12/31, 1:00am
Atom in more HP notebooks
Users may find Intel's mobile CPU in more notebooks if market leader Hewlett-Packard has its way: a new report says that HP is in negotiations with Intel to expand the use of Intel's latest mobile processor. Current restrictions limit the use of Atom series processors only in netbook PCs with up to 10.2-inch panels and HP hopes convince chip giant Intel to allow it to use Atom in new mini-note PC models with larger screen sizes. Taiwan-based notebook makers told Digitimes that HP's high-profile brand may help it succeed in convincing Intel to allow the use of the new mobile CPU in more HP mini-notebooks.
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11/13, 10:10pm
AMD answer to Atom CPUs
AMD announced several new projects that will compete with Intel's Atom processor late next year, according to ExtremeTech. The company expects to add the Caspian and Conesus processors sometime next year. Both products are intended for use in mini-notebooks or netbooks, featuring the same 45-nm architecture of the new Shanghai processor announced earlier this week. Dual-cores will be featured in both, along with DDR-2 memory support.
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10/29, 12:05am
HP intros three netbooks
Days after a posting a picture of the device on its website, HP is rolling out not one but three consumer netbooks in the Mini 1000 series. Users can choose between 8.9- or 10.2-inch 1024x600 LED-backlit displays, 8GB or 16GB SSDs or a conventional 60GB hard drive. All models ship with built-in Wi-Fi, and 3G versions are expected in December. The 1000 marks a sharp break from the Mini-Note 2133's VIA C7M processor and instead uses a 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor with between 512MB and 2GB of RAM; the combination lets HP keep the price down while still providing headroom for better performance.
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10/26, 11:05pm
HP Mini-Note 1000 Teaser
HP today dropped a hint as to its future netbook direction through its shopping home page by posting a teaser graphic for the Mini-Note 1000. An ordinary version of the Vivienne Tam Edition, the system should have the same 10-inch display as the designer netbook but with a more conventional black exterior. Despite the larger size than the 8.9-inch Mini-Note 2133, the system should also be lighter at less than 2.3 pounds and will still measure less than one inch thick.
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10/23, 12:25pm
HP Vivenne Tam and Atom
HP's Vivienne Tam netbook concept is turning into a production model, the company and Glam have confirmed through a teaser page for the mini PC. Now due to ship in December, the Vivienne Tam Edition is already known to be larger than the Mini-Note and will carry a 10-inch screen along with its designer outer cover; new in the teaser is word that the system will use an Intel Atom processor rather than the VIA C7-M which has been the Mini-Note's sole choice since it was introduced earlier in the year.
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10/15, 12:20pm
HP Clearing Mini-Notes
HP is aggressively discounting its Mini-Note PCs in what may be an attempt to clear stock for upgrades, a new promo would suggest. The VIA-based netbook, which officially launched at $499, is now selling for as little as $399 in its basic configuration of a 1GHz C7-M, 512MB of memory, and a 4GB flash drive pre-loaded with SuSE Linux; other discounts are more dramatic and range up to a $779 model (normally $1,064) with a 1.6GHz chip, 2GB of memory, a 120GB hard drive and Windows Vista Business.
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10/15, 8:35am
HP Said Bullying Suppliers
HP could be trying to cement its position in notebooks by shutting at least one competitor out of supply deals, according to a controversial claim by southeast Asian industry sources. The American PC maker is allegedly demanding that its contract manufacturers refuse orders from ASUS and is said to be punishing those that take the latter's orders by reducing its own orders at these companies, hurting their overall business. The threat is supposedly prompted by ASUS' goal of becoming the fourth-largest notebook builder worldwide, which may eat into HP's estimated lead in worldwide PC sales.
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09/10, 4:20pm
HP notebook on the catwalk
Hewlett Packard and fashion designer Vivienne Tam unveiled the newest product they collaborated on this past Tuesday at the New York Fashion Week. Believed to be based on the 8.9-inch Mini-Note HP 2133, the HP Vivienne Tam Special Edition notebook sports a 10-inch screen, and while other specs are slim, they are likely shared with the more traditional Mini-Note. The peony flower design seen in the photos extends under the keyboard, while a storage sleeve protects the outside surface from scratches while the ‘digital accessory’ is carried like a clutch. The world-renowned designer also helped design the notebook’s accessories and packaging.
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09/03, 2:35pm
MS Lifts XP Netbook Limits
Microsoft has backed off some of its restrictions on Windows XP to allow netbooks with larger hard drives to support the older operating system, according to claims from companies in the business. Although the Redmond, Washington-based software firm has so far insisted that systems with hard drives larger than 80GB carry Windows Vista in a bid to drive companies to the newer operating system, it has now allegedly doubled that limit to 160GB, expanding the types of PCs that qualify for the older software.
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08/15, 11:30am
HP Ordering VIA Nanos
HP has ordered batches of VIA's Nano processors for upcoming computers that may include its netbooks, claim some within the PC business. The faster, more efficient mobile processors are allegedly already shipping to HP and would be the second processor line from VIA to reach the American company after the C7-M, which so far has only been used in the Mini-Note 2133 and was initially thought to be a stopgap until HP could use Intel's Atom processor.
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08/07, 9:15am
HP 10 inch Atom Leak
HP plans to significantly expand its Mini-Note line in the fall along with a switch in processors, one new leak claims. Although an expansion has already been rumored, the new tip is more specific and alleges that a larger 10-inch model will ship with an Intel Atom processor rather than the VIA C7-M used in the 8.9-inch version. The system will purportedly ship with a solid-state drive and an unusual 1024x576 screen resolution rather than the 1024x600 of the current system.
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07/25, 8:35am
HP Smaller Mini-Note
HP is developing a lower-cost version of its Mini-Note portable, the company has admitted this week. The company's Australian Market Development head Jerel Chong says there will be a "lower cost" device similar to the current model (known as the 2133) but which "won’t be as durable" as the existing system and is primarily meant for retail, where the Mini-Note is generally unavailable and would often compete against lower-priced offering such as ASUS' base Eee PC models or the Acer Aspire one.
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06/13, 12:30am
Dell outlines "Dell E" MID
Dell's foray into the mini-notebook market has been dubbed the new "Dell E" series, which will include two different screen configurations: the 8.9-inch model is designed to take on the Asus Eee 900, and the 12.1-inch "E Slim" may be a rival to the MacBook Air and Lenovo X300 (and its successors), according to Engadget. Defining a new product category called the "Mobile Internet Device" for 30 minutes of web experience (vs. 3 min on an Smartphone: "iPhone" pictured), Dell says the new Atom-based mini-notebook line is designed to bridge the content/usability gap between cell phones and full notebooks. The light-weight "mini-Inspiron" notebooks, first revealed earlier this month, tout "no moving parts" with flash-based drives, DDR2 RAM configs, 802.11g WiFi access (with WiMax expected sometime after October of this year), user-replaceable batteries, 'instant-on' functions for quick/convenient access, full-size keyboards, and a built-in low-res 0.3MP Web camera; they will be available with "limited configurability" and limited colors starting in August with a second version due in the second quarter of 2009.
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06/02, 8:55am
Sony Micro Notebook Leak
Sony could be the next major PC builder to leap into the micro notebook field, an inadvertent leak at the WiMAX Expo has shown. An 8.9-inch notebook made by Quanta and based on VIA's OpenBook reference platform reportedly lists Sony as the manufacturer, suggesting the PC is a prototype of a future production model for the Japanese company. A Quanta official asked about the computer declines to confirm the Sony origins.
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05/28, 7:10pm
Dell ultraportable reveal
Dell CEO Michael Dell recently offered a glimpse of his company's highly-rumored ultra-portable at the All Things Digital executive conference in California. Dell was carrying a sleeved laptop, opening the cover to reveal a bright candy-apple red shell crowning a miniature portable akin to the Asus Eee PC and HP Mini-Note. He was sparing with details, but images reveal three USB ports, a card reader, VGA output, and Ethernet connections, with the system running an unknown version of Windows.
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04/29, 9:00am
Intel Atom Shortage?
Intel has encountered a supply shortage that will prevent it from fulfilling more than half of the orders for its Atom mobile processors in the next month, according to a report in the Taiwan newspaper Apply Daily. Less than 40 percent of the semiconductor firm's requests are purportedly being met and, as a result, are expected to delay or hurt the rollouts of micro notebooks from a number of new entrants to the field, including from Acer and Dell.
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04/18, 11:15am
LG extra-wide micro LCDs
LG Display promises to break open the micro notebook business with a series of new LCDs, according to observations by purported industry insiders. Seeking to up-end the market, the company hopes to develop a 10.1-inch LCD with a 16:9 ratio similar to many HDTVs. At 1024x576, the screen would have a lower vertical resolution than the 600 pixels of sharper ultra-small displays but would cut down on the vertical size of budget notebooks and more properly fit movie ratios. The screen is due in October.
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04/09, 10:40am
Dell Plans Eee PC Rival
Dell will be next to join the ranks of companies building micro notebooks, according to a claim made by one of its assemblers. An official from Taiwan-based Compal says that his company will produce between 200,000 and 300,000 "low-cost" notebooks a month for Dell starting sometime in 2008, with as many as one to two million readied by the end of the year. The unnamed executive doesn't provide details of the systems but notes that Compal could boost production if demand proves high.
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04/08, 12:10am
HP Mini-Note
Slightly ahead of a formal release, HP has revealed the Mini-Note, one of the few Western attempts at entering the field for micro notebooks. The previously leaked system aims to improve the formula started by the Eee PC by offering a genuinely comfortable keyboard: despite having just an 8.9-inch screen, the Mini-Note's keyboard is just 8 percent smaller than that of a full-sized notebook. The design is also more upscale than counterparts from ASUS or Everex and is built out of aluminum with a spill-resistant key layout.
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