Images of ASUS’s next-generation ASUS Eee Pad ‘TF300T’ leak
Images of a achievable subsequent-generation ASUS Eee Pad tablet have leaked onto the World wide web by means of Taiwanese internet site NCCC. The mysterious 10.1-inch slate could be a followup to the Transformer Prime — with its “TF300T” code name, the device’s pre-release moniker is somewhat in line with the original naming convention utilised on the Transformer (TF101) and the Transformer Prime (TF201). Aside from a couple of blurry pictures, there are no specs or other details to report at this time. Hit the break for a second image of the device.
[Via Engadget]
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Sony ST25i ‘Kumquat’ Android smartphone possibly leaked
Subsequent month we’re confident to hear about the latest smartphones from many of the world’s largest phone makers for the duration of Mobile Globe Congress, nevertheless that hasn’t stopped a quantity of leaks from occurring ahead of the show. The newest is a possible image of what is presumed to be Sony’s upcoming ST25i “Kumquat” Android smartphone. Specs are still slim at this point and we’re a bit suspicious because it still capabilities the “Sony Ericsson” branding, but this could easily be an early prototype given that even the smartphones on display at CES featured the Sony Ericsson name. Sony lately announced it was purchasing Ericsson’s stake in the Sony Ericsson joint venture and its newest phones are now branded “Sony,” but Xperia Weblog, which leaked the image, mentioned Sony could nevertheless launch devices with Sony Ericsson branding.
[By way of Engadget]
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TI demos OMAP 5, easily outperforms fastest Cortex-A9 chips
Texas Instruments has created some huge gains this year when it comes to its ARM-based mobile processors. They’ve featured prominently in several hot new Android smartphones and tablets — like the Kindle Fire. An OMAP 4430 is also the chip that powers the tablet the Fire is based on, the BlackBerry PlayBook. But the current-gen Cortex-A9-based OMAP processors don’t hold a candle to the OMAP five built around the Cortex-A15 architecture.
TI decided CES was the best place to show off the 1st reference device running its most recent and greatest chip. Appear past the phone’s chunky style — it’s just a reference design, following all. The critical take-away is the responsiveness shown while flicking by means of Ice Cream Sandwich on the device. Video playback is silky-smooth, and TI says the OMAP 5 is capable of pumping out 1080P content at more than 60 frames per second.
Remi El-Ouazzane, TI’s VP of OMAP, says that the OMAP 5 chip running at just 800MHz is capable of outperforming ARM9 chips clocked at almost double that speed. Improved efficiency is always a excellent thing, but it’s just as crucial that the OMAP five can do it with out breaking a sweat — considering that that really should equate to battery gains and a reduction in operating temperatures as nicely.
Also worth noting is that EL-Ouazzane says Windows 8 is running “perfectly well” on OMAP five. Texas Instruments says that it is working quite closely with Microsoft and that you can anticipate to see OMAP five in a assortment of Windows 8 devices. From Ultrabooks to tablets, OMAP five will be popping up in all kinds of new consumer devices. Expect to see them hitting shop shelves later this year, possibly right around the time that Microsoft launches Windows 8.
Far more at Engadget
Xperia Ion is the first pure Sony phone, and it’s a beast
Back in October of 2011, Sony finally took complete control over its mobile unit. In buying out Ericsson’s half of the joint venture for a cool $ 1.45 billion, Sony hoped to be able to bring new phones to market more quickly and to better integrate them with the rest of its electronics — like Bravia TVs, Vaio laptops, and the Playstation 3. Today, the company announced the first straight-up Sony phone, the Xperia Ion, and it’s a pretty sweet initial offering.
Spec-wise, the Ion bears strong similarities to the Xperia LT 28AT that was leaked last month. It’s got a 4.6-inch HD Reality Display that offers 720×1280 resolution, a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 16GB of internal storage, and a whopping 12MP Exmor-R rear-facing camera. On the front, you’ll find a camera with a more standard-issue 1.3MP sensor. Like the Xperia Play and Arc, the Ion is Playstation certified, and it’s got one more thing in common: the Ion is also going to ship with Gingerbread when it launches in the second quarter of this year.
That’s kind of a buzzkill, espsecially when you consider the fact that Sony has already promised that its existing Xperia phones will be upgraded to Ice Cream Sandwich by the end of this quarter.
On a more positive note, the Xperia Ion does offer LTE support, and you’ll be able to put that speed to use on AT&T’s airwaves once it launches. Sony has also made good on the promise of playing nice with its other products, as the Ion will woks with its Bravia Sync technology.
All in all, the Xperia Ion looks like a pretty solid phone — and who knows? Perhaps by the time it’s landed on retail shelves Sony will have a carrier-approved update to Android 4.0 ready to rock.
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eFun Nextbook Elite 10 is a dual-core Android 4.0 tablet for under $300
Although you may possibly have thought 2011 was already the year of the tablet, 2012 is shaping up to truly be the year of the tablet — and we’re not even a complete week in yet. Apart from the feasible arrival of a new iPad model or two, it looks like the Android tablet cost war is really going to start heating up. That is, if new models like the eFun Nextbook Elite 10 are any indication.
The Elite ten packs a 1.1GHz Broadcomm processor and a 9.7-inch display that is capable of pumping out 1024×768 pixels. That package is actually somewhat comparable to what you’d get in 1 of those firesale HP TouchPads, but in this case the latest Android OS is pre-loaded — no firmware modifications necessary. There’s also a 2MP front-facing camera for your video conferencing and selfshot wants, and the SlideMe app retailer comes preinstalled. Does that mean Google’s core apps are missing? Possibly, but eFun hasn’t supplied numerous particulars about the Elite ten just however. It’s due to be on display at CES 2012, so we’ll find out in a few brief weeks just how much Ice Cream Sandwich goodness the budget slate is packing.
While you may well not have heard of eFun prior to, this isn’t their initial venture into the tablet marketplace. Like other lesser-recognized brands, eFun has built its reputation by providing decently-specced models at low value points. They haven’t always been nicely-received, with reviewers noting sluggish efficiency on several of their earlier efforts. The BCM28150 processor may just support the Elite ten buck that trend, nonetheless. Its 3D capabilities aren’t very best-of-the-line, but it’s a very capable chip for most other tablet utilizes.
More at Engadget
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Boost your Verizon LTE signal with the Sleek 4G
For those of you lucky enough to be taking benefit of Verizon’s ultra-rapidly LTE network on your smartphone or tablet, you may have also had the privilege to experience having small or no LTE signal when traveling in a car or inside your property/office. Wilson Electronics is seeking to aid you with this issue by releasing what it is calling the world’s initial 4G booster, the “Sleek 4G.”
Wilson’s newest booster is geared to be able to operate on regular 2G and 3G networks on the 1800/1900MHz frequency bands, as nicely as with Verizon’s 700MHz 4G LTE network. Wilson claims that the device is twenty occasions stronger than the antennas installed in 4G-capable mobile phones and tablets, giving buyers a solid connection even if they are in what appears to be a low signal region. (note this won’t perform to fix the graphical glitch on the Galaxy Nexus).
Wilson is looking to release the Sleek 4G sometime in the second quarter of this year. Out of the box it will be in a position to perform to enhance signal in vehicles by attaching it to the roof of your auto or truck. As far as inside your residence or workplace, representatives say there will be an outdoor antenna kit that you can install that will relay signal to LTE devices indoors. The Sleek 4G will most most likely retail around $ 150 on launch day.
Living in rural Missouri, getting cell signal inside my property has been a battle. We have tried many boosters including the zBoost YX545 to attempt to get our handsets to connect, but with little good results. The Wilson Electronics brand of boosting devices get excellent ratings and critiques, so it will be intriguing to see if it genuinely can succeed where others fail.
Read more at Engadget
AMD Announces New Mac Pro-Suitable Radeon HD 7970 Graphics Card
Earlier this month, we noted that developer builds of OS X ten.seven.3 were showing evidence of AMD’s forthcoming “Tahiti” graphics card household, the very first to be constructed utilizing 28-nanometer technologies. The proof advised that Apple was at least preparing for the chance of the cards getting utilized in a Mac Pro update subsequent year, an update that is reportedly still in query offered uncertainty about the long term of the line.
In the wake of those findings, AMD today officially announced the high-end Radeon HD 7970 from the Tahiti line, billing it as the world’s fastest single-chip graphics card.
With the arrival of the AMD Radeon HD 7970, AMD has unleashed its revolutionary new Graphics Core Up coming Architecture that permits new ranges of gaming and compute capabilities – realizing an improvement of above 150% in efficiency/sq mm above the prior generation. Engineered with support for PCI Express three. and AMD CrossFire technologies, the AMD Radeon HD 7970 graphics card arrives ready for the up coming degree of gaming.
Engadget has a nice roundup of evaluations of the new card, with testers usually reporting substantially enhanced efficiency more than the current generation of equivalent AMD cards and other high-finish rivals this kind of as NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 580. On the adverse side, evaluations cited the card’s $ 549 cost tag and considerable noise below higher load.
The Radeon HD 7970 will launch on January 9th, and AMD is also reported to be preparing to launch a slightly scaled-down model in the kind of a Radeon HD 7950 card.
Archos 70b is a 7-inch Android Honeycomb tablet for $199
Archos is no stranger to the price range tablet game, although lately its bargain-priced tablets have been shifted to the Arnova brand. In January, however, the French organization will commence providing an updated version of the 7-inch Archos 70 tablet: the Archos 70B, which will ship with Android three.two and offer for just $ 199.
Inside, you will discover hardware that is related to other $ 199 Android tablets like the Lenovo IdeaPad A1. It’s got a single-core processor clocked at one.2GHz, 512MB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage with microSD expansion, and a 1024×768 capacitive touchscreen show. The 70B also capabilities an HDMI port for connecting the tablet to your house theater method and 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi for web access.
The 70B also provides a single more thing that you will not discover on most of their other models: Android Market access out-of-the-box. It is significantly far more common for Archos to ship a third-celebration app store set up on its tablets, however fans of the budget slates have historically had handful of troubles hacking their tablets to get Google’s official repository operating.
This is the third tablet to be introduced by Archos operating Honeycomb and offering Android Market place access. It joins the $ 270 Archos 80 and the $ 340 101 G9 and adds a significantly more up-to-date spending budget option to their line-up.
It is not really a Kindle Fire, of course, but Archos probably isn’t expecting to challenge Amazon’s Android tablet supremacy with the 70B. It will, nonetheless, offer folks residing outside the U.S. another decent tablet choice that will not break the financial institution.
