Sony unveils VAIO Duo 11 slide-out tablet, Tap 20 portable touchscreen all-in-one

Sony unveils VAIO Duo 11 slideout tablet, Tap 20 portable touchscreen allinone

Sony just threw itself fully into the touchscreen Windows 8 arena -- it's introducing the VAIO Duo 11 slider tablet and the Tap 20 combination desktop and tablet design at its IFA 2012 press conference. The Duo 11 is a noticeably amped-up realization of the Hybrid concept we saw at CES. Its 11.6-inch, 1080p touchscreen is joined by a proper digitizer stylus for low-lag handwriting as well as some seriously powerful innards for a convertible PC its size: we're talking an Ultrabook-level Core i3, i5 or i7 as well as a 128GB or 256GB SSD, NFC wireless, GPS, and HD-capable cameras at the front and back. Sony is hoping for a late October release for this beast of a slate, although we haven't been given that all-important price.

The VAIO Tap 20, meanwhile, is more than just a tilting all-in-one desktop in the vein of Lenovo's IdeaCentre A720. Despite carrying a 20-inch, 1,600 x 900 touchscreen, it's still very much battery-powered -- you can lug the 11.4-pound PC into the living room and treat it like a tiny multi-touch table, if that's your inclination. It's sharing the same processor picks as the Duo 11, but it turns to more conventional 750GB or 1TB hard drives and puts the emphasis on shareable apps like Family Paint and the Fingertapps Organizer calendar. Not surprisingly, there's only one, front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera here, although NFC does make the cut. The Tap 20 is due to arrive at about the same time as its smaller Duo 11 sibling, although we're once again without details of how much it will cost.

Continue reading Sony unveils VAIO Duo 11 slide-out tablet, Tap 20 portable touchscreen all-in-one

Filed under: , ,

Sony unveils VAIO Duo 11 slide-out tablet, Tap 20 portable touchscreen all-in-one originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Aug 2012 10:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 teardown shows easy fixes, skimpy battery

Galaxy Note 101 teardown shows easy fixes, skimpy battery

We've already deconstructed Samsung's Galaxy Note 10.1 on a metaphorical level, and now it's iFixit's turn to go the literal route. The DIY repair outlet found the pen-friendly tablet to be one of its easier tablet teardowns in recent memory: just about everything inside that frame can be swapped out individually. It's even possible to replace the relatively cheap glass that sits on top of the considerably pricier LCD, just in case the slate plummets face-first but leaves some chance at salvaging its screen. While largely coming back with good news, the investigation also explains Samsung's decision to go with a modest 7,000mAh battery -- stuffing all those components into a 0.35-inch thick frame doesn't leave much room for the lithium-ion pack that gives them life. Still, if you're itching to understand what defines a truly repairable tablet, or just want to get a peek at those Galaxy S III-derived roots, the full surgical procedure is available at the source.

Filed under:

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 teardown shows easy fixes, skimpy battery originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 20 Aug 2012 10:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceiFixit  | Email this | Comments

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review

DNP Samsung Galaxy Note 101 review

Consider it the fallout from a decade-plus of reality TV, but our made-by-the-masses approach has expanded into new territory: technology R&D. Or so Samsung's very public handling of the Galaxy Note 10.1 would have us believe. Thrust into an American Idol-like spotlight at Mobile World Congress earlier this year, the still-unfinished slate, a follow-up to the pen-enabled Galaxy Note phone, was forced to perform for hordes of skeptical insiders. Sure, there was raw talent on display and we could see the promise of this 10-inch contender (we said as much in our exhaustive preview), but it was also clear the company was testing consumer waters, fishing for a vote of confidence before continuing down the development track.

Does this make Samsung's latest flagship the Kelly Clarkson of the tablet category? It's an apt analogy, if you think about it: Kelly wants to be country, the Note 10.1 wants to be a pro-designer tool, but neither are allowed. Why? Well, simply put, products sell better when they're made more palatable for a wider range of tastes. Which is why the company used MWC to gauge popular opinion before molding its untested product into something wth a broader appeal. Ultimately, that meant a drastic makeover: since MWC, the Note 10.1 has received a slot for that S-Pen, streamlined software, a quad-core Exynos 4 chip and two storage configurations: 16GB / 32GB, priced at $499 and $549, respectively.

So it now has more horsepower under the hood, that much is assured, but is that chip enough to boost the Note 10.1's mass appeal? Will savvy shoppers be able to forgive that relatively low-res 1,280 x 800 display? Will its Wacom digitizer elevate this slate past its more generic Android and iOS rivals? Or will that feature hamper its widespread appeal, attracting mainly creative professionals? Meet us after the break to see if the Note 10.1 can succeed as the multitasking everyman's go-to tablet.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review

Filed under:

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Aug 2012 11:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 launches stateside August 16th starting at $499

Samsung Galaxy Note 101 launches stateside August 16th starting at $499

If you didn't see this one coming from a mile away, then it's clear you haven't been paying much attention. After countless leaks and even an early August availability from online retailers, Samsung's ready to make its S-Pen slate, the Galaxy Note 10.1, official for the U.S. market. The TouchWiz-skinned Android tablet is set to hit retail shelves tomorrow, August 16th, and will be offered up in 16GB and 32GB WiFi-only configurations priced at $499 and $549, respectively. For the money, you're getting an ICS tab outfitted with a 10-inch 1,280 x 800 TFT LCD display, quad-core Exynos 4 CPU clocked at 1.4GHz, 2GB RAM, microSD storage expandable to 64GB, 1.9-megapixel front-facing / 5-megapixel rear cameras and a 7,000mAh battery. The device, first introduced this past February at Mobile World Congress, stands apart from its capacitive rivals thanks primarily to the addition of a Wacom-like digitizer panel optimized for the company's handwriting recognition software and a slew of stylus-specific, pre-loaded apps, like Adobe's Photoshop Touch and Samsung's own S Note. Prospective owners will be able to choose from two neutral launch colors, grey and white, when it goes on sale this Thursday.

Filed under:

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 launches stateside August 16th starting at $499 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Aug 2012 11:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments