October 23rd, 2009

MobileTechRoundup show #187, Windows 7, B&N Nook, Nokia N900

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 7:39 am

Categories: Gadgets, Kindle, Linux, Microsoft, MoTR podcast, Mobile software, Netbook, Nokia, Ultra portable PC, ebooks

Tags: MobileTechRoundup, Nokia Corp., News, Microsoft Windows 7, E-books, Microsoft Windows, Personal Technology, Operating Systems, Software, Matthew Miller

Listen here (MP3, 30.4 MB, 33:05 minutes)

Subscribe to the show with this link (RSS)

Windows 7 was the big news of the week and James, Kevin, and I started off MobileTechRoundup show #186 talking about this latest Microsoft operating system. Hopefully James doesn’t really go try to eat a Burger King Whopper 7 today. I talked a bit more about the Nokia N900 now that I have had this mobile Linux computer for almost 2 weeks. The other big news of the week was the Barnes & Noble Nook and James sounds like he is as excited as me, although I am the only one who placed a pre-order so far. Amazon didn’t want to be left out of the ebook news and also announced Kindle for PC this week.

October 20th, 2009

B&N Nook ebook reader revolutionizes the ebook world with sharing between friends and more

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 12:19 pm

Categories: BlackBerry, Gadgets, Kindle, Linux, Open Handset Alliance, ebooks, iPhone

Tags: Nook, E-books, Personal Technology, Matthew Miller

Rachel posted about the leaked details of the Nook and then I found that Engadget posted the full press release. After reading way down in the details and FAQs I saw that the Nook supports the ePub format so will work with local library ebooks so I just pre-ordered mine for $259. If you go to the pre-order page you can see all the details on this pretty amazing ebook reader that has me quite excited. You can also lend books to friends for up to 14 days at a time. This capability really turns the ebook world into a world almost the same as a paperback and is HOT!

Here are some of the specifications of the Nook:

• Support for AT&T and WiFi networks (free WiFi access at B&N stores)
• 2GB storage with microSD card slot
• 3.5 inch color touchscreen lower display
• MP3 player with integrated mono speaker
• Removable and rechargeable battery
• MicroUSB connector for charging
• Dimensions: 7.7 x 4.9 x 0.5 inches and 11.2 ounces
• Integrated Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary
• Ability to read content on iPhone, iPod touch, BlackBerry, PC, and Mac
• Based on Android operating system

With the Android-based OS I wonder if developers will be able to customize the device to add even more functionality? I also wonder if there will be ebook clients for Google Android or other mobile phones beyond the iPhone and BlackBerry.

I was all ready to purchase this and just needed confirmation of all the formats and then found this FAQ buried deep down:

Can I put other files on my nook?
Yes, you can transfer files from your computer to your nook using a USB connection. You can transfer ePub and PDB files, as well as MP3s, PDFs, and JPGs.

Support for ePub sold me on the ebook reader so stay tuned for my full Nook review as soon as it arrives, hopefully in November.

BTW, there is some great reading buried down in the FAQ support page where you can see you can redownload your content as many times as you like from your library.

October 14th, 2009

Dual boot Android/XP Acer netbook available for pre-order

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 8:00 am

Categories: Gadgets, Linux, Microsoft, Netbook, Open Handset Alliance, Ultra portable PC

Tags: Dual Boot, Netbook, Netbooks, Nettops & MIDs, Hardware, Matthew Miller

I’ve been pretty pleased with my MSI Wind netbook and use it to manage my Zune content and sync up devices that do not work natively with my Mac. I am also a fan of the Android operating system so I was intrigued to read over on Android Central that the dual boot Acer Aspire One D250 is now available for Amazon pre-order for $349.99. This 10.1 inch netbook can be booted into either Windows XP or the Google Android operating system and has a reported 9 hour battery life (with wireless and in “normal” working mode you will probably see 5 hours or so).

I have not yet seen the Android OS running on a netbook device and am interested in seeing how it will be presented and used on such a form factor. I know on my T-Mobile G1 and the HTC Hero it is highly focused on the connected data of the phone and am not sure how that will play out on a notebook. The Aspire One D250 has great specs for a netbook and is priced quite reasonably. Some of the specs include:

* 10.1-inch LED-backlit CrystalBrite screen (1024 x 600 resolution)
* Unique dual-boot operating system lets you choose between Windows XP (SP3) or Google Android
* 1.66 GHz Intel Atom N280 processor
* Up to 9 hours of battery life with included 6-cell battery
* Multi-gesture Touchpad for circular-motion scrolling, pinch-action zoom, and page flip
* 160 GB hard drive (5400 RPM)
* 1 GB DDR2 RAM (533 MHz; 2 GB maximum capacity)
* Integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950 video processor
* Crystal Eye webcam supports Acer PrimaLite technology
* 84-key keyboard, 89 percent of standard-size with 12 function keys, WLAN switch
* 54g Wi-Fi (802.11b/g)
* Bluetooth 2.1 radio
* 3 USB 2.0 ports for connecting a wide range of peripherals–from digital cameras to MP3 players
* Analog video output: 1 VGA
* Multi-in-1 memory card reader compatible with MultiMediaCard, Reduced-Size MultiMediaCard, Secure Digital, Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO or xD-Picture Card
* 1 headphone jack, 1 microphone jack
* Stereo speakers and optimized Dolby Headphone technology for 5.1-channel audio
* Dimensions: 10.17 x 8.04 x 1 inches (WxDxH)
* Weight: 2.79 pounds

The multi-gesture touchpad looks interesting and I look forward to reading reviews to see if that is supported in both Windows XP and the Android OS. At this price I am seriously thinking of moving from my MSI Wind to this dual boot setup, but first want to see if there is any benefit to having the Android OS on a notebook device.

July 7th, 2009

Google Chrome OS announced, It should just work

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 11:04 pm

Categories: Linux, Mobile software, Netbook, On the road, Ultra portable PC, mobile services

Tags: Google Inc., Operating System, Google Chrome, Netbook, Google Chrome OS, Netbooks, Nettops & MIDs, Operating Systems, Hardware, Software, Matthew Miller

We knew it was only a matter of time before Google launched their own competing operating system and with all of the applications and services they have it was a fairly natural progression. Tonight, Google announced the upcoming Google Chrome OS is an open source operating system primarily intended to be rolled out on netbooks. Google stated that netbooks running Google Chrome OS will be available the second half of 2010 so we still have about a year before we see it in action. I have a MSI Wind netbook and enjoy running Windows XP on it, but since I also thoroughly enjoy the Google Chrome browser and many of their services I am very interested in seeing Google Chrome OS running on this device.

Google stated that the OS is designed to be fast and lightweight so you can get to the Internet in seconds. It appears to be highly focused on the “cloud” which makes sense given that Google provides so many cloud services at this time.

I particularly like to hear this statement, “We are going back to the basics and completely redesigning the underlying security architecture of the OS so that users don’t have to deal with viruses, malware and security updates. It should just work.” Isn’t that what we all want?

Google also made sure to mention Android in their announcement and attempts to distinguish it from Google Chrome OS. Even after reading their statement (copied below) a few times I still don’t really see much of a difference between the two. It seems to me that people with Android smartphones spend most of their time on the web too.

Google Chrome OS is a new project, separate from Android. Android was designed from the beginning to work across a variety of devices from phones to set-top boxes to netbooks. Google Chrome OS is being created for people who spend most of their time on the web, and is being designed to power computers ranging from small netbooks to full-size desktop systems. While there are areas where Google Chrome OS and Android overlap, we believe choice will drive innovation for the benefit of everyone, including Google.

Competition in the mobile space is usually always good since it makes everyone who wants to compete push to turn out better products and I am excited to see what the Google Chrome Operating System brings us in 2010, are you?

March 19th, 2009

Mobile Firefox (aka Fennec) beta 1 now available for testing

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 2:30 am

Categories: Gadgets, Linux, Mobile software, Nokia, Nseries

Tags: Mozilla Firefox, Nokia Corp., Mobile, Beta, Mozilla Corp., Nokia N810 Internet Tablet, Web Browsers, Advertising & Promotion, Microsoft Windows, Internet

The Nokia N810 Internet Tablet is a fun device to tinker with and is a slick piece of hardware. I tried running the alpha version of the Mozilla Fennec browser on it a couple of months ago and it was extremely slow and virtually useless. I just read over on Brighthand that the Beta 1 version of Fennec was released for the N810 running OS2008 so I headed on over and immediately downloaded it. This is the first beta release of a mobile version of Firefox and looks much more promising than the earlier alpha version I tried. You can see it running in the video below.

The list of features in this new beta include:

• TraceMonkey, Mozilla’s new JavaScript engine
• Faster application start-up time
• Faster panning
• Faster zooming
• Initial implementation of bookmark folders and bookmark editing
• Support for plug-ins

Fennec Beta 1 walkthrough from Madhava Enros on Vimeo.

There are also lots of other improvements from the alpha feature list. I used Fennec to check out some of my favorite sites (including my ZDNet blogs) and found that it still seemed to be a bit sluggish loading some heavy ad-laden pages, but it did load the full version of them too. It was actually quite fast with Google Reader, which is where I live most of the time. I just may be using my N810 more and more for browsing on the go now.

It took me a while to figure out how to get into full screen mode since the upper menu (and associated button) doesn’t seem to do anything. From their tips & tricks section, to use the full screen for browsing, click the button on the left hand side on top of the device (to the left of the -/+ buttons).

If you don’t have a Nokia N810 to try it out on and want to see how it may eventually work on your S60 or Windows Mobile device you can install it on your Windows, Mac, or Linux computer and try it for yourself.

February 3rd, 2009

Keep dreaming and hoping, we won't see an Apple tablet anytime soon

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 9:11 am

Categories: Apple, Gadgets, Linux, Open Handset Alliance, Tablet PC, Ultra portable PC

Tags: Apple iPod, Apple Inc., Apple iPod Touch, Tablets, Digital Music, Digital Media, Notebooks, Hardware, Notebooks & Tablets, Personal Technology

Right at the end of 2008, Michael Arrington posted some info from his sources on a rumored large form Apple iPod touch/tablet for sometime in 2009. There is now some information available on an Apple patent for a large display device. Even with these pieces of information and hopes of the Apple faithful, I am highly skeptical of Apple ever releasing an Apple tablet/large display iPod. The iPod touch is already priced at $299 and $399 and the original iPhone (unsubsidized) was priced at US$599 so an Apple tablet would easily be priced at $700+ I am sure. In today’s economy that is an unreasonable figure when small form notebooks with actual keyboards can be used to do the same thing for $300.

I am sure there are prototype devices being tested and trialed at Apple, but just because there are prototypes and patents doesn’t mean we will ever see such a device. As a mobile geek, I am sure it would be a very cool device and would sell a few thousand. However, the tablet form factor devices have really only done well in areas like the medical field and I doubt too many people would adopt using a touch screen only keyboard input method and would soon tire of such a device. An iPod touch works just fine for browsing on the couch, watching movies, listening to music, and controlling your home media center. I suppose Apple could come out with a 4 inch or 5 inch iPod touch to give you a bit better experience, but highly doubt we will see anything larger than that from Apple.

We may see a tablet type device running the Android OS because it should be able to be sold for $400 or so down in the iPod touch range. Then again, I still am not convinced people will readily adopt a touch only interface for text input.

January 25th, 2009

MobileTechRoundup show #160, thoughts on the CrunchPad

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 7:42 pm

Categories: Gadgets, Linux, MoTR podcast

Tags: MobileTechRoundup, Podcasts, Internet, Matthew Miller

Listen here (MP3, 17.4 MB, 19:00 minutes)

Subscribe to the show with this link (RSS)

The beta 2 version of the CrunchPad is being tested out and James, Kevin, and I offered our opinion on the device on MobileTechRoundup show #160. We all had fairly similar thoughts on the current design of the device. In thinking about accessing the internet and backing up your information we discussed cloud syncing solutions like SugarSync and ZumoDrive.

Please let me know if you have anything you would like us to cover and discuss on the show and I’ll try to work it into a future podcast.

January 19th, 2009

Is the Crunchpad Linux tablet a viable web surfing device at $299?

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 7:38 am

Categories: Gadgets, Linux

Tags: Web, Web Surfing, Capacitive, Tablets, Notebooks, Keyboards, Channel Management, Hardware, Notebooks & Tablets, Peripherals

Last summer Michael Arrington posted on his plans to build a $200 web tablet and it now seems that there is a Prototype B being shown off. The device is known as the CrunchPad and looks like it will cost $299 instead of $200. The device has a 12 inch touchscreen display and is powered by a Via Nano processor.

Current specifications of the CrunchPad include:

• 12 inch 1024×768 pixel resolution display with 4:3 aspect ratio
• Linux Ubuntu operating system
• 4GB flash drive
• WiFi
• Accelerometer for flipping the display and viewing web content
• Webcam
• Four cell battery

There are a few photos and a couple of videos of the current prototype in action. The article states that the display on the current prototype is less expensive and lower quality than what you will see on the $299 model. A 12 inch display seems a bit large for that resolution and I think a 10 inch device would be lighter (currently 3 pounds) and more user friendly.

With netbooks in the $299 price range, do you think there is a market for something like this tablet? Microsoft has tried to promote Tablet PCs for a couple of years (granted at a much higher cost), but people seem to be much more interested in the notebook form factor with a keyboard. I am not sure they will like the experience of a resistive touch screen display, especially if they have ever tried the capacitive display on the iPhone or iPod touch. Capacitive is so much more finger friendly and usable for something like this tablet.

Thanks to jkOnTheRun for the heads-up.

January 18th, 2009

Review: Waterfield Designs MSI Wind Sleevecase and T-Mobile G1 Ultrasuede Slipcase

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 2:57 pm

Categories: Linux, Netbook, On the road, Review, Smartphone, Ultra portable PC

Tags: T-Mobile G1, T-Mobile, Sleevecase, MSI Wind, Waterfield Designs MSI Wind SleeveCase, MSI Wind SleeveCase, Ultrasuede Case, Notebooks, Hardware, Notebooks & Tablets

One of the most important accessories for your mobile gear is a good bag and case. I’ve been using a Waterfield Designs bag for over 2 years and even though I use it every single day it still looks almost the same as the day I picked it up. I now have a couple Waterfield Designs sleeve cases that I use with my MacBook Pro and Celio REDFLY or Amazon Kindle. My current mobile PC is the MSI Wind (just loaded it up with Windows 7) and I was excited when Waterfield sent me one of these to try out. I was also sent a simple T-Mobile G1 felt slip case and offer some thoughts on it below. You can check out my image gallery that shows both cases in use with my MSI Wind and T-Mobile G1.

	Image Gallery:A walk around the Waterfield Designs MSI Wind and G1 cases.

Waterfield Designs MSI Wind SleeveCase: The particular SleeveCase for the MSI Wind with 6 cell battery is the 21-15 and as you can see they have SleeveCases for a very large number of notebooks and are always one of the first companies to create cases for the latest and greatest devices. These ultraportable and lower cost notebooks were very popular in 2008 and after seeing what was going on at CES it looks like 2009 will continue to be a good year for these type of PCs.

Waterfield makes these SleeveCases in a number of sizes to ensure that the form and fit is optimized for your particular device. These SleeveCases are cushioned with high-grade neoprene and wrapped in a ballistic nylon shell. The case feels fantastic in your hand and the stitching is extremely tight and solid. I often carry mine outside of my larger bag and have been very pleased with the durability.

The MSI Wind SleeveCase is priced at US$39, with another US$15 for the flap that goes over the top and covers almost half of the other side. I have a case without the flap and personally am quite happy with the durable nylon strap that goes over the top and secures with Velcro to hold the Wind inside the case. The Wind fits perfectly along either side and there is no play or spare room around it to allow slippage. On the side opposite the Velcro securing piece you will find a large pocket that you can use to slip in papers or other thin accessories.

There are also options for a shoulder strap and Piggyback functions to facilitate carrying your bag and device outside of a larger bag.

Waterfield Designs T-Mobile G1 Ultrasuede Slipcase: I enjoy using my T-Mobile G1 and currently just use the BodyGuardz skin to keep it protected. Another option for offering some basic protection of your G1 is the Ultrasuede Slipcase. The Ultrasuede case is a simple slip case designed to prevent scratching on your G1 since it is too thin to offer any protection for drops or bumps. It is extremely thin and doesn’t really add anything to the G1. I used it with the BodyGuardz skin on with no problems.

The first few times you use the Ultrasuede you may find it a bit tight to get the device into the case. After some “break-in” time though it seems to fit in easier, but still remains snug around the G1. The slipcase lays flat and folds up easily when not in use. For US$9, it may be a decent solution for basic scratch protection, but I prefer attaching plastic skins to these types of phones. There is an option for adding a pocket for US$4, but I don’t see the need on a case like this and never tried out that part of the solution.

Waterfield makes these Ultrasuede slip cases in many sizes to fit the Samsung Instinct, HTC Touch Diamond, HTC Touch Pro, LG Dare, BlackBerry Bold, BlackBerry Curve, Google Android G1, SE XPERIA X1, E71, and BB Storm. The same high quality that Waterfield brings to the SleeveCases is seen in these slip cases with solid stitching and nice materials.

Conclusion: If you are looking for a very good case to carry your notebook or other mobile device then I highly recommend a Waterfield SleeveCase. I personally like having my phone ready to go in a second and don’t mind adding plastic skins to them so I won’t really use the Ultrasuede type of case. However, it is good for those who don’t want to apply skins and still want scratch protection in a case you can slip in your pants pocket with your phone.

January 16th, 2009

ACCESS Linux Platform appears as small part of new Sony Cybershot camera

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 4:30 am

Categories: Gadgets, Linux

Tags: Sony Corp., Microsoft Access, Operating System, Palm Inc., Sony Cyber-Shot, Camera, ACCESS Linux Platform, DSC-G3, Linux, Operating Systems

The last time I posted about the ACCESS Linux Platform was in August 2007 when some screenshots were shown at LinuxWorld. If you remember, ALP was the Linux-based operating system that Palm was planning to use for their mobile phones at one time. Palm then broke off into software (PalmSource) and hardware (PalmOne) and then PalmSource was aquired by ACCESS. ACCESS then created the ALP, which Palm was intending to use in their new devices. Palm then said they were working on their own Linux OS and we now see they have launched their own Linux-based OS as Palm WebOS. It appears that ALP is still alive though as we see it being a part of the new Sony Cybershot DSC-G3 camera.

The DSC-G3 is coming soon for US$499.99 and includes a pretty amazing list of features. The ACCESS Linux Platform appears in the form of the kernel in the Busybox Linus system. This isn’t the full-fledged PDA OS and it isn’t clear what the Linux system is used for, but it looks like it might be part of the system for WiFi upload functionality. Complimentary AT&T WiFi hotspot access is included with the camera so you can upload on the go from Starbucks, bookstores, and other supported zones.