Are you interested in Google and how they’re involved in the mobile space? Wondering how Chrome OS relates to both Android and Google’s overall mobile strategies? Thinking about how Google will position itself in the rapidly growing netbook market?

If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” consider attending our premiere GigaOm PRO webinar this Thursday at 1pm EDT. I’ll be sharing my thoughts along with Dr. Phil Hendrix of the Institute for Mobile Markets Research and Colin Gibbs, a Mobile Curator over at GigaOm PRO. Mike Wolf, our VP of Research is hosting.

Unlike our subscription service, this webinar is completely free. Or if it makes you feel better, it’s on me. However you look at it, all you have to do is resister and show up to the online event. We’ll be tackling topics like Android, Google Voice and many more mobile aspects pertaining to Google, so consider registering to join us for an hour of analysis!

Image courtesy of CNET

UPDATE: The report in Japanese that the Weibu N10A sports a dual-core Atom 330 processor has been corrected. It is now being reported that the N10A actually has an Atom 270 processor, which is a single-core configuration. We may still see dual-core processors make it into the netbook, just not yet.

The netbook market is still  growing by leaps and bounds with new models appearing all the time. The one consistent feature of these netbooks is Intel’s Atom processor. The Atom is cheaper to put into these netbooks, and that makes the low prices possible, which drive sales. The Atom processor has ample performance for simple tasks, but it does fall down when compared to “real” laptops. That performance gap may close when dual-core Atom processors begin appearing in netbooks. One such netbook is set to appear in Asia.

The Shenzhen Weibu Electronics N10A will have the dual-core single-core Atom processor, paired with the Nvidia Ion 9400M graphics. The combination of the dual-core single-core Atom and the Ion graphics could produce graphic performance much better than existing netbooks can provide. The N10A is expected to retail for around $500 when it is available and interestingly, reports indicate it will not ship with an installed operating system.

(via CNet) (Revised report via Liliputing)

Google understands the importance of mobile tech — it embraced the need to have mobile versions of its most popular web-based apps early on. And the surge in popularity of netbooks and smartphones proves the search giant’s mobile focus was well-placed.

I use Google apps every day, and it is a credit to the company that I can use them on any mobile device I pick up. I am able to get the full benefit from using Google Reader, Google Maps and Gmail on smartphones, desktops and notebooks. Google has removed the platform from the user experience to a great degree; it’s done that by tailoring its apps to the various platforms used for access.

Google Android is becoming a popular platform for smartphone makers, and it will not be surprising if the forthcoming Chrome OS hits the netbook once released. Google has a complex mobile strategy that straddles both the application and the platform.

GigaOM Pro has a new report (subscription required) that delves deeply into Google’s mobile strategy. The report shows how the company has leveraged the popularity of technology such as Google Maps, and capitalized on mobile platforms. It’s a good read for anyone who’s looking to jump on the Google train.

Google Voice has changed the way I use my smartphones; it’s so good at handling my stable of phones. About the only thing I can think of that could instantly make GV better would be native smartphone versions. These would let me essentially forget about which phone I am using, which carrier’s plan is controlling my call, generally make it easier for me to do my business. GigaOM reports that Google Voice will soon be available for the BlackBerry and Android platforms. The U. S. mobile phone picture just got a whole lot prettier.

What is cool about these mobile versions of GV is you will not only be able to manage your account, the phone’s contact list will be integrated. You can call your contacts as easily with Google Voice as without. It makes sense that Google has focused on Android and the BlackBerry first, let’s hope they expand to other platforms down the road.

Hector Gomez is a longtime reader who Kevin and I had the pleasure of meeting early this year. He may be the only person who buys more gadgets than I do, and a recent purchase he made was the Viliv S5 UMPC. I have made it clear how much I like the S5, and Hector says he is enjoying it, too. The only area he thought it lacking was in not being a real Tablet PC, so he’s rectified that.

Hector has installed Windows XP Tablet Edition on his Viliv S5 to give it the full Tablet PC functionality. It’s not something everyone can do, as the Tablet Edition version of XP cannot be purchased. Hector got his hands on it and finds the S5 makes a fine 5-inch Tablet PC. He’s documented it on a video, and he’s kindly given us permission to share. Have a look at Hector’s little Tablet PC.

Toshiba’s TG01 is the first Snapdragon phone, and even though it is based on Windows Mobile, the Japanese giant has put a nice, striped interface on the phone. Arne Hess of the::unwired shot a video that shows the entire interface in action. Toshiba has done a pretty decent job at hiding the stodgy Windows Mobile interface, although it does sneak through from time to time. Check out Arne’s video for a good look at a new interface. I found the TG01 to look a bit big in the video.

One of the benefits of working for the GigaOM Network is gaining exposure to a lot of great resources. The recently launched GigaOM Pro is a major source of information that touches on a lot of what we do. GigaOM Pro has published a technical report (subscription required) that delves into the impact that speech technology can have for mobile uses such as those performed on a phone. I have long been an advocate of speech recognition, and I believe it can play a part in creating a natural interface for working with computers. Speaking your mind takes on a special meaning when it’s done in order to interact with a computer. That interaction can benefit when applied to the mobile phone, perhaps even more so than with speech-enabled computers.

The mobile phone is a personal device that has become ingrained in most everything we do in our lives. It is a device that is designed from the ground up to work with speech, and it makes great sense that a proper interface revolving around speech technology could be a huge benefit.

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OK, you can’t really drive your iPhone with a broken screen through the Apple store, but you can take it in for a screen replacement. Apple has begun replacing broken screens on iPhones right there in the store. The screen replacements under warranty are free, of course, but those without that precious warranty will pony up $199.

I’m not sure how often iPhone owners are cracking their screens, but they’re covered now by the local Geniuses in the store. Are there a lot of people dropping their iPhones? Just looking at the photo on the right hurts.

(via TheAppleBlog)

Om Malik pointed out that AOL has turned out the lights on CompuServe after 30 years of service. Om told a great story of how CompuServe played a role in his profession as a technology writer, and based on his career, a great role it played. I remember CompuServe when it WAS the Internet. There were no web sites, no email, no Facebook, no Twitter, nothing.

CompuServe was the place where geeks could congregate and discuss geek stuff. In those early years, the only other places where geeks could get together virtually and share experiences about using those new computer things were local bulletin board systems (BBSs). CompuServe was amazing to us, as it formed a place where lots of BBSs could form in one place, and thousands of geeks flocked to the service.

We were all connecting via super-fast 2400 baud dial-up modems, and a lot of effort was spent to make sure we were connecting via local numbers; long-distance geekery was just too expensive. In spite of all the obstacles to building this unique global community CompuServe grew massive and was a glimmer in the geek’s eye of how great the web could and eventually would be.

I got my first taste of online service on CompuServe. I was invited by IBM to moderate its Aptiva forum on the service. Aptiva was IBM’s home computer line at the time, and the forum was a great place to test my toes in the water of the online community. I had a blast working in that forum, and it paved the way for my work today.

So long, CompuServe. You were an extremely important chapter in the web’s history. You brought the geek world together and showed us what community and social networking could be in its simplest form. You will be missed.

It’s time to share the wealth of knowledge that is the GigaOM Network. Here’s a rundown of what is hot on the network:

• Smart Meters That Can Tweet, From a Utility That “Gets” Broadband- GigaOM
• Chu: For Green Building Design, We Need to Go Open Source- Earth2Tech
• Will Michael Jackson’s Funeral Be Live-Streamed- NewTeeVee
• Firefox 3.5, Portable Edition Arrives- OStatic
• Apple/NVIDIA Rift to Spark Major Component Changes?- TheAppleBlog
• 3 Options for Sharing Your Project Research- WebWorkerDaily
• Is Marketing Key to Mobile App Store Sales?- GigaOM Pro