The big difference between the new model and its predecessors is a couple hundred bucks. Available since June of this year, the Mini 110 XP (available in "Black Swirl") sells for $329, while the Linux-based 110 Mi edition starts at $279. Compare those prices with the $549 tag on the Mini 1000 that we reviewed last fall.The hardware hasn't changed too much: The Mini 110 carries the same N270 Atom CPU, the same 1GB of RAM, the same 160GB hard drive, the same awesomely large 92-percent-of-full-size keyboard--even the same crummy mouse button layout that's been driving me bonkers since HP introduced it on the HP Mini 2133. The new model also comes loaded with a three-cell battery--as did the Mini 1000, which achieved a mediocre battery life of 2 hours, 47 minutes on a charge. In our tests, the Mini 110 survived for 1 minute longer. (Travelers' advisory: Consider popping an extra 40 bones for the BX06 Mini Battery, to pick up a little extra on-the-go gusto.) That's miles hours behind pack leaders such as the Toshiba NB205-310, which posted a magnificent 10-hour run-time. On our WorldBench 6 test suite, the Mini 110 unsurprisingly notched a mark of 33--a hair better than the Mini 1000's original score of 30.What do you gain and what do you lose with this more affordable model? Well, HP swaps out the multimedia dongle port in favor of a built-in VGA port (plus a built-in RJ-45 ethernet jack for good measure). The sweet-looking speaker grille planted inside the 1000's hinge is absent from the 110, replaced by a horrid-sounding speaker mounted beneath the display. That display offers a 10.1-inch-diagonal image with a native resolution of 1024 by 576, and the slick edge-to-edge plastic cover has has vanished in favor of a big plastic bezel that makes the Mini 110 look like the love child of the Mini 1000 and the Acer Aspire One.Upgrade options exist, naturally: 802.11b/g not enough, and you want wireless WAN? Done. Wish you could get this netbook in "White Swirl" or "Pink Chic"? It's yours, for a price. Feeling cramped? You can slot in a 250GB hard drive and boost the RAM to 2GB.I also appreciate the Mini 110's software selection, which is slightly more robust than the usual feeble bloatware. For instance, Syncables allows you to sync five PCs on a network.Otherwise, this looks like a slightly thicker, economy-class version of last year's model. The 110 measures 10.3 by 6.6 by 1.2 inches and weighs 2.33 pounds, compared to the Mini 1000's 10.3 by 6.6 by 0.99 inches and 2.25 pounds. And that isn't a bad trade-off when you consider the extras inside the machine--and the lower price.
The new X6 is Nokia's 5800 model follow-up, a music-centric device, hence the 32GB on built-in storage. The 5800 camera got an upgrade as well on the X6, up to 5-megapixel with dual LED flash, now on the par with the N97 Mini.The Nokia X6 handles connectivity well, with WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, and A-GPS, plus a 3.5mm headphone jack. The X6 integrates with Facebook as well, bringing a Facebook widget and 20 of your friends' activity on the homescreen.The Nokia X6 will cost also around $640 unlocked, due out in the fourth quarter. Nokia will introduce a Comes With Music version of the X6 as well, but only in selected countries. Nokia announced on Monday that it is delaying the lunch of the Comes With Music service in the U.S. until 2010.
The N97 Mini is the follow-up of Nokia's current flagship device, the N97, only in a smaller form. Featuring a 3.2-inch, 16:9 aspect ratio display, the 3G-enabled N97 Mini rocks a full kick-out QWERTY keyboard and a 5-megapixel camera with dual LED flash.Around 0.3 inch smaller than the N97, the N97 Mini packs WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, and a GPS receiver next to the now standard 3.5mm headphone plug. Unlike its bigger sibling, the N97 comes with only 8GB of built-in storage (32GB on the N97) that can be expanded with another 16GB via microSD cards.But the new selling point of the new N97Mini is what Nokia calls Lifecasting. The Finnish company partnered with Facebook, and the new phone can now share to Facebook your location, together with your status, directly from the N97 Mini's homescreen.The Nokia N97 Mini is due out in October and will cost around $640 unlocked, and hopefully less if AT&T or T-Mobile decide to subsidize the phone. Also, for a quick look at how the Facebook location and status sharing work on the N97 Mini, check out the video below.
Nokia Booklet 3G netbook will ship with Windows 7 and cost €575 (US$816) before subsidies and taxes, Nokia announced on Wednesday at its World conference in Stuttgart, Germany.The company expects the device will be cheaper when it reaches consumers as a result of subsidies by network operators, Nokia Executive Vice President Anssi Vanjoki said during his keynote speech at the conference.However, getting some operators to subsidize the netbook may be difficult, according to Geoff Blaber, analyst at CCS Insight. Nokia's plan to push a suite of its own online services with the Booklet 3G will not sit well with carriers offering competing services of their own, he said.The device was announced on August 24. It should run for up to 12 hours on one battery charge, Nokia said. It weighs 1.25 kilograms, has an aluminum chassis and is slightly more than 2 centimeters thick. The device has a 10-inch screen with a 1280x720 pixel resolution, and can connect to bigger displays using an HDMI port, according to Nokia.Under the hood there is a Intel Atom Z530 running at 1.6 GHz, 1GB of memory and a 120GB hard drive.The Booklet 3G can access the Internet using HSPA (High-Speed Packet Access) mobile broadband or 802.11n Wi-Fi. There will also be a version that comes without a built-in modem.
From short to shaggy, nearly all the differences in dogs' coat types result from variations in just three genes, according to researchers studying how genes work together."What's important for human health is the way we found the genes involved in dog coats and figured out how they work together, rather than the genes themselves," said Dr. Elaine A. Ostrander of the National Human Genome Research Institute."We think this approach will help pinpoint multiple genes involved in complex human conditions, such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and obesity," Ostrander, chief of the cancer genetics branch, said in a statement.Variations in the DNA — the blueprint for life — in more than 1,000 dogs from 80 breeds were studied by the researchers. The results were then compared to descriptions of various coat types.The study, published Thursday in the online edition of the journal Science, found that nearly all of the varieties of dog coats can be accounted for by combinations of genes called RSPO2, FGF5 and KRT71.The findings apply to purebred dogs: "We don't know enough about the genetics of mutts," commented co-author K. Gordon Lark, a biology professor at the University of Utah.Dogs are descended from wolves and, like wolves, short-haired dogs such as beagles had only the ancestral forms of the three genes, none with variations.On the other hand, dogs like President Obama's Portuguese Water Dog have variations in all three genes, producing animals with curly hair plus a "mustache" and large eyebrows.Other findings:• A variation in the RSPO2 gene produces wire-haired dogs.• Combine variations in the RSPO2 and KRT71 genes and you get dogs with wiry and curly hair, such as Airedale terriers.• A change in the FGF5 gene results in longhair breeds such as golden retrievers.• But long-haired dogs with beards such as the bearded collie have variations in both the FGF5 and RSPO2 genes.• And combining the FGF5 and KRT71 genes results in curly hair dogs such as Irish water spaniels.
Sony Corp. is giving Google Inc.'s fledgling Web browser a boost by installing it on new computers.Google spokesman Eitan Bencuya, confirming the deal Tuesday, said Chrome has been shipping on Sony devices since earlier this summer. Sony is the first PC maker to sell computers with Chrome pre-installed.Bencuya would not say whether Chrome is set as the default browser on those machines, as was reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal."Users' response to Google Chrome has been outstanding, and we're continuing to explore ways to make Chrome accessible to even more people," Bencuya said in an e-mailed statement. "We are in the process of testing one such channel with Sony."Microsoft Corp.'s Internet Explorer is the most widely used Web browser in the world; the distant No. 2, Mozilla's Firefox, is gaining in popularity. Google's Web browser launched in 2008 and commands only a sliver of the browser market.Distribution deals such as this could help Google win over consumers who think of the Mountain View, Calif.-based company only in terms of its Web search dominance. Google has also built a smart phone operating system and is now working on a free PC system to challenge Microsoft's Windows.
Internet phone company Vonage Holdings Corp. said Tuesday that Apple Inc. has approved its mobile application for iPhone and iPod devices.Vonage said in a statement that it is currently conducting a beta test and general availability will be announced at a later date.
Opera Software on Tuesday took the lid off its final version of Opera 10. The free, open-source browser works on Windows, Mac and Linux platforms and offers three key features it hopes will woo browser users.First, Opera 10 features Opera Turbo, a new compression technology that, when enabled, automatically detects slow speeds and provides broadband-like speeds. Once turned on, Turbo instantly compresses pages so less data needs to be transferred over a limited connection.Second, Opera 10 offers a new interface. And finally, Opera promises better tabs.More than 40 million people use Opera, but the company has only two percent of the browser market. By contrast, Google Chrome has a 2.8 percent share, Safari holds four percent, Firefox boasts 22.9 percent, and Microsoft Internet Explorer dominates with 66.9 percent, according to Net Applications."At Opera, we have always worked hard to innovate new ways to improve everyone's browsing experience," said Opera CEO Jon von Tetzchner. "Opera Turbo is our newest innovation, and one we think everyone should try, because we all will face a slow connection at some point."
Singapore's free Wi-Fi service, Wireless@SG, got a speed boost this week as the government agency that oversees the service outlined plans to add new features to the network, including location-based services.On Tuesday, access speeds for Wireless@SG users were increased from 512K bps (bits per second) to 1M bps, with location-based services and secure automated login capabilities to be added to the service by January, the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) said in a statement.The three operators who manage Wireless@SG's 7,500 hotspots -- iCell Network, Singapore Telecommunications, and Qmax Communication -- are putting the location of all network access points into a database that will be made available to third-party developers working on location-based services for the network, IDA said.Other services that are in the works include using Wireless@SG for advertising, payments and facility monitoring, the agency said, without providing specific details.
Sony Corp (6758.T) plans to launch 3D TVs next year in a move to spur sales amid slowing growth in flat TV demand, the Financial Times said. Sony CEO Howard Stringer will announce the 3D TV launch as well as plans to make its Vaio PCs, PlayStation 3 game machines and Blu-ray players compatible with the technology at the IFA electronics trade show in Berlin on Wednesday, the FT said.The newspaper said Stringer is expected to tell the audience: "As with high definition a few years back, there are a variety of issues yet to be addressed. But the 3D train is on the track, and we at Sony are ready to drive it home."Sony said the company plans to hold a news conference at the IFA at 1500 GMT and that it may update progress on its 3D TV development there, but declined to comment on the timing of any 3D TV launch.Shares in Sony, the world's second-largest LCD TV maker behind Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS), were down 3.2 percent at 2,440 yen, underperforming the Tokyo stock market's electrical machinery index (.IELEC.T), which lost 2.5 percent. (Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka; Editing by Edwina Gibbs).
