With all the buzz over the tiny LCD screen on the bottom of Barnes & Noble's Nook, I was excited to get some time with the Entourage Edge, a device that pairs a large 9.7-inch E Ink screen with an even larger 10-inch LCD touch screen.
I got that chance on Monday, when the company stopped by CNET with a prototype of the product, which is set to ship in February for $490.
The goal of the Edge, the company says, is to offer a device that can replace the textbooks and notebooks carried around by typical high school students.
"We just thought here was a way to take technology and apply it to what they carry around," said Entourage Systems Vice President Doug Atkinson. "The initial goal was to put a 30-pound backpack in a device. I think we've achieved that."
There are a lot of features to like about the three-pound device, although, it definitely has the look and feel of a first-generation product.
The Edge's main selling point is, of course, the fact that it has two screens to do true work on. Unlike the Nook, which uses its color screen only for navigating the eBook and as an on-screen keyboard, the Edge's LCD can be used to run a variety of Android applications or to browse the Web.
The electronic ink side, meanwhile, can be used not only for reading books, but also for taking notes, using a stylus.
One of the Edge's many neat tricks is letting you go back and forth between the two screens. ... Read more
It's sort of Hunter S. Thompson meets the Twitter generation.
Five employees of accessories maker Griffin Technology are driving cross-country from company headquarters in Tennessee to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, which begins January 7.
Five workers from the iPod accessory maker will be making the 2,476 mile trek from Tennessee to Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show in January in a restored 1972 Volkswagen van.
(Credit: Griffin Technology)Their mode of transportation for the 2,476-mile trip will be a 1972 Volkswagen Westfalia mini-bus that company workers have been restoring. The work has been led by chief mechanic Mark McGlon, whose day job is managing branding efforts for Griffin, which is known for its iPod and iPhone accessories. McGlon and four others from the company will head out in late December on their way to Sin City.
The Griffin-mobile is making scheduled stops on December 30 in New Orleans, December 31 in Austin, and January 2 in Phoenix, and is slated to be at the Grand Canyon on January ... Read more
LAS VEGAS--With my time at the Consumer Electronics Show having drawn to a close, here's a roundup of my observations from the show:
Sign that the economy used to be good
My Sin City accommodations included dual 42-inch flat screen TVs, plus another small LCD screen in the bathroom.
Sign that the economy has tanked
The only reason that spot was for rent (and could be had for as little as $159 a night) is that it was a condo that didn't sell.
Sign No. 2 that the economy has tanked
There were $5 blackjack tables at the Palms in the evening. (Last year it was hard to find a table with less than a $20 minimum.)
Weirdest mix of Silicon Valley and Las Vegas I spotted this year
The giant eBay slot machine I saw as I wound my way through the Venetian casino.
Less swag, less sushi
Two other visible indicators that things aren't so hot: Both swag and sushi were far less present at the show, notes colleague Rafe ... Read more
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer delivers the CES keynote speech Wednesday.
(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)LAS VEGAS--Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer arrived at the Consumer Electronics Show with his usual optimism, but he also brings a clear sense of reality: The tech industry is in for some rough times.
"The fact of the matter is, this is not a downturn, this is a bit of a reset. Those are quite different and we're trying to really suss through what we think that means for us," Ballmer said in an interview here with CNET News Thursday, a day after delivering the keynote address at the conference.
Ballmer talked about what the "reset" will mean for Microsoft, as well as lessons learned from Vista and Microsoft's move to put Office on the Web. When it comes to what worries him most, most days it's still Google, although he concedes he has had to spend more time recently on economic issues and making sure Microsoft makes the adjustments it needs to. He wouldn't go into detail on what (and who) Microsoft plans to cut, but it is clear that some changes are coming.
The following is an edited version of that interview:
CNET News: Obviously, Microsoft didn't necessarily get everything it might have hoped for in terms of the critical response for Vista. What are you guys planning to do differently with Windows 7?
Ballmer: Well, I think we made some choices in Vista to improve security at the kind of expense, if you will, of compatibility. With Windows 7, we're able to build compatibly off of Vista and really sort of just tune, if you will, the user interface, the performance, and at the end of the day, it'll be what the users think of the product that we're building, and we'll start getting beta feedback this week.
Q: How hard are you pushing the team to get Windows 7 out this year?
Ballmer: I'm not pushing the team hard, the team is pushing itself. They set some goals and objectives and of course we'll ship the product when it's--as I said last night--both right and ready and when we know when that is, we'll share that.
... Read more
The Palm Pre. Still no word on pricing.
(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)LAS VEGAS--As the device with the most mystery attached to it, there were plenty of questions left after Palm introduced its Pre on Thursday. I had a chance to sit down with Palm ...
Read the full post at CNET's CES 2009 blog.
LAS VEGAS - Bill Veghte may not be as well known as his boss at Microsoft, Steve Ballmer. But as the head of the company's Windows business, Veghte is one of the key executives to the future of the company.
At the Consumer Electronics Show here Wednesday, Veghte sat with CNET News senior writer Ina Fried for a wide-ranging interview, touching on everything from the planned release of Windows 7 to future of Microsoft's gee-whiz touch technology. The following is a condensed and edited version of that interview:
Bill Veghte, Microsoft's senior vice president for the Windows Business
(Credit: Microsoft)Q: It's fair to say that you guys would like to have Windows 7 out in time for the holidays?
Veghte: We will ship it when the quality is right, and earlier is always better, but not at the cost of (ecosystem support), and not at the cost of quality.
In the past, one of the tools that Microsoft and other companies used to help manage that transition is some ... Read more
LAS VEGAS--With Bill Gates now a Microsoft part-timer, company CEO Steve Ballmer is filling in at this year's opening keynote for the Consumer Electronics Show. We're bringing you live coverage of his speech, which started at about 6:30 p.m. PST. Windows 7 is likely to be the centerpiece of Ballmer's discussion. Another piece of his keynote--a deal with Verizon Wireless--leaked out earlier in the ...
Read the full post at CNET's CES 2009 blog.
LAS VEGAS--It's not clear whether Microsoft is just trying to be overly cautious, but top Windows executive Bill Veghte said the company is telling PC makers that Windows 7 might or might not be ready in time for this year's holiday season.
"I'm telling them that it could go either way," Veghte told CNET News in an interview Wednesday. "We will ship it when the quality is right, and earlier is always better, but not at the cost of ecosystem support and not at the cost of quality.
Veghte also said that the economy is factoring into his marketing plans for Windows, which is in the middle of an advertising push initially estimated at several hundred million dollars over several years.
"Given the economic situation, as shareholders would expect us to tighten our belt, but with the things that are most important, and customers would expect us to do that while continuing to innovate," he said. "The expectation is that the dollar we spend on advertising today will go further than it ... Read more
LAS VEGAS--As he takes the stage Wednesday, Steve Ballmer has a mighty big task ahead of him.
Not only is he taking over Consumer Electronics Show keynote duties from Bill Gates, he is also aiming to convince the tech world that Microsoft is serious about defending its turf on the PC as well as making headway on the Web, television and phone. Oh yeah, and then there's that whole economy-melting-down thing.
Ballmer hasn't arrived in Sin City empty handed, however. In perhaps the biggest announcement of the night, he will announce Microsoft is ready with a beta version of Windows 7 and he will show off some of its key consumer features.
Microsoft will also announce new deals for Windows Live that will see Microsoft's search engine become the default on PCs from Dell as well as touting a deal with Verizon Wireless that leaked earlier in the day. The company is also counting on ... Read more
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer was set to unveil the pact as part of his keynote later Wednesday. However, Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg mentioned the deal at a Citigroup conference earlier Wednesday, according to a Reuters report.
The Wall Street Journal reported last year that the two companies were working on some sort of deal. And it's not the first time that Microsoft has partnered to get content onto Verizon phones.
The Verizon deal is just one part of Ballmer's keynote, which is expected to focus heavily on Windows 7.
A beta version of Windows 7 got leaked onto the Internet late last month, raising hopes that an officially sanctioned version would be available soon. A Microsoft developer's blog post earlier in December also appeared to indicate that the beta would come in January.
... Read more
