Lenovo's IdeaPad U330 reviewed: nice for the price

After launching this summer, we're heard way more about netbooks than Lenovo's shiny IdeaPad U330. For those who've refused to forget about it, the aforesaid rig has been reviewed by the kind souls over at Laptop Mag, and impressions were fairly positive overall. The biggest boon here is likely the price -- we mean, $1,199 for a 13-inch lappie of this stature isn't half bad. As with most of the other IdeaPads, the design was applauded, the mix of features and performance was satisfactory and the size (4.4-pounds) was just right. Critics did slam the mushy touch buttons and the below-average battery life, but even so, the U330 was deemed a "a compelling thin-and-light notebook that offered plenty of style and strong performance" for the price.

The $280 Eee PC 900A can make a dead president smile

If you thought that a $300 Eee PC 900A price was tempting then how about this: $280. Best Buy just dropped the price of this bare-bones Eee PC by a full Jackson. No catch, no limited time offer, just an 8.9-inch, Atom N270-based netbook with 4GB of flash SSD storage ready for the gift giving season.

[Thanks, Matt]

AMD to release Atom killer netbook CPUs tomorrow?

We've been hearing rumors of AMD's Atom killer CPUs for over a year now. Unfortunately, vapor doesn't help the bottom line -- it does however explain AMD's conspicuous absence from the deluge of netbooks now trumping laptops for shelf-space. AMD's CEO, Dirk Meyer, has promised on a few occasions (as recently as the Q3 earnings call) to unveil "Bobcat" in November. So seeing the chips on display at tomorrow's analyst conference is pretty much a given. Check back then for all the details.

UMID's "super mini laptop" is small, shiny, super

Netbooks too big for you? MIDs too cramped? What you need is a super mini laptop from Korean company UMID, one of the sexiest entrants into what seems to be a burgeoning sub-netbook category (or subnet-books for the network admins out there).

Qualcomm begs for Snapdragon attention, doubles processor power

After last year's CES fiasco and the non-launch of a Snapdragon device in June, this is what it's come to: the no really, manufacturers love our platform press release. According to Qualcomm, HTC, LG, ASUS, Samsung and other leading device manufacturers have created more than 30 device designs based on Snapdragon chipsets. No word on when these will come to market though. Sigh. In a more meaningful announcement, Qualcomm claims to have doubled the power of Snapdragon with its new dual-CPU, single chip, QSD8672 running up to 1.5GHz. The chip is designed for low-power pocketable or netbook-style devices and should be out the door for sampling sometime in the first half of 2009. Hear that Intel? AMD's not the only cat looking to soil your Atom sandbox.

Dell's Mini 12 netbook is ready for US orders, ships in December

It was bound to happen sooner or later. We received the birth announcement, we read the reviews, and it looks like Dell is finally set to unleash the Mini 12 upon us lowly North Americans. The 12-inch netbook is pretty much what we expected specs-wise, starting at $549 for a 1.33GHz Atom processor, 1GB of memory, 40GB hard drive and standard 3 cell battery. Perhaps $758 is a little steep for a netbook, but if you're game the top-end machine sports a 1.6GHz Atom processor, 80GB hard drive and a 6 cell battery. All configurations should be shipping with Windows Vista Home Basic starting sometime in early December.

Dell taking Art House laptops made-to-order in 2009

Dell's been taking its design new directions for a while now, but it looks the company's war on boring is about to get personal. Ed Boyd, Dell's new Industrial Design Director, told BusinessWeek that Dell also plans on launching customizable computers with "scores of colors, patterns, and textures," and options that will "go far beyond the handful of choices available" from most rivals. We assume he just means the exterior, though that's unclear, so we'll keep our fingers crossed for that hot pink keyboard. There are also no details yet on which models will be up for customization or their pricing, but the other Art House models range from $649 to $800, so our uncle probably won't have to break the bank to unveil his edgy laptop graffiti when these hit sometime next year. Can't hardly wait.

Dell's Vostro A860 yours for a song (and $379)

The Dell Vostro A860 we've heard so much about has finally hit the Stateside scene, and it looks like we'll be able to get our hands on the laptop that those lucky folk in the "emerging markets" of Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America have been into since before it was cool (that is, late August). Starting at $379 with Dell's instant savings, the 15.6-inch, 5.4 pound laptop comes with either a Celeron or Pentium Dual Core processor, GMA X3100+ integrated graphics, up to 2GB of memory, up to 160GB storage, 1366 x 768 display resolution, WiFi and optional Bluetooth. This "speed demon" comes preloaded with Vista Home Basic or Vista Business and is available now at Dell's website.

AMD says it's "ignoring" netbooks, will focus on ultraportables

It seemed earlier this week that AMD's new Conesus chips would take on Intel's dominant Atom platform in the netbook market, but it sounds like that was just wishful thinking -- according to CEO Dirk Meyer, the chipmaker is "ignoring the netbook platform" in favor machines "above that form factor." AMD says that it's seeing high return rates on netbooks, a phenomenon it's chalking up to an unsatisfactory user experience on smaller machines.

MacBook innards crammed into makeshift mini Mac Pro tower

When we first laid eyes upon the slick box pictured above, we were struck with an eerie feeling of déjà vu. Now, it all makes sense. After receiving an all-but-completely-dead MacBook, one particular modder decided to rip the motherboard out, break out the soldering iron, throw in a few replacement parts and shove everything into a Macally G-S350SUA aluminum hard drive enclosure. Wanna know why? Because he had a peek at this -- a Mac Pro Mini mod that popped up here in March. Talk about taking inspiration and improving upon it.

Canonical bringing Ubuntu to ARM-powered devices

It was inevitable, really -- now that ARM processors are bound for netbooks and the like, it follows logic that ARM would tag team with Canonical to bring along Ubuntu support. The two firms have collaborated in order to "bring the full Ubuntu Desktop operating system to the ARMv7 processor architecture (targeting the Cortex-A8 and Cortex -A9 in particular) to address demand from device manufacturers." They even go out of their way to assert that this is all about bringing Ubuntu to "new netbooks and hybrid computers," though we're still hopeful that the OS will find its way into even more diminutive ARM-powered devices in the future. Sadly, you'll have to wait until April of 2009 to see the fruits of this so-very-special relationship.

Samsung's Q310-34P laptop reviewed: not bad for a first try

Okay, so maybe Samsung isn't entirely new to the laptop game here in the USA, but for its first line of self-branded lappies, the Q310 ultraportable didn't fare half bad in its first review. Critics over at Laptop Mag found the design of the 13.3-incher to be "handsome," the performance "smooth" and the endurance to be satisfactory enough.

Celio's new REDFLY C7 and C8N answer questions no one is asking

What if you took the REDFLY -- you know, that Foleo-like thing for Windows Mobile phones -- and cheapened it up a bit? Maybe knock the luxurious 8.3-inch display down to a more reasonable 7 inches, lose three hours of battery life, and add $30 to the asking price, for starters? That's the indecent proposal Celio has put together with its new C7 model, trading endurance and screen size for an eight-ounce drop in the original's two-pound frame. Not what you had in mind, you say? Okay, okay, try this, then: the C8N carries over the 8.3-inch display and adds a "REDFLY Media Port" for connecting an iPod, iPhone, Zune, digicam, or pretty much anything else with a composite TV-out for viewing on the 800 x 480 screen -- but the catch is that you'll also need the $20 "REDFLY Media Cable" (sorry, but that really does belong in quotes) to complete the package on top of the cost of the C8N itself. Either way, the new models are still dumb terminals that need juice from a WinMo-based device to function -- so yeah, if your Treo 750's looking a little lonely over there in the corner, the C7 and C8N should fill the bill nicely when they hit in the first week of December for $229 and $299, respectively.

Mobile Edge 'fashion-inspired' TSA-friendly laptop bags for her are not very inspiring

We've seen Mobile Edge's ScanFast line of TSA-approved laptop bags before, so it was only a matter of time, we suppose, until there was a spate of the cases specifically for women. What does it mean, then, to be a laptop bag that is "designed for women by women?" Well, it helps to be pink or have faux alligator skin (or is that croc?) detailing, we can tell you that much. Regardless, the company is announcing three "fabulous" products: the Onyx Briefcase, the Onyx Backpack and the Element Briefcase, each coming in the three different color / style schemes. They're going to be available later this month, and sell for $99.99 each -- Chihuahua named Princess Sparklepants wearing a ballerina costume not included.

Celio's REDFLY C8N hands-on and video not terribly exciting

We just got the official announcement of Celio's REDFLY C8N a few hours ago, and Laptop magazine's already had a chance to touch it and make a video! Their initial impressions? That $20 REDFLY Media Cable you have to buy to hook the C8N up to your phone is a tangled mess! This is exciting stuff, folks -- that is if you are just dying to shell out $299 for a buddy for your Windows Mobile device. Check out the terrifically brief video of the terminal after the break.

HP reveals multitouch TouchSmart tx2 convertible tablet

While HP mistakenly claims that its sparkly new (but previously rumored) TouchSmart tx2 is the world's first multitouch consumer notebook, we're still decidedly stoked about this here convertible tablet. Boasting a 12.1-inch swivel display (LED-backlit) that's just dying to have your prints all over it, the tx2 will come loaded with Windows Vista, a bezel-mounted fingerprint reader, integrated webcam with microphone, Bluetooth / WiFi, stereo speakers, a 5-in-1 multicard reader and a LightScribe SuperMulti DVD burner. HP's also delivering the oh-so-stylish Reaction Imprint exterior, an AMD Turion X2 dual-core processor, the firm's own MediaSmart 2.0 software, a VGA output, Ethernet and at least one USB port from the looks of things. You're supposed to be able to add one of these to your digital shopping cart right now via HP's own webstore or Amazon.com, but both links currently lead to sections of the intarwebz you don't ever, ever want to see. Hold tight -- we've a feeling HP will be getting really official with this one momentarily.

Dospara doles out Atom-powered Prime Note Cartina UM netbook

It's been forever and a day since we heard from Dospara, but as it typically does, it's just hanging around and waiting to see what catches on before it dives in. Case in point: here we have the Prime Note Cartina UM, an 8.9-inch netbook that's hitting alongside the second and third iteration of everyone else's. You could likely guess the specifications in your sleep, but we'll humor you anyway; we've got a 1.6GHz Atom N270 CPU, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, 120GB hard drive, a 1,024 x 600 panel, 802.11b/g WiFi, a battery good for two hours and a mysterious Linux build pre-installed. You won't find an optical drive bundled in, but you will find a ¥39,980 ($413) price tag should you venture over to Japan.

Epson's Endeavor Na01 mini is a netbook

Not much to say here, just an Atom N270 1.6Ghz processor, 10.2-inch 1024 x 600 LCD, 1GB of RAM, 160GB HDD and a dash of Windows XP, doing what they always do. There's a nice complement of completely standard interfaces, like three USB 2.0 plugs, 802.11b/g WiFi, Ethernet, mini VGA out and a multicard reader, all stuffed into a slightly frumpy 1.5-inch thick enclosure, but let's not get off message: Epson's new Endeavor Na01 mini is all Microsoft-proscribed netbook and nothing more. The Japan-only computer is available today for the completely palatable price of 46,800 Yen (about $484).

HP's TouchSmart tx2z multitouch convertible tablet starts at $1,149

Oh sure, you could select Dell's multitouch-enabled Latitude XT over HP's latest, but given the $1,829 starting price of the former, we'd say the TouchSmart tx2z is looking a lot more delectable these days. Hailed as the first multitouch "consumer" convertible tablet (a claim that's certainly open for debate), the 12.1-inch tx2 gets going at just $1,149.99, though HP's "recommended" configuration starts at $1,223.99. The baseline setup includes Vista Home Premium, a 2.1GHz AMD Turion X2, 3GB of DDR2 RAM, an ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics set, 250GB of HDD space and a built-in webcam. As of now, the estimated build date shows December 8th, so we'd get that order in five minutes ago if you're looking to ensure a holiday delivery.

MSI Wind U120 gets spotted, examined in the wild

We've already seen a few shots of MSI's forthcoming Wind U120 netbook, but our pals at Engadget Chinese have now taken in one of its first public appearances and, naturally, they've provided plenty of pics for folks to dive into. That includes some close-up shots of the netbook's slightly revised port situation, some comparison shots with the non-two tone U100, and even another glimpse of that 9-cell battery we've already seen floating about. MSI also had it's full-fledged Bravo EX620 laptop on display, though it's a pretty safe bet that we won't be seeing it 'round these parts anytime soon.