Todays & Tomorrows Technology

It looks like the torrent of Atom N270 netbooks won’t be followed by a similar rush of Atom N450-based budget ultraportables, as several manufacturers have apparently revealed plans to delay mass production until netbook heavyweights Acer and ASUS show their hand. That could push bulk availability back until the first half of 2010, despite engineering samples of the new Intel N450 chip already being available.


According to DigiTimes, lower than expected demand for netbooks – in part through segment saturation – in the first half of 2009 has left many vendors with legacy stock and reduced profit. That has encouraged them to take a more wait-and-see attitude, slashing R&D budgets and instead monitoring the big names to better gage the market.

Acer and ASUS are expected to reveal their N450-based ranges in Q4 2009, with white-box manufacturers planning to begin their own mass production in Q1 2010. The end result for the consumer may be reduced choice in netbook models, though given that the combination of building-to-budget, fitting in with Intel and Microsoft’s licensing limitations, and segment naivety has left most current netbooks pretty much identical to each other, that may not be such a bad thing.

Acer have announced new 15.6-inch and 17.3-inch notebooks, the Aspire Gemstone Blue range, priced from just $479.99. The 15.6-inch AS5536 has a 16:9 display, AMD Athlon 64 X2 2.1GHz dual-core CPU, 3GB of RAM and ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics, together with a 320GB hard-drive, DVD burner and WiFi b/g/n.

As for the AS7735Z, that has a 17.3-inch 16:9 display, Intel Pentium T4200 2.0GHz processor, 4GB of DDR3 RAM and Intel’s GMA 4500MHD graphics. There’s also a 250GB hard-drive, DVD burner and WiFi b/g/n. Both machines have a webcam, multi-format card reader, and a multitouch capable trackpad.

The Acer Aspire AS5536 is available now, priced from $479.99, while the AS7735Z is also on sale now, priced from $599.99. As of the end of the month, they’ll be joined by the Acer Aspire Gemstone Blue AS5739G, with a 15.6-inch display, Intel Core 2 Duo T6500 2.1GHz processor, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GT130M graphics with 1GB of discrete memory and a Blu-ray drive. It also has a 250GB hard-drive, fingerprint reader, WiFi a/b/g/n and the multitouch trackpad; it’ll be priced from $749.99.

The latest batch of new laptop and ultraportable rumors are spilling out of the Far-East, tipping new touchscreen models running Windows 7 and at least one ultra-thin from LG. According to industry sources, HP, Acer and Lenovo have all placed orders with Taiwanese capacitive touchscreen manufacturer Cando; meanwhile MSI are said to be supplying LG with an ultra-thin notebook that will ship in the second half of 2009.

The Cando touchscreens in question are the company’s 12.1-inch model, which have recently become the first such panel to receive Windows 7 compatibility certification. That means Microsoft agree that the panels will work with Windows 7’s extensive multitouch technology. Shipments are expected to begin in August, with Cando currently capable of producing 400,000 to 500,000 panels per month, rising to 1m per month in 2010.

As for the LG ultra-thin notebooks, no hardware specifications are known but according to the Chinese-language Economic Daily News report the company is in talks with telecom providers regarding bundling WWAN connectivity. That would imply that the notebook will have integrated 3G.

The Acer Aspire One 531 range has finally reached the US, making its official appearance on the company’s regional website and even, we’re hearing, making it out to retailers. Several versions of the 10.1-inch netbook are available, including integrated 3G on two of the models.

Common to all versions is the Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz processor, a 160GB hard-drive 10.1-inch 1024 x 600 display, webcam and WiFi b/g. The Acer Aspire One Pro 531h-1791 throws 2GB of RAM and Windows XP Pro into the mix, while the Aspire One 531h-1440 and 531h-1766 get only 1GB of RAM and Windows XP home, but add integrated 3G. The only other difference between the two 3G-enabled models is the warranty: one year on the 1766 and two years on the 1440.

If bought with a two-year AT&T data plan, the 3G models can be had for as little as $150. Elsewhere, the AOP531h-1791 is listed at around $466.20 at PC Super Store, while the AO531h-1766 is listed at Amazon and Radioshack for around $449.99.

Acer are reportedly considering phasing out their 11.6-inch Aspire One netbook, in favor of a new model in their Timeline range with the same screen size. The news, which comes from industry sources in Taiwan, suggests that the new 11.6-inch Acer Timeline will launch in June, with the netbook either discontinued or discounted to differentiate between the two models.

Lower than expected sales of the 11.6-inch Acer Aspire One have led the company to reduce orders with OEM manufacturer Quanta. One possible reason for the netbook’s poor result is the choice of Intel’s Atom Z520 processor, a low-power chip which has proved unable to keep up with the 720p-capable display credentials of the AO751.

Quanta are tipped as the manufacturer of the new 11.6-inch Timeline, though no specifications have been revealed for the ultraportable. The existing Timeline range begins at $598, and consists of 13.3-inch, 14-inch and 15.6-inch models.

Acer subsidiary Gateway have been showing off their all-in-one touchscreen PC, and with a multitouch-capable 23-inch Full HD display it’s certainly no slouch. Unlike touchscreen nettops, the Gateway ZX6800 packs an Intel Core 2 Duo processor and DDR3 memory, and runs Windows 7.
Storage is courtesy of a 3.5-inch SATA-II hard-drive, with capacities varying according to model, plus there’s a discrete graphics card (unspecified), hybrid TV tuner and integrated speakers. Connectivity includes WiFi a/b/g/n, gigabit ethernet and what looks to be an ExpressCard slot.

No word on where we’ll be seeing the Gateway ZX6800 released, though it’s likely to be a European product. Pricing, too, is unconfirmed, but we wouldn’t expect it to come cheaply.

After rumors back in April that HP were planning to launch a 3D laptop courtesy of NVIDIA’s GeForce 3D technology, now comes word that Acer are planning their own 3D rival. According to Campbell Kan, VP of Acer’s mobile computing business unit, the 15.6-inch Aspire 3D laptop will arrive at the end of October 2009, and require stereoscopic glasses in order for the 3D effect to be viewed.

Initial uses for the visual technology will include 3D movies and gaming, and Acer will preinstall software that, it claims, is capable of taking 2D footage and converting it into 3D. The hardware has been jointly developed with Wistron, though beyond that Acer have given no suggestion as to whether it will use NVIDIA’s system. However it’s worth noting that Wistron were the OEM tipped to supply HP’s 3D laptop.

Since the machine will run Windows 7, Acer are declining to comment further on any more details until the OS has been released. However they did confirm that they are working on a version which does not require 3D glasses; that, though has “quite a few technological obstacles to overcome” says Kan.