News Bits: Laptop Brawls, Acer C200 Tablet, Fujitsu N3410, Unplug to Save

Fight Breaks out in Orlando As Man Races to Get $378 Notebook

People in line for laptop deals in Orlando

Well, we've been talking about the $378 Wal Mart HP laptop on this site for awhile and we knew the demand would be huge.  But was it worth wrestling and fighting for?  Well, for some I guess so:

Security guards wrestled a man to the ground in a Wal-Mart after he cut in line to get laptop computers that were on sale Friday, a television station reported.

The man started arguing with people inside the store, WFTV-TV in Orlando reported. He then started fighting with the guards, the station reported

One man told WFTV that the laptops were being thrown into the air and people rushed toward them, collapsing on each other. Another man described the scene as crazy.

Orlando police and Orange County sheriff's officials didn't return phone messages seeking comment. The store's manager referred questions to Wal-Mart Stores Inc. headquarters in Bentonville, Ark., where officials at had no immediate comment.

Article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/25/AR2005112500361.html

Video: http://www.cnn.com/video/player/player.html?url=/video/us/2005/11/25/vonat.fl.shop.fight.affl

New Acer TravelMate C200 Tablet PC Officially Announced in USA

The first thing that you will notice in Acer's new TravelMate C200 Tablet PC is the innovative "sliding" display mechanism. This is quite different from other Tablet PC's which use a standard "hinge" to allow the display to rotate and fold. Acer boasts that "thanks to its advanced ergonomics and its one-motion conversion process, the Acer TravelMate C200 Tablet PC creates the "ultimate Tablet PC experience in mobile computing". Whether or not this is true will be left for users to decide.

On the hardware front, the specs look good. I already love the fact that this model offers a "slot-loading" DVD burner. The addition of a slot loading drive is long passed due in the PC world as Apple has offered this design as a standard for years.

Finally, it is great to see that Acer is using the wonderful NVIDIA Go 6200 GPU for graphics, rather than opting for the less desirable Intel integrated GMA 900 graphics solution.

A few other features to note, Acer also is offering its "ezDock, a PCI Express-based port replicator designed to accommodate up to 24 legacy and next- generation devices", an "internal Acer MediaBay" that accommodates hot-swappable drives, a choice of second battery, a hard drive up to 100GB and also an optional "Acer MediaBay battery", rated at up to 8 hours battery life (by the manufacturer).

Pricing starts at $1399. Check out the official specs. below and click on the links for price comparison and store availability:

Acer TravelMate C204TMi

• Pentium M Processor 760 (2MB L2 cache, 2.0GHz, 533MHz FSB)
• Windows XP Tablet PC Edition Microsoft
• 1GB (512/512) DDR2 533 SDRAM
• Hard drive 100GB
• Modular DVD-Dual drive (DVD+/-RW)
• NVIDIA GeForce Go 6200
• Biometric Fingerprint ID
• 4-in-1 card reader for optional MultiMediaCard , Secure Digital card, Memory Stick or Memory Stick PRO
• One six-cell and one three-cell battery for 5+ run time hours
• 802.11b/g, WLAN, Gigabit LAN, V.92 Modem, Bluetooth
• 12.1" XGA (14024 x 768) $1899

Acer TravelMate C203ETCi

• Intel Celeron M Processor 370 (1MB L2 cache, 1.5GHz, 400MHz FSB)
• Microsoft Windows XP Tablet PC Edition
• 512MB (512/0) DDR2 533 SDRAM
• hard drive 80GB
• Modular CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo Drive
• Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900
• 4-in-1 card reader for optional MultiMediaCard , Secure Digital card, Memory Stick or Memory Stick PRO
• 802.11b/g, WLAN, Gigabit LAN, V.92 Modem, Bluetooth
• 12.1" XGA (14024 x 768)

New Fujitsu LifeBook N3410

Fujitsu recently released the LifeBook N3410 15.4" widescreen affordable notebook.  The similar LifeBook N3520 15.4" notebook was released a while ago by Fujitsu, the N3520 price averages around $1,700, but the N3410 averages about $1,100 and so is much more affordable.  The N3510 includes a graphics card and faster processor but the N3410 still includes some impressive specs and very similar specs for the same price.  Here's a midrange configuration of the N3410:

• Intel Pentium M Processor 740 (1.73 GHz, 2 MB L2 cache, 533 MHz FSB)
• Microsoft Windows XP Media Center 2005 with Microsoft Works 8.0 
• 15.4" Crystal View wide XGA TFT display
• 512 MB DDR2 SDRAM memory (512 MB x 1)
• 80 GB hard drive
• Dual-Layer Multi-Format DVD Writer
• Integrated Intel PRO/Wireless 2200BG Network Connection (802.11b/g)
• multinational 56K V.90 modem and 10/100 Ethernet LAN
• 4 USB 2.0, IEEE 1394, Memory Stick /SD/xD slot, PC Card slot, ExpressCard slot
• Standard main Lithium ion battery
• One-year International Limited Warranty
• Price: $1,199

That's a decent notebook for the price and from a quality brand.

Unplug to Save Energy

We all have several, or perhaps dozens, of consumer electronic devices. Notebooks, cameras, PDAs, cell phones and other gizmos that need to be re-charged. Of course our electronics draw energy while they charge, that's the point really. But what a lot of people don't know is the AC adapters also draw a charge even when the device is fully charged or in some cases not even plugged in. So, do the world a little good and unplug lesser used adapters.

TVs aren't the only energy-chugging gadgets in the home. Anything that comes with an external power source, such as an adapter or charger, can also bloat energy bills. With the proliferation of cell phones, laptops, handheld computers, digital cameras and digital music players, every person in the U.S. has an average of five external power adapters, the EPA said.

The problem is that most adapters are incredibly inefficient, with many current models utilizing only 30 to 60 percent of the electricity they process, according to the EPA. In addition, adapters will continue to consume a steady trickle of energy even when they're not in use--a problem that plagues many home electronics. "It's wasting electricity the whole time it's plugged in," Ambarian said.

TCMNet has more.