Much like the S101, the T91 isn't exactly "Eee PC" material. Sure, it's small and ASUS-branded, but design wise, it's a pretty bold departure. bit-tech was able to sit down and take an early look at the Eee PC T91 convertible tablet, and while the machine is still a few months out from release, it seems that you can curb your enthusiasm in the meanwhile. Critics found the touchpad to be a hair less awesome than those on other Eee PCs, the lack of multitouch to be a real bummer and the uncanny ability of the LCD to attract fingerprints as just plain annoying. Of course, their unit was still subject to alterations, so the crew isn't completely giving up hope that things won't improve by launch day. In fact, it noted that the inclusion of a DVB-T tuner, WWAN support and GPS functionality were very nice touches, but it still maintained that a standard netbook would likely suit you best unless you're just head over heels for touching.

We're not sure what sort of shenanigans ARM gets up to, but it managed to amass itself quite the interesting collection of netbooks for its MWC booth. Information was scant, but they were showing that Freescale i.MX-based Pegatron netbook and nettop we saw at CES, an ultrawide 11.1-inch Snapdragon-based netbook from Wistron, a Snapdragon-based convertible tablet netbook from Inventec Alaska, and a totally odd "tech demo" of a Qualcomm-based Wistron MID semi-running a sketch version of Windows Mobile 6.5. Most all of the systems were in some level of prototype form, and seemed unbearably slow at running whatever prototype flavor of Linux they happened to have, while the MID didn't really seem to operate at all, at least to our touch. Still, it's clear that Snapdragon and Freescale i.MX are allowing for some pretty wild and thin form factors while still rocking decent battery life.

If you thought Gigabyte's M912 mini convertible tablet was hot stuff, get a load of this. Expected to be officially unveiled at CeBIT, the company just couldn't resist bringing along a M1028 demo unit to MWC in order to mix things up. Reportedly, the swivel-screen netbook was equipped with a comparatively roomy 10-inch display (1,024 x 600), and packed within was a standard issue Atom N270 CPU, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB hard drive, Bluetooth, WiFi, Ethernet, optional WWAN module, an SD card slot, ExpressCard, VGA output, a trio of USB ports, a 1.3 megapixel webcam and Windows XP Home. We ought to hear (and see) more when we land at CeBIT in just under a fortnight, but for now, you can see a Gigabyte-approved "sneak peek" vid just after the break.

[Via jkkmobile]

We just played around with Viliv's latest MIDs, the stylish S5 and X70. Both devices use haptic feedback for onscreen keyboard input, and despite the resistive screen we found them both to offer some of the best touchscreen interaction we've seen on devices like this. They were both running Windows Vista, and seemed rather responsive and usable, even with Atom under the hood. What's really impressive is the X70 (pictured), which is thinner than the S5, and also can be mounted to an optional leather case that brings a keyboard and foldability to the device, and turns the unit into a laptop of sorts. Neither device is particularly thin or light, but there's a lot of quality going on here, and for folks sold on this sort of functionality and form factor, it would be hard to do much better than these at the moment -- of course, you'll have to swim to Korea to do it. Video of the S5 is after the break.

[Via UMPC Portal]

Read - "ARCHOS announces new generation innovative MiniPCs based on Intel Atom Processor" (Warning: PDF)

The machine translation is pretty weak, but Dell's 12.1-inch (1,280 x 800 pixel) Latitude XT2 looks to have just made its first tentative steps in a global launch. The video posted after the break comes courtesy of Korean site, AVING, where the convertible tablet was apparently just released. Pinch to zoom and two-fingers swipes... yup, it's in there. 11-hours of battery (6-cell plus battery slice) and DDR3 memory (max of 5GB!) too in a chassis just 2.5-cm (0.98-inches) thick. Click through for the video while we track down the official specifications that already seem to be aligning with the unofficial specs leaked earlier.

Update: Official Dell Japan press release now out. We've got specs:

• up to 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo ULV SU9400 processor with Montevina chipset
• Intel integrated GMA 4500MHD graphics
• Windows Vista Ultimate on down
• 12.1-inch LED backlit capacitive touch-screen with EM Digitizer pen
  
• up to 5GB of DDR3 1066MHz (1x1GB, 1x4GB DIMM)
• up to 120GB 5400RPM SATA disk or 128GB SSD
• 802.11a/g/n WiFi and gigabit Ethernet
• SATA ODD
• 3.78-pounds (1.72-kg) with 6-cell battery
• eSATA, 2x USB 2.0, firewire, and ExpressCard 54 slot

Update 2: Just announced for US with prices starting at $2,399.

[Via AVING]

A hard day's work often means dirty hands, and dirty hands and keyboards have a long history of not getting along together. Rugged tablets tend to be a somewhat better (or at least easier to clean) solution, the latest entry being Glacier Computer's Everest E4000, a fully integrated device available in 10-, 12-, and 15-inch sizes running your choice of XP Pro, XP Embedded, or Linux. No details are available on what hardware is lurking inside that purposeful looking case, which isn't the most attractive thing we've ever seen, but certainly seems a lot more durable than some of its competition -- like you could back an 18-wheeler over it and then cozy up with for a nice game of touchscreen 'Solitare' while waiting for your invoices to print. Not that you'd ever play games while on the clock, of course.

Update: We got some further details about this brute to pass along. It maxes out at a 1.4GHz Pentium M with 1GB of memory and a 16GB SSD, which may not sound like much, but since it's entirely sealed cooling anything faster would be something of a challenge. The 15-inch screen is 1024 x 768, 802.11a/b/g is supported, and you can get one to mount on your forklift for between $2,500 and $4,500 -- forklift not included.

Although Axiotron's Modbook and Modbook Pro look like they're relatively simple creations -- take off the original screen, install touch screen backwards -- we've always assumed the process was much more complicated. Turns out we were wrong -- if this Modservice video from TechRestore is to be believed, a normal MacBook will actually do most of the work for you, as long as you're willing to provide the appropriate high-tech sound effects. Seriously, the DVD drive just reinstalls itself! Video after the break.

The TouchSmart tx2z isn't the first multitouch laptop out, but HP's pretty adamant that it's the first multitouch "consumer" convertible tablet. Semantics aside, we're interested in finding out just how impressed you early adopters are with what the company has crafted. Are the multitouch capabilities as awesome as you had hoped? If not, what areas could be improved? Would you still recommend it to prospective buyers looking to give their digits a bit more work? We get the feeling we'll see loads of multitouch laptops gracing our presence over the next few months / years, so make sure you really unload on this one. It's what makes progress possible, people.

Evidently Fujitsu's decision to offer its LifeBook U820 convertible mini laptop with integrated 3G has been a raging success; otherwise, we're a bit uncertain as to why it would share the love with four other siblings. Starting right about now, WWAN lovers can order up a LifeBook T5010, T1010, P1630 and / or T2020 with built-in support for AT&T's BroadbandConnect HSUPA network. For those who like to live on the CDMA side of life, the outfit is planning to add EV-DO support in Q2 of this year, though we're not told which carrier will be selected to carry that torch.

Viliv has been showing some potential lately with its touchable upcoming products, the clean looking S7 netbook tablet and S5 MID. We received some further information on the latter of those two this morning, most notable being the inclusion of haptic feedback that should make its 4.8-inch, 800 x 480 1024 x 600 screen feel a little more tactile. We also got confirmation that the device will be running Windows XP hidden behind a custom UI overlay that, we presume, will be similar to the one we saw running at CES on the S7. Still no price, but the company is aiming for a March release domestically. Our fingers are tingling with anticipation.

We've seen plenty of patent applications from Apple describing a tablet and its interface over the years, and this morning another has been making the rounds, purported by many to give a glimpse at that device's internals. Sadly, after reading through the details, this "Display Housing for Computing Device" sounds like a plain 'ol laptop case to us. It describes "a portable computer including a base and a lid, the lid being coupled to the base via a hinge, and wherein the housing corresponds to the housing of the lid or the housing of the base." There are repeated mentions of a hinge and of the processor being separate from the display housing; one of the figures (included below) even shows a rather standard-looking -- if button-deprived -- laptop. So, sadly, we're thinking this isn't the super-slim keyboard-less Apple tablet/MID you've all been waiting for, more likely just a stiffer lid for a next-generation MacBook. One interesting note: the text spends quite a bit of time discussing means for a glowing logo on the back. Is this the beginning of another patent battle, this time with HP over its similarly illuminated dv5? We sure hope not.

Update: Actually, on a second read through the claims, we'd say this has even less to do with a supposed tablet -- our guess is that this is a patent application for the unibody MacBooks.

[Via Electronic Pulp]

What we're staring at here is apparently the first "in the wild" shot of the promised dual touchscreen OLPC 2.0. As far as we can tell (thanks, Mr. Blurrycam), we'd wager this is a purely non-working mockup, since that "touchscreen" looks a bit too much like "glued-on paper" to us, but we're really short on info otherwise. What is encouraging here is that apparently someone is taking this dual screen idea seriously, and it's hard to deny that such an improbable form factor could really end up being the shot-in-the-arm this project needs.