The rise of the netbook helped bring reasonable computing power to smaller packages. While that’s good, one of the downsides is trying to cram all the expected ports and jacks in a thin, small device. USB ports and audio jacks aren’t so bad, but when it comes to that VGA output — well, lets just say it can be a design challenge. In fact, some netbooks don’t use a full-sized VGA out. The HP Mini 1000, for example, uses a mini VGA jack, which requires a small cable adapter. I’m all for simplicity, so I’d rather not have extra adapters to carry and potentially lose while on the go, but I can understand why HP and a few others went in this direction. But that size constraint may soon become a thing of the past.

Today, the Video Electronics Standard Association, or VESA, issued a mini DisplayPort Standard for version 1, Rev. 1A. If mini DisplayPort (mDP) sounds familiar, it should. This is the video adapter interface developed by Apple, who will now be licensing it to VESA for inclusion the DisplayPort standards going forward. In fact, VESA is already finalizing the DisplayPort 1.2 standard, which will include mDP — the new standard is expected to double bandwidth to 21.6 Gbps for video. VESA says “[t]he increased bandwidth enables new capabilities such as multi-monitor support via a single output connector, higher resolutions, refresh rates and color depths, along with high performance 3D displays.“

That all sounds well and good, but the biggest netbook and notebook benefit I see is the smaller port size. mDP is smaller than VGA by a bunch — I have such an interface on my MacBook and I’d love to see it on my netbook. Unfortunately, in my current setup the mDP interface requires that dreaded adapter since my external monitor offers DVI and VGA inputs. Regardless, this development could lead to thinner netbooks and notebooks — well, if they can lose the blocky RJ-45 jack for wired Ethernet, that is.

Another Friday, another chance to share my week with you. The week has been slammed, and one of those where I find I am running behind on all the projects I have in progress. This Mobile Tech Manor column is going to be much shorter than usual as I haven’t had the time I usually do to share the events of the week. Most of the week was spent trying new software and upgrading a program I depend on a lot. The Droid phone goes on sale today, and a review unit arrived yesterday so I’ve spent a few hours with it. Come on into the Manor and stay a while.

Continue reading »

It is the end of the week and that can only mean it is time to share the past week with you, my friends. The days flew by as I was extremely busy, yet I had time to create a genuine disaster at Mobile Tech Manor. I had the opportunity to prove something to myself that I had long suspected. I saw a friend use mobile technology the way it is intended to be used, for maximum effectiveness. I had the unexpected pleasure of having a minor relationship with a new Nobel Prize. Come on in and I’ll share everything with you.

Continue reading »

Whew! This week had me jumping through hoops with nary a moment to myself. It was a week where I found laptops and phones strewn all over Mobile Tech Manor, so much so that every time I needed to set something down I had to move one or two things out of the way. I did a lot of thinking and hands-on analysis of keyboards and what makes me like or dislike a given one. I had some devices updated and others waiting in the queue for updates. Spend a few moments with me and I’ll share it all with you.

Continue reading »

HP Mini 1000, MS Arc mouse, MiFi

I recently returned the HP Mini 5101 netbook and this morning I realized I only have one netbook at Mobile Tech Manor. The HP Mini 1000 is the only netbook after returning 4 or 5 others along with the 5101. As I was pondering only having the one netbook, a highly unusual situation for me, I noticed that the 1000 was still running Windows 7 RC.

I had installed it when the Release Candidate first appeared, andthe Mini 1000 has run well with Windows 7. I couldn’t keep using a beta version so I set out to install the full blown version of Windows 7.

The install went flawlessly, and the first Windows Update after it completed found all the drivers needed to finish the job. It was the easiest install of Win 7 I’ve experienced yet.

I had to head out for some java and take the Mini 1000 along to break in that new Win 7 install properly, so here I am. The 1000 is running very well indeed.

As a refresher, this Mini 1000 has the following specs:

• Atom 1.6 GHz
• 1 GB RAM
• 16 GB SSD
• 10-inch display, 1024×576
• Wi-Fi

I am trying something with the Mini I haven’t tried on a netbook yet. I have a 4 GB SD card that I’ve been using for additional storage given the small SSD in the 1000. This time I have the SD card set to be totally devoted to ReadyBoost duty to enhance the performance of Windows 7 on the Atom processor. So far it definitely is making a difference.

It’s that happy time of the week again, kids, where I share the happenings at Mobile Tech Manor (MTM) of the past week. It was a time of adjustment, as I settled back into a “normal” routine after my daughter and her family departed for their home up north. I tried to clean up MTM to remove some of the clutter, with little gain. I looked high and low for some great headphones to no avail. I came to realize my least favorite day, with good reason. I bought the best game for the iPhone, so far. Come on in and let’s shoot the breeze.

Continue reading »

Active Media is following up on its last SSD offering, which was for ASUS Eee PC netbooks. Today the company announced a new line of ZIF, or Zero Insertion Force, SSD flash drives specifically targeted at HP mini netbooks. These drives are sized at 1.8″ and use a PATA/IDE interface, so they should be relatively easy to install.

These drives are aimed at the HP Mini 1000, 1010NR, 1030NR and 2510P netbooks, Active Media says. Speeds aren’t the fastest we’ve seen, with sequential reads and writes up to 82MBps and 38MBps, respectively, but they’re still fairly reasonable. The price reflects those speeds, too, as they won’t break the bank. Street price of a 16GB drive is $70 and 32GB is $110.

That compares favorably with similar RunCore products, which are available for pre-order at $119.99 and $159.99 in the same capacity. RunCore will offer 64GB and 128GB capacities, and their combination of memory and controller offers double the write speeds. If budget is your primary requirement, the Action Media products might be a better fit, but when thinking speed, RunCore is worth the look.

We are preparing to head into a big holiday weekend here in the U. S. and before I do that it’s time to share my past week at Mobile Tech Manor with you. I kept my nose to the computer screen pretty much all week and revisited a program that makes keeping all those bits of wisdom I run across right where I need them. Come on in and share my week for a bit.

Continue reading »

I should be working, I know it. Instead, I am having a good time using the HP Mini 1000 running Windows 7. I am in a terrible lighting situation, so I figured it was a good idea to compare the Palm Pre camera to the iPhone 3G. Note this is the older iPhone, not the spiffy new 3GS. I figured it’s a good test of the Pre camera with the flash, since the iPhone 3G lacks one. The verdict?  Both cameras pretty much suck.

Here’s a concept we’ve bandied around ourselves from time to time: a notebook device with a modular screen that becomes a handheld. The Institute for Information Industry, or III, is showing off just such a concept at Computex. The base system is an HP Mini 1000 netbook, but the touchscreen is actually a removable UMPC. VIA is powering the guts of the modified Mini with a 1.6GHz C7-M while the UMPC is an ARM system running Android.

(via SlashGear)