Asus plays around with combination of "Pad" and "Fone" at MWC 2013-- the company reveals the 3rd generation Padfone and the Fonepad, an oversized smartphone/call-capable tablet.

If one recalls, the Padfone is an Android smartphone with a companion tablet-style dock. The latest version bears the name Padfone Infinity and carries a 5-inch 1920 x 1080 display, a Snapdragon S4 1.7GHz quad-core processor and 64GB of internal storage inside a unibody design Asus says is "crafted from aerospace-grade aluminium."

Meanwhile the tablet dock has a 10-inch display and boosts battery life from 19 hours to up to 40 hours, with enough battery capacity to recharge the docked smartphone up to x3 times.

Sony globally launches the tablet addition to the Xperia mobile family, the Xperia Tablet Z, at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2013-- a 10.1-inch number the company claims is the thinnest and lightest yet.

The successor to the now retired Xperia Tablet S, The Tablet Z carries a 1920 x 1200 touchscreen, a 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 pro quad-core CPU, 2GB RAM and either 32 or 64GB of internal storage inside a shell weighing 465g and 6.9mm thick.

The Android variant of choice is 4.1.2 Jelly Bean, while Continue reading...

The Chromebook Pixel has a number of firsts for Google-- it is the first to carry Google branding, together with premium industrial design and a high resolution touchscreen.

Borrowing (the unkind might say "imitating") design cues from Apple's MacBooks, the Pixel features aluminium construction, black inset squared keys and a 13-inch 239 DPI touchscreen with 2560 x 1700 resolution and an unusual 3:2 display ratio Google claims is more web browsing-friendly.

A  1.8 GHz Intel Core i5 CPU powers t Continue reading...

Following a CES 2012 debut (and a non-appearance at CES 2013) Wikipad unveils its latest take on the gaming tablet-- the Wikipad, a 7-inch Android tablet with a game controller dock.

Removed from the dual-analog controller dock the Wikipad is similar to the Google Nexus 7, with an identical Tegra 3 processor, 1GB RAM, 16GB built-in storage (expandable via microSD slot), front-facing 2MP camera and 4100 mAh battery. Connectivity options include dual-band wifi, Bluetooth 4.0, microHDMI and microUSB. Continue reading...

HP is the next vendor to take on the Google cloud-based OS with the Pavilion 14 Chromebook, a 14-inch number similar to the Samsung Chromebook and the Acer C7.

It carries a 1366 x 768 resolution display, 1.1GHz Intel Celeron 847 CPU, 2GB RAM and 16GB of built-in storage. Google also includes 100GB of free online storage for 2 years.

Connectivity options include HDMI, x3 USB, ethernet port and SD reader, while the battery provides up to 4 hours and 15 minutes of power.

The Pavilion 14 Chromebook Continue reading...

Acer sees a glimmer of hope after its second consecutive annual loss-- Chromebooks show relatively strong sales even as Windows 8 fails to boost PC sales.

According to Bloomberg 5-10% of Acer US PC shipments consist of Chromebooks (such as the C7) since Google revealed the free notebook OS, a ratio the company expects to "remain sustainable" in the long term.

Acer now also considers selling Chromebooks outside the US.

“Windows 8 is still not successful” Acer president Jim Wong tells Bloomberg. “The whole market didn’t come back to growth after the Windows 8 launch, that’s a simple way to judge if it is successful or not.”

Apple doubles the storage of the 4th generation iPad (with Retina Display) from a maximum of 64GB to 128GB, in both wifi and wifi + 3G flavours.

Apple senior VP of marketing Philip Schiller says “with twice the storage capacity and an unparalleled selection of over 300000 native iPad apps, enterprises, educators and artists have even more reasons to use iPad for all their business and personal needs.”

128GB iPads will be available from February 2013.

Go Apple Increases iPad with Retina Display Continue reading...

Sony announces a companion tablet to the recently revealed Xperia Z smartphone-- the Xperia Tablet Z, a 10.1-inch Android 4.1 successor to the now retired Xperia Tablet S.

It carries a 1920 x 1200 display, quad-core 1.5GHz processor and 8MP Exmor R camera inside 6.9mm thick, 495g-heavy water/dustproof body. Connectivity includes NFC and LTE, while storage is expandable via microSD slot.

Audio should impress, thanks to "S-Force" virtual surround technology.

Sony gives no details on European Continue reading...