3 weeks ago
Charbax, ambassador for all things ARM, takes a look at a small 7” Google Android smartbook from Hivision in China. What makes this more interesting then previous smartbooks / netbooks of this size is that there’s no crappy no-name Linux distro or Windows CE on this device to bring down the whole experience. It’s packing Google Android.
The more I see devices with Google Android, the more I am getting excited about the OS… for tablets, that is. It still does not make much sense on a laptop when the OS is designed for a touch interface, unless you fancy scrolling without scroll bars or going through menus to open up a new browser window. That and there’s no Google marketplace.
The ARM9 processor here is capable of 720p video but performance seems a bit sluggish going through webpages, though that depends on your point of view.
The specs: 7” 800 x 480 display, 600Mhz ARM9 processor,128MB RAM, 720p playback, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, audio jacks. Weighs 650 grams.
This little device could go on sale for around $100 or less, as Hivision has done just that with similar devices previously.
Source: ARMDevices
