Gigabyte's second-generation UMPC

Darius Chang | Nov 21, 2007

Though better known for making mainboards than consumer electronics, Gigabyte's first foray into the UMPC market--the U60--was surprisingly competent and incorporated a few innovative features such as split keyboard and GPS/TV tuner expansion slots.

Engadget spotted the next revision in the form of the Gigabyte M704. Though the link they provided was supposed to point to the M704 product specification on Gigabyte's Web site, the last time we checked the Web page was not available. Fortunately, we have captured a screen shot of the product page.

This time, the changes are mostly cosmetic, though the VIA processor is bumped up to 1.2GHz and the screen is given a 7-inch 1,024 x 600-pixel treatment. The latter upgrade is particularly interesting, as it means that the user would no longer have to scroll sideways on some Web sites designed for viewing in 1,024-pixel resolution. Despite the larger display and faster processor, the battery life remains similar to the U60 at around 3 hours. However, that is rather mediocre considering models like the Everun and Kohjinsha SA1 can go on for a couple more hours. Other features include:

1.2GHz VIA processor
768MB RAM
40GB or 60GB HDD
7-inch LED-backlit screen
2 x USB 2.0; VGA output; SD/MMC card reader
Built-in Webcam
780g weight

Its availability is still up in the air at the moment as our Gigabyte contact has yet to get back to us at press time, but we hope that the pricing will be attractive if it were to compete in the UMPC arena.

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