Computex 2008 Wrap-Up

UMPCs, Intel's Atom and VIA's Nano Processor

MIDs and UMPCs were also a big hit this year at Computex 2008. Many manufacturers were showing off ultra-portable devices. Of notable launches this year were MSI’s Wind, Gigabyte’s M-528 and Asus’ EeePC 901/1000H. All the craze about subnotebooks is that they are all easy to handle, very light, and support all your daily routines without breaking the bank.

Many of the new subnotebooks offer operating times of over 7 hours and are getting even more powerful with support from Intel’s Atom processor. Most of these devices come well below the $1000 mark, which is a very affordable price target. Considering what they offer, it’s no surprise that many users are opting to go for UMPCs rather than full-blown notebooks or desktop replacements.

VIA's Nano Processor

While most of the new UMPCs use Intel’s powerful Atom processor, VIA announced that it would give Intel a run for a money with the launch of Nano, VIA’s claim to fame against Intel’s Atom. The Nano processor, VIA claims, gives even more operating time than Atom based systems, and even better performance. It’s been a long time since VIA honestly released a processor with so much excitement, and we’re eagerly waiting to see subnotebooks based on this jewel. More competition in this space - and any space for that matter - is win-win for the consumer.

Gigabyte's M528 MID

Acer's Aspire One with 3G

Competition in the UMPC space is heated and it’ll only get more intense as 2009 rolls in. Acer’s Aspire One is a particular UMPC that caught our attention for the inclusion of 3G wireless technology. No other UMPC currently includes it, and it takes top places in our hearts because of it. Having 3G connectivity enables users to truly go wireless, and it really gives the feeling of ultimate freedom with high-speed Internet access almost anywhere you go.

  • sidereus
    more babes ?
    Reply
  • MJBatson
    A review with half of the review just pictures of booth babes is just stupid. This just shows what immature people are being allowed to write articles for Tom's. I thought this was an electronic review site, and not an adult site. Tom's has been slipping for years. This is the highlights they came back with from the show? I think they need to fire the people that where sent, and get mature people who look more at the new electronics and less at the booth babes. If you want to take pictures of the booth babes for your own, keep them to yourself and friends. They do not need to show up in a review.
    Reply
  • evilshuriken
    You wanna know what I think MJBatson?
    I think you're just butthurt because you haven't gotten your AMD 48xx series benchmark fix.

    However, I think hexus got way better coverage then toms this time around... toms is getting lame lately.
    Still you're overreacting.
    Reply
  • mothballd2
    First; just because a word passes a spellcheck does not mean its the correct word. Edit your frickin articles! Second, if I want a bunch of softcore picts of Asian chicks, I'll Google it. Stick to technology and leave the softcore bs to car shows and search engines.

    And yes, I realize my grammar probably sucks. But I'm not trying to run a website or write news articles.
    Reply
  • Preytor
    Tom's has yellow fever?
    Reply
  • ^ this is crap the nehalem is running past 4 ghz? that doesn't mean sh*t to me... I wish it had a lower clock speed and that performance... I heard it was at 2.66 ghz... but if its past 4 ghz... that seems like crap... even though it is still much faster... it would have had a much larger impact if the ghz was less
    Reply
  • Lozil
    Ya This time Surely Tom's has missed the Coverage... They were busy clicking Booth Babe Photos Under Proper Lighting than the Actual Hardware around there...

    Http://free-and-useful.blogspot.com
    Reply
  • nukemaster
    I have to say, for a hardware site the coverage did suck this time around. I fully agree with those above.
    Reply
  • OK, maybe they exaggerated a bit with the boothbabes in this article, but if you don't like it, you can skip the pages. For the future it will be best if TH will make a special article with the boothbabes and update it as they make more pictures. That way everybody will be happy. I'm sure the boothbabes article will be read as much as the rest.
    Reply
  • TauAs
    I don't want more ugly babes.
    Reply