Microsoft touts Windows 7 beta, other initiatives
Palm captured much of the Consumer Electronics Show buzz last week with its “Pre” touch-screen smartphone, complete with a new operating system. Microsoft tried to make noise, too, with CEO Steve Ballmer taking over for Bill Gates as the featured keynoter.
Palm may have captured much of the Consumer Electronics Show buzz last week with its “Pre” touch-screen smartphone, complete with a new operating system, but it was by no means the only gadget maker attracting attention.
Watch a slideshow of the gadgets from CES.
Microsoft tried to make noise, too, with CEO Steve Ballmer taking over for Bill Gates as the featured keynoter. Ballmer let loose with perhaps the worst kept secret of the week – the beta release of Windows 7, and he had little new to show in a demo that looked similar to the one at October’s Professional Developers Conference.
Hidden in the glare around the client OS, Microsoft also announced the beta of Windows Server 2008 R2, which includes the Live Migration features that have been missing from the first version of Hyper-V.
Ballmer did surprise with four announcements including the availability of Windows Live Essentials, which includes Messenger, Mail, Writer, Photo Gallery, Movie Maker, Toolbar and Family Safety. He also unveiled a deal with Facebook that connects the social networking site and Windows Live, a partnership with Dell that will put Windows Live Essential and Live Search on Dell consumer PCs, and a partnership with Verizon that will have the mobile provider shipping Live Search on all its phones in the United States.
As for the Palm Pre, its front is all touch-screen with a single button. It slides upwards vertically, on a slight tilt, to expose a full keyboard. But the CES demonstration was done entirely using the touch interface: no keyboard and no stylus. That’s due in part to what Palm dubs WebOS, which the company says will provide easy access for developers.
One feature is Synergy, a synchronization program that automatically pulls your contact information from sites like Facebook, Google, as well as Outlook, organizes it and creates a single listing in the Pre. The phone also offers a consolidated instant messaging feature from multiple IM services.
The phone supports Sprint EV-Do, Rev A, and comes with built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, a micro USB port, USB mass storage support, and a 3.5 mm headphone jack. The battery is removable but recharges via Touchstone, a wireless, magnetic induction charger, similar to that used for electric toothbrushes.
Aside from Palm, the big trend among gadget vendors was to create consumer electronic devices that have a smaller impact both on your personal space and on the environment. In the former category, entertainment devices such as Samsung’s 39mm Blu-ray player, Sony’s VAIO Lifestyle PC and Lenovo’s ultra-lean IdeaCentre A600 all-in-one desktop vied to be the thinnest devices ever released. In the latter category, there are manufacturers such as Motorola and Nextar creating handsets made out of recycled plastic bottles and solar-powered hands-free cell phone kits, respectively. Here are some highlights:
• Samsung’s 39mm Blu-ray player and 7mm flatscreen: Samsung’s new Blu-ray player received a lot of attention at CES so far, as it measured only 39mm (or about 1.5 inches) thick and featured a slightly curved top with a shiny black finish. Not to be outdone in the thinness realm, Samsung also released a flatscreen television set that measured a mere 7mm thick.
• Motorola’s MOTO W233: On the greener side of things, Motorola released the MOTO W233 Renew, a cellular phone made out of recycled water bottles and described by the company as “the world’s first carbon-neutral phone.” The phone, which will be available exclusively from T-Mobile, also received a CarbonFree Product Certification from the CarbonFund.org, a nonprofit Web site that specializes in helping companies create carbon-neutral products.
• Nextar’s NXBT-001 and NXBT-002 solar-powered cell phone kits: While there are lots of hands-free Bluetooth-enabled cell phone car kits out there, Nextar is hoping that its NXBT kits make a name for themselves by offering users a solar-powered alternative to plugging their kits into their cars. Nextar says the NXBT-001 offers 10 hours of talk time when it is fully charged, while the NXBT-002 offers 6 hours of talk time when fully charged. The kits also utilize Bluetooth 2.0 technology to give users talk range of up to 30 feet, the company says.
• Sony’s VAIO laptop and “Eco” Bravia televisions: Sony decided to unwrap products this year that were equal parts slim and green, including its eight-inch, 1.4-pound VAIO Lifestyle PC and its “eco-friendly” Bravia VE5 television models. The VAIO P Series computers feature built-in 3G capabilities, as well as 802.11n, Bluetooth and GPS functionality. The laptop is also powered by the Intel Z520 Atom processor. The Bravia VE5 TVs, meanwhile, have zero-watt standby power switches that Sony says enables them “to reduce power consumption by almost 40% compared to… other LCD HDTV models.”
• The HP Mini 2140: What makes the HP Mini 2140 so intriguing is its long battery life – according to HP, the computer can run up to eight hours at a time between charges. The company says by using a six-cell battery in tandem with Intel’s Atom processor, its Mini 2140 will easily outlast the battery power offered by its competitors. The computer also features a 10.1-inch display screen, a hard drive that offers up to 80GB and a QWERTY keyboard that is roughly 92% the size of a standard keyboard.
• MSI’s Wind NetOn all-in-one PC: MSI is upping the ante in its competition with Asus by debuting its Wind NetOn all-in-one PC. The new PC features a touchscreen display and is powered by Intel’s dual-core Atom processor, which happens to be the same processor that the HP Mini 2140 uses to significantly extend its battery life. The Wind NetOn comes in two different models, one with a 19-inch display and one with a 22-inch display.
(Network World Senior Editor John Cox contributed to this story.)
