Sony’s first VAIO P was a was quite a disappointment considering how poorly it performed and the huge price tag it carried, but Sony seems to be confident that its second-gen VAIO P will right the wrongs of the past. Shipping one week ahead of schedule, the “Lifestyle PC” comes pre-loaded with Windows 7 Home Premium and has an Intel Atom Z530 processor and 2GB of RAM to help keep things flowing. Apart from that, the $900 rig has a 8″ 1600×768 display that’s straddled by optical trackpads, Everywair 3G, GPS, digital compass and an accelerometer. Of course if you lived elsewhere you’d have a lot more options than that to chose from, but who needs that much stress in their life?

[Via Pocketables]

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Here it is, folks. Motorola has gotten around to announcing the FLIPOUT, aka that strange and square Motorola smartphone. The big news here apart from its strange, swivel design and 67mm square body and Android 2.1, are the enhancements made to MOTOBLUR. In a nutshell, you’re going to be able to resize widgets, implement filters in your Happenings and Messages widgets, and have access to corporate email. Apart from the modern Android staples of digital compass, Wi-Fi, GPS and 7.2Mbps HSDPA, the FLIPOUT has to its name a 2.8″ QVGA display, 3 megapixel camera and 512MB internal memory. We’re trying to find out processor powers this thing, but we imagine it won’t be anything too special. The Motorola FLIPOUT will be available in Europe sometime this quarter. Hit up the break to check out a trio of videos which show off the FLIPOUT and the changes made to MOTOBLUR.

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Some might argue it’s a case of too little, too late, but Sony looks to have a pretty darn good “don’t call it a netbook” netbook on its hands with its much-needed and long-rumored upgrade to the VAIO P. Featuring a “new design for two-handed operation while standing or walking”, the refreshed VAIO P has a built in optical trackpad to the right of the 8″ 1600×768 display which neighbors the left/right mouse click buttons on the left. Thrown in for good measure is an an accelerometer which allows you to shake and flick your way around the internet, Everywair 3G, GPS, digital compass and support for PS3 Remote Play (provided you’re running firmware 3.30 and up). Running Windows 7 Home Premium with an optional upgrade to Professional, the entry-level model features an Intel Atom Z530 clocking in at 1.6 GHz while the top-of-the-line model packs an Atom Z560 at 2.13 GHz. RAM tops out at 2GB, and you have your choice of either a 64, 128, or 256GB SSD. The new VAIO P starts at $799.

Catch the PR after the break.

Sony delivers a smarter on-the-move computing experience: Ultra-portable, easy to carry new VAIO P Series
10 May 2010

• Colourful ultra-portable PC weighs just over 600g
• New design for two-handed operation while standing or walking
• GPS and Digital Compass
• Accelerometer sensor
• Built-in Everywair 3G
• Clear, bright, widescreen VAIO Display Plus
• Easy to use with Quick Web Access

It’s smaller than a notebook and smarter than a smartphone: the colourful VAIO P Series from Sony is your perfect partner for on-the-move computing.

Weighing just over 600g and slipping effortlessly into a bag or jacket pocket, new VAIO P Series gives you all the power of a fully-featured Windows computing experience… and so much more.

Ideal for busy people who can’t sit still, it’s the first VAIO designed for simple operation if you’re standing or walking. The central trackball is complemented by an additional touchpad and mouse buttons. Duplicating the main controls, they’re located at either edge of the screen for comfortable operation with both thumbs while you’re holding the computer in two hands.

VAIO P Series is the first notebook computer from Sony with built-in GPS and a new Digital Compass. Perfect for telling you where you are and what’s happening around you, they can help you find your hotel or a nearby restaurant if you’re standing on the street corner in an unfamiliar city.

A brand-new VAIO Location Search software offers a real-time map view without tying up your web browser. Your map position and orientation are displayed along with nearby Points of Interest and even local weather conditions.

The ultra-light notebook’s ‘on-the-go’ credentials for travellers are boosted with Everywair 3G on-board, giving high-speed connectivity to mobile networks (where available).

New VAIO P is the first notebook from Sony with a built-in accelerometer that responds to physical movements. Just give VAIO a gentle shake to ‘flick’ through pictures or the pages of a PDF document, or navigate back and forth through your web browsing history.

The sensor also recognises when VAIO P Series is turned on its side, automatically ‘flipping’ the screen for easy reading of documents or web pages in portrait mode. The notebook’s additional mouse buttons are perfectly placed for comfortable page-turning when you’re reading in portrait position – just like a paperback book or magazine.

New VAIO P Series is beautifully designed for easy operation, with a comfortable full-pitch keyboard for easy typing, plus a bright, extra-wide VAIO Display Plus that’s ideally proportioned for viewing movies or two web pages side-by-side. There’s also an ambient light sensor that dims screen illumination for comfortable viewing while saving power.

For extra convenience, dedicated buttons are provided for Quick Web Access and one-touch access to VAIO Care. There’s also a handy new Change Resolution button: instantly select a larger font size for easy on-screen reading, or choose maximum detail for HD movie viewing.

Available in five vibrant colours (black, white, pink, green and orange), the new VAIO P Series is complemented by a choice of stylish accessories that includes a distinctively perforated silicone slip case and carry strap.

The new VAIO P Series ultra-portable notebook computer is available from June 2010.

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Right on cue, HTC has announced its latest Android device in the Hero. With many of the Hero’s specs being the same as the Magic, the handset does manage to beat out the Magic with its 5 megapixel camera with auto-focus, 3.5mm headphone jack (finally!!!), improved battery life and Adobe Flash support. But what makes the Hero really exciting is the fresh new GUI overlay. Much like with TouchFLO 3D for Windows Mobile, the new HTC Sense UI gives Android a much needed injection of style and functionality by allowing users to keep the content that matter to them — such as weather, contacts, photos, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and bookmarks — at their fingertips.

Another feature found within Sense is Scenes, which essentially allows users to switch from “work to weekend mode” (think of it as Modes on Nokia’s Eseries but sexier) and also helps organize emails, texts, photos, Facebook updates, call logs and more per contract entry much like Palm’s webOS. The Hero’s dedicated Search button features Spotlight-like search, meaning finding the contact, email, app, Tweet and more you’re looking for couldn’t be more simple. One last thing — the Hero is coated in Teflon that not only feels soft to the touch and thus easier to grip, but also protects the devices paint job from your greasy hands.

The Hero will be available next month in Europe with Asian availability coming in the later summer months (Orange UK has already announced it will be carrying the Hero in graphite for as low as £0 on contract this July). As for North Americans, well, we’re just going to have to wait for a little while longer. Hit the jump for the complete specs, some pics and a video.

• Android with HTC Sense
• 112mm x 56.2mm x 14.35mm, 135g
• Qualcomm MSM7200A 528MHz processor
• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE, dual-band 7.2Mbps HSPA/WCDMA
• 512 ROM / 288 RAM
• 3.2″ HVGA capacitive touchscreen
• 5.0 megapixel camera with auto-focus
• Gravity sensor
• Digital compass
• WiFi 802.11b/g
• GPS
• Bluetooth 2.0 with EDR + A2DP
• 3.5mm headphone jack
• microSD
• 1350 mAh battery
• 420 minutes talktime / 750 hours standby (WCDMA)

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We’re sort of a little speechless right now, as we have official confirmation that Nokia is the most peculiar handset manufacturer in the world, ever. You’re Nokia. You’ve got a very good idea that Samsung will be announcing the sexiest Symbian handset of all time (OmniaHD) at MWC this year. It’s got the goods in nearly every area imaginable (though a keypad might be nice). Your upcoming flagship Nseries, the N97 is old news so you can’t rely on it as your big announcement at MWC. You’ve got a handful of ho-hum handsets spread out on your table alongside your first 8 megapixel offering with an AMOLED display, aGPS, a digital compass, an FM transmitter, a battery yielding up to 25 hours of audio playback and what looks to be configurable color-changing keypad lighting. What do you do? Well apparently you take the most interesting unannounced handset you’ve got, the 8 megapixel N86, and show it off in Singapore at something called Showcase Nokia 2009. For real? Even if Nokia does make the handset official tomorrow or Wednesday at MWC, it doesn’t make this peculiar move any more reasonable. On a related note, sources are telling us that Nokia may be announcing its first 12 megapixel handset, the Nwtf, at the Shady Acres senior center next month. Prune juice will be served. Hit the jump for more shots, and hit yourself in the head repeatedly if you were involved with the decision making process at Nokia that lead to this debacle.

Thanks, Canis_Major!

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