Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) previewed its next-generation Eee Pad Transformer tablet in Hong Kong yesterday, saying it will bet on both its tablet PCs and laptops.
At an All Things Digital Conference (AsiaD), Asustek chairman Johnny Shih (施崇棠) pulled the new pad from his briefcase.
INTERNAL WORKINGS
The Transformer Prime is a 10-inch model with a plug-in keyboard and a thickness of 8.3mm. It is powered by an Nvidia quad-core processor and runs Google’s Android 4.0 operating system, codenamed Ice Cream Sandwich.
It will be launched formally on Nov. 9, Shih said.
“We still think there is a great opportunity there,” Shih said, adding that he hoped to sell 2 million units of the Eee Pad Transformer this year.
There are places for tablets, such as on the couch or in bed, but there are other times when a keyboard is needed, he said.
The company has tablet models with plug-in keyboards and slide-out keyboards.
Shih also showcased Asustek’s new Ultrabook, a 1.2kg laptop equipped with an Intel core i7 processor, a next-generation solid-state drive (SSD) and USB 3.0 ports. It is seen as a response to Apple’s MacBook Air.
BLURRING BOUNDARIES
Shih said the boundary between smartphones, laptops and notebooks are blurring. Netbooks are also evolving and will be thinner and more cloud-connected in the future, he said.
“We believe that we have to bet on both,” he said. “Laptops also have to respond to the tablet trend.”
KEEPING UP: The acquisition of a cleanroom in Taiwan would enable Micron to increase production in a market where demand continues to outpace supply, a Micron official said Micron Technology Inc has signed a letter of intent to buy a fabrication site in Taiwan from Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (力積電) for US$1.8 billion to expand its production of memory chips. Micron would take control of the P5 site in Miaoli County’s Tongluo Township (銅鑼) and plans to ramp up DRAM production in phases after the transaction closes in the second quarter, the company said in a statement on Saturday. The acquisition includes an existing 12 inch fab cleanroom of 27,871m2 and would further position Micron to address growing global demand for memory solutions, the company said. Micron expects the transaction to
Vincent Wei led fellow Singaporean farmers around an empty Malaysian plot, laying out plans for a greenhouse and rows of leafy vegetables. What he pitched was not just space for crops, but a lifeline for growers struggling to make ends meet in a city-state with high prices and little vacant land. The future agriculture hub is part of a joint special economic zone launched last year by the two neighbors, expected to cost US$123 million and produce 10,000 tonnes of fresh produce annually. It is attracting Singaporean farmers with promises of cheaper land, labor and energy just over the border.
US actor Matthew McConaughey has filed recordings of his image and voice with US patent authorities to protect them from unauthorized usage by artificial intelligence (AI) platforms, a representative said earlier this week. Several video clips and audio recordings were registered by the commercial arm of the Just Keep Livin’ Foundation, a non-profit created by the Oscar-winning actor and his wife, Camila, according to the US Patent and Trademark Office database. Many artists are increasingly concerned about the uncontrolled use of their image via generative AI since the rollout of ChatGPT and other AI-powered tools. Several US states have adopted
A proposed billionaires’ tax in California has ignited a political uproar in Silicon Valley, with tech titans threatening to leave the state while California Governor Gavin Newsom of the Democratic Party maneuvers to defeat a levy that he fears would lead to an exodus of wealth. A technology mecca, California has more billionaires than any other US state — a few hundred, by some estimates. About half its personal income tax revenue, a financial backbone in the nearly US$350 billion budget, comes from the top 1 percent of earners. A large healthcare union is attempting to place a proposal before
RSS