minis

Opera Mini preview for Google Android

While Google's mobile phone platform, Android, and its Open Handset Alliance have been on the brink of significantly changing the mobile landscape since mid-November 2007, little has come out of the young software developer kit with its still-developing community and code.

On Thursday, Opera Labs announced a technical preview release of the Norwegian company's popular Opera Mini mobile browser for the Android platform. Not only are developers encouraged to scoop up the just-released app, Opera is itching for programmers' feedback to help smooth over any rough edges for an upcoming beta release.

Opera's Chris Mills provides a … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 699: The smell of pong

It's episode 699, in which we coin a new phrase, "swang pong." You figure it out. Also, video on Flickr and bad news about promotional CDs (and goblins). Also, if you live in the U.S., it's time to feel good about yourselves and your Internet. According to a new European study, it's one of the best in the world. Who'da thunk? Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 699

Video on Flickr! http://blog.flickr.net/en/2008/04/09/video-on-flickr-2/

Wal-Mart going hardline on DRM-free online music store; SonyBMG and Warner Music … Read more

Why HP chose Via chip over Intel for Mini-Note

Hewlett-Packard (HP) chose a relatively obscure processor from Via Technologies for its high-profile Mini-Note 2133. An HP marketing manager explains why.

The Via C7-M offered what HP needed now, according to Robert Baker, a notebook product marketing manager for HP. "Via gave us that right mix of performance and price for the type of environment that this product is going into--content consumption." And the chip's low power requirements were a plus too. "Their power (efficiency) is where we needed it to be for this platform. Web surfing, creating Power Points," Baker said.

CNET Reviews said … Read more

Report: Dell to release a low-cost minilaptop

You didn't expect Dell to sit idly by while Asus, Intel, and Hewlett-Packard went flitting about town with their trendy low-cost, low-power minilaptops, did you? Paris Hilton isn't the only celebrity to tote a Chihuahua, after all. According to Taiwanese manufacturer Compal Electronics, Dell will soon enter the minilaptop fray. The company is lining up 200,000 to 300,000 units per month for Dell, according to Compal, which it says could start shipping as early as June.

Dell CEO and namesake Michael Dell lent credence to Compal's statement yesterday when he said, in response to HP's 2133 Mini-Note PC, &… Read more

HP uncovers the 2133 Mini-Note PC

Surprising virtually no one, Hewlett-Packard has finally officially announced its new low-cost, low-power NetBook-style mini-laptop, called the 2133 Mini-Note PC. Of course, we've been following every detail of this system for months, including the presumed launch date, but they're finally officially on sale starting today, from $499-$749.

We've had a chance to play around with an early test unit for about a week now, and so far we like it a lot. Like the Asus Eee PC or Intel Classmate, the 2133 Mini-Note is a smaller-than-ultraportable laptop that trades high-powered specs for portability and price. The … Read more

HP strikes chord with Mini-Note PC

Updated 6:15 AM PDT to reflect official announcement, as expected.

The biggest name in computing is joining the growing mini-notebook fray.

On Tuesday, Hewlett-Packard announced its new Mini-Note PC, due to begin shipping next week. You might recognize it as the HP Compaq 2133, which was the internal HP name back when early images were leaked online.

HP's entry into the trendy mini-notebook market is certainly the biggest name--so far. To get an idea of how popular these devices are of late, check out Amazon.com's list of 10 most-purchased PCs. Three of Amazon's top 10 notebooks … Read more

Opera Mini goes beta, gains speed

Opera, that plucky browser publisher that is neither Microsoft nor Mozilla, has released Opera Mini 4.1 beta with promises of 50 percent faster page loading, among other claimed improvements. The thing is, they might be right.

Mini 4.1b is definitely faster than Mini 4, although actual speeds depend on your wireless connection and the kind of phone you're using. The standard page view loads up what looks like a large thumbnail of the page with images small but discernible and strangely crisp for their size. The "mobile" view presents the URL's information in a … Read more

Wrapping up (parent.thesis)

Today I am writing to let you know that Michael and I have decided to wrap up the (parent.thesis) blog. Writing it for the past ten months has been a wonderful opportunity to explore the issues surrounding family and technology. Blogging for CNET also turned out to be an overwhelming task for us, given that we each already work full-time. So we have found that we cannot sustain a daily conversation in this arena, though we are confident that our experience as CNET bloggers will continue to inform other areas of our work.

I love the serendipity of blogging. … Read more

Report: HP 2133 Mini-Note PC to ship on April 7

If you're not making a cheap and tiny laptop to compete with the Asus Eee PC, what are you doing? Hewlett Packard's forthcoming mininotebook will use Via processors (not Isiah, however) and start at $549, according to a spec sheet that Engadget got its hands on. The entry-level HP 2133 Mini-Note PC will use Linux (SuSE Enterprise) and have a 1.2GHz Via C7-M processor, 1GB of RAM, a 120GB hard drive, a 3-cell battery, and a 8.9-inch screen with a 1280x768 resolution. Another $50 nets you the same configuration with Windows Vista Home Basic. A $749 … Read more