Toshiba announces updates to their Satellite Pro, Tecra, and Portégé lineup of notebook PCs – all of which feature Windows 7 support. Here’s what you need to know about the systems.

On the Satellite Pro front, you have the following new models:

Satellite Pro U500 Touch Laptop

• Multi-touch enabled 13.3 inch display
• Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T6670
• Windows 7 Professional 32 bit
• 3GB RAM
• Intel GMA 4500MHD
• 250GB 5400 RPM HDD
• DVD SuperMulti Drive
• USB Sleep and Charge
• Webcam and Microphone
• HDMI and eSATA USB combo port
• Includes touch-ready basic productivity software called Toshiba LIfeSpace consisting of two applications – Toshiba Bulletin Board and Toshiba ReelTime
• Starting price of $999

Satellite Pro L450:

• 15.6 inch widescreen display
• Intel Core 2 Duo processor
• Windows 7 Home Premium 32 bit
• 2GB RAM
• Intel GMA 4500MHD
• 250GB 5400RPM HDD
• DVD SuperMulti drive
• Memory card reader
• Webcam and Microphone
• HDMI port
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/g/n
• Webcam
• Prices start at $529

Satellite Pro L550:

• 17.3 inch diagonal HD widescreen TruBrite display
• Intel Core 2 Duo processor
• Windows 7 Professional 64 bit
• 4GB RAM
• Intel GMA 4500MHD
• 320GB 5400RPM HDD
• Full-sized keyboard with 10 key numeric keypad
• Built-in webcams
• Bluetooth
• Face recognition
• HDMI port
• LED Backlit Display
• 802.11 a/g/n Wi-Fi
• Media card reader
• Prices start at $999

On the business front, Toshiba released updates to the Tecra lineup including the new Tecra R10, A10, and M10 systems.

Tecra R10:

• Intel Core 2 Duo Processor SP9400
• 14.1 inch widescreen display
• Windows XP Professional with recovery media for Windows 7
• 2GB RAM
• Intel GMA 4500MHD
• 250GB 5400RPM HDD
• DVD SuperMulti Drive
• Active Management Technology
• Bluetooth
• EasyGuard Technology
• eSATA USB Combo Port
• LED Backlit Display
• Prices start at $1399

Tecra A10:

• Intel Core 2 Duo Processor P8700
• 15.4 inch widescreen display
• Windows XP Professional with recovery media for Windows 7
• 2GB RAM
• Intel GMA 4500MHD
• 250GB 5400 RPM HDD
• DVD SuperMulti Drive
• Active Management Technology
• Bluetooth
• EasyGuard Technology
• USB Sleep and Charge
• Fingerprint Reader
• eSATA USB Combo Port
• Prices start at $999

Tecra M10:

• Intel Core 2 Duo Processor P8700
• 14.1 inch widescreen display
• Windows XP Professional with recovery media for Windows 7
• 2GB RAM
• Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD
• 250GB 5400 RPM HDD
• DVD SuperMulti Drive
• Active Management Technology
• Bluetoth
• Smart Card Reader
• USB Sleep and Charge
• Fingerprint Reader
• eSATA USB Combo Port
• Prices start at $999

On the Portégé, we have the new Toshiba Portégé M750 which features:

• Convertible Tablet PC
• Intel Core 2 Duo processors
• Pen and touch input capable
• 2GB RAM
• Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD
• 160GB 5400RPM HDD
• 12.1 inch diagonal display
• Windows XP Tablet PC Edition with upgrade media for Windows 7 Professional
• Prices start at $1279

Finally, there’s the new Portégé R600 ultraportable which features:

• Intel Core 2 Duo Processor SU9400
• Windows XP Professional with Recovery Media for Windows 7 Professional
• 3GB RAM
• Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD
• 160GB 5400RPM HDD (or Solid State Drives)
• DVD SuperMulti Drive
• Bluetooth
• Transflective Indoor/Outdoor Display
• USB Sleep and Charge
• Fingerprint Reader
• Prices start at $2099

Technorati Tags: Portégé R600, Portégé M750, Tecra A10, Tecra M10, Tecra R10, Satellite Pro U500, Satellite Pro L550, Satellite Pro L450, Toshiba

Toshiba’s set to introduce multi-touch computing to the consumer notebook market with the new Satellite U505 notebook PC. This 13.3 inch thin-and-light notebook comes with Windows 7 and features N-trig’s DuoSense digitizer which combines pen and capacitive multi-touch support into a single device.

Other features of the U505 include:

• Choice of Intel Pentium processor T4300, Core 2 Duo T6600
• 4GB DDR2 RAM
• Intel GMA 4500M or MHD graphics
• 320GB 5400 RPM HDD
• DVD burner
• LED backlit keyboard
• Bluetooth and HDMI output

Check out the Satellite U505 in action with the below video clip – great to see Windows 7’s touch innovations in consumer-level notebooks.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Toshiba Satellite U505

Netbooks are all the rage you say? Well get ready for the coming flood of inexpensive thin-and-light notebooks powered by Intel CULV (consumer ultra-low voltage) processors that could easily overshadow netbooks. We’ve seen thin-and-light systems come out from companies such as Dell, Acer, ASUS, and HP.. and now Toshiba joins the fray with the newly announced Toshiba Satellite T100 Series.

The T100 Series is available in two configurations – a 13.3 inch model and an 11.6 inch model. Here are the specs to the two models:

Toshiba Satellite T135:

• 13.3-inch diagonal widescreen HD TruBrite LED Backlit display
• Windows 7 Home Premium operating system
• Intel Pentium SU4100 processor or Intel Pentium SU2700 processor
• DDR3 RAM
• Starting at 250GB (5400 RPM) HDD
• 802.11b/g/n wireless and 10/100 Ethernet
• Bluetooth V2.1 + EDR (available on select models)
• Toshiba Hard Drive Impact Sensor
• Touch Pad with Multi-touch Control
• Lightweight at only 3.88 lbs.
• Long-life 6-cell battery delivering up to 9 hours of battery life
• One eSATA/USB combo port with USB Sleep-and-Charge and two USB 2.0 ports
• HDMI port
• Built-in Webcam with Toshiba Face Recognition, stereo speakers and microphone
• Toshiba PC Health Monitor
• 5-in-1 Memory Card Reader Slot

Toshiba Satellite T115:

• 11.6-inch diagonal widescreen HD TruBrite LED Backlit display
• Windows 7 Home Premium operating system
• Intel Pentium SU4100 processor or Intel Celeron 743 processor
• DDR3 RAM
• Starting at 250GB (5400 RPM) HDD
• 802.11b/g/n wireless and 10/100 Ethernet
• Toshiba Hard Drive Impact Sensor
• Touch Pad with Multi-touch Control
• Lightweight at only 3.49 lbs.
• Long-life 6-cell battery delivering up to 9 hours of battery life
• One eSATA/USB combo port with USB Sleep-and-Charge and two USB 2.0 ports
• HDMI port
• Built-in Webcam with Toshiba Face Recognition, stereo speakers and microphone
• Toshiba PC Health Monitor
• 5-in-1 Memory Card Reader Slot

The Toshiba Satellite T135 has a starting price of $599.99 while the Satellite T115 has a starting price of $449.99. Both systems will be available starting on October 22nd.

Technorati Tags: Toshiba Satellite T100, Toshiba Satellite T135, Toshiba Satellite T115

If you’re looking to reduce some clutter on your desktop, then you’ll want to check out Toshiba’s newly announced dynadock wireless U USB docking station featuring wireless USB technology. Where typical laptop docking stations require physical connections to laptops, the dynadock wireless U connects to laptops via wireless USB. The dock itself acts as a conduit for additional peripherals (speakers, keyboards/mouse, etc) while also providing additional features such as graphics and digital audio.

The complete feature list includes:

• Built-in video card to support additional DVI/VGA monitor
• Supports up to 1680 x 1050 resolution
• Built-in sound card supports up to 7.1 digital audio surround sound
• 4 Plug and Play USB ports in the back
• 2 easy access front USB Sleep and Charge ports
• Vertical space saving design
• Dedicated wireless radio for enhanced video performance
• One touch undock button ensures all peripherals shut down properly when undocking
• Works with any Windows based PC
• Sets up automatically when laptop is in range

The Toshiba dynadock wireless U will be available this month at various retailers or at toshibadirect.com for an estimated price of $299.99.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Toshiba dynadock wireless U USB docking station

Toshiba’s finally joining the Blu-ray camp. Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Online confirms that Toshiba plans on introducing their first Blu-ray player before the end of the year – over a year and a half after the company discontinued the HD DVD format. Sony must be loving this one..

[Check it out via PC World]

Technorati Tags: Toshiba, Blu-ray player

Toshiba updated their Satellite lineup of laptops yesterday with the announcement of four product series – the Satellite M, Satellite U, Satellite A, and Satellite P Series. The M and U Series offer multimedia performance and “everyday mobility”, while the A and P Series offer additional power for HD entertainment.

The new Satellites feature a redesigned form factor with the A, M, and P Series showcasing a new Sonic pattern available in Onyx black, while the U Series comes with a textured finish with Matrix pattern in Luxe Brown.

Other features on some of the new Satellites include:

• HD TruBrite 16:9 720p display with select models featuring LED backlit displays
• Edge to edge display
• Sleek flat keyboard with black matte finish
• Illuminating LED backlit keyboard
• Slot loading DVD drive
• Touchpad with Multi-touch control
• Power saving Eco Utility button
• PC Health Monitor
• Hard Drive Impact Sensor

Here’s a quick description of the four Satellite Series:

Satellite U500/U505:

• Unique textured finish on the outside
• Starting weight of 5 lbs
• Starting MSRP of $849.99

Satellite M500/M505:

• Multimedia performance
• 14 inch HD LED display
• AMD Turion X2 to Intel Core 2 Duo processors
• Windows Vista Home Premium
• 4GB RAM
• 320GB HDD
• DVD SuperMulti with Labelflash drive
• Wi-Fi
• Starting MSRP of $699.99

Satellite A500/A505:

• Entertainment oriented laptop
• AMD Turion X2 to Intel Core 2 Duo processors
• Windows Vista Home Premium
• 4GB RAM
• 320GB to 500GB HDD
• Wi-Fi
• 16 inch widescreen edge to edge display on select models
• Grill-encased Harman Kardon speakers
• slot load DVD drive
• Glossy Fusion finish
• Starting MSRP of $749.99

Satellite P500/P505:

• 18.4 inch widescreen HD TruBrite display
• AMD Turion X2 to Intel Core 2 Duo processors
• Windows Vista Home Premium OS
• 4GB RAM
• 250 – 400GB HDD
• Webcam and microphone
• Grill encased Harman Kardon speakers
• slot loading DVD drives
• Glossy Fusion Finish with new Sonic pattern
• Select models have edge to edge displays
• Starting MSRP of $799.99

Technorati Tags: Toshiba Satellite M, Toshiba Satellite U, Toshiba Satellite A, Toshiba Satellite P

Looking for a notebook with a super massive solid state drive? You’re in luck – Toshiba has announced the world’s first notebook/laptop with a whopping 512GB Solid State Drive on the inside. The system, known as the Portégé R600-ST4203 (sounds like a space shuttle mission doesn’t it?), also happens to be a nice ultra-portable system too – weighing a mere 2.4 pounds and measuring only 0.77 inches thin. But back to the SSD component for a second. We all know why Solid State Drives rock – they’re more power efficient, have no moving parts, and most importantly, offer faster performance than a standard hard drive. However, all this performance comes at a price.. but more on that in a second.

Let’s list the major specs to the Portégé R600-ST4203:

• Intel Core 2 Duo Processor SU9400
• Windows Vista 32/64 bit OS
• 3GB RAM
• 802.11 a/g/n Wi-Fi
• Bluetooth 2.1 connectivity
• 12.1 inch widescreen 1280 x 800 resolution display with LED sidelight
• Intel GMA 4500MHD graphics
• DVD burner
• Built-in webcam and microphone
• Gigabit Ethernet
• 7.53 hour battery life
• ExpressCard slot
• 2 USB 2.0 ports, 1 eSATA/USB 2.0 combo port
• SD slot
• Fingerprint Reader

Now back to the price.. The Portégé R600-ST4203 will be available in early June for a whopping $3499.99. Yeah.. 512GB of fast storage space comes at a price folks.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Toshiba Portégé R600-ST4203, 512GB SSD, Solid State Drive

Toshiba introduces a new line of digital photo frames called the Journe Air consisting of the Air 1000 and Air 801. Both frames have built-in Wi-Fi which allows the devices to download content from online resources such as Flickr and Picasa.

The Journe Air 1000 features the following:

• 10 inch 16:9 backlit LCD display
• 1GB of memory
• Memory card slot
• Internet radio with up to 50 preset channels
• Built-in speakers
• Calendar
• Clock
• Alarm
• remote control

The Journe Air 801 features:

• 8.4 inch display
• 128MB memory
• Memory card slot
• Built-in speakers
• Alarm
• Clock
• Calendar
• Full touch sensor controls

The Journe Air 801 also has a unique feature known as “Sub-View” which allows the frame to interact with PCs by extending the surface of the desktop.

The Air 801 has a price of £139.99 while the 1000 has a price of £169.99.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Toshiba Journe Air Digital Photo Frames

Two new video clips are out that demonstrate the new Toshiba TG01 touch-screen Windows Mobile handset. The first video is an HD video clip provided by the folks at SlashGear. You can check out the clip below.

The second clip is the official ad from Toshiba showing off the TG01’s various features.

Some of the questions in my initial blog posting are apparently answered in these video clips. Yes, it does look like Toshiba spent a bit of time working on a new intuitive gesture controlled user interface. There are nice large buttons, “spinning vertical frames”, and even demonstrations of the “Shake to call” feature (which I’m still not sold on – reminds me of the Sansa Shaker). One thing IS starting to be evident with the TG01 – it’s got one beautiful screen!

Thanks to SlashGear for these videos

Technorati Tags: Toshiba, TG01 Windows Mobile Smartphone

No, that is not some upcoming version of the Apple iPhone. This is in fact the upcoming Toshiba TG01 smartphone based on the Windows Mobile OS. This sleek handset is thinner than the iPhone (0.39 inches vs the iPhone’s 0.48 inches), and comes with a 4.1 inch 800 x 480 resolution touch-screen display. Powering the unit will be the Qualcomm’s 1GHz T-Snapdragon QSD8250 chipset – making the TG01 the first handset to use the processor platform. Other interesting specs include:

• microSD card slot
• GPS
• Wi-Fi
• HSDPA 3G networking
• G-Sensor – some sort of replacement to the accelerometer typically found in these types of handsets nowadays
• Windows Mobile with full flash support

One of the more interesting features of the TG01 is the “shake to answer” capability. Yes.. as the name implies, you would shake the phone to answer or disconnect a call. I’m not sure if I’m a fan of that (somehow I picture folks shaking a phone and then accidentally dropping the phone!!) feature but I guess I’d have to try it out first hand to see is usefulness.

Many folks will be wondering whether this is an iPhone killer. Our gut reaction is probably not. It’s merely a response from another company to the Apple iPhone.

Let’s face it. The introduction of the Apple iPhone was an inflection point in the mobile phone industry. From that point onward, every mobile phone vendor would have to respond in some form or fashion to the iPhone. For Toshiba, the TG01 is that very response.

Thus it’s really no great surprise that Toshiba would eventually come out with something to address this market.

So will it beat the iPhone in ease of use and just the “fun” factor? Probably not considering it’s based on the Windows Mobile OS. However because it is a Windows Mobile device, you’ll have access to thousands of third party applications. It’s also not entirely clear how much customization Toshiba did with the TG01. Does it have a customized UI a la HTC? Or is the home screen the only modification? Unknowns all around

Expect more info in the coming weeks as it’s expected that Toshiba will unveil the TG01 at the MWC.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Toshiba, TG01, Windows Smartphone, Windows Mobile