Google just launched the latest iteration of its Chrome OS-based laptop here in San Francisco — the $249 (or £229, for those in the UK) 11.6-inch Samsung Chromebook. It’s ARM-based (fanless), 0.8-inches thick, weighs only 2.43 pounds, runs 6.5+ hours on battery, boots in under 10 seconds and supports 1080p video playback. Pre-orders start today at Amazon and PC World, and the laptop includes Google Now integration using Google Drive as a transport and comes with 100GB of free storage for two years. It will be available for sale on the Play Store and featured prominently at retailers like Best Buy, and naturally, we’re expecting this one to make a bigger splash than prior models based on the bargain bin price alone.

Under the hood, there’s a dual-core A15-based Samsung Exynos 5 Dual (5250) SoC, 2GB RAM, 16GB of built-in flash storage, WiFi a/b/g/n and Bluetooth, all of which should act to give this Chromebook a lot more oomph compared to slower, earlier models. Other specs include a 1366 x 768 native screen resolution, a USB 3.0 port, a USB 2.0 socket, combo headphone / mic jack, an SD card slot and a “full-size Chrome keyboard.” Hit up the links below for the nitty-gritty, or hop on past the break for a promo vid.

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While most of its energy is focused on the XO-4 Touch, the One Laptop Per Child project is swinging into full gear for software, too. The project team has just posted an OS 12.1.0 update that sweetens the Sugar for at least present-day XO units. As of this latest revamp, text-to-speech is woven into the interface and vocalizes any selectable text — a big help for students that are more comfortable speaking their language than reading it. USB video output has been given its own lift through support for more ubiquitous DisplayLink adapters. If you’re looking for the majority of changes, however, they’re under-the-hood tweaks to bring the OLPC architecture up to snuff. Upgrades to GTK3+ and GNOME 3.4 help, but we’re primarily noticing a shift from Mozilla’s web engine to WebKit for browsing: although the OLPC crew may have been forced to swap code because of Mozilla’s policies on third-party apps, it’s promising a much faster and more Sugar-tinged web experience as part of the switch. While they’re not the same as getting an XO-3 tablet, the upgrades found at the source link are big enough that classrooms (and the occasional individual) will be glad they held on to that early XO model.

SOURCE via Laptop.org

Evernote has trotted out an update to its iOS app and accompanied the software release with an announcement of a collaboration with Moleskine. Yes, you read that correctly. The digital note-taking application has teamed up with the analog sktechbook maker to produce the Evernote Smart Notebook. Designed specifically for the refreshed iPhone and iPad software, the notebooks allow users to snag written notes or drawings right off the paper and archive them with the app — making them searchable and organized for future reference. So where exactly does the tech angle come in? First, pages are lined using a dotted pattern that is optimized for the upated mobile software.

With the new Page Camera feature, photos of pages are shot and automatically given a proper contrast adjustment. The add-on also finds the aforementioned dots are corrects a skewed photo. Last but certainly not least, each Smart Notebook comes with a set of Smart Stickers. Evernote will now recognize each of these and apply the appropriate tags before sorting. While the stickers come with pre-defined tags, they are customizable to accomodate your particular sensibilities. These pseudo-digital Moleskines will be available in both pocket (3.5 x 5.5 inches / 8.89 x 13.97 cm) and large (5 x 8.25 inches / 12.7 x 20.96 cm) sizes, carrying $25 and $30 price tags when they hit shelves October 1st. If you can’t contain your excitement, head on to the coverage link below to pre-order yours now.

SOURCE via Evernote

Motorola filed its most recent ITC complaint against Apple so late into last week that the court system couldn’t immediately provide more details; we’re only just seeing documents now that the weekend is over. As it stands, the case involves seven patents that mostly touch on staple technologies of the modern mobile world, such as syncing messages between devices and bookmarking media playback on one device to resume on another. Does that last technique sound familiar? You might recall it being a cornerstone of the movie and podcast support that Apple has implemented since 2005. Despite reaching that far back into history, Motorola is just as eager to modernize the targeted hardware list to keep its complaints relevant — the current iPad, the iPhone 4S and other devices are at risk of a trade ban, posing more of a threat to Apple’s bottom line than the dust-covered (and near-finished) initial legal challenge from October 2010. Before coming to any conclusions, though, remember that the newer complaint isn’t likely to have any speedy resolution of its own. Past ITC cases have usually taken a year and a half to complete, which could leave most or all of today’s technology as another distant memory.

SOURCE via Groklaw.net

Aw, wouldn’t you look at the cute little… wait. Right, there’s a Chrome OS update. At its heart, the upgrade to Google’s cloud-based platform introduces a streamlined app list that both occupies less space and carries an internet-wide search box. It’s also possible to save files directly to Google Drive, and audio can now play through either HDMI or USB. Don’t lie to yourself, however: the real reason you’ll rush to update your Chromebook today is newly added support for custom wallpapers, which guarantees all-day, everyday viewing of your most favorite dog in the whole wide world. Or at least, a nice change of pace from Google’s run-of-the-mill backdrops. Isn’t it so sweet?

SOURCE via Chrome

We often assume that Ultrabooks scarcely have any room to budge on the inside, and that’s usually true. An iFixit teardown of ASUS’ Zenbook Prime has proven that there’s always an exception to the rule. Looking at a UX32VD with the same base layout as the UX31 we reviewed, the repair outlet finds that the upgraded Zenbook has both embedded and removable RAM: provided owners are still willing to perform some surgery, they can upgrade past the 4GB of included memory on their own terms. The repair team is a bit dismayed that there’s a 5,400RPM hard drive spinning near the mini SSD — how very 2011 — but notes that it’s equally swappable by those who want something faster. Whatever you think of the fully pieced-together ASUS PC, it’s apparent there’s a reward for those willing to take it apart.

SOURCE via iFixit

Wondering how the industry fared in the second quarter of 2012? Shipments in the PC sector, which in Canalys’ book includes tablets, were higher than ever, totaling 108,708,780 units globally. iPad sales put Apple in the lead, with more than 21 million devices shipped (this figure also includes desktops and notebooks) in Q2, compared to just over 13 million during the year-ago quarter, representing a massive 59.6-percent year-over-year growth. HP, which led the way in Q1, has fallen to the second-place spot, with nearly 13.6 million shipments during the quarter ending yesterday, followed by Lenovo with about 13.2 million, Acer with nearly 10.7 million and Dell with roughly 9.7 computers sold. Manufacturers like ASUS and Samsung are represented in the substantial “others” category, which totals about 40.6 million devices. There’s no question that the iPad is behind Apple earning the number-1 slot, and with the upcoming Windows 8 launch, those figures could shift drastically the next time around. Click on through to the source link below for the full Canalys breakdown.

SOURCE via Canalys

No one complained when we reported NEC’s initial claimed weight of 999 grams (2.2 pounds) for its LaVie Z Ultrabook, but it turns out that statistic is brutally unfair. The 13.3-inch laptop actually tips the scales at just 875 grams (1.9 pounds) thanks to the magnesium lithium alloy used in its 0.59-inch chassis — not bad when you consider that there are still 1.3kg netbooks wandering the planet. Of course, in line with Intel’s official Ultrabook spec, you’re getting a minimum Core i5-3317U processor (yes, that’s Ivy Bridge) and 128GB SSD, plus USB 3.0, SDXC slot, HDMI out and a claimed battery life of 8.1 hours. There’s no word on US pricing yet, but that base spec will set you back ¥130,000 ($1,600) in Japan, while the top model with Core i7-3517U and 256GB SSD will add another ¥30,000 ($375) to your bill.

SOURCE via NEC

Italian regulator AGCM is clearly on a short fuse with Apple. After issuing a €900,000 fine ($1.1 million) to Apple for not properly offering the free 2-year warranty required by national law, the agency is now warning the iPhone maker that it could face a temporary exile — and we don’t mean to Elba. On top of an additional €300,000 ($377,490) potential fine, Apple now faces as much as a 30-day shutdown of all its Italian business for allegedly doing too little to tell customers they don’t always need AppleCare for extended coverage. Having lost its appeal on the original fine, Apple’s main buffer is a 30-day window to address the complaints before the hammer drops. We have yet to see if Apple will tweak its policies in time, but it’s hard to believe the American firm will risk even the momentary closure of an important European wing.

SOURCE via Reuters

We’ve already seen them go to town on the body of the MacBook Pro with Retina display, but the staffers at iFixit have seen fit to disassemble the 2880 x 1800 panel at the heart of the new beast. As they’ve since found out, it takes no less than a rethink of LCD construction to make that kind of resolution work in a laptop screen that’s thinner than its ancestor.

The unibody aluminum casing acts as the frame for the display, and the LCD becomes its own front glass; even the wireless antennas are threaded through the hinges to eke out that last drop of space. Combined, Apple’s part layouts do make repair near-impossible — the teardown gurus at iFixit ended up cracking the glass despite their knowledge.

The team is nonetheless a little more forgiving on the lack of repairability here than with the computer underneath, noting that something had to give for Apple to have its high-resolution cake and eat it too. That just won’t be much of a consolation if your MacBook Pro faceplants and requires a whole LCD swap.

SOURCE via iFixit