PC? PDA? PSP? Phone? The $1,800 Sony Vaio UX180P: 1.2GHz, with SIM!
Thought the group might like to kick the tires of Sony's upcoming entry in PDAPhoneHome's device derby.
What distinguishes this handsome fella from mere UMPCs (Ultra-Mobile PCs, or "Origami" devices) like Samsung's Q1, DualCor's cPC and OQO's 01+ is this: the 180P will include...a Cingular SIM. (A fly in the ointment? This boy seems to be spec'd only for EDGE, not for Cingular's broadband HSDPA network.) Still, it's unclear whether the 180P's feature set actually includes a phone. Maybe it's gonna do data only, as do Lenovo ThinkPads that embed VZW EvDO aircards. Without a phone onboard, well, it's an opportunity lost.
Some useful info available via the hyperlinks below, including nice pics (click on "Gallery" at Dynamism's Sony Vaio UX page).
Pricey but seductive. Not perfect, but gettin' close. Discuss.
A PC That Goes Beyond Mini and Micro to Lilliputian
By JOHN BIGGS
Those who demand standard keyboards and mice on their PC's may prefer to skip this device. Sony has miniaturized all of the usual components on its way to making the Vaio UX Micro one of the smallest portable computers in the world.
The UX Micro, which will be available online and in stores for $1,800 in about a month, uses Intel's new Core Solo Ultra Low Voltage processor for standard PC performance in a 1.2-pound package.
It runs Windows XP Professional and has a 4.5-inch touch screen as well as a small fold-out keyboard for text entry.
The PC also has built-in Wi-Fi and can connect to Cingular's cellular network. A built-in fingerprint scanner can lock up passwords and important data.
There is a 1.3-megapixel camera on the back and another camera on the front, with a microphone, for video calls.
Less futuristically, the UX Micro comes standard with a 30-gigabyte hard drive and has a battery life of about 2.5 hours.
The question is how to avoid mashing all those little keys when typing. The best way, apparently, is to peck away with your thumbs. It's the price to be paid for entering the 21st century.
just because it is spec'd to be EDGE now does not mean it wont be HSDPA when it releases. the radios in these units are unit mini PCI cards that can be swapped out. It is going to use EDGE right now because wide scale WCDMA deployment isnt until the end of the year.
I'd even put money down that it's going to be changed to HSDPA. If not in the intial release, then a few months down the road. This device SCREAMS for 3.5G access
Found this tidbit on one of the pages:
"Communications on the go
The VAIO® Professional UX Micro PC is communications-ready, with integrated camera and built-in microphone and speakers, so you’re equipped to communicate via VoIP virtually anywhere WLAN or WWAN service is available."
So I would assume any VOIP solution that would work on a standard PC should work here. However, does EDGE speeds provide enough bandwidth for high quality VOIP? If SONY went through all the work of adding a GSM SIM card that supports EDGE, they surely could add a phone feature, after all, they ALREADY added the GSM radio. I wonder if it is quad band? By adding voice phone functionality, Sony would have a clear winner.
Near PDA instant startup functionality could come close by having the unit go in and out of hibernation mode.
I have one of those tiny Sony TX notebooks. It also has a similar, if not the same, Cingular EDGE modem. I unlocked it to use a T-Mobile SIM I had laying around and it works well. But I doubt its HSDPA. If it was, Sony would advertise it, not try and hide it. The module may be removable and upgradable, but not easily - at least not by the user. I know, a TX notebook and a UMPC, apples and oranges. But since Sony would want to use as many of the same parts as it can across hardware, it would be reasonable to assume that its the same modem.
I have one of those tiny Sony TX notebooks. It also has a similar, if not the same, Cingular EDGE modem. I unlocked it to use a T-Mobile SIM I had laying around and it works well. But I doubt its HSDPA. If it was, Sony would advertise it, not try and hide it. The module may be removable and upgradable, but not easily - at least not by the user. I know, a TX notebook and a UMPC, apples and oranges. But since Sony would want to use as many of the same parts as it can across hardware, it would be reasonable to assume that its the same modem.
Mix this new Sony with this (and any future converged devices) and we'd really have a winner:
Samsung Hybrid Touch Screen LCD
READ MORE: Hybrid Touch Screen Panel, LCD, Portable Media, SID 2006, Samsung, Touchscreens, hTSP
Samsung plans to show at SID (Society for Information Display) 2006 an innovative type of touch screen panel it calls the hTSP (hybrid Touch Screen Panel), a display that will allow further miniaturization of mobile devices with touch screens. This design has eliminated a separate printed circuit board containing the sensor that must be attached to the top of an LCD. Now, all the sensor circuitry is contained within the LCD itself.
Another benefit of this technology is that it doesn't require a new manufacturing process to assemble it. It uses the same thin-film transistor processing normally used in plants to put together these types of screens. Samsung didn't announce when this technology will be first implemented, but such screens could be useful in UMPCs such as the Samsung Q1, MP3 players and smartphones. – Charlie White
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