Intel isn't generally in the business of selling mobile devices, though it makes an exception when it comes to educational products. It already offers the classmate PC laptops, and now it has rolled out a pair of school-friendly tablets.

The Intel Education Tablets come in 7-inch and 10-inch versions, each running a version of Android. The 7-inch flavor uses an Intel Atom Z2420 processor and runs Android 4.1, while the 10-inch model is powered by an Atom 2460 chip and Android 4.0. Each comes with 1GB of RAM, with the 7-inch Education Tablet including 8GB of flash storage and the 10-inch version coming with 16GB.

More important than the raw hardware specs, however, are the learning tools that Intel puts at the center of the Education Tablet experience. The built-in software suite includes apps for science and art, an electronic textbook reader, and camera-based software for science-related projects. The 10-inch tablet includes a digital stylus (available as an option for the 7-inch model), and other optional accessories include a snap-on magnifying lens for the rear-facing camera as well as a temperature probe.

To help manage a school's stable of Education Tablets, Intel also packages a classroom management app and security software like Parents Carefree and Intel Education Theft Deterrent. More information about the Education Tablets can be found on the Intel website.

Because these are to be volume purchased by education institutions, Intel Education Tablets aren't readily available to consumers, and hence it's not surprising that pricing information has not yet been provided. The devices will face stiff competition for the classroom, however, as Microsoft, Dell, Sony, and others (even News Corp) are attempting to make inroads against Apple's traditional turf and its popular (albeit pricier) iPad.

In the wake of Microsoft's recent decision to slash the price on its struggling Surface RT tablets by $150, the tech giant has just dropped the price on its flagship Surface Pro model by $100 through August 29, according to The Verge. The 64GB model now costs $799, while the 128GB version runs $100 more. 

Microsoft told the website that the slashed prices are for the U.S. market, as well as Canada, China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. 

The price cut is not only timed for the busy back-to-school shopping season, but also could mean Microsoft is trying to move inventory in anticipation of new Surface models. These rumored new Surface Pro tablets could use Intel's latest Haswell processors to provide faster performance and improved battery life.

Microsoft has taken some well-publicized lumps related to its tablet hardware in the last few weeks. As it slashed prices on the Surface RT, the company announced that it was taking a massive $900 million write-down on its Surface RT inventory. The Surface Pro hasn't been panned nearly as badly as the RT -- running a full version of Windows 8 allows it to use full Microsoft Office apps instead of the cut-down versions on the RT version -- but it's hard to tell how successful it has been, since Microsoft has been cagey about its tablet sales to date.

Is the $100 price cut enough to get you to purchase a Surface Pro tablet, or will you wait for new models to be announced? Let us know your thoughts in the Talkback section below.

Whether you love or loathe Windows 8, there’s no doubt that Microsoft’s attempt to reimagine Windows has gotten off to a slow start. The confirmation this week that Surface tablets have not sold well only serves to put an exclamation point on this. Later this month Microsoft will take a mulligan with the release of Windows 8.1.

Microsoft released the public consumer preview on June 26 at its Build developer conference, and in the the last few days it rolled out a preview of the enterprise version. Windows 8.1 is scheduled to be released to manufacturing in August and it will be available to all Windows 8 and Windows RT users as a free update in the Windows Store.

The point-release branding is meant to set expectations. Windows 8.1 is more than just a service pack with lots of little big fixes. But it is less than a new operating system. At Build CEO Steve Ballmer described it as a “more refined blend” of Windows 8. This branding also reflects Microsoft’s shift to a more rapid development cycle with new releases like this expected every year.

For the past few weeks I’ve been using the Windows 8.1 preview on two very different Acer systems. The first, the Aspire S7 Ultrabook, which has a a Full HD touchscreen, is one of my favorite Windows 8 laptops. The second, the Iconia Tab W3, is notable as the first Windows 8 tablet with a small display (and low price), though it hasn’t received great reviews. One of the bigger changes in Windows 8.1 is that it is specifically designed to scale down to tablets and convertibles with smaller displays and lower price tags in order to better compete with Android and iOS.

Better from the Start

The first thing that you’ll notice about Windows 8.1 Preview is that the Start screen looks different. In Windows 8, as you add more applications you quickly end up with a sea of large Live Tiles--many of which don’t display much useful information--that leaves you doing lots of horizontal scrolling to find the right app. Also, it isn’t easy to move the tiles around and group them to make things easier. Microsoft is clearly trying to address all of this in Windows 8.1.

The tiles can now be arranged in four different sizes (Small, Medium, Wide and Large). The “Small” size is useful for launching apps that don’t really require Live Tiles such as Microsoft Office programs; the “Large” format, conversely, is great for apps that display lots of useful information on tiles such as Weather, Finance and Sports.

You can now switch quickly between the tiles and All Apps by swiping up and down (or clicking on the up and down arrows) rather than swiping up from the edge or right-clicking on the Start screen background and choosing All Apps. The latter now brings up a Customize button that lets you name groups of tiles. I created groups for Office 2013, Bing apps, News, Games, etc. When viewing All apps, you can sort them by name, category, most used or date installed. Speaking of groups, you can now select multiples tiles to move around; resize; pin or unpin from the Start screen and task bar; or uninstall.

If you still want to skip the Start screen altogether, you can boot directly into the desktop. Despite the enhancements in Windows 8.1, I suspect many users without touchscreens, especially business users, will choose this option. And, as nearly everyone knows by now, the desktop will now include a Start button. This isn’t a true Start menu--it simply toggles back and forth between the two environments like the Windows keyboard button--but if you right-click on it, you get a menu that is even more powerful than the Windows 7 Start menu (it’s the same menu you get in Windows 8 by pressing the Windows-X key combination, but few users even knew it was there).

Better integration of services

Some key services now work better across all of Windows. The PC settings in Windows 8.1 are more extensive so that you won’t need to hunt around for the old Control Panel to change system settings. Rather than searching in Apps, Settings or Files, Windows 8.1 has a universal Search feature that displays results across Bing Web searches, files stored locally or on SkyDrive, relevant content in Xbox Music and Video apps, and other apps and settings. Finally SkyDrive no longer requires a separate utility to synchronize files and settings (you select these options when you create a new account and can update them in PC settings). When you put a document in one of SkyDrive’s “placeholder” folders it is automatically uploaded and if you can make these files available offline too. This week Microsoft announced some more new features on SkyDrive.com including high-resolution thumbnails and photos for displays that support it, photo rotation, the ability to select and share groups of files regardless of where they are stored in SkyDrive and a built-in text editor.

New Apps and smarter Snap

One of the biggest issues with Windows 8 is that the apps feel half-baked. The rudimentary Microsoft apps seemed rushed--with lots of important features missing--and many key third-party apps were missing at launch. Windows 8.1 starts to correct this with several new and upgraded Microsoft apps, new capabilities for third-party apps and an over-hauled Windows Store.

New Microsoft apps include Reading List, Alarms and Bing apps for Food & Drink and Health & Fitness to go with the existing ones (News, Sports, Finance and Travel). Reading List is a useful little utility that uses the Share charm to quickly save links to content from other apps or Web sites, but it isn’t a full-feature Web clipper like Evernote or OneNote. The Alarms app has a nice design, and it also includes a timer and stopwatch, but the alarms don’t seem to work if the system is asleep, which makes it largely useless.

Microsoft has also updated Photos and Xbox Music--two apps that badly needed reworking. Photos has new editing features that let you rotate, crop and retouch photos. There’s a nice selection of editing tools and I found them easy to use even on small touchscreens. The only drawback is that it is now designed to work with photos stored locally and the links to Facebook, SkyDrive and Flickr have disappeared (hopefully these will be be restored by the time Windows 8.1 is finalized). The current version of Xbox Music is basically a chromeless app designed largely to highlight selections from the store and let you build custom radio stations around an artist a la Pandora. In Windows 8.1, Xbox Music has a new menu pane that makes it much easier to manage your own music collection, create and manage radio stations, explore new music and build playlists.

Most important, the Mail app is getting a major update that brings over a lot of the popular features from Outlook.com. This isn’t included in the preview, but Microsoft has shown some of the features including the ability to drag and drop mail into folders, automatically filter incoming e-mail such as newsletters and social media updates into folders, sweep certain types of messages, such as Groupons for example, into the trash while keeping only the most recent ones; pin folders or favorite people to the lefthand pane to quickly view all messages from them; and initiate Skype calls or messages by clicking on a contact within a message. The version of Office with Windows RT 8.1 will also include Outlook 2013 RT. Unfortunately there’s still no clear timetable for the touch-optimized Windows 8 versions of Office 2013 apps with the exception of OneNote.

One of the biggest knocks against Windows 8 has been the lack of third-party apps, and these have been slow in coming, but Microsoft is making progress. New third-party apps include Foursquare, OpenTable, Rockmelt and Rhapsody with Facebook and Flipboard apparently on the way. The Windows Store, itself, has been completely redesigned with a better layout that places more emphasis on the most popular apps and user reviews. It supposedly provides personalized recommendations, as well, but most of the apps it suggested were already installed on my system and in use, so I’m not sure this is really working all that well. Still it’s a big improvement and Microsoft is also catching up with Windows Store gift cards so users can load their accounts to purchase apps, books, games and content. Windows 8.1 also delivers a laundry list of new features for developers.

One of my favorite new features in Windows 8.1 is the improved Snap feature for viewing multiple applications at once. You can now view up to four applications side-by-side and resize the windows however you like. What’s even better is that apps can automatically take advantage of Snap. For example, click on a photo in an e-mail message, and Mail slides over the side and the photo opens in your default viewer. Or click on a link in Twitter or the new Readling List app, and the app shifts over and the relevant page opens in Internet Explorer 11. Because the original app remains open and viewable on the side, you never lose the context of what you were doing last. This sounds simple, but it turns out to be a big usability enhancement and third-party developers can leverage it to do interesting things with their own apps.

Windows 8 was primarily designed to appeal to consumers. Windows 8.1 doesn’t really change that, but it does include several new enterprise features. Microsoft mentioned a few of these at Tech Ed in June, but it announced more features with the release of the Windows 8.1 Enterprise preview this week.

On its own, none of these new features is a game changer (not even the over -hyped return of the Start button). It still feels like two operating environments (though moving between them is more seamless now), and Microsoft and third-party developers still need to demonstrate that they can deliver robust, touch-optimized apps starting with Office. But taken together the many enhancements in Windows 8.1 add up to a significant improvement in the user experience.

Toshiba is bringing some of the high-end look of its Kirabook laptop to its more budget-friendly notebooks with its new Satellite E series. Of course, you won't get the same materials and accoutrements, but you'll be saving several hundred dollars.

For instance, while the E45t Ultrabook and E55 have the same basic design as the pricier Kirabook, they rely on aluminum and plastic instead of magnesium. They also have lower-res screens. Nonetheless, the laptops are less than an inch thick and include such niceties as LED-backlit keyboards.

The version of the Satellite E45t sold exclusively at Best Buy includes a 14-inch 1,366x768 screen, Intel Core i5-4200U "Haswell" processor, 6GB of RAM, and 500GB hard drive, though it lacks an optical drive. It does come with touchscreen capabilities, however, as well as Nuance's Dragon Assistant voice recognition software. The Best Buy configuration will cost $699.99, while Toshiba's website will also be selling the E45t starting on August 4.

There are different flavors of the Satellite E55, depending on whether you choose AMD or Intel inside. While both options feature a 15.6-inch display with the same resolution as the E45t, the E55t comes with a Core i5 processor and the E55D and E55Dt come with an AMD A6 chip. The E55D lacks a touch screen and includes a 750GB hard drive instead of the 1TB one the E55Dt ships with. The bigger E55 makes room for a numeric keypad that is not available on the E45t.

According to Engadget, the E55D will be priced from $580, whereas the E55Dt will cost $700. No pricing info for the E55t is available yet. Toshiba says the E55 series will be sold by major retailers in addition to being hawked on the company's own site, which says these new notebooks will be ready on August 25. For more hands-on observations, check out our sister site CNET's rundown. 

Google's release of the new Nexus 7 again highlights an area of concern for the overall Android ecosystem: That tablet's hardware seems to be well ahead of many of its competitors.

While you might think Google would be pleased with the competitive advantage, that doesn't appear to be the case, according to recent comments made by Google VP of Android product management Hugo Barra. Barra told The Verge that he is underwhelmed by the tablets that many other manufacturers have released using Google's Android OS:  "I really do think that the Android ecosystem hasn't yet put its best foot forward, when it comes to tablets."

Of course, part of that comes with the territory, given that the operating system is free for any device maker to use with its hardware. That's led to sub-$100 (even sub-$50) bargain tablets from no-name vendors that can hype that they run the Jelly Bean flavor of Android, but rely on cheap processors, low-res screens, and other minimal specs to do it. One consequence is that tablet-optimized apps for Android are less prevalent than Barra (and users) would like.

The banner above shows a selection of such models available from Walmart.com, but even the Slate 7 offered from major manufacturer HP has been marred by substandard hardware used to keep its price down. In contrast, the latest Nexus 7 comes with a new quad-core Snapdragon processor, 2GB of memory (versus the Slate 7's 1GB), 16GB or 32GB of storage (the Slate 7 comes with 8GB), and a 1,920x1,200 resolution (compared to the Slate 7's 1,024x600). Yes, the 16GB Nexus 7 costs $90 more than the Slate 7, but delivers a much better user experience and is still $100 less than the Apple iPad Mini.

Of course, there are exceptions like Samsung's Galaxy tablets and the effort Amazon has made to spruce up its Kindle Fire tablets (even if it tries to disguise their Android underpinnings). But Apple, and even Microsoft for its Windows 8 tablets, retain more quality control over the hardware that powers their operating systems, which has forced Google to lead by example (and resort to using a bully pulpit) in order to push its fellow Android partners to focus on a more polished product, rather than just a cheaper one.

The spec trickle-down should be expected as higher-res screens and more capable mobile processors become more widely available at lower prices. In the meantime, do you agree with Barra that the Android tablet experience is less than what it could be? What would it take to improve it? Let us know your thoughts in the Talkback section below.

Dell is proclaiming that its forthcoming Precision M3800 Workstation will be the world's "thinnest and lightest" workstation notebook ever. After showing it off this week at the Siggraph 2013 conference, the company is teasing the new laptop on its website.

The Precision overhaul includes the latest Haswell (or fourth-generation Core) processors from Intel, as well as Nvidia's Quadro graphics (perhaps the new K6000). Just as important, especially to compete against the MacBook Pro, the M3800 will feature a 3,200x1,800 (QHD+) display, which beats the 2,880x1,800 resolution on the Retina display MacBook Pro if the M3800 uses a 15-inch screen.

That's possible, since the new Dell starts at just 4.5 pounds and is a mere 0.7 inches (18mm) thick. That matches the 15-inch MacBook Pro's size, but presumably since Apple doesn't call its top-of-the-line laptop a "workstation," Dell is promoting the M3800 as the world's champ in svelteness.

Unfortunately, precious little else is known about the M3800, including price and availability, other than a vague "later this year." Engadget reports that it will support up to 15GB of RAM and include 512GB SSD or 1TB hard drive options, but we'll have to wait and see if those rumors pan out.

With back-to-school shopping ready to commence, PC manufacturers will attempt to prop up their falling sales with new models. Today, Gateway has announced its plans to refresh its systems with updated specs.

The company is introduing the new NE series of laptops, which will be available in either 15.6-inch or 17.3-inch sizes. (Given the budget nature of the lineup, resolution is an ordinary 1,366x768 and 1,600x900, respectively.) Most models will include a DVD burner, but still remain fairly thin for mainstream notebooks: 1-inch thin for the 15.6-inch NE5 versions and 1.36-inches thin for the 17.3-inch NE7 family. There will be configurations available with either Intel and AMD processors, and you can get up to 8GB of RAM and up to a 1TB hard drive.

A couple of models are already online, including the $399.99 NE52204u, which comes with an AMD A4-5000 processor, 4GB of RAM, and 500GB hard drive, and the $499.99 NE72206u, which features an AMD A6-5200 processor, 6GB of RAM, and 500GB hard drive. Gateway promises NE laptops for as low as $379.99 in the coming weeks.

No new family names for Gateway's updated desktops, which retain the DX, SX and ZX nomenclature. As with the new Gateway notebooks, you get a mix of Intel and AMD processor options, including Intel's Core i5 series in the DX, while the smaller SX systems get Core i3 CPUs. The new DX models offer as much as 10GB of RAM standard, whereas the SX maxes out at 8GB. (Though you can add more yourself.) Both can provide up to 1TB of hard drive storage, but only the DX versions appear to have USB 3.0 ports. The One ZX all-in-one PC (pictured) features a 21.5-inch display with full 1080p resolution (1,980x1,020), though it eschews the touchscreen capabilities that other Windows 8 all-in-ones often include.

Gateway says that it will offer new desktops for as low as $298, though the DX4870-UB2C posted online is $549.99 and the One ZX4970-UR22 is priced at $529.99. The DX4870 includes a Core i5-3330 quad-core CPU, 8GB of RAM, 1TB hard drive, and DVD burner, but no discrete graphics card. The ZX4970 comes with an Intel Pentium G2030 processor, 4GB of RAM, and 1TB hard drive, along with a DVD burner.

While none of these new Gateway PCs will match the allure of the latest and greatest tablets, there are still those (even college students) who need desktops and laptops for everyday productivity. However, all signs point to there being fewer and fewer of "those."

It's been a tough week for Windows RT, the embattled operated system Microsoft created to help it compete in the tablet market. First, the tech giant confirmed that it was slicing prices on its Surface RT tablets due to lackluster demand. Now, a key partner has halted sales on its website of its own Windows RT device.

Lenovo had hoped its IdeaPad Yoga 11 would makes waves with its convertible design, but critics (including ZDNet's own Matt Baxter-Reynolds) were lukewarm to Windows RT's cut-down Windows experience. In May, the company introduced the Yoga 11S, a version of the laptop/tablet hybrid that offered a full version of Windows 8.

Now Lenovo has apparently discontinued the RT flavor of the Yoga, stopping sales of it on the company website. The page annoucing the discontinuation advises that you can still pick one from a reseller if you want to own an orphaned product. (The Yoga 11S remains for sale on the Lenovo site.)

The Yoga RT's woes follow in the wake of Dell's price cut on the XPS 10 Windows RT tablet to $299 a couple of months ago. For now, however, Dell is continuing to sell the device.

Did you buy an IdeaPad Yoga? Do you think Windows RT tablets are doomed? Let us know your thoughts in Talkback section below.

[Via PCWorld] 

The Aspire R7 is a mainstream laptop with a 15-inch (1920x1080) touchscreen that folds nearly flat. This puts it somewhere between true Windows convertibles--of which there are many to choose from--and a new breed of “transportable” all-in-ones such as the Dell XPS 18, HP Envy Rove 20, Lenovo IdeaCentre Horizon (which I recently tried out) and Sony Vaio Tap 20.

The Aspire R7’s most distinctive feature is its “Ezel Hinge” which lets you pull the display forward so that the bottom edge of the display is positioned on top of the base rather than at the rear. Ordinarily this arrangement would cover up the keyboard, so to get around this Acer swapped the location of the keyboard and touchpad.

This approach has its pros and cons. By moving the display closer, Acer made it easier and more comfortable to use touch to navigate Windows 8 apps.While there are lots of laptops with touchscreens, this is one of the first that that really feels like it was designed around Windows 8. That’s also the problem. Unfortunately there are many key applications--including nearly all of Microsoft Office--that do not have Windows 8 versions optimized for touch. When using these “classic” Windows 7 apps, you need to slide your hands under the display to reach the touchpad without letting your hands or wrists hit the keyboard. It’s so awkward that I suspect most R7 users will simply buy a wireless mouse instead.

If you pull the screen even closer, you can tilt it backwards and fold it nearly flat covering the entire keyboard and touchpad. The rear edge remains raised slightly, but this didn’t bother me much. The fact is that unlike most convertibles the Aspire R7 is too big and heavy to use as a true tablet anyway, and the slight angle leaves the display in a good position for reading, touch typing, or writing or drawing with a stylus.

Finally you can flip the display over 180 degrees either to show it to someone sitting opposite you or to watch videos or read without the keyboard deck in the way. In general the Aspire R7 is a great system for entertainment with its edge-to-edge 1920x1080 display and four above-average speakers with Dolby Home Theater v4. When you flip the display over, the video automatically rotates and the audio channels reverse.

Despite its unusual exterior, inside the Aspire R7 is a conventional mainstream laptop. The one I tested has a third-generation Ivy Bridge Core i5 processor, 6GB of memory and a 180GB solid-state drive. The retail model, however, has a standard 500GB hard drive paired with 24GB of SSD cache to boost performance, and costs $1,000. In comparison, the Lenovo IdeaPad Z500 Touch (15.6-inch 1366x768 touchscreen, Core i5 processor, 6GB of memory, 500GB hard drive and DVD drive) is $850 and the HP Envy TouchSmart (15.6-inch Full HD touchscreen and a similar configuration) costs about $830.

The performance was exactly what you’d expect for a system with mid-range specs. It isn’t quite as fast as premium Ultrabooks with Core-i7 processors, and the Intel HD 4000 graphics aren’t up to high-end 3D gaming, but the Aspire R7 is fine for common productivity and entertainment applications.

The Aspire R7 is bigger and heavier than most convertibles (which generally have smaller displays), but reasonable for a 15-inch laptop at slightly more than an inch thick and 5.3 pounds.Like many newer 14- and 15-inch laptops, the Aspire R7 does not have a built-in optical drive.The battery life is rated at about 4 hours and that seems about right. I wouldn’t choose the Aspire R7--or any 15-inch laptop--for everyday commuting or frequent travel, but it is fine if you want a system to move around the house and bring along on occasional weekend trips.

In a world where everything could be done in “modern” Windows 8 apps using touch, the Aspire R7 would be a clear winner. Unfortunately that’s not the case and, given the prevalence of classic Windows apps, the notebook’s unorthodox keyboard and touchpad will probably scare off some shoppers. The touchpad does take some getting used to, but there’s an easy solution: a wireless mouse or touchpad. And the innovative design has some real benefits when using Windows 8, so the Aspire R7 is worth a good look if you want a 15-inch laptop. The design may also appeal to those who would ordinarily buy a new desktop, but are looking for something that will take up less space and can be moved around easily.

Eric Wong contributed research assistance for this post.

As the number of all-in-one PC choices expands, manufacturers are trying to differentiate their offerings any way they can. In the case of the new Aspire Z3-605, Acer is emphasizing media-friendly features at an affordable price.

The Z3-605 isn't anything special spec-wise: a last-generation Intel Core i3-3227U processor, 4GB of RAM, 1TB hard drive and DVD drive in a 23-inch unit. So Acer sweetens the deal with a full 1080p IPS display with a touchscreen option to make use of Windows 8's touch capabilities. It includes an HDMI port to allow you to hook up video equipment to take advantage of the screen's 1,920x1,080 resolution.

In addition, the Z3-605 features a pair of 3-watt front-facing Harman Kardon speakers that output audio that's been optimized using Dolby Home Theater v4 audio technology. It's the first all-in-one to make use of Harman Kardon speakers. The chassis can also tilt from 10 to 30 degrees in order to let you position the screen as you see fit.

The best part of the new Aspire may be its starting price: $699.99, and $799.99 for a touchscreen version. Other versions in the series will include Core i5 processors and up to 8GB of RAM.

Without much fanfare, HP has launched a new convertible Windows 8 laptop that's available exclusively at Best Buy (at least for now). The Split x2 features a detachable screen that lets you use it as a tablet when you're not making use of it as a traditional notebook.

The model available now (the Split 13-m010dx x2) is built around a 13.3-inch touchscreen with 1,366x768 resolution. It includes 4GB of RAM and 128GB of solid-state storage. You also get a pair of 3-cell batteries -- one in the base and another in the display/tablet. While the full device is 0.9 inches thick (and 4.9 pounds), the screen itself is 0.4 inches thick and 2.3 pounds when detached.

Curiously, the Split x2 comes with a third-generation Intel Core i3 processor (i3-3229Y), not one of the new Haswell CPUs. When HP announced the new Split family a couple of months ago, a Core i5 option was mentioned, though it's currently not available.

The Split x2 is priced at $749.99, more than similar HP convertible devices like the Envy x2 and the forthcoming SlateBook x2. Those, however, use smaller screens and less powerful processors -- and, in the case of the SlateBook, Android instead of Windows 8. 

[Via Engadget]

Acer was one of the first companies (after Apple) to support Intel's nascent Thunderbolt high-speed port in its systems back in 2012. Fast-forward a year, however, and the PC maker has determined that Thunderbolt is no longer part of its company's future plans.

An Acer spokesperson has told our sister site CNET that the company will no longer include Thunderbolt on its laptops and desktops, instead relying on USB 3.0 for high-speed data transfer between its systems and peripherals.

The move will come as a blow to Thunderbolt, which has been fully embraced on Mac computers but has only been used sporadically on Windows PCs -- usually higher-end models. Nonetheless, Intel told CNET that several companies like Asus, Dell, and Lenovo have added Thunderbolt support to their new Haswell-based systems, and that Thunderbolt is being promoted for higher-end machines.

For its part, Apple will be including Thunderbolt 2, which doubles throughput to 20Gbps, with its forthcoming revision of the MacPro desktop. That will keep well ahead of the USB standard, which won't reach 10Gbps until next year. Still, USB 3.0's throughput of 5Gbps appears to be more than enough for most computer buyers -- and manufacturers.

Is Thunderbolt support on your checklist for a new system? Let us know in the Talkback section below. 

Dell launched the XPS 12 last fall as one of the first Windows 8 notebooks that could switch between laptop and tablet modes. Last month the company announced that it would be adding Intel's new Haswell processors to an updated version of the device, and this week Dell has started selling the refreshed 2013 XPS 12.

As anyone following Intel's launch of the fourth-generation Core CPUs knows, the Haswell chips offer improved performance while strengthening battery life. Dell is claiming that the new processors will boost the XPS 12's speed by 1.6 times and battery life by 2.5 hours. (They'll also boost its starting price, but more on that in a bit.)

In addition to the Haswell upgrade, Dell has given the XPS 12 support for Near Field Communications, letting you transfer files by tapping an NFC-supporting device to the Ultrabook.

The expected battery life jump will help overcome one of the XPS 12's weaknesses, based on Sandra Vogel's review from earlier this year, which otherwise praises the system's swiveling screen and overall design. 

The previous version of the XPS 12 has received a price cut with the introduction of the new model. Its new starting price is $1,099.99, whereas the Haswell version starts at $1,199.99. At that price, you get a Core i5-4200U processor, 4GB of RAM, and 128GB SSD. For $200 more, you can upgrade to a Core i7-4500U and 8GB of RAM, while the $1,999 configuration keeps the i7-4500U and 8GB of RAM but provides a massive 512GB SSD.

With back-to-school shopping commencing anytime now, expect to see a lot of new laptops sporting the latest and greatest Intel Haswell (a.k.a. fourth-generation Core) processors going on sale. Acer has gotten the jump on the competition with its new Aspire M5-583P-6428 Windows 8 notebook, which is being sold exclusively at Best Buy.

The new M5 is a little more potent than a budget laptop, including a Core i5-4200U dual-core processor, 8GB of RAM, and 500GB hard drive. The resolution for the 15.6-inch LED-backlit screen is a ho-hum 1,366x768, however, and the Aspire relies on the Haswell chip's integrated graphics rather than providing a discrete card. To take full advantage of Windows 8, the screen does support 10-point multi-touch control.

The 5.3-pound notebook includes such amenities as four speakers, Dolby Home Theater v4 audio technology, and WiDi support to wirelessly connect to an HDTV. The new Acer Purified.Voice feature is designed to keep audio from conference calls and webcam videos as clear as possible.

The Aspire M5-583P is available now at Best Buy locations, though it does not currently appear to be available on the retailer's website. At $699.99, it's competitively priced for someone looking for a mainstream laptop with some of the latest technology that won't break the bank.

Companies can spin it any way they like, but discounting a new product — whether as a limited-time offer or a permanent price drop — is never a good sign. Such would appear to be the case for HP, which has already dropped the price on its much-ballyhooed Slate 7 Android tablet, released in April, by $30.

When the company announced the Slate 7, its low starting price of $169.99 was one of its main selling points in the fiercely competitive tablet market. So the fact that HP has recently and quietly lowered the cost to $139.99 suggests that even that budget price was too high to muster sufficient sales. The $30 discount also applies to the pricier configurations with 16GB of capacity and optional red color choice.

Reviews for the Slate 7 have been middling at best, which may have blunted demand. For instance, our sister site CNET found that the tablet suffers from mediocre hardware, including a 1,024x600 resolution screen and lackluster cameras, and the lack of a gyroscope.

What do you make of HP's decision to lower the price of the Slate 7? Does it make you more likely to buy one? Or does it mean that it's one step closer to the dustbin, joining the company's other tablet failures like the Slate 500 and TouchPad?

[Via TabTimes]

It looks like Lenovo is in the midst of building out a page on its website for the new ThinkPad T440s Ultrabook, which was sniffed out and reached the likes of tech blogs like Liliputing. While the page is half-constructed, it does supply some details about the forthcoming notebook.

For starters, the ThinkPad T440s will use Intel's fourth-generation Core processors (a.k.a. Haswell), which should surprise no one. The 14-inch display will make use of In-Plane Switching technology in either HD+ (1,600x900) or full 1080p (1,920x1,080) resolution -- also fairly standard for a non-budget laptop these days.

Lenovo has updated its spill-resistant keyboard area, adding multimedia buttons and 5-point click integration with its trackpad. (The familiar TrackPoint pointing device is included as well.) It's also built the top of the T440s out of carbon fiber and the bottom from magnesium to maximize durability without packing on heft to the 3.6-pound system.

One thing a bit different with the T440s is that it will come standard with two 3-cell batteries, including one that's swappable without requiring the user to power down the system while replacing the other one. That's a handy extra for business travelers needing as much battery life as possible while on the road.

Among the missing info on the T440s web page are details about pricing or availability, so it's unclear how much you'll pay for the business-friendly Ultrabook or when you can get your hands on it.

Even as sales of the iPad and iPad mini may be leveling off from their previous meteoric growth, they still number in the millions for each quarter. According to a company exec, Dell can't make the same claims for its tablets running Windows 8 and Windows RT.

While you probably know the Guardian newspaper for being one of the sources of the NSA leaks and the subsequent notoriety of leaker Edward Snowden, it also reports other, less inflamatory, tech news, such as a recent interview with Dell global VP Sam Burd.

In the piece, Burd acknowledges the sales figures for the company's recent tablets running Windows RT and Windows 8. According to Burd, sales of the XPS 10 and the Latitude 10 have been in the "hundreds of thousands," which the Guardian frames in a negative light by saying the exec "admitted" the numbers and said they were "only" hundreds of thousands.

Of course, this is another sign that Windows-based tablets haven't seen explosive sales numbers, but Burd didn't sound the death knell for Dell's slates yet, arguing for a brighter future based on the figures:  "I think that's pretty exciting when we look at the ramp [in purchasing] that we expect from corporate customers."

Indeed, the corporate market, which is much more comfortable with the Windows ecosystem than the iPad's or Android, could be Microsoft's saving grace in the tablet world (and, by extension, those manufacturers, like Dell, who are building Windows tablets). However, Burd is talking about a few years before Windows 8 could make up a third or more of the tablet sales volume (by which time it will likely no longer be Windows 8, but that's another story).

Maybe that's why Dell is looking into alternatives, as its core sales of desktops and laptops are predicted to slide and tablet sales haven't made up the difference. Burd says the company has started exploring wearable computers, which means someday soon there might be a Dell smart watch competing against an Apple iWatch.

Are the sales numbers for Dell tablets in line with what you would expect? Should the company be happy or concerned with those figures? Let us know your thoughts in the Talkback section below.

The industry has been busily reinventing the PC in hopes of winning back customers captivated by tablets. Much of the focus has been on convertible laptops that double as tablets. But desktops are also getting a makeover. In particular, computer makers are designing more versatile all-in-ones that can be shared by the whole family.

The use of touchscreens on all-in-ones is not new. HP has been trying to jumpstart this market with its TouchSmart PCs for years. But the introduction of Windows 8, which is optimized for large touchscreens, really got things rolling. Now, PC makers are taking it a step further by adding batteries, so that you can easily move all-in-ones from room to room, and display hinges that fold flat, so that you can share them. Although some reviewers regard these as oversized tablets, a better name for the category is the tabletop PC.

For the past few weeks, I've been testing out one of these new tabletop PCs, Lenovo's IdeaCentre Horizon. Others in this category include the Dell XPS 18, HP Envy Rove 20, and Sony Vaio Tap 20. The Asus Transformer All-In-One is a sort of hybrid that is part Windows desktop and part Android tablet (I wrote about these in a previous post). And the Acer Aspire R7 accomplishes much the same thing with a 15-inch touchscreen that folds flat, but it is more mainstream laptop than all-in-one, with its built-in keyboard and trackpad.

The Horizon is based on a 27-inch, 10-point touch display with a resolution of 1,920x1,080 pixels. It is big and weighs a hefty 17 pounds, but a black rubber frame makes it easy to grip the display to adjust it or move it. When you tilt it forwards or backwards, it stays perfectly in place. If you fold it all the way flat, it automatically launches Lenovo's Aura tabletop user interface. And if you pick it up again, the sturdy kickstand automatically pops out and the system prompts you to return to Windows 8. (You can also exit Aura and use Windows 8 when the Horizon is folded flat.)

There are several good, in-depth reviews of the Horizon PC available elsewhere — including Dan Ackerman's take on ZDNet's sister site CNET — so I won't spend too much time on the basic specs or performance. The configuration I tested, with a third-generation Core-i7 mobile processor, 8GB of memory, Nvidia discrete graphics, and a 1TB hard drive, is $1,600 at Best Buy. The store is also offering a $1,500 model with a Core i5 and 6GB of memory. Either one should have plenty of performance for typical productivity and entertainment applications, as well as basic gaming.

The Windows 8 apps from the Windows Store look great on a large touchscreen. Lenovo's Aura interface has its own set of apps and games designed for touch and for special Horizon peripherals. And Lenovo has its own App Shop — really a version of Intel's AppUp store — with a handful of "Horizon Select" apps. Lenovo said it is working with Electronic Arts and Ubisoft to create versions of their games for the App Shop. For good measure, Lenovo throws in the BlueStacks emulator so that you can run Android apps, though they don't look great on such a large display, and not all apps or features will work properly.

Choice is good, but this makes for a fragmented experience. Each store has its own set of apps and games. And the Lenovo App Shop only works with standard Windows applications, so even though all of the same games and educational apps were already pre-installed in Aura, the App Shop didn't recognize them, and wanted to install stand-alone Windows versions, even though they seemed identical. Ultimately, it isn't realistic for every hardware company and each device to include three or four different app stores — there just aren't enough developers or users to go around — and it would be better if all vendors concentrated on distributing apps with or without special optimizations for their hardware through the regular Windows Store.

Having said that, the Aura apps do a nice job of demonstrating the potential of tabletop computing. These include games (such as Air Hockey, Roulette, Monopoly, and Texas Hold 'Em); educational apps; and basic photo, music, and video viewers. The apps don't have any real editing features, but they work fine for sharing content. Using your fingers, you can resize windows, move them around, and rotate them to give everyone a better view. Lenovo has also developed several accessories, including joysticks, paddles, and USB dice to enhance the games. Some of the Aura games had a slight lag, but overall, they looked good and were fun to play with a small group.

Ultimately, that's the idea behind this emerging tabletop category. Some of the hardware decisions are questionable. For example, despite its size, the Horizon doesn't have a slot-loading DVD drive, includes only two USB slots (one of which is used up by the dongle for the wireless keyboard and mouse), and gets only a couple of hours of battery life — a bit short even for a so-called transportable designed to be moved from room to room. But this is version 1.0, and Lenovo said future versions will include models with smaller displays, more features, and (hopefully) longer battery life. Lenovo deserves credit for trying something innovative on the desktop and pioneering this tabletop category. By the holiday season, I expect to see many more of these hybrid all-in-ones that also function as large tablets or tabletop PCs.

The latest example is HP’s Slate 21, which looks like a standard all-in-one PC with a 21.5-inch (1920x1080) IPS touchscreen, but has the specs of a tablet including Nvidia’s Tegra 4 quad-core processor and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. HP says it has included several features to make Android work better on the desktop including support for up to five Google profiles, drivers for USB peripherals and a software bundled that includes Splashtop for running Windows apps and a productivity suite (Kingsoft Office). The Slate 21 has only 8GB of storage, but there is an SD card slot for expansion and HP says USB flash drives and external hard drives will also work. It will be available starting in September for $400. (My colleague, Sean Portnoy, covered the Slate 21 announcement here.) 

Acer is already selling a similar product, also with a 21.5-inch 1920x1080 touchscreen, but they are marketing it more as a monitor that also happens to run Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). The DA220HQL has a Texas Instruments’ OMAP 4430 dual-core processor, 1GB of memory, 8GB of storage, built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and micro-HDMI, micro-USB, and a wireless keyboard and mouse. Though Acer lists the price as $400, the prices I’ve seen online range from $430 to $450.

Last week Samsung announced the ATIV Q, a convertible with several unusual features. First, it has a 13.3-inch display with a QHD resolution (3,200 by 1,800 pixels). Second, it runs both Windows 8 and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. Finally, with its sliding hinge you can use the ATIV Q as tablet or ultraportable laptop, or flip the screen over to use it in a stand mode like a digital photo frame or portable DVD player. (Samsung is also pitching a “float” mode where the display hovers above the base and keyboard—much like the Acer Aspire R7 with its “ezel” hinge—but I’m not sure this mode will be very practical.) One interesting feature lets you pin Android apps onto the Windows 8 Start screen so that you can quickly launch them. The ATIV Q will come with a fourth-generation Core-i5 (Haswell) processor, 4GB of memory and a 128GB SSD, but Samsung hasn’t announced availability or pricing yet.

At Computex, Asus announced the Transformer Book Trio, which as the name implies is meant to work as tablet, laptop and desktop. On its own the 11.6-inch (1920x1080) slate has a 2.0GHz Atom Z2580 processor (Clover Trail+), 2GB of memory, and 64GB of storage and runs Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean). When it is connected to the PC Station keyboard dock, it functions as a laptop that can run either Windows 8 or Android. Finally the PC Station, which has a fourth-generation Core i7 (Haswell) processor and 750GB of storage, can be hooked up to an external display to use as a Windows 8 desktop. The Transformer Book Trio will be available in the third quarter but Asus has not announced pricing.

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Asus already sells a Transformer AiO (All-in-One) that combines an 18.4-inch Full HD tablet that runs Android 4.1 Jellybean with a PC docking station that runs Windows 8. The tablet is equipped with a Tegra 3 quad-core processor, 2GB of memory and 32GB of storage. The PC Station has a Core i5-3350P processor (Ivy Bridge), 4GB of memory and a 1TB hard drive (expandable to 2TB). You can also attach an external monitor to the base station. When the tablet is in the PC Station you can switch back and forth between Android and Windows by hitting a blue button on the right side of the tablet. When you detach the tablet, the PC Station can wirelessly stream Windows 8 to the tablet using the Splashtop remote access software. CNET’s Rich Brown reviewed the Transformer AiO, which starts at around $1,300.

The concept of an Android all-in-one or hybrid PC sounds a bit strange at first, especially when you consider that Google has a separate Chrome OS designed specifically for computers. But it makes some sense in certain situations. There was a time when x86 Windows compatibility was all that mattered, but the mobile revolution has flipped that on its head—at least for consumers. Users now want the same Android or iOS apps and games on all their devices. And the cloud makes it possible to access your files and content from any device. Microsoft’s plan, of course, is to match this ecosystem in Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8. But that’s not the case today.

I’m not convinced that an Android-only all-in-one or desktop makes much sense. And if you simply want a second device for access to Google services, a $199 Chromebook will do the job quite nicely. But a hybrid Windows 8 system that doubles as a large Android tablet, which you can carry around the house to stay in touch online, watch movies or play games, isn’t such a crazy idea after all.

Update: HP has contacted me with its official press release for the U.S. The Slate 21 will start selling in the States in September, starting at $399. It includes 8GB of storage and an SD card slot for additional capacity.  

While PC makers have released a few all-in-one desktops that double as tabletop tablets, HP is doing things differently with the forthcoming Slate 21, which it just unveiled at an event in Beijing. Systems like the HP's own Envy Rove 20, can lay flat to be used like a tablet, but still run Windows 8 and use traditional x86 chips.

The Slate 21, on the other hand, will run Android (version 4.2.2, to be exact) and is powered by Nvidia's Tegra 4 ARM processor. In addition, it's not designed to lay completely flat — its kickstand lets it sit at a 30-degree angle for tablet usage or upright to be used in the more traditional desktop mode. (Update: According to HP, the hinge lets you adjust the angle of the display from between 15 to 75 degrees.) The 21.5-inch display is obviously touchscreen-enabled and features full 1080p resolution.

As is often the case with these announcements, HP provided no price or availability for the Slate 21, saying these details will be revealed when it's released in each country. What price would entice you to buy the Slate 21, or would you have no interest in this Android all-in-one PC no matter the cost? Let us know in the Talkback section below.

[Via CNET Asia, Engadget]