ASUS’ Jerry Shen flaunts unannounced MeMo Pad FHD 10 LTE, due Q3 with Snapdragon

Posted on 05/06/2013 by Richard Lai

Even after its press events earlier this week, ASUS still had something up its sleeve for Computex. At a Qualcomm keynote just now, ASUS CEO Jerry Shen took the opportunity to tease an unannounced Android tablet, which is due Q3 this year. Given that it was a Qualcomm event, it was no surprise that the exec confirmed the presence of a Snapdragon chip along with LTE radio on this mysterious slate.

Shen also mentioned a full HD display, and given the similar appearance but with a different port layout, we are led to believe that this device will simply be an LTE variant of the new MeMo Pad FHD 10 sans Intel Atom. This could even turn out to be the K005 that we saw in the FCC database, as the MeMo Pad FHD 10 carries the K00A model number. Anyhow, here's Shen's full speech about the tablet:

"In Q3 of this year, we will raise the bar of mobile devices by launching an incredible LTE tablet, which will have Qualcomm Snapdragon, full HD display and ASUS SonicMaster to bring our consumers the most superior and seamless mobile experience. I will save the rest for our launch event in the fall."

Update: ASUS just confirmed to us that the tablet is conveniently called the MeMo Pad FHD 10 LTE. What a mouthful!

Filed under: Tablets, ASUS

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Sony VAIO Pro 11 review: finally, a new flagship ultraportable to replace the Z

Posted on 05/06/2013 by Dana Wollman

Sony VAIO Pro 11 review: finally, a new flagship ultraportable to replace the Z

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If you've ever read the comments section here at Engadget, you know it's possible to develop a fanatical attachment to a brand. To a specific product, though? And a laptop, of all things? That's fairly rare. But the VAIO Z wasn't a common notebook. For years, it was Sony's flagship ultraportable, with a featherweight design, top-of-the-line specs and a delicious carbon fiber weave. It was the sort of laptop for which techies happily spent $2,000 -- and they were ready to plunk down even more money when a new version came out. Then it was discontinued, only to be replaced by mid-range models with lesser specs. There was a clear hole in Sony's lineup, and diehards were left disappointed, with no clear upgrade path once it came time to retire the ol' Z.

In a sense, the Z is still dead: to this day, there is no Z series in Sony's lineup. But there is the new Pro line, and it more or less picks up where the Z left off. (It takes after the business-friendly S series, too.) Starting at $1,150 and available in 11- and 13-inch sizes, these machines use carbon fiber to achieve an even lighter design (under two pounds for the 11-inch model). Both pack fresh Haswell processors, with 1080p screens, NFC and backlit keyboards all standard. As it happens, we've been testing the smaller Pro 11 for almost two weeks, so although Sony just announced these machines to the public, we already have a full suite of impressions, benchmarks and hands-on photos ready to go. Join us after the break to see if this is the Z replacement you've been waiting for.

Gallery: Sony VAIO Pro 11 review

Filed under: Laptops, Sony

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Sony gives the slider another shot with the VAIO Duo 13: coming June 9th for $1,400

Posted on 05/06/2013 by Dana Wollman

Thanks to the magic of leaked YouTube videos, we already knew Sony was working on another slider Ultrabook to replace the failed Duo 11. Now it's official: the company just formally announced the Duo 13, and if Sony's to be believed, it addresses many of the original's shortcomings. For starters, the new "Surf Slider" hinge is supposedly easier to open -- Sony even says it's possible to maneuver with one hand. If you look at those product shots below, you'll see it's also prettier to look at from behind (guess Sony heard us complaining about the exposed cabling on the Duo 11). What's interesting is that the Duo 13 has similar dimensions as its predecessor, and it only weighs a fraction more (2.93 pounds vs. 2.87). The trick was to shrink the bezels, and also to switch to a carbon fiber design, similar to what you'll find on the old Z series and the new Pro line. Oddly, though, while the dimensions haven't changed dramatically, Sony still made room for a less cramped-seeming keyboard, one that even includes a proper trackpad. That's right, folks, the optical tracking stick is gone. We have a feeling you won't miss it.

Some other design notes: the Duo 13 adds a place for stowing the digitizer pen, which the Duo 11 lacked. What's more, while the Duo always had a scratch-resistant 1080p IPS display, this one also makes use of Sony's Triluminos technology, originally used on the company's Bravia TVs. Additionally, it has the same X-Reality processing engine you'll already find on some Xperia smartphones. Rounding out the spec list, there's NFC, Haswell processors and optional AT&T LTE. The main camera, meanwhile, has been upgraded to an 8-megapixel shooter with an Exmor RS sensor; the front webcam now does 1080p video. As for battery life, it should last about 10 hours, thanks to Sony's Active Sleep technology. Look for it to arrive June 9th, in both black and white, with a starting price of $1,400. We've already given the Duo 13 the full review treatment; check that out here.

Gallery: Sony VAIO Duo 13

Filed under: Laptops, Sony

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Sony’s VAIO Pro Ultrabooks weigh as little as 1.92 pounds, ship June 9th from $1,150

Posted on 05/06/2013 by Dana Wollman

If you've been mourning Sony's decision to discontinue its super-thin Z Series laptop, you can at last dry your tears: the company just announced two flagship Ultrabooks that should more than make up for your loss. For starters, the VAIO Pro 11 and Pro 13 each weigh less than the Z, at 1.92 and 2.34 pounds, respectively -- in fact, Sony claims they're the lightest touchscreen Ultrabooks ever made. They also last longer on a charge and have an optional sheet battery that promises to double the battery life, providing up to 14 hours on the Pro 11 and 13 hours of use on the Pro 13. Presumably, they're faster too: both ship with Haswell processors, and the 13-inch version in particular will be offered with PCIe solid-state drives. And, lest you worry Sony evolved the Z too much, its flagship laptops are still made of carbon fiber from top to bottom.

Either way, you'll have your choice of Core i5 and i7 processors, with 1080p IPS displays, NFC, backlit keyboards and Exmor webcams all standard. Just about the only things you won't get back from the Z are a dedicated GPU and an optical drive. (And who wants a DVD writer, anyway?) If nothing else, perhaps the price might convince you to settle for integrated graphics: these machines are considerably more affordable than the Z, which started at two grand. Now, in the year 2013, you can pay $1,150 and up for the Pro 11, or $1,250-plus for the Pro 13. They'll be available June 9th with black and silver color options, but if you have to know more now, we actually have a review of the Pro 11 ready for your perusal. (Spoiler alert: we like it. We like it a lot.)

Gallery: Sony VAIO Pro 11 and Pro 13

Filed under: Laptops, Sony

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Sony VAIO Duo 13 review: a much-improved take on the Windows 8 slider

Posted on 05/06/2013 by Sarah Silbert

When Sony's VAIO Duo 11 slider debuted late last year, its strong performance and crisp HD display weren't enough for us to overlook a flawed design and unimpressive battery life. The Duo 13, just announced at Computex, looks to be a formidable second attempt. A lot has changed here, from a revamped hinge and a beefier power pack to a higher price: $1,400 up from $1,200. Oh, and it offers a more spacious keyboard and a proper touchpad, too. Is Sony's second try a success, especially considering the $200 premium? Skip past the break to find out.

Gallery: Sony VAIO Duo 13 review

Filed under: Laptops, Sony

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E Ink and Sonostar pair up for Mobius flexible-display smartwatch, we go hands-on at Computex

Posted on 05/06/2013 by Zach Honig

Earlier this week, E Ink announced its Mobius flexible display, a 1.73-inch touch-enabled panel for smartwatches. Now, the new screen has made its way onto the Computex exhibition floor in Taipei. Sonostar, a local manufacturer, has integrated the 320 x 240 grayscale panel within its new wearable, which the company is demonstrating for show attendees. Simply called "Smartwatch," the product is little more than a mockup at this point, but it is expected to hit production sometime in Q3 of this year.

The two samples on hand were non-functional, unfortunately, but they did each contain a working Mobius panel -- one displayed a sample Facebook notification, while the second had the time and date with a small low-res picture of a dog, along with battery and Bluetooth indicators up top. The watch itself was very lightweight, and while glare was clearly an issue today, there's plenty of time for engineers to tweak things before this ships later in the year. The Smartwatch, which can stay powered for up to a week with each charge, will come in both black and white, and should be compatible with both Android and iOS devices. Pricing is not yet set, but representatives did confirm that it'll be coming to the US.

Gallery: Sonostar E Ink Mobius smartwatch hands-on

Filed under: Displays, Wearables, Mobile

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Gigabyte Smart Lamp doubles as an Ultrabook hub, is missing a few ports (hands-on)

Posted on 05/06/2013 by Dana Wollman

Things we expected to see at the world's premier computer show: mainstream notebooks, gaming notebooks, thin notebooks ("pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp"), maybe even a tablet or two. But a desk lamp? Not so much. And yet, that might be the most memorable thing Gigaybte is showing here at Computex. The Smart Lamp is, as you'd expect, a proper light, one you can use on four different brightness settings. But it also doubles as a laptop hub, with a DVD player built into the base, along with a handful of other ports. These include two USB sockets, dual headphone / earphone jacks and an SD reader.

It's a neat idea, to be sure -- who doesn't love two-in-one devices - but considering it's supposed to supplement the ports normally found on Ultrabooks, it seems to be missing quite a few big ones. Why not throw in an HDMI port, or some other kind of display output? Ooh, or how about an Ethernet jack? Or a DVD drive that can burn discs in addition to play them? Anyway, you can color us slightly disappointed after having gotten an up-close look, even if the concept itself deserves an 'A' for creativity. No word yet on how much this will cost, when it will go on sale or in which countries it will be available. Until then, check out the walk-through video below -- not that this thing needs much further explanation.

Gallery: Gigabyte Smart Lamp hands-on

Filed under: Peripherals

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ASUS MeMo Pad HD 7 gets August release date

Posted on 04/06/2013 by Mat Smith

For once, we were offered some nicely specific pricing for ASUS' incoming MeMo Pad HD 7 (namely $129 for the 8GB model and $149 for the 16GB option), but were left wanting on any sort of release date. Fortunately, ASUS' UK branch has told us to expect the colorful Nexus 7 doppelgänger this August. As mentioned during the company's Computex reveal, the smaller, cheaper iteration is geared towards developing markets and it looks like ASUS is sticking with that -- only the 16GB model will go on sale in the British Isles, priced at £149.

Filed under: Tablets, ASUS

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ASUS’ ET2702 all-in-one is its first with a 2,560 x 1,440 screen

Posted on 04/06/2013 by Dana Wollman

Even if you just skim our Computex coverage, you'll quickly see there's a theme tying it all together: displays. Super-high-resolution displays. It's true of every company we've seen, really, but moving beyond 1080p seems especially important to ASUS. So far, the firm has shown off a pair of 4K displays, along with its first 2,560 x 1,600 tablet. Now, it's unveiling its first all-in-one desktop with QHD resolution. That would be the ET2702, which comes standard with a 27-inch, 2,560 x 1,440 IPS screen. Though we admittedly only spent a few moments with it, we noticed the colors held up even under the glare of the harsh lighting in Taipei's Nangang Exhibition Center. We were also taken with the design, which includes an edge-to-edge glass display layered over a long speaker grille. There are some other modern touches, too, like white LED lights, a matte aluminum pedestal and a metal mouse to match. Speaking of that mouse, it's one of the nicer ones we've seen tossed in with an all-in-one: aside from the quality build materials, it has a touch strip providing haptic feedback. The included keyboard is well-spaced and easy to type on as well.

In the US, at least, there will be just one configuration to start, with key specs including: a Core i7-4770 processor, a 2GB AMD Radeon HD 8890A GPU, 16GB of RAM, a 2TB hard drive, 802.11ac and a Blu-ray drive. It'll arrive in either late July or early August, we're told, with a price around $2,000, if not slightly less. For a closer look, we've got hands-on photos below and a short walkthrough video after the break.

Gallery: ASUS ET2702 all-in-one hands-on

Filed under: Desktops, ASUS

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SoftKinetic teases embedded 3D depth camera, coming to Intel devices next year (hands-on)

Posted on 04/06/2013 by Richard Lai

At Intel's Computex keynote earlier today, the chip maker teased that it expects embedded 3D depth cameras to arrive on devices in the second half of 2014. Luckily, we got an exclusive early taste of the technology shortly after the event, courtesy of SoftKinetic. This Belgian company not only licenses its close-range gesture tracking middleware to Intel, but it also manufactures time-of-flight 3D depth cameras -- including Creative's upcoming Senz3D -- in partnership with South Korea-based Namuga. Read on to see how we coped with this futuristic piece of kit, plus we have a video ready for your amusement.

Gallery: SoftKinetic embedded 3D depth camera prototype hands-on