News Bits: Toshiba Santa Rosa Notebooks, Dell to Offer Free Online Storage, LED Backlighting Growth

<!-- Generated by XStandard version 1.7.1.0 on 2007-06-28T09:12:13 -->

Toshiba announces new Santa Rosa notebooks

Toshiba has announced several new notebooks, listed below. Photos were taken at a press event in New York today in which Toshiba was showing off their new notebooks.

Qosmio F45-AV412

Toshiba Qosmio F45 (view large image)

(view large image)

The Qosmio F45 is a 15.4&quot; notebook designed for multimedia entertainment. It features Dolby Surround Sound technology and an HD DVD-ROM drive.

Specifications:

• Intel Core 2 Duo T7100
• Up to 4GB DDR2-667 RAM (2GB installed)
• 15.4&quot; TruBrite display
• Intel GMA X3100 graphics
• Price: US$1,649.99

Satellite A215-S4767

The Satellite A215 series features AMD processors and is designed for the home consumer.

Specifications:

• AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-64 
• Up to 4GB DDR2-667 RAM (2GB installed)
• 15.4&quot; TruBrite display
• ATI Radeon X1200
• Price: US$1,249.99

Satellite X205

(view large image)

(view large image)

The Satellite X205 series is designed for gaming; it features Nvidia's new 8700M-GT graphics card which is DirectX 10 compatible.

Specifications:

• Intel Core 2 Duo T7300
• Up to 4GB of DDR2-667 RAM (2GB installed)
• 1GB Intel Turbo Memory
• 17&quot; TruBrite display
• Nvidia GeForce 8700M-GT with up to 512MB DDR3 memory
• Price: US$2,499.99

Read More (DigiTimes.com)


Dell bundles online storage with new XPS, Inspiron desktops and notebooks

Dell has started to bundle online storage with their new lineup of Inspiron and XPS desktops. Inspiron owners get 3GB of storage via Dell's DataSafe Online service, and XPS buyers get 10GB. Higher capacities are available up to 30GB. Pricing is $39/year for 30GB of storage. Using the DateSafe Online service, customers can backup files and folders via a pre-installed application.

Read More (TGDaily.com)


LED backlighting use in notebooks to reach 30% in 2008

According to CH Wu, chairman of Unity Opto Technology, the use of LED backlighting in notebooks will reach 30% in 2008 from only 3 - 5% this year. Unity Opto Technology is a Taiwan-based LED packaging house.
This year, only 4-5 million notebooks will be shipped using LED backlighting technology. That figure will jump to 10 - 30 million in 2008 according to Wu.

Read More (DigiTimes.com)


T-Mobile introduces HotSpot@Home

T-Mobile today introuced its HotSpot@Home service, which allows customers to replace their landline phone, improve in-home reception, and have one phone for all of their communication needs.

Customers can use their HotSpot phone to make/receive unlimited nationwide calls over Wi-Fi at home, at T-Mobile HotSpot locations, or any open Wi-Fi hotspot.

According to T-Mobile, HotSpot@Home can be set up in a matter of minutes. All that is needed is a HotSpot phone, a broadband internet service (cable or DSL), and a router from T-Mobile.

Standard pricing for T-Mobile HotSpot@Home  is $19.99/month for single lines and $29.99/month for Family Time plans. At this time T-Mobile is offering special introductory pricing - only $9.99/month for single lines and $19.99/month for Family Time plans when added to a qualifying voice plan.


WaterField Designs introduces RacerX case for new MacBooks, MacBook Pros

WaterField Designs has announced a new design of its RacerX case. There are now custom-fit versions for the Apple MacBook 13&quot; and MacBook Pro for 15&quot; and 17&quot; sizes. A 12&quot; case is also available for PowerBooks/iBooks.


(view large image)

The redesigned RacerX case features a quick-access front pocket, a choice of two carrying handles, and a new look. WaterField Designs bags are designed and manufactured in San Francisco, and customer support is handled from there as well.

Pricing for the RacerX case is from $169 to $189. It is available in blue, brown, silver, red, and green.

Link to RacerX Bags (SFBags.com)


Cracking group gets Vista-only game to run on XP

Cracking group Razor 1911 has cracked Microsoft's new game Shadowrun to run on XP. The cracked game comes bundled with a subdirectory with replacements for several game files. The game only works with single-player bot matches and LAN-based multiplayer. Online multiplayer does not work because users are validated for online play. It is not clear whether the &quot;xp&quot; patch will work on retail versions of the game.

What this goes to show is that there is a strong demand for games that will run on both XP and Vista. While it is understood that DirectX 10 is a Vista-only technology, neither Shadowrun nor Halo 2 use the technology; the games are Vista-only for the sole reason to get gamers to move to Vista. It will be a long time before we see games requiring both Vista and a DirectX 10 graphics card.

Read More (ArsTechnica.com)

 

*phew* I knew that Lost Planet demo just wasn't playing on the ATi X1200...just gotta scroll down a bit.

And LCD backlit displays look very promising. I think the m1330 will unintentionally be a big promotion campaign for it, as well as a competitive edge that other manufacturers will be forced to follow.

 

If it's DX10 it will not play. Lost Planet is DX10 from what I know.

 

Well, FYI, it's DX 10 and DX 9, that's why it can still run on the XBOX 360.

 

Nope, Lost Planet works just fine on DX9, it runs very well on my brother's desktop with a 3.0ghz Pentium 4 and Geforce 7900.

 

That online storage from Dell doesn't look free. When configuring a laptop it comes up as a 19 buck or so a year option for 10gb of online space.

 

Hmmm, so what advantages does LED back-lighting offer besides a brighter screen and better viewing angles?

 

Lower power usage = better battery life

 

Toshiba is so far off the mark with the Q45 its rediculous. The design looks great, but that's all it has going for it.

 

On the other hand the satellite x200 looks very nice.

 

toshiba tecra A9 with santa rosa is prob the nicest laptop i've seen in a while. durable as all hek, powerful, quiet, (although that is not a criteria), just a nice machine.

 

3GB is free for Inspiron owners
10GB free for XPS owners