The folks at NotebookReview.com have published a comprehensive review of the HP Pavilion tx2500z Tablet PC here on their website. The HP Pavilion tx2500z is a relatively inexpensive Table PC with prices starting at $899.99. Specs include:

• 12.1 inch touch-screen display
• Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1
• AMD Turion 64 X2 dual core processor
• Optional fingerprint reader
• Up to 250GB HDD
• CD/DVD burner
• High gloss black case with “Echo” pattern
• 802.11 b/g wireless LAN
• Optional Verizon Wireless V740 1XEVDO PC ExpressCard
• Optional webcam
• Three USB 2.0 ports, ExpressCard/34 slot, S-Video, VGA, Consumer IR, and 5-in1 media card reader

Here’s what NotebookReview thought of the system:

College students and other consumers should be happy with all the features the tx2500 packs, especially considering it’s available for under $1,000.

[Check it out via SlashGear]

Technorati Tags: HP Pavilion tx2500z, NotebookReview, Review, Tablet PC

GIGABYTE is taking a slightly different spin on the netbook concept with the introduction of the M912V Tablet PC. The M912V features the following specs:

• Intel Atom 1.6GHz processor
• 8.9 inch LCD panel with WXGA resolution (1280 x 768) and LED backlight
• Convertible design
• Intel 945GSE chipset
• 2.5 inch SATA HDD available in 120GB to 250GB storage capacities
• Built-in 1.3 megapixel webcam
• 2 x 1.5 watt speakers
• 1GB RAM
• Bluetooth 2.0
• 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi
• Measures 235 x 180 x 28-42mm
• 3.5 hour battery life
• Weighs 1.3kg
• Available in either Windows XP or Windows Vista Home Basic
• Available also in Linux

It’s certainly nice to see a company introduce a netbook that doesn’t look like a traditional notebook. The GIGABYTE M912V is due out later this month and will supposedly have a price tag of $699.

[Check it out via Daily Tech]

Technorati Tags: GIGABYTE, M912V, Tablet PC, netbook

HP launched their new HP Pavilion tx2000 Series Entertainment Notebook PC at CES 2008. The tx2000 is their latest consumer convertible notebook PC (which means you can use it as both a standard notebook PC or as a Tablet PC). The notebook comes with a sleek high gloss “Echo” Imprint finish, integrated fingerprint reader, touch screen display, HP webcam, integrated microphone and has an estimated street price of $1299.

Specs include the following:

• Windows Vista Home Premium, Business or Ultimate OS
• AMD Turion 64 X2 Dual Core Processor
• 12.1 inch WXGA HD HP BrightView Widescreen Touch-screen display with 1280 x 800 resolution
• Panel rotates 180 degrees and folds flat
• Built in digitizer for handwriting with battery-less rechargeable eraser pen
• NVIDIA GeForce Go 6150 graphics with 559MB shared video memory
• Up to 4GB memory
• Up to 250GB HDD
• SuperMulti DVD+R/RW drive with DL support
• Wireless LAN (802.11 a/b/g/n) and Bluetooth wireless
• Measures 8.82 x 12.05 x 1.23 inches and weighs 4.29 lbs

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: HP Pavilion tx2000 Entertainment Notebook PC, CES 2008, Tablet PC, Convertible Notebook

What better way to wind down 2007 than to have more Apple rumors for the upcoming new year. This time, the rumors center around Apple’s possible usage of Intel’s upcoming Silverthorne CPU in upcoming products. What is Silverthorne you might be asking yourself? It’s Intel’s latest push into mobile device market (things like handhelds, ultra-portable PCs, and mobile phones) by making the x86 processor more acceptable for small footprint, low power consumption devices. News.com is reporting that Silverthorne appears to be a Pentium M-like processor with a power consumption of approximately one or two watts (compared to 35 watts for the Core 2 Duo processor).

So what would Apple want with a low power processor? The folks at AppleInsider theorize that the processor could find its way into either the rumored Apple Tablet device or a new 3G iPhone. News.com thinks the former is more likely than the latter since at 1 watt, the Silverthorne processor is still too power hungry for a mobile phone (compared to the ARM1176 core which runs at 620MHz and consumes only 279 milliwatts.). So the possibilities that Apple would come out with a Tablet-like device in 2008 could very well be true - especially if the company decides to adopt the Silverthorne processor.

Even more interesting for Intel and Apple is the processor due out after Silverthorne known as Moorestown. This processor is expected to bring the product line into the milliwatt area which would then make it ideal for the iPhone or any other phone/handheld devices out there. Again - this is all speculation at this point.. but if the iPhone and the Mac product lineup had the same instruction set, consider how much easier application development will be.

Ahh.. nothing like rumors and speculation.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Intel, Apple, Silverthorne, Moorestown, iPhone, Tablet, Mac

To the surprise of practically nobody out there, Dell has finally taken the wraps off of its first Tablet PC system - the Latitude XT. Not only is the Latitude XT the first Tablet PC convertible notebook system for Dell, it’s world’s first sub-four pound convertible tablet system with pen and capacitive touch capabilities. Capacitive technology senses the touch of a human finger with no pressure required for the system to recognize input. Competing tablets out on the market utilize resistive touch which requires the application of force for the system to recognize user interactions.

But wait.. there’s more!

The Latitude XT also features multi-touch capabilities - allowing the use of more than one finger for tasks such as zooming, and picture repositioning. Other touch features include:

• Accuracy and speed - touch response times on the Latitude XT are faster than the Lenovo X61T
• Advanced digital palm rejection technology - prevents inadvertent contact that disrupts pen input
• Digitizer technology on the Latitude XT up to 10 times more durable the competing resistive touch digitizer technology
• Maintenance-free, no battery pen with eraser and right click mouse functionality

Other system features include:

• Optional media base for docking and optical media
• Full-size keyboard with dual pointing
• Up to 64GB Solid State Drive (SSD) or up to 120GB HDD
• Optional battery slice designed to provide up to 9.5 hours of battery life
• Intel Core 2 Solo and Duo ULV processors
• ATI Radeon X1250 UMA integrated graphics

Prices start at $2499 and Dell will begin to take orders and ship the Latitude XT by the end of the year.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Dell, Latitude XT, Tablet PC

Deep down inside, I’ve always had this affinity for Tablet PCs - I just don’t really know why. Perhaps it has something to do with novelty of having a large touch screen interface.. or perhaps it’s the idea of being able to walk around and simply jot down notes electronically. Whatever it was, I actually owned a Tablet PC for several months in the form of the Toshiba Portege M205 (which I reviewed way back when over at my old website - WhiningDog). Thus, it’s nice to see Toshiba is at least still pushing ahead with Tablet PC Convertible systems with the introduction of the Portege M700. Features and specs for the Toshiba Portege M700 include the following:

• Widescreen form factor
• 12 inch LED screen
• Navigate using your finger or the included digitizer pen
• Latch-less design
• Integrated dual-layer DVD burner
• Weight of 4.4 lbs
• 802.11 a/g/n wireless support
• Optional Bluetooth
• Modular drive design - swap the optical drive with a second hard drive
• Integrated 1.3 megapixel webcam
• Intel Santa Rosa Chipset
• Choice of Intel Core 2 Duo T7100 processor running at 1.8GHz up to T7700 running at 2.4GHz
• Utilizes standard 6 cell battery

Prices for the Portege M700 range from $1499 to $1799.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Toshiba, Portege M700, Tablet PC

Rumors of a Dell Tablet PC have picked up again as an internal Dell document has apparently been leaked out to the Internet masses. The document claims that the new Tablet PC will be called the Dell Latitude XT Tablet and will feature specs such as:

• Intel Core 2 Duo ULV processor running at 1.2 GHz
• 1 GB RAM expandable to 3 GB
• Bluetooth 2.0 support
• Mobile broadband support
• Biometric reader
• Ambient light sensor
• Digital array microphone
• Quick control macros along the screen bezel
• Dual layer DVD burner

One interesting note - this tablet was supposedly lined up for release last month.. yet we didn’t hear a peep. Hm…

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Dell, Latitude XT Tablet PC

Ah yes.. the Apple Tablet rumor has been going around for years now.. but perhaps there’s a bit more credibility in the rumors, now that the iPhone is out on the market and of course making a splash with consumers. The latest set of rumors supposedly come from an insider at ASUS who claims that the company is indeed manufacturing a Tablet system for Apple. According to SlashGear, the Apple Tablet is a cross between the Apple MacBook Pro and the Multi-touch/touchscreen features of the iPhone. Now folks. again - this is merely a rumor/speculation but hey - given how well Apple executed the iPhone, an Apple Tablet might just actually work out if it is indeed true. While Tablet PC’s running Windows XP and Windows Vista have been out for years now - the market never really took off. It might just take a company like Apple to really kick start the industry!

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: ASUS, Apple, Tablet

What do you do when you want an Apple Tablet computer but can’t get one because Apple doesn’t sell one? Make your own of course! That’s exactly what Peter Green did with help from a Mac mini system. The MacMini portable (dubbed MMP MkIII) features:

• Intel Core Solo 1.5 GHz processor
• 60GB HDD
• 512MB of RAM
• three hour battery life
• Integrated 8 inch touchscreen tablet display with handwriting recognition via Apple Ink
• Bluetooth support
• FrontRow capable
• No external keyboard required

This is definitely one of the cooler Mac mini mods that I’ve seen in recent memory.

[Check it out via GizmoWatch]

Technorati Tags: Peter Green, Mac mini, Tablet PC, MMP MkIII

I certainly wish I had this product when I was taking architectural drafting in high school - it’s called the SmudgeGuard and it’s a small glove-like item designed to serve several purposes. First, it shields your hand from smudges or stains you might get while you’re writing or drawing. I used to get this problem all the time because I had a habit of pressing the side of my hand against the drawing canvas.

SmudgeGuard is particularly effective for lefty’s out there who often have smudges on their hands as they write from left to right (of course this isn’t to say that right handers don’t suffer from this too)  But wait! There’s more! For users of pen tablet interfaces, SmudgeGuard will help prevent your hand from sticking to the surface - yes .. we all know plenty of people who have sweaty or sticky hands/palms. aw heck - I’d use this for my iPhone if need be! 

Here’s a quick summary of the features:

• Keeps the side of your hand clean from unwanted smudges
• Eliminates hand friction
• Hand will glide easily across paper and tablets
• Great for home, school or office

The price is just right too as the SmudgeGuard is being sold for $9.99. You can find out more information about this product here on their website.

Thanks to J for the information!

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: SmudgeGuard, Tablets, Wacom Tablets, Writing