01/01/2009, 11:55pm, EST
Thursday, January 1stHP Firefly shows with multi-touch, dual screens
HP will reveal a concept notebook at CES that acts a showcase for the future of desktop replacement notebooks, Laptop reveals in a hands-on preview. A prototype known as the Firefly carries the 17-inch display typical of many notebooks its size but centers on a multi-touch trackpad borrowed from the Voodoo Envy 133 placed in an unusual location. Rather than ahead of the keyboard, the pad is placed at the side in a reportedly more comfortable position. The pad supports more complex gestures like pinch-to-zoom and scrolling but also supports left- and right-clicking and is said to be closer to a true mouse in terms of input.
Echoing Fujitsu's LifeBook N7010, the Voodoo-backed Firefly also has a second, 4.3-inch display that serves as a 800x480 secondary screen that can be used for IM and other small tasks without interrupting a game or reducing the amount of available space on the main panel.
The system as built is pitched as a gaming system and carries a 2.4GHz Core 2 Extreme mobile quad-core processor at its heart, and carries dual Mobility Radeon HD 3870 graphics chips teamed together in CrossFire mode. A 250GB, 7,200RPM hard drive and 4GB of memory also eliminate common complaints about slow load times on notebooks, while a customizable backlit keyboard and a unique infrared webcam mode tailor the notebook to nighttime gaming.
HP doesn't plan to put the Firefly as-is into production and is using it as a technology demonstrator, though the PC builder is one of the first with a multi-touch display notebook for the home and is known to translate at least some of the technology from its designs into production models.
Filed under: computers
Other story tags: Intel, AMD, Core 2, HP, ATI, Radeon, Voodoo PC
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Ugly
That thing has been hit with the UGLY stick!
A Production Nightmare
If this were to go into production, it would be fine for right-handed people, but will HP produce a left handed version? If so, won't that be a production and support headache?
Dumb gets Dumber
Absolutely, but so typical of the (un)PC world to make a laptop for right handed people only. Dumb idea that simply makes HP look desperate to make something look 'innovative' but simply shows that change for changes sake is definitely not the way to go.
dumb and dumber
I'm right handed, but use my left hand for mousing and trackpading (try it - once you get used to it - its pretty efficient, especially if you're like me and press return and delete a lot!)
I guess I won't be buying one of these (but then that was a given...)
swappable
It would be wise to make keyboard pad and touch pad swappable.
um...
It is a CONCEPT notebook, so while it is nice to criticize stupid details or looks, what you should be looking at is the concept.
CONCEPT
Hi Testudo, guess what; I looked at the concept.
Analyse: the thing is dog-ugly! Who in their right mind would carry a thing like that around? Or does it have folding legs like, say, a blackjack table?
Maybe Darth Vader? He could probably wipe-out the entire "EnergyStar" with this baby.
The glove has to go though!
Off Center Keyboard?
Not centering the keyboard . . . talk about the ergonomic hazards. Move over, carpal tunnell -- there's a new syndrome in town.