Acer Introduces Aspire One Happy 2, Hopes Netbooks Still Trendy

Acer is not giving up on the netbook as it introduces the Aspire One Happy 2 for the U.S. market. The netbook, which comes in bright Skittles-like colors, features dual-core Atom N570 CPU, 250GB hard drive, 1GB of RAM, WiFi, and a 10.1-inch screen.

It is strange to see that Acer is offering a “new” netbook using specs that are so two years ago and these would even be considered awful at that time. Even more strange is that the company is introducing an endangered product for $269. With that price, you could have bought yourself a pre-owned ultraportable notebook (or even the Acer AC700, if you add about $100) and save yourself from further embarrassment as other people sees you owning a netbook, even if it is spanking new.
source: Gadget.com

Asus PadFone Is Both a Tablet and a Phone: Neat Concept, but Still Vapor

At the end of the Asus press conference at Computex 2011, Chairman Jonney Shih waited until the very last minute to unveil the best product of the night: The Asus PadFone, a convergent device that docks a smartphone into the back of a slate so that they can be used together as a single device. Problem is, the entire demonstration was based on a few concept videos and a prototype that was clearly unfinished. Still, it's a usage model that we were really excited about when the Motorola Atrix made its debut and an incredibly neat approach to mobile computing—if and when Asus decides to make it available to the public.

The PadFone is essentially a symbiotic relationship between smartphone and slate, whereas the Atrix's screen and keyboard dock are intended to replace your netbook or laptop. It's a concept that owners of both Apple iPhone and iPad wish were possible: To dock the former into the latter and quit having to use two separate devices.

From the demonstration, the PadFone is inserted into the back of the dock like a cassette tape, hidden by a panel that fits flush with the back of the tablet. With the Atrix, the Smartphone sits several inches behind the screen, which simply isn't as clean-looking.

If the PadFone is anything like the Atrix, the tablet portion won't have a processor, memory, or local storage; it'll be a shell so that the two can share things like data, webcam, and 3G internet access. What makes the PadFone fundamentally different than the Atrix, however, is that it also shares the same operating system (The Atrix, when docked, runs on an alternative Linux OS). According to Asus, it's not doing any kind of upscaling or upconversion; it's using its own technology to adjust the smartphone screen layout. If you ask me, it almost sounds like it's using an internal HDMI connector.

Here's what we know for sure: The Smartphone will have the latest version of Android at the time of launch, which means so will the tablet dock. The screen size of the tablet is 10.1-inches, while the Smartphone has a 4.3-inch one. The tablet dock also has a built-in battery that will extend the life of the one in the Smartphone.

The usage scenarios are evident with such a solution: Say you're surfing the Web on the smartphone and find that the screen is too small for certain websites. You can stop what you're doing, dock the phone, and pick up where you left on the tablet. This also applies to composing email, video conferencing, and playing media. Right now, the details are so limited that it sounds like this game-changing device is still a while away. But if it does come to fruition, it could be the future of tablet computing.

PCmag

Analyst expects OmniVision still locked for iPhone 5 camera

Lazard Capital Markets analyst Daniel Amir on Tuesday told investors that he didn't expect Apple to turn to Sony for iPhone cameras. He still believed OmniVision, the long-time camera sensor maker for Apple, had a "significant" opportunity with its Apple deal. The firm was unique in scaling from the very low end to advanced cameras and still had one of the best backside-illuminated camera sensors in its BSI-2-based chips.

The research note didn't attempt to directly reconcile the view with Sony CEO Sir Howard Stringer's own remarks. During a conversation discussing the impact of the northern Japanese earthquake, the executive had claimed Sony was giving its best cameras to Apple, even though no iPhone 4 model uses them. Sony's best mobile camera sensor an eight-megapixel unit that currently fits into the Xperia Arc, Xperia Neo, and other Sony Ericsson models.

OmniVision already has eight-megapixel sensors that would fit a future iPhone, but rumors have circulated of supply issues that would have forced Sony to either take up some of the slack or replace it entirely.

Amir was upbeat on OmniVision as a whole, mostly as he expected the CMOS camera sensor market to grow an average of 25 percent per year over the next few years.

Electronista