I can’t exactly say that I stand corrected because I never explicitly stated that the Inbrics M1 would not be found at CES. I just pointed out that one of the company’s promotional videos seemed to be intentionally vague and ambiguous about the most fundamental aspects of their QWERTY-packing Android slider.
While I didn’t get a chance to go hands on with the M1 last week in Vegas, I am glad to report that Engadget did get an up-close look at the device, which features a 3.7″ WVGA AMOLED display, 3 MP, a secondary VGA camera, and 16 Gigs of internal storage. Check it out in the video below. Nifty dock Inbrics has on the home screen there.
Posted at 1:01 pm PST, January 12th, 2010 by John Walton. Tags: CES
Pocket Lint was at CES and got a quick video of a microwave running Android. We’ve been talking about Android appliances for some time, but it seems that we are finally beginning to see some practical applications of the concept.
Not practical, you say? As is mentioned at the end of the video below, Android could fetch the recommended microwave time and power level for reheating some cheese baked mussels instantly and would likely produce a far greater result than you would achieve just tapping the “reheat” preset on your current nuke box.
Today at CES, chipset maker Marvell was spotted showing off two ready-to-go Android powered E-readers, the Entourage Edge and the Spring Design Alex.
Entourage Edge
The Entourage Edge, an interesting looking Android powered “dualbook”, has been given an official release date of February 2010 for somewhere in the neighborhood of $490. While that may seem a little steep, the EE does feature side-by-side book like screens, a 10.1 in. LCD on one side and a 9.7 in. e-ink screen on the other. Pretty cool, eh? Other notable features include wifi and access to thousands of books and text books, something that would be handy for all students out there.
Spring Design Alex
If you are looking for a little more traditional Android powered E-reader, that isn’t the Nook, look no further. The Alex is a vertical dual screen E-reader with a 3.5 in. touch LCD on the bottom, 6 in. e-ink screen on top, 624 MHZ processor, microSD slot, WiFi, 3G, EVDO/CDMA, and GSM. So far, by all accounts, the Alex has beat the Nook in speed and overall usability while still keeping a slim and slender design. Out of all the E-readers I have seen so far, with a price point around $399 or subsidized at even cheaper, the Alex would have to be the most impressive. Be sure to look for more info to come
Spring design has announced a partnership with the book store Borders and will be selling the Alex for a whole $50 cheaper. This thing just keeps getting better.
I’m sitting next to PhoneDog’s Editor in Chief at a table in the Venetian’s AquaKnox after my first CES 2010 event: a Lenovo event where the company introduced three new integrated products that feature “a focus on mobility, always-on push technology,” and are, “optimized for mobile Internet.
The first is a super slim smartbook called the Skylight, which is the first ARM-based smartbook. Second in light was a “hybrid notebook” that, very oddly, runs Windows when used as a notebook but switches over to a customized Linux-based OS when the screen is popped out of a plastic shell to become a tablet. But the star of the show – both in my eyes and clearly those of Lenovo – was LePhone: a sexy device running the Android-based OPhone operating system that snaps into modular accessories like a full QWERTY keyboard.
One popular phrase used consistently throught the presentation of LePhone was “contact-centric, people-centric.” And it looks as though Lenovo has taken the cue from HTC and Motorola in their approach of the organization of accounts, messages, images, and other data.
I’ll post more material later tonight. For now, here are a few snaps:
Posted at 6:07 pm PST, January 05th, 2010 by John Walton. Tags: CES
Despite the fact that I’ve been to Las Vegas quite a few times, and despite its current position as one of the most tasteless cities on Earth, I still get a kick out of being here. This is the first time I’ve been here on business but I haven’t seen a single gadget yet not directly related to gambling, so I’m just enjoying this bizarre place for what it is. Rather, for what I perceive it to be. It’s a different experience for different people.
