Lenovo unveiled a Qualcomm Snapdragon-based Android smartphone aimed for a 1H 2010 release in China, says eWEEK. Meanwhile, Dell officially announced a version of the Mini 3 Android smartphone aimed at AT&T's U.S. network, and showed off a MID-like Android “slate” prototype.

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EMC subsidiary Iomega is readying a WiFi-enabled, Linux-based network-attached storage (NAS) device that costs $100. The Iomega iConnect Wireless Data Station has no storage of its own, but acts as a wireless hub that shares data stored on devices hooked up to its four USB 2.0 ports.

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Texas Instruments (TI) announced an e-book reader development platform for Linux and Android, based on its OMAP3621 system-on-chip. The eBook Development Platform is equipped with an E Ink electrophoretic EPD display, TI's new TPS6518x EPD power management IC, plus an integrated WiLink chip (WiFi, Bluetooth, and FM) and 3G support.

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Motorola announced its third Android phone, featuring a reverse-flip QWERTY keyboard and Mot's MotoBlur UI. The Backflip is equipped with a 528MHz Qualcomm processor, and offers 2GB of memory, a 3.1-inch 480 x 320 touchscreen, WiFi, Bluetooth, aGPS, five-megapixel camera, and a “Backtrack” touchpanel on the back of the device.

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Intel used an early-morning conference at today's Consumer Electronics Show to roll out 27 new processors, including 12 specifically aimed at embedded devices. Additions to the chipmaker's Core i3, i5, i7, and Xeon families, the CPUs have two or four cores, include on-chip graphics, and incorporate “Turbo Boost” technology, according to the company.

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MSI and Novell will soon ship MSI's new Intel Atom N450-based MSI U135 netbook with SUSE Moblin Linux v2.1. Loaded with the netbook-focused Moblin UI, the U135 offers up to 2GB RAM, a 10.1-inch screen, WiFi, Bluetooth, and 160GB or 250GB hard disk drives, say the companies.

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HP announced three netbooks using Intel's N450 “Pineview” processor that support SUSE Linux: the Mini 210, Mini 2102, both with 10.1-inch screens, and the Mini 5102, which offers 10-hour claimed battery life and an optional touchscreen. Meanwhile, at CES the company unveiled a prototype Qualcomm Snapdragon-based Android “smartbook,” says Engadget.

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AT&T announced plans to launch five Android devices from Dell, HTC, and Motorola in the first half of the year, as well as two Palm WebOS phones, say reports. In separate announcements, AT&T and T-Mobile said they had completed upgrades to provide HSPA 7.2 service across their 3G networks, says eWEEK.

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ZiiLabs announced an HD-ready media hub reference design incorporating its 1GHZ, ARM Cortex-A8-based ZMS-08 system-on-chip (SoC). The Zii SiVo Digital Home Platform provides 1080p Blu-ray quality HDTV and 3D graphics UI for low-power connected home devices, and offers a development kit for Android or ZiiLabs' Plaszma Linux stack.

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Broadcom announced that it has ported Android and Windows CE to a ARM-based CPU described as “a PND [personal navigation device] on a chip.” The BCM4760 includes a GPS receiver and baseband, an ARM11 processor, a touchscreen controller, and an OpenGL ES 1.1/OpenVG 2.0-compliant graphics processor, the company says.

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Lenovo announced two “smartbooks” that run Linux on an ARM-based Qualcomm Snapdragon SoC. The Skylight is a 10.1-inch netbook, while the IdeaPad U1 is hybrid mini-notebook that runs Windows 7 on an Intel Core 2 Duo and — when its tablet/display is detached — Linux on a Qualcomm Snapdragon.

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Google asked the Federal Communications Commission to let it help administer “white space” networking, tapping into unused TV spectrum to deliver broadband services. Yesterday, Google proposed that it be allowed to create a geolocation database that will protect licensed TV and wireless microphone signals from harmful interference, says the company.

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Google shipped its first branded phone, the HTC-manufactured, Android 2.1-ready Nexus One, and announced a mobile web store. Initially available unlocked at $530 from Google or with a T-Mobile plan at $180, the Nexus One boasts a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, a 3.7-inch AMOLED touchscreen, five-megapixel camera, and voice activated controls.

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Skiff LLC announced a Linux-based e-book reader optimized for newspaper and magazine content, delivered via Sprint's 3G network. The Skiff Reader's display is claimed to be the largest (11.5 inches) and highest-resolution (UXGA) among e-readers, and the first to offer LG Displays' stainless-steel foil display technology, touted for greater durability.

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Marvell announced a faster, wirelessly connected version of its tiny, Linux-based networking computer reference design, which plugs directly into a wall adapter. The Plug Computer 3.0 design adds WiFi, Bluetooth, and a built-in hard drive, and moves up to a new 2GHz Armada 300 version of its ARM-based Armada processors.

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