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Sharp PC-Z1

(Credit: Sharp)

Lest you think that Netbooks are dead, Sharp is out with the PC-Z1, released under the "NetWalker" brand in Japan.

Running an Ubuntu Linux derivative, several sites have compared the PC-Z1 to the fabled Sharp Zaurus.

Ubuntu is a logical choice for Netbooks and other low-cost consumer devices. Besides being highly customizable, the open-source aspect really helps. Companies can tweak the operating system to meet their needs without having to be burdened with licensing fees. But having owned a 7" Asus Eee PC for more than a year, I can safely opine that Netbooks are not all they are cracked up to be. Between the challenging keyboard and questionable battery life, their utility varies between models and user styles.

Gizmodo doesn't think that this is a Netbook, but at this point, the whole category is so confusing, I can't figure what you're supposed to call it. (An extra batch of pictures of the PC-Z1 is available at Akihabara News.)

Odds are, you are better off with a smartphone, unless you really love this form factor or have very tiny hands for the very tiny keyboard. I find it hard to imagine people lugging these around as their main machine. Nonetheless, Sharp has raised the bar with better boot time and a claimed a 10-hour battery life. According to its release Thursday:

The PC-Z1 features a quick-launch function (approx. 3 seconds) similar to mobile phones, enabling users to conveniently check e-mail while on the road. Also, a long battery running time (approximately 10 hours) allows users to fully enjoy net services, such as videos or blogs.

The high-resolution, 5-inch touch-screen LCD enables intuitive touch operation while the full keyboard provides for comfortable text input. Additionally, in business settings, users can create documents, spreadsheets, presentation materials, etc., and edit them stress-free.

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Rafe and Tom explain what virtualization is and how it works, plus they take your calls and questions on Windows installations, virtualizing Android, and more.

We always want what we can't have, and when Dell canned its Inspiron Mini 9, I beat myself up for not buying one earlier.

But lo and behold, Dell has brought back its itty-bitty Netbook for $199 until July 27. The price gives you bare necessities: the Ubuntu Linux OS, a 4G SSD, a Webcam, and other basic features.

There's also a $269 option that upgrades the Netbook to Windows XP and an 8GB SSD.

"That's it, this is your last chance. Really...I'm leaving this time. Or am I?"

(Credit: Dell)

The Mini 9 had a few words to say regarding her retirement and limited-time return:

A few months ago Anne C. was kind enough to publish a post about my retirement. It was a bittersweet moment for me - being the "eldest" of the Dell Inspiron Mini portfolio, but my siblings the Mini 10 and the Mini 10v have been introduced, and frankly are capable of offering anything I can, plus more.

Imagine my surprise when I got the call to return for a limited engagement. I checked my 401(k) and saw that it really wasn't at the point I needed it to be to support a comfortable retirement, so I have agreed to return.

I am back, for a limited time, and for now can be found as part of a few key limited time promotional deals on dell.com. Both Ubuntu (starting at $199) and XP versions are available, as are a few color options (Obsidian Black and Alpine White are standard, Jade Green and Promise Pink add $40).

Not to sound immodest, but I do want to acknowledge and thank my fan club members who expanded my pre-retirement horizons with various mods and hacks. I hope to renew our acquaintance, even if for a short time and continue our adventures. I do want to assure that this will be my last appearance - I disdain those "final sales" campaigns that seem to go on perpetually. Next time I retire, it will be for good.

One player to rule the Linux?

(Credit: RealNetworks)

Chalk up a victory for those who crave all-in-one media integration on their Netbooks, because RealNetworks has announced a licensing agreement with many of the major Linux software companies to have RealPlayer for Mobile preinstalled on Ubuntu and Instant-On Netbook OS systems made by Xandros, Phoenix Technologies, DeviceVM, and Canonical.

An "Instant-On" system, usually Linux-based, is a miniature OS that boots up quicker than the main OS, allowing quicker on-the-fly access of files. For Netbooks, the advantage to an Instant-On system is obvious, but often these environments are significantly hobbled in usability. Presto, HyperSpace, and Splashtop, made by Xandros, Phoenix Technologies, and Device VM, will all get RealPlayer-branded players. Splashtop already comes preinstalled on Lenovo, Asus, HP, and LG Netbooks.

Ubuntu Netbooks have been achieving significant market share because of their price, but a branded all-in-one solution for various media formats will only help their share improve. In this regard, RealNetworks' Computex-timed announcement of their licensing agreement is good timing. The relative cost-effectiveness of RealPlayer, which includes most codecs, for Netbook manufacturers, also doesn't hurt.

Netbooks are rapidly becoming relied on for their media-playing capabilities, and if this helps chip away at making Netbooks even savvier at handling video, and at making cheaper Ubuntu Netbooks more versatile, then we're all for it.

Care for a Dell Cupcake? We knew you would. Credit to Dell for not only listening to reader suggestions, but for doing their own video hacking. At their own labs (hey, those kinda look like ours), they demonstrate the newest Android update, "Cupcake," on a Mini 10v, being quick to announce that "they have no plans" to announce such a thing...but that it "runs really nicely." So says Doug Anson, a technology strategist who works at the office of the CTO, who demonstrates.

We see no sign of it running nicely on the video--in fact, all we see is a semi-squished clock and some icons. But if Dell is already playing with Android, wouldn't that mean Cupcake...er...Android Netbooks in the very near future? (Of course, we already knew that, though, didn't we?)

Despite all the grumblings about Android being less than ideal for Netbooks, if Google were to release an Android-upgraded Google Office suite, we'd sit up and pant just a little bit.

Also demoed (or briefly shown, should we say) is a Dell Mini 10v running Ubuntu Netbook Remix...a far less exciting reveal.

So, the 10v runs a myriad of operating systems, and is a friendly development platform. Note to all OS makers out there: Dell wants to catch your eye. After all, says Anson, they've got a nice "notebook...er...Netbook."

(Source: Dell via Gizmodo)

The HP MIE Ubuntu interface is intended to shield users from having to interact with Linux.

(Credit: Hewlett-Packard)

There are a lot of Netbooks on the market that are more or less the same, save for some cosmetic details. One of the Netbooks that manages to stand out from the pack is the HP Mini 1000 MIE, which sports a custom interface that sits on top of the Ubuntu Linux operating system.

HP now plans to make that interface available to the public, according to Download Squad. Netbook prices can be cut way down when they don't have Windows installed, which is why HP offers a Linux option. The MIE interface is intended to shield users from having to interact with Linux, according to HP. It's a dashboard-like system that has buttons for music, photos, videos, IM, and Web search.

It looks like the MIE download will work with other HP Netbooks, but it's unclear whether that will also include non-HP Netbooks.

Dell is taking its Ubuntu Linux investment a step further by announcing plans to release the latest version of Ubuntu, Hardy Heron, on select Dell consumer systems. The open-source operating system will show up on XPS M1330N, Inspiron 1525N, and Inspiron 530N models for customers in the U.S., France, Germany, Spain, Canada, the United Kingdom, and some Latin American countries.

In early August, the company will also add the XPS M1530n and Studio 15n to the Hardy Heron-enabled lineup, according to Dell's Direct2DellBlog.

A version of the popular Ubuntu Linux operating system is coming later this year for mobile Internet devices and mini-notebooks.

Canonical, the commercial sponsor of Ubuntu, said on Monday that it plans to demonstrate the new version, called Ubuntu Netbook Remix, at the Computex trade show in Taiwan this week.

Smaller devices based on Intel's Atom processor are all the rage with PC makers lately. Manufacturers such as Acer and others are planning devices.

The Ubuntu release, expected later this year, will be based on the standard Ubuntu Desktop Edition and reworked for Atom-based mobile devices, Canonical said.

The company said it is working with "a number" of original equipment manufacturers, but did not identify those companies.

The Ubuntu announcement was expected. Canonical Chief Executive Mark Shuttleworth mentioned Netbook Remix in an interview with the Guardian newspaper last month.

Ubuntu on the XPS M1330: Give it about a week, denizens of the U.S.

(Credit: CNET Networks, Inc.)

Dell is expanding its open-source offerings. The XPS M1330 laptop is now available with Ubuntu in Germany, the U.K., France, and Spain. On its Direct2Dell blog, Dell instructs would-be U.S. purchasers to "hold on a week or so."

Currently, the Inspiron 530 desktop and Inspiron 1420 laptop are the only two Dell computers to come preloaded with Ubuntu 7.10. While those looking to put Linux on a higher-end XPS model can always go the self-install route, purchasing a preloaded Ubuntu config saves you the cost of having to purchase Windows.

[Via Engadget]