JVC to Enter U.S. Notebook Market with MP-XV841 Ultraportable

Japanese electronics maker JVC, well known for high quality audio and TV equipment, will release the JVC MP-XV841, a high-end ultraportable notebook, in June to the USA.

Introducing the JVC MP-XV841

With its integrated drive, the new JVC Mobile Mini Note PC plays back both DVD and CD formats. The MP-XV841 also supports CD-writing, a very rare feature in a notebook of this size. In fact, it's rare to even find an integrated optical drive in most ultraportable notebooks. The MP-XV841 also brings to the tablea 6.7-hour battery life, which is absolutely amazing, and 802.11b/g Wi-Fi. Advanced video/graphics technologies and efficient application software make the most of the Centrino™ technology's efficiency, and smooth integration with the Ultra Low Voltage Intel® Pentium® M processor 1GHz ensures remarkably fast data processing. Other MP-XV841 features include 256MB of standard memory (expandable to 768MB), a fast 2.5-inch 4200 rpm 40GB hard disk drive and an 8.9-inch Clear LCD monitor.

According to JVC representative Al Levene JVC"are not trying to be number one in market share, that's for sure, we're going after a very small segment of the market: the mobile professional who has fairly light computing needs. They are not a gamer but need to do word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, read e-mail and also be able to watch a DVD on the airplane." JVC has not finalized distribution plans for the product.

JVC will face an uphill battle in the ultraportable market as Sony has firmly established themselves with the TR series, IBM with its X series and Fujitsu with its P5000 series of notebooks. Its possible that since JVC offers the 8.9 inch sized display rather than 10-inch that they'll capture the market for those with a craving for the smallest notebook size possible. The integrated optical drive and very long battery life are also standout features of the MP-XV841

SPECIFICATIONS

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Model		MP-XV841 Mobile Mini Note PC
Operating System(1)		Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional
CPU		Ultra Low Voltage Intel® Pentium® M Processor 1GHz
Mobile Technology		Intel® Centrino™ Mobile Technology
System Bus Speed		400MHz
Main Memory		Standard: 256MB, 768MB Max. (PC2700 DDR-SDRAM)
Expansion Memory Slot (Free)		1 (1)
Hard Disk Drive(2)		40GB, 2.5", 4200 rpm (Ultra ATA 100)
DVD Drive		Built-in DVD-ROM & CD-R/RW Drive
Recordable Formats(3)(4)		CD-R (24x max.), CD-RW (16x max.)Buffer Under-run Free Recording
Playable Formats(3)(4)(5)		DVD-ROM (8x max.), DVD-RAM (2.6GB 1x max./4.7GB, 2x max.), DVD-R (3.9GB/4.7GB, 4x max.), DVD-RW (ver.1.1, 4x max.), CD-ROM/-R (24x max.), CD-RW (12x max.)
Chipset		Intel® 855GME
Display Size		8.9-inch Clear LCD Monitor(6),
Resolution		1024 x 600 (2048 x 1536 panning), 16.77M Colors(7)
External Color Support		800 x 600 - 2048 x 1536(8), 16.77M Colors
Audio		Built-in Stereo Speakers, Built-in Microphone
Wireless LAN		Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ Intel® PRO/Wireless Network 2200BG Connection (IEEE 802.11b/g)(9), On/Off Switch
Interface/Port		Common Mini VGA (XGA) and Port Replicator Port, USB2.0 Port x 2(10), Modem Jack (RJ-11), i.LINK (IEEE 1394)S400 (4-pin)(11), LAN Jack (10BASE-T/ 100BASE-TX Ethernet), Microphone Jack, Stereo Headphone Jack, SD Memory Card Slot, PC Card Slot (Type II, CardBus supported)
Keyboard		Key Pitch/ Key Stroke/ Pointing Device 16mm/ 1.5mm/ Stick Type
Battery Operation (JEITA1.0)(12)(13) Li-ion Battery Pack		PC usage up to 6.7 hours (5.5hrs JEITA1.0)DVD usage approx. 3 hours
Charging Time (OFF time)(14) Li-ion Battery Pack		2.9 hours (Power off)
Dimensions (W x H x D)		With battery: 9 -1/4 x 1-7/10 x 8-7/16 inches (235 x 43.2 x 214 mm) Without battery: 9 -1/4 x 1-1/4 x 7 inches (235 x 31.5 x 177 mm)
Weight including battery		3lbs 4oz (1470g)
Supplied Accessories		External Display Adapter, Li-ion Battery Pack, AC Adapter, Modem Line Cable, Application CD-ROMs(15)
Additional Software Applications		Pinnacle Studio 9 SE, Windows® Movie Maker 2, WinDVD™ 5 for JVC w/ Dolby(16) Virtual Speaker and Dolby(16) Headphone, CC Converter, B'z Recorder GOLD Basic (CD-ROM), Bootable CD Creator, Easy Network Changer, RealOne™ Player, Windows Media™ Player 9, Microsoft® Outlook® Express 6, Microsoft® Internet Explorer 6, Windows® Messenger, Windows® NetMeeting®, Adobe® Reader® 6.0, Norton AntiVirus™ 2004, UltraPOST
Drivers		HD-TS Decoder, G.726 Decoder

 

This is certainly interesting. The main problem though is that it's not very light. The new Fujitsu P series will be 3 pounds 4.5 ounces, barely heavier. It also will offer a better screen, card reader and such. Also curious is the RAM cap of 768, with one slot. This is baffling, I wonder if the press release was wrong. Should be 1GB I would think. So unless you want a smaller unit from a volume perspective, there are better options.

Editor in Chief http://www.bargainPDA.com and http://www.SPOTstop.com