News Bits: Acer Gemstone Notebook Unveiled, 3D LCD Displays, Motion Sensing Notebooks
Acer unveils "Gemstone" consumer notebooks
Acer has introduced a new design for its Aspire consumer notebook lineup. Acer plans to ship 10 million consumer notebooks in 2008 and increase the proportion of consumer notebook shipments to 40% from 30%.
The Gemstone design is based on the form of a gemstone – the edges are rounded and the outside appearance is shiny and elegant. The laptops were co-designed with Designworks USA, a division of BMW. The chassis comes from Foxconn Technology.
The new Acer Aspire notebooks support Dolby Home Theater Technology and will be available with HD-DVD or Blu-ray drives. Display sizes range from 14 inches to 17 inches. Availability of the new notebooks is expected during the middle of May.
Fujitsu announces new Santa Rosa Amilo notebook
Image courtesy of Engadget
Fujitsu Siemens has introduced its Amilo Pi2515 notebook based on the new Intel Santa Rosa mobile platform. It weighs a bit over six pounds and has the following specifications:
- 15.4-inch WXGA display
- Intel Core 2 Duo T7100/T7300 CPU
- Intel GMA X3100 graphics
- 2GB RAM (max.)
- 200GB HDD (max.)
- DVD+/-RW DL burner
- ExpressCard slot
There is no word on how much the Pi2515 will cost or when it will be available.
3D LCD display panels to appear on notebooks in 2007 or 2008
Notebooks with 3D LCD panels may hit the market in 2007 or 2008; US-based notebook brands are "aggressively" seeking 3D LCD monitor solutions from Taiwan.
3D displays will have less brightness and increased power consumption, and will also require new software solutions. 3D displays have gained popularity in a variety of applications. Samsung has completed development of 3D panels and plans to ship 4.3-inch OLED displays to handset makers in 1H 2007.
Motion sensing coming to notebooks soon
Soon, notebooks may be able to be controlled with a simple nudge or tilt. BT Group is working on a motion-sensitive notebook that operates in a similar way to Nintendo’s Wiimote. The notebook responds to tilts and allows user to navigate through menus and applications.
This is still a new technology and it is still under development. BT researcher David Chatting said in a statement that "This is still a research project. We are able to discriminate between a tip to the left, or right or was the device knocked, nudged or shaken. The demo we have running can help people read books on a laptop, a photograph application to orientate the picture dependent on how the laptop is held."
Over half of new notebooks will use flash drives by 2010
According to iSuppli, over half of new notebook PCs will use some form of flash memory storage by 2010 thanks to a steep decline in NAND flash prices and performance increases.
In Q1 2007, 143,600 notebooks were sold with flash memory storage; by Q1 2009, that number will have reached 24 million. While flash memory is still much more expensive than hard drives, its significant performance advantages, improved reliability, and lower power consumption will compel notebook OEMs to adopt it.
There are three different types of flash memory currently being utilized by notebooks: Intel’s Robson, hybrid hard drives (HHDs), and solid-state drives (SSDs). All provide a performance advantage over a traditional hard drive.
Ultraportable notebooks finding more favor in America
While ultraportable notebooks have long been a favorite in Europe and Asia, ultraportable notebooks are finding favor in America. The attraction to small notebooks is similar to the attraction to small gadgets, such as iPod Nanos. Americans are placing more value on mobile products.
Small notebooks provide many of the productivity and entertainment features found in larger mainstream notebooks, such as built-in optical drives. One of the largest groups buying ultraportables are businessmen and businesswomen.
There is no clear-cut definition of an ultraportable notebook, although most notebook makers classify notebooks with 12 inch screens or less as such. Many ultraportables weigh less than 4 pounds.
Intel cuts 1000 jobs
Intel this week announced that it will be cutting about 1000 jobs in New Mexico at its Rio Rancho plant (Fab 11X). Fab 11X is a 300mm plant and currently houses 5000 employees. Fab 11X, in addition to producing 300mm wafers, also produces 200mm wafers, which is now an outdated technololgy. All of those involved with the production of 200mm wafers will be let go.
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