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OQO Model 2+ benchmarked [UMPC]

The OQO Model 2+ was revealed at the CES 2009. The best thing about the OQO Model 2+ is the use of the fastest Atom processor so far, the Atom Z540 CPU running at 1.86GHz. OQO also beefed up the RAM to 2GB, which made everything even more smoother than before.

OQO Model 2+ benchmarked

Jenn, over midmoves have done some benchmark tests on the new OQO 2+. Here is the screenshot of Windows Experience Index. It is quite odd on the Windows Vista’s way of judging  the base score by taking into account the lowest score rather than taking the average score into consideration. Nevertheless, we can easily make out that Vista seems to be quite usable on the little machine from OQO.

Here are the scores from the CrystalMark, which are not shabby at all comparing to the other UMPCs and Netbooks in the market.

Benchmarks aside, the main aspect of the OQO Model 2+ that stops me from getting one is the low resolution WVGA display, which can natively show only 800 x 480. Folks at OQO should have put in a minimum of 1024 x 600 pixel display which is more common on the netbooks and UMPCs these days. A WVGA display can ruin the whole user experience if you are running a lot of applications concurrently or you are running a lot of tabs in firefox/IE/Chrome.

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HTC rolls out mass update for HTC TOUCH DIAMOND [Windows Mobile]

HTC has been rolling out new updated ROMs for the HTC TOUCH DIAMOND. Yes, HTC has not forgotten the Touch Diamond users (totally).

Improved Functions and Fixes:

  1. When you launch the Camera while the system is working on other programs, the preview screen may become black.
  2. When playing a video, sometimes a portion of the video will be cut off a little bit.
  3. Fixes Audio playback problem with the speaker. Specific issues: sometimes the music will turn off and on after 10 minutes, or there is a buzzing sound or no sound at all.
  4. Fixes the problem of not being able to receive MMS when in standby mode.
  5. When launching music via the Music tab on TouchFLO 3D, the sound may intermittently turn off for a second and come back on.

HTC warns that after the update, you won’t be able to roll back to previous official ROM.

Get the European ROM from here

Other HTC DIAMOND users shall get their update from their regional HTC website. Go to Support link to find out if HTC has an update for you.

Note: There is no update for the Indian HTC DIAMOND

Usual warning: This is a generic update, which means that it would wipe-off the data on your device. Make sure to do a proper backup. Please note that the contents of the “intenal storage” would remain intact.

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StopWatch 2.0 released and reviewed [Windows Mobile]

There are a lot of times when we need a stop watch and we are not carrying one. Your Windows Mobile smartphone is there to rescue! With StopWatch 2.0, one can enjoy the experience of a quality stopwatch. The developer, Martin Kaldma (nitramk at xda-devs) has come with a great stopwatch application.

The author has made every effort possible to make the application look like other HTC Diamond specific applications.

Continue reading “StopWatch 2.0 released and reviewed [Windows Mobile]”

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Palm Treo Pro review [huge review!]

Palm Treo Pro is the first Palm Smartphone with built-in WiFi. WIth a built-in QWERTY keyboard and numerous Palm enhancements, does the Treo Pro makes itself as a worthy contender to the rest of the Windows Mobile range? Read on and find out!

Packaging

Palm has really outdone itself with the packaging. It’s nice, classy, and simple.

Unfortunately my package seems to be lacking the regular flat pins that are common here in the PH. I will try to contact palm about this.

What’s in the box:
Palm Treo Pro

Palm wired stereo headset

Li-ion 1500mAh Battery

micro USB sync /charge cable

AC adapter with interchangeable plugs.

Documentation Continue reading “Palm Treo Pro review [huge review!]”

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NVIDIA Ion Platform = GeForce 9400M + Intel Atom processor = 1080p videos on a Netbook!

It has always been a dream for the Netbook owners to run Hi-definition video on their netbooks. Sadly, due to the limiting processing power of the Intel Atom processors (so far) and absence of GPU in the netbooks, no one ever thought of running 1080p videos on the netbooks.

But, it is not a distant dream anymore. The GeForce 9400M GPU completely nails the integrated Intel graphics. In the video given below, we see a normal Acer Aspire one, which struggles a lot while playing the 1080p video. On the other hand, we see another netbook, but this one is connected to a HDTV and utilizes the Ion platform (GeForce 9400M + Intel Atom).

In the end, the main question that arises is that do we need all those bells and whistles? Well, it would be great for someone who wishes thinks something more than web browsing on his netbook. The inclusion of powerful GPU would also open gates for the gamers. It would also reduce the CPU utilization as most of the graphic part would be taken over by the GPU.

[notebooks.com]

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Netbook LB-F1500 has a built-in DVD Multidrive [netbook]

The LuvBook F1500B is a new netbook by Mouse Computer. The latest trend in the netbook market  is incorporating the DVD-RAM drives under the hood. The LB F1500B does no different. It comes with a built-in DVD-writer to satisfy those folks who always complain about difficulty in loading applications into their netbook. There is no information about its price and release date.

Specifications of F1500B:

  • 10.2-inch WSVGA LCD
  • Intel Atom N270 CPU
  • 1GB RAM
  • 160GB HDD
  • 5.2 hours battery life
  • webcam
  • Wi-Fi, LAN

Sources say that it is basically a MSI Wind U100 with a DVD drive. I fail to understand this latest trend though. The netbooks were initially designed to be portable, small and light-weight. Incorporating DVD-RAM drive would:

  • further blur the line between netbook and notebook
  • increase the weight by some hundred grams
  • would increase the depth of the device and thus making it bulkier

I’ve seen so many people complaining about the lack of DVD drive in netbooks. The reasons which they give are pretty lame to be honest. Some say, they won’t be able to load their applications on it without DVD drive. Well, most of the applications are available online that they can download them to their netbooks. Another way is to install it via LAN by connecting a LAN wire to notebook/desktop PC, which have DVD/CD drive by sharing the drives. Another and probably the most easiest way is to install via external DVD drives.

[Akihabara]

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Gateway LT1004U Netbook finally lands in Singapore [netbook]


MSI Wind U100 and Acer Aspire One are two of the very popular netbooks, which are available in various parts of the world under countless brands. Here is another one, from Gateway, which is a re-branded Aspire One. It was lately seen in the local office Depot in Singapore. It looks like Gateway has left the specifications untouched. It comes with the 8.9-inch screen, Intel Atom N270 processor clocked at 1.6GHz, 160GB HDD, 1GB RAM, Win XP Home. It is available at a price of $379.

[engadget]

edit: It was spotted in Redmond (Thanks Andrew for the tip!)

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Windows 7 on the MSI Wind U100 [Netbook]

Windows 7 is faster and more reliable version of Windows. Last week, Microsoft made the beta available for download for the public. Microsoft says that they have made myriad of changes under the hood and they have been able to make the whole operating system a whole lot faster than the bulky Vista. Vista was never able to make big name in netbooks as netbooks didn’t have the horsepower to run such a heavy operating system.

Windows 7 BETA is running very well on most of the netbooks. So far, Windows XP has been the OS of choice as it performs very well on the Celeron M and the Intel Atom CPU, either of which are being used in the netbooks today. K.C Tofel at JKontherun has installed Windows 7 on his MSI Wind U100 and he is pretty much impressed with it’s performance.

Sleep without any programs open is 7.2 seconds. Resume is 3.6 seconds. The whole installation took less than 30 minutes. Here are the score of Windows Experience Index, which are pretty decent for a netbook.

  • Processor = 2.2
  • Memory = 4.5
  • Graphics = 2.3
  • Gaming Graphics = 3.0
  • Primary Hard Disk = 4.9

Clearly, the Windows 7 will be more netbook friendly and the users will be happy to switch to it from the now-outdating Windows XP.

[jkontherun]