NaviGadget

Sharp Willcom D4 is the latest UMPC from Japan. This powerful handheld computer uses Intel’s latest and smallest processor Atom which allows for longer battery lives.

This UMPC does not natively include a standalone processor but thanks to a bluetooth GPS receiver and available GPS navigation software it can very well be used a sat nav system in your vehicle. The processor in this UMPC runs at 1.3Ghz and comes with a 1GB RAM. It runs Vista and has a screen that measures 5″ diagonal and has a resolution of 1024×600.

Other specs include:

• Wi-Fi
• Bluetooth EDR
• 1.8-inch 40GB HDD
• 2MP digital camera
• Micro SD card slot
• touch sensor
• mono speaker

You can even use Sharp Willcom D4 as a cell phone if you get the W-SIM card. Willcom D4 measures 188 x 84 x 25.9mm, weighs 470 grams and will be available in Japan from June for 128,600 Yen ($ 1300)…

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Gigabyte M704 made an appearance at CeBIT recently. M704 is an UMPC with a 7″ screen and an embedded GPS receiver. Weighing only 780 gram this UMPC is quite portable, offers a full QWERTY slide out keyboard, and best of all - still runs on Windows XP.

Other features include a 1.3MP on the front for video conferencing and of course 802.11b/g Wi-Fi.

No word on pricing or availability… read »

After Asus R50a, we just got the news that Asus is readying another GPS enabled UMPC called R70a which is already on display at CeBIT in Germany.

The details on the specs are not yet clear for R70a but here is what we know so far:

• 7″ screen
• Windows Vista OS
• finger print reader
• 120GB HDD
• 1.6GHz Intel processor
• two USB jacks
• memory card slot

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We have some pics and the full specs from CES 2008 about ASUS’ latest UMPC, Asus R50A. We also had a chance to play with this GPS enabled UMPC and were quite pleased with its first impression it left on us. It felt like it was well built and we found it quite responsive considering it was running Windows Vista.

Here are the full specs:

• The thinnest, lightest and all in one ultra Mobility with 5.6″ Touch panel WSVGA panel and only 520g
• Consumer style design with two handheld size and weight
• Complete Internet connection with in Vista experience in the pocket
• WiMax, 3.5G with HSDPA, 802.11b/g
• Realtime location
• Internet GPS feed back the real time location and Photo navigation
• Video conference and Picturing
• Outward camera for picturing and inward camera for Video conference
• Intel UMPC Menlow Technology
• Intel Silverthrone Processor 1.33G, 512K L2 Cache, FSB 400/533Mhz
• Intel Poulsbo Chipset
• Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium/Business Edition
• 802.11bg, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR
• Intel WiMAX/or 3.5G WWAN Network Connection/or DVB-T
• GPS build in
• Dual (2M/0.3M) Camera Design
• 3 USB (Keyboard/Slave/STD)
• 1 x microSD slot
• 5.6″ WSVGA 1024×600 LED backlight panel with touch panel
• 1.8″ SSD 32GB
• DDRII-400, on board 1024MB
• 199 x 97 x 284 mm, 520g

For more pics continue to read »

BenQ will be introducing a mobile internet device (MID) at CES 2008 called BenQ MID. Even though the press release does not mention an embedded GPS receiver a picture we found has an icon for GPS meaning the new device will have some sort of maps and/or directions capability - possibly using an external GPS receiver via bluetooth.

BenQ MID includes various wireless connectivity options such as WiFi and 3.5G. It will have a generous 4.8 inch touch screen which will let you browse the full-internet and still consume less power than regular UMPC’s.

We don’t have any info on pricing or availability but we’ll let you know as soon as we find out… read »

Kohjinsha added two new UMPC’s to their lineup. The V series is apparently the version adding GPS and built-in 7mm ODD (optical disc drive). The new V series will be available middle of this month.

If you are lucky we maybe able to get some more info at CES 2008… read »

Maybe engineers at WiBrain were being smart when they didn’t integrate a GPS receiver chip into the body of their UMPC - WiBrain B1. Who wants another power consuming chip in their handheld mobile device? Thinking you’d be in your vehicle 99% of the time when you need directions - they put the GPS receiver into the car cradle which now serves three functions: holds your UMPC, charges the battery, provides GPS function. That’s a smart solution.

WiBrain B1 is an all in one UMPC that has a touch screen and a stylus as well as a keyboard, and a touch pad. Use whichever interaface you want. In fact this UMPC has everything your laptop has and probably more. It has bluetooth. No big deal right? It also has 802.11 b/g connectivity, 30GB HDD, and upto 1GB RAM. Still nothing special. But don’t forget this is probably 1/3 the size of your laptop. It doesn’t end here though. WiBrain even has a flip-out webcam; complete with integrated microphone and speakers. We’ve also heard some rumors that it may even have integrated HDSPA or WiMax but we don’t take that so seriously.

The place to pick up WiBrain is Dynamism. The one with 60GB HDD and 1GB RAM will cost $850, and 30GB and 512MB version will cost you $700. The GPS cradle we just talked about is an additional $150.

It turns out the GPS we mentioned on Ahtec X60GT last time wasn’t quite embedded but it comes as an external accessory that you can attach when you need it. Same is also true for the TV module. The only advantage to having an external GPS receiver we can think of is that your UMPC will be lighter and maybe use less power when GPS is not attached.

As you can see in the picture (sitting upside down on the table) the GPS add-on can flip out to get better reception just like the TV module… via

Sony UX490 which will be available this month will come bundled with a bluetooth GPS receiver - possibly the one that was included in the VGN-UX007 package.

Even though Amazon is not showing any information on the bundled bluetooth GPS receiver, this site claims they have some evidence proving them true.

For $2500 Sony UX490 comes with 48GB Solid State Drive, 1GB memory, large capacity battery, Intel Core 2 Solo Processor, and Windows Vista® Business. Other features include 2 built-in cameras, mic, and biometric fingerprint sensor… via

AHTEC Tiny X60GT UMPC is available in Spain for 700 €. It has the obvious Wi-Fi and bluetooth but it also offers the not so obvious: embedded GPS and a digital TV module. It’ll last for 4 hours on a single charge with its 1.2 GHz processor and 6.5″ screen.

Other features include 30GB HDD, 768MB of RAM, and slide out QWERTY keyboard. You can read more about at their website… via