Posts in Notebooks

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Let's get PhysX-al

Dan Ackerman, CNET Crave | Aug 27, 2007

Unless you're a hardcore gamer type, you've probably never heard of Ageia and its PhysX processor. This addon card for your desktop PC works with certain supported games to provide additional processing power for in-game physics, leading to bigger explosions, more interactive environments, etc.

Of course, there are only a handful of games that support PhysX (Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2, and Unreal Tournament 3 are the only notable ones that come to mind), and game developers aren't exactly lining up to create extra content for a proprietary physics system that very few consumers will ever be able to experience, but they at least get points for trying.

Now Ageia has announced the PhysX 100M, the company's first physics chip for laptops. The new part is specially designed for mobile computers and, according to Ageia, "features incredibly low power and thermal design with power dissipation of nearly 10W under gameplay conditions. It also includes active power management to throttle down the clock in high heat system conditions and reduce the clock when not active".

We know of at least one big-name gaming laptop hitting the US market soon that will offer this as an option, but so far adoption on the desktop side has been slow, so don't expect this to be a must-have addon for your next laptop.

Via CNET Crave

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The biodegradeable laptop

Michael Kanellos | Aug 20, 2007

You've seen picnic ware and household items made out of biodegradeable plastic. Now, here's a notebook with a biodegradeable chassis.

This Fujitsu LifeBook sports a chassis made of a plastic made from cornstarch rather than petroleum. It costs more, but it's green. Put the chassis in a landfill and it will go away over the course of months. Real plastic will take decades.

Producing the cornstarch-based plastic, which comes from a supplier, also results in 15 percent less carbon emissions. Those vials to the side, by the way, show the progress from corn kernels to plastic.

Fujitsu has also used the plastic on cell phones and point-of-sale terminals. The products right now are only available in Japan. Following pollution problems and the oil shock of the 1970s, Japan embarked on a somewhat aggressive environmental program. Although environmentalism rises and dips, energy efficiency programs have remained somewhat strong. As a result, Japan remains one of the largest markets and producers of solar power.

You will start to see more stuff like this in the US and Europe, though. The cost of bioplastic will also decline as companies like Cereplast and agricultural bigwigs like Archer Daniels Midland expand production.

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Outlook still murky for US$150 Medison laptop

Matthew Elliott, CNET.com | Aug 08, 2007

Responding to cries that its US$150 Linux laptop is at best vaporware or, at worse, a scam, Medison held a press conference last week at a Stockholm Hilton where it answered some, but not all, questions posed to it by the Swedish press, including Computer Sweden. After reading accounts of the exchange, we have no better feeling on whether this operation is legitimate, fraudulent, or a misdirected publicity stunt.

The only useful piece of information to come out the press conference was the promise that the company will start shipping its Medison Celebrity laptops around August 15. We placed our order on July 25, so we're giving the company until September 5 to deliver, which is the far end of its original four- to six-week estimate.

The company did have what looks like a working unit on display for all to see, but the company's managing director Valdi Ivancic didn't answer questions about who would be manufacturing the Medison Celebrity laptop, other than to say the company has an assembly plant in Brazil with plans for new plants in Central America and Europe.

Impressive: Expansion plans before the first Celebrity laptop rolls off the assembly line.

Ivancic explained that Medison plans to make more money from accessory makers advertising on its site than from sales of the US$150 laptop itself. He said that shipping is not included in the price of the laptop, which is odd since shipping charges weren't added or even estimated when we placed our order. Then again, our account has yet to be charged. Still, we'd like the chance to agree to the shipping charges before they're applied and the laptop ships. Support is also a question mark; Ivancic said he's talking with a company called InfoCare.

Now we're no Scandinavian entrepreneur, but it would seem to be that one ought to figure out how to ship and support a product before you begin taking orders. Being able to share these details at a press conference of your own arranging would go a long way to assure the public that you are running a legitimate business. Instead, Ivancic's exchange with journalists lacked details, but did include this gem:

Journalist: Will you sink or swim with this?
Ivancic: No, we won't.

Before the press conference ended, Ivancic steered the proceedings into the realm of the bizarre by mentioning that he may run for Prime Minister. Our US$150 and us are hoping that it's hard to launch a successful campaign for Prime Minister of Sweden on the heels of an Internet laptop scam. If our Medison Celebrity shows up by September 5, Ivancic can count on our votes.

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HP tablet PC offer for tertiary students

Darius Chang | Aug 03, 2007

HP is offering a steep discount off HP Pavilion tx1222AU for all tertiary students in Singapore.

At just S$1,603.06 (US$1,154.28) (inclusive of tax), the Pavilion tx1222AU may be one of the cheapest tablet PC in the market. Normally retailing at S$2,299 (US$1,655.39), it is the US maker's first entertainment-focused tablet notebook which incorporates multimedia features like a mini remote control. Though it is hampered by lack-luster performance and weak battery life, it's nevertheless a competent and affordable system for most campus projects. Click here for a more details of the bundle.

The special discount is applicable for all Singapore tertiary students, including major universities, polytechnics and even select distance-learning institutions. Students can present their matriculation card at any Courts store or Newstead Technologies (located in Funan and Sim Lim Square) to purchase the laptop.

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Packard Bell opens its first showroom in Asia

Darius Chang | Aug 03, 2007

At Singapore's e-life@Suntec City, European brand Packard Bell is making its presence felt in Asia by opening doors to its first showroom in this region.

Though it had disappeared from Asia after it was bought over by NEC, the Packard Bell brand made a return late last year with a range of GPS, MP3 and notebook products. Its flagship EasyNote GN45 Skype Edition model incorporated a dedicated button for video-conferencing via Skype. Though some features bear striking similarities with NEC Versa laptops, the main difference is in its price. Its entry-level EasyNote Argo C series goes for under S$1,000 (US$720.05), while its performance EasyNote MIT Sable GT retails at S$2,798 (US$2,014.69).

This showroom was created to showcase the latest Packard Bell products while still being retailed by the major superstores in Singapore. Two new models were showcased at today's showroom opening, the Packard Bell EZNote SB85 and the EZNote MB65.

The former is a 17-inch gaming performance laptop, while the latter is a mulmedia-centric 15.4-inch notebook. Interestingly, both models sport discrete numeric keypads and built-in subwoofer. They are curently retailing only in Singapore at S$2,298 and S$2,998 (until August 25 when it reverts to S$3,198), respectively.

There are plans to launch these in New Zealand next month, although Packard Bell said it is still considering whether to release the notebooks to the rest of Asia.