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The new Archos 101 G9: Is it Turbo-worthy?

You might recognize the Wi-Fi-enabled Archos 101 G9 from our previous review, but it's back and it's been "Turbo-fied." At least, that's what the manufacturer has tacked on now that the tablet's dual-core processor has been bumped up from 1GHz to 1.5GHz.

The device also has more storage space, touting a 250GB hard drive. And for all you Android lovers who are tired and done with Honeycomb and Gingerbread, fear not. The device features another noteworthy upgrade in the form of Ice Cream Sandwich.

If you're curious to see what else is … Read more

Archos 80 and 101 G9 reviews: Bad timing

The tablet business is pretty cutthroat (just ask HP), and with the release of the Amazon Kindle Fire just weeks away, it's only going to get scarier out there for would-be iPad competitors.

The timing of a tablet release is crucial, but does rushing a tablet to market to beat the wave of upcoming competition do more harm than good?

The versions of the Archos G9 tablets we originally received were not ready for prime time. They suffered from a malfunctioning camera, frequent lockups, and an overall buggy experience. … Read more

More Motorola Xoom 2 leaks: Two models?

Motorola, now with the backing of prospective new owner Google, may have a worthy competitor to the iPad 2 on the way, according to a report. And another, smaller model may be coming, too.

After some rather murky initial Xoom 2 speculation was reported earlier in the week, This Is My Next has come up with some more-solid details.

Those deets include a 9mm thickness (the iPad 2 is 8.8mm) and a 1.2GHz dual-core processor. This time it may be a Texas Instruments ARM chip variant, according to speculation. The Xoom currently sports a 1GHz Nvidia Tegra 2. The ability to record 1080p video is also expected.

Other goodies include Adobe Flash Player 11, Netflix streaming in HD, an optional keyboard case, a stylus pen, and the ability to sync wirelessly to a PC, according to the report.

And that's not all. There may be a smaller 8.2-inch 0.95-pound Media Edition coming, too.

Tablets and smartphones pouring out of Motorola Mobility over the next 12 months should be compelling considering that well-heeled Google--the provider of the Android software that runs on Motorola's consumer devices--is expected to absorb the company. Perish the thought that this would give Motorola a leg up over rivals in the Android ecosystem!

Updated on September 25 at 4:22 p.m. PDT: Added new photo.… Read more

Archos G9 tablets offer high storage at low prices

Editors' note: This post was updated with new pricing information.

Last month we briefly covered Archos' two new tablets, and now the company has seen fit to provide us with more details. Some of them are quite juicy.

Today, Archos officially announced its new Honeycomb 3.1-based tablets, the Archos G9 series. The G9 series will come in both 8-inch and 10.1-inch sizes, named simply the 80 G9 and 101 G9, respectively. Rather than designing yet another cookie-cutter Honeycomb tablet, though, Archos has decided to change things up a bit.

The company forgoes the obligatory inclusion of the Nvidia Tegra 2 CPU and has instead included the Ice Cream Sandwich-approved 1.5GHz Texas Instruments OMAP 4 processor. According to Archos, the OMAP 4 reduces Web browsing speed over the 1GHz Tegra 2 by up to 50 percent.

Each tablet will also come stocked with 250GB of storage via a built-in 250GB HDD from Seagate. The 8-inch G9 has a 4:3 aspect ratio screen at 1,024x768-pixel resolution, while the larger 10.1-incher provides a full 16:10 1,280x800-pixel screen.

Archos boasts that its tablets will be the only ones on the market able to decode 1080p H264 High Profile videos, and I for one can't wait to get review units to put that claim to the test. … Read more

250GB Android tablet coming--interested?

Here's something you can't get with an iPad: 250GB of internal storage. Archos' upcoming Android "Honeycomb" 3.2 tablet will pack a 250GB hard disk drive that's been tweaked to perform more like a flash drive.

The Archos G9 will sport a 250GB Seagate Momentus Thin 2.5-inch hard drive--a mere 7 millimeters thick. Though not as compact as a 1.8-inch HDD (like Apple once used in its MacBook Air and iPod), it's not as expensive either.

And Archos has tweaked the Seagate drive a bit to allow it to perform more like … Read more

Seagate Momentus Thin powers first HDD-based tablets

Because of the high prices of solid-state drives, most tablets have limited storage. To keep the cost reasonable, manufacturers have to opt for offering low-capacity units.

And the main reason why tablets don't use hard-disk drives (HDDs) is the physical size: HDDs are generally not compact enough for the portability of a tablet computer. That is, unless, that HDD is Seagate Technology's Momentus Thin.

The company announced today that this hard drive, which is the world's first 2.5-inch hard drive with a 7mm profile, is now also the internal storage unit for the first HDD-based handheld tablets in the world, the 8- and 10-inch Archos G9 tablets. The new tablets, unveiled today, are among the first low-cost high-capacity tablets on the market.… Read more

Logitech announces handful of G-Series PC gaming accessories

Logitech announced several new member of its G-Series line of PC peripherals today. We'll tackle them one at a time, starting with the G35 Surround Sound headset.

When it's available in March, the Logitech G35 Surround Sound headset will cost approximately $130 for the benefit of its simulated 7.1 channel audio output. It includes an adjustable, noise-canceling boom mic, as well as three buttons on the left ear piece dedicated to what Logitech calls "voice morphing" in its press release. This sounds like a simple voice-effect overlay, and we're confident your World of Warcraft guildmates or whoever might be on the receiving end of your chat software will want you to use these effects over and over and over and over. You get volume and mute buttons built into the ear piece as well, and Logitech also gives you three different headbands to use with the G35, a welcome nod towards customization.

Logitech is not the only peripheral vendor with a 7.1-channel headset on offer. Razer's Megalodon was announced in 2008 and is also scheduled to launch sometime in Q1 2009. We're skeptical as to whether it's worth getting too excited over 7.1-channel audio simulated over headphones, but we'll withhold judgment until we can give either headset an actual listen.

… Read more

The 404 185: Where we're banned from using the phone

CNET Tech Editor Matt Fitzgerald joins us on today's show to shoot the film with us on a flurry of random stories from around the Internet, including George Takeiiiiiii's marriage, the inevitable death of TRL, the new POS Dragonball Z movie, the final word in iPhone updates, and more!

The morning starts off with a few crank calls (do I smell a new recurring segment?) that ends with us being forever banned from picking up a CNET telephone. Oh well, phones are overrated anyway. Anyway, I know we all bitch about iPhones incessantly on the show (especially Jeff "Hatin' on Fools" Bakalar), but most of our former qualms are solved by the newest firmware upgrade to end all firmware upgrades, version 2.1! If you have an iPhone, 3G or Edge, do yourself a favor and install the upgrade. Battery life is increased, phone crashes and dropped calls are nonexistent, and no more text lags! After three tries, Apple finally got it right. Now, if only they enabled cut/paste, SMS forwarding, and picture messaging....baby steps, Mr. Jobs, baby steps.

EPISODE 185 Download today's podcast … Read more