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System76 is shipping a new version of its Ubuntu Linux-ready Starling Netbook equipped with a dual-core Intel Atom N550 processor, starting at $384. Meanwhile the company has begun shipping to the U.K, and is contemplating developing a tablet PC.
Amlogic has begun sampling a new system-on-chip (SoC) that combines a 1GHz ARM Cortex-A9 processor, an ARM Mali-400 GPU, and Amlogic's proprietary HD video decoding engine. Targeting next-generation consumer electronics running Linux and Android 2.2, the AML8726-M supports full 1080p HD video capabilities and a range of connectivity options, says the company.
AT&T will launch the Samsung Galaxy Tab Nov. 21, selling it for $650 plus $15 to $25 per month for data, says eWEEK. Meanwhile, reviews of the device range from the openly dismissive to the cautiously praiseworthy, with a consensus emerging that this first major Android tablet might be just good enough to make a major dent in iPad sales.
Qnap Systems announced a new family of “TS-x19P+” network-attached storage (NAS) servers for home and SOHO users, integrating Marvell's 1.6GHz Armada 300 SoC. The new models run on Linux firmware, and include the one-drive TS-119P+, dual-drive TS-219P+, and four-drive TS-419P+, with the latter offering up to 8TB of networked storage, says the company.
Intel is reportedly phasing out 21 different 45nm processors, paving the way for the release of its second-generation, 32nm Core CPUs code-named “Sandy Bridge.” Due in early 2011, the new CPUs will feature a revised microarchitecture, “next-generation” Turbo Boost technology, and visual performance rivaling discrete GPUs (graphics processing units), the chipmaker says.
At the MeeGo Conference 2010 today, chipmaker AMD announced it has joined The Linux Foundation's MeeGo open source Linux project. Meanwhile, Sweden-based open source automotive infotainment software developer Pelagicore announced it has joined the Linux Foundation and is collaborating on MeeGo and its Genivi-compliant In-Vehicle Infotainment (IVI) reference design.
HP has released a budget-priced netbook for business users, offered with mobile broadband and GPS options. The $300 Mini 1103 runs SuSE Linux or Windows 7 on a 1.66GHz Atom N455 processor or 1.83GHz N475, comes with 160GB or 320GB hard disk drives, and has the usual 10.1-inch screen with 1024 x 768 pixels, the company says.
Kmart began selling an Android 2.1 tablet from Digital Gadgets for $180 called the Sylvania 7″ Tablet. Meanwhile, NEC will soon start shipping its LifeTouch Android tablet, sales of Toshiba's Folio 100 Android tablet have been halted due to screen defects, and Lenovo is prepping a tablet for 2011, say reports.
Nexcom announced two fanless automation PCs built around Intel's dual-core Atom D525. The NISE 2100 and NISE 2110 both have SIM card slots and Mini PCI slots, plus room for a SATA hard disk drive and front-accessible CompactFlash slot, while the 2110 model adds a PCI Expansion slot, the company says.
Google is preparing a Nexus One follow-up called the Nexus S, says reports. Built by Samsung and headed for T-Mobile, the Android 2.3 smartphone was rumored to have been bandied about by Google CEO Eric Schmidt at the Web 2.0 conference today.
Xi3 Corporation announced a compact PC it claims will be readily upgradeable, thanks to the use of one board containing the processor and memory, along with two separate I/O boards. The Xi3 Modular Computer offers a choice of AMD processors, SSD (solid state disk) storage, 1080p video output, two eSATA ports, and an “Xm3dia” expansion port, the company says.
Android soared in Gartner's 3Q smartphone report to a 25.5 percent, second-place-worldwide share, up from 17.2 percent last quarter. Meanwhile, Android phones came out tops in Consumer Reports' latest quality rankings, and also held their own with the iPhone and BlackBerry phones in a SquareTrade study on smartphone reliability.
E Ink announced its first color displays for e-readers, touting low power consumption, resolution better than 200 dpi, and a contrast ratio of at least 10:1. The “Triton” displays add a thin transparent colored filter array to the underlying monochrome screen, support sizes ranging from two to 12 inches, and will first appear in a Hanvon “WISEreader” tablet, says the company.
The Linux Mint team released the final Linux Mint 10 (“Julia”), based on Ubuntu 10.10. the popular desktop Linux distribution adds one-click upgrades to the DVD edition, as well as a new Mint-X theme, performance improvements, improved software and update managers, GTK support, and revised menus that highlight new apps.
PocketBook USA has launched both a $150 color e-reader tablet based on Android 2.0 and a $180, Linux-based monochrome e-reader tablet. The PocketBook IQ is a seven-inch, 800 x 600 tablet with Wi-Fi and 2GB of memory, while the PocketBook Pro 602 is a six-inch E Ink e-reader with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, says the company.