move, coupled with unexpected features such as speakers and mic, is the only way the company can stand out in a crowded market.

With dual screens, the new Eee e-reader could give readers a user experience similar to paper books. The device could also offer readers the option of using the second screen to browse a web page. The best part about the device, though, would be the price tag, says the Times report. The cheapest version of the Asus Eee reader could lost about £100, equivalent to $165.

While Asus has a well-deserved reputation for making extremely inexpensive computers, that price may be too low for even it to match, given the promised feature set.

For Asus, getting this mix of features and price right is essential if it has to make a dent in the e-reader market at this stage.

The Eee PC Gets a DVD Drive

By Mark Wilson

Last week it was a rumor. Today it's a fact. The Eee PC (model 1004DN) will be the first Eee with a Super-Multi optical disc drive.

The 10-inch netbook is ordinary in every other way, loaded with the typical N280 Atom chipset (that's the newer one), 1GB RAM, 120GB hard drive, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth. And while it may look like a bit like a Mac, from what we can tell, the body is aluminum only around the keyboard, meaning that the underside is still plastic.

The 1004DN is 3.2 pounds (when loaded with a 6-hour, 6-cell battery) and 1.3 inches thick at its chunkiest point. It should begin shipping overseas in April, but there's no word on pricing at this time. [Asus via Electricpig]

CES Day One: Our Top 10

By John Mahoney

Today, with the floor open, is the first real day of CES. By now we've seen a good deal of gear from the big companies, and here's the best so far.

Palm Pre : Number one with a bullet. If we told you three months ago that Palm would own CES, would you have believed us? But this phone is for real, and from the looks of it right now, it very well could be the morale lift Palm so badly needed.

And the rest, in no particular order:

Samsung BD-4600 Blu-ray Player: Wall-mountable, networked, 1.5-inches thick, and really, really nice looking.

Samsung Luxia LED TV Lineup: Samsung loosed a whole series of ultra-thin, LED-backlit, network-connected LCDs, winning the Battle of the TV Announcements hands down.

Vizio Connected HDTVs: These Vizios stream just about everything possible over wireless-N: Amazon, Blockbuster and Netflix VOD, Pandora, Flickr, Rhapsody, plus any other Yahoo web widget.

Sony Vaio P: Sony's Vaio P is something we haven't seen before: a 2.08:1 aspect ratio (1600x768) on a 1-inch thick portable. Something different in the very, very generic netbook field.

Casio 1,000fps Point and Shoot Cameras: Both the EX-FC100 and the EX-FS10 bring the EX-F1's slo-mo capture goodness to a point and shoot. Casio's still the only folks in the super slo-mo field, and they're continuing to kill.

LG's GD910 Watch Phone: It was a non-working, behind-the-glass prototype last year, but one of every gadget head's boyish dreams will come true later this year: A watch that's a phone.

Eee Keyboard: Asus took the crazy cake with their still-shadowy home theater keyboard. With an onboard processor (of some kind), a touchscreen and keyboard and wireless HDMI, it makes perfect sense as a unique home-theater machine.

Sony Cyber-shot G3: We're all about putting web browsers on as many things as possible, and Sony's found another way to get one into our pants: A super-slim wi-fi-equipped Cyber-shot G3 that's the world's first to surf the web.

Panasonic Portable Blu-ray Player: Panasonic's DMP-B15 is the world's first portable Blu-ray deck. Your laptop probably doesn't have a BD drive, but this will ensure you can watch hi-def 1080p on a tiny, tiny screen on your next flight.

And there you have it. Good stuff you may or may not be able to afford in '09? Disappointment of disappointments? Discuss. [CES 2009]