Asus promised to launch its Padfone smartphone/tablet hybrid in Taiwan this April with an international launch to follow. But April has come and gone and the Padfone isn’t on sale yet. So what happened? According to Asus Indonesia, a shortage of Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processors is holding things up. The Padfone is basically an Android smartphone with some supercharged optional accessories….
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ARM-based chips are all the rage these days in tablets, smartphones, set-top-boxes, and other low power computing devices. But while many of the latest chips can support HD video, 3D graphics, and other high-performance graphics, you generally need to use supported software to get all the benefits — because chip makers don’t offer open source graphics drivers. But there are…
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Chip-maker Qualcomm makes low power processors for smartphones and tablets. A few years ago the company also wanted to see its chips in small laptop-like devices it called smartbooks, but that form factor never took off. That could change when Windows 8 hits the streets later this year. Windows 8 will be the first full version of Microsoft’s desktop operating…
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Mobile processors with dual-core or quad-core designs are all the rage these days. But just because you have up to 4 processor cores capable of running at 1.5 GHz or even higher speeds doesn’t mean each core will be running in high gear all the time. If they did, that would certainly reduce battery life in phones and tablets with…
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Qualcomm is adding a new “Pro” version of its S4 MSM8960 dual-core processor for phone and tablets. The main difference between the new chip and what I can only assume must be the amateur model is that the S4 Pro will feature higher performance Adreno 320 graphics. According to the company, the Adreno 320 GPU will offer up to four…
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Qualcomm may be known first and foremost for making the processors that power millions of phones and tablets. But the company also has a display division… and it’s about to get a little bigger. EE Times reports Qualcomm has acquired display company Pixtronix for about $175 million. Pixtronix is a startup working on MEMS display technology which can offer high…
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Korean eBook company Kyobo is now selling the first consumer device with a Qualcomm Mirasol display (although a Chinese company just announced that it’s ready to follow suit). The Kyobo eReader runs a modified version of Google Android 2.3 with an emphasis on eBooks, but it can also play videos, view photos, or perform other activities. That’s important, because unlike…
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Korean company Kyobo introduced the first eBook reader with a Qualcomm Mirasol display recently. The device has a 5.7 inch, 1024 x 768 pixel low power color screen that can handle books or magazines as well as full-motion video content. Nicole from Netbook News got some hands-on time with the device recently, and they’ve confirmed that while the Kyobo eReader…
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Chip maker Qualcomm recently unveiled a new developer prototype based on the company’s latest Snapdragon S4 chips, and now the company has announced that the prototype is running an early build of Google Android 4.0.1 Ice Cream Sandwich. Qualcomm is still working on optimizing Ice Cream Sandwich to play well with its S4 processors, and the company says it’s also…
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Qualcomm’s Mirasol display technology combines some of the best features of E Ink and LCD displays. Mirasol displays offer a full range of colors, but use far less power than most color screens. You can also view the screens in direct sunlight or using other ambient light, because they don’t need require a backlight. They also use far less energy…
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Chip maker Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors are found in dozens of smartphones, but only a handful of tablets such as the HTC Flyer, HP TouchPad, and Huawei MediaPad. But that could change next year. In an interview with Fudzilla, a top Qualcomm executive mentioned that there are currently 30 tablets in development featuring Qualcomm Snapdragon processors. All told there are 350…
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Qualcomm has been talking about its upcoming S4 class of mobile processors since before they were even called S4 chips. We already knew these new processors would be able to run at clock speeds as high as 2.5 GHz and that they’d support Windows 8 as well as Android, Linux, and other operating systems. Now the company has put out a…
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