31 Mar 2010 /
Sony appears to be working on a 3G-enabled version of the Vaio P mini-laptop. The FCC is showing a few documents related to two new models, labeled the AK8PCG11111L and the AK8PCG31113L. At this point, there’s very little information available about either model, aside from the fact that they sport WiFi, Bluetooth, and CDMA/EVDO connectivity.
As Engadget notes, most of the information about these new devices is hidden away behind confidentiality requests. But that request lifts on May 13th, at which point the FCC might publish some photos and a user manual — although my guess is that the point will be moot, since that’s probably when Sony and/or its partners will officially unveil the product.
30 Mar 2010 /
You don’t see full sized laptops with Intel Atom processors very often. But this MacBook Pro clone from China is an interesting exception to the rule. It sports a 14.1 inch display and a case that looks an awful lot like a MacBook Pro case including the large touchpad with integrated buttons.
But while the MacBook Pro is available with Intel Core 2 Duo processors, the clone has an Intel Atom processor. It is available with a choice of a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N450 or dual core 1.66GHz Atom D510 chip — the latter usually being reserved for use in desktops, not laptops. And both versions come with next-generation NVIDIA ION graphics, which should give the computer quite a boost when it comes to HD video playback and rendering 3D graphics. But performance-wise, I don’t think anyone’s going to confuse this MacBook Pro clone with the real thing.
Rounding out the specs are 1 to 2GB of RAM, a 160GB to 320GB hard drive, a 1366 x 768 pixel display, HDMI, 3 USB ports, a flash card reader, 802.11a/b/g WiFi, and Bluetooth. The notebook weighs just under 4 pounds.
29 Mar 2010 /
One of the hallmarks of a netbook is a cheap, low power processor. But it’s not just people who are looking for low cost laptops with good battery life who are interested in these sorts of CPUs. Researchers in Germany have developed a system for sorting data that uses an Intel Atom 330 dual core processor and a solid state disk (instead of a hard drive). The result is a data sorting system that’s three times more energy efficient than previous record holders.
The system is called EcoSort, and when sorting 100GB of data, researchers were able to have it sort 36,400 records per joule of energy.
Of course, we’re not talking about a bottom of the line Atom-based system here. The computer had 4GB of RAM and four 256GB SSDs.