China’s EKING has unveiled an interesting hybrid device that combines the look of a portable gaming console with the power of a laptop to create a very tempting Mobile Internet Device.
Unveiled over on Pocketables, the gadget appears at first glance to be a bulky smartphone or portable gaming console: the large ‘ears’ feature buttons clearly designed for gaming use, while the 5″ multi-touch display – which runs at a 1024×600 resolution, the same as many netbook devices – looks a trifle cramped to be anything else.
Slide the screen up, however, and you’re presented with a full – if somewhat compact – QWERTY keyboard, which offers the first glimpse that this device might not be quite what you were expecting.
With the majority of ultra-portable Mobile Internet Devices on the market today opting for a cut-down operating system – Google’s smartphone-oriented Android being the current choice du jour – the next surprise comes when you realise that EKING has opted to put a full copy of Windows 7 on the x86-based hardware.
Using a full, desktop-oriented operating system has both advantages and disadvantages: compatibility is good, with the device being able to run anything a PC of a similar specification can, while a full Internet experience with custom plugins on the browser of your choice is possible; sadly, even with the touch-screen specific features developed in Windows 7, the experience of using software originally designed for notebooks and desktops with screens of more than twice the size on a 5″ screen can leave something to be desired.
Thought to be based around Intel’s Atom Z-series of processors, full details of the device’s specifications aren’t yet known – and the only images the company has released are rendered mock-ups which show Windows XP rather than Windows 7 as the operating system. However, the company has confirmed that the device will include a camera, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, and 3G mobile broadband – including the ability to make voice calls and send and receive SMS messages.
Although EKING’s latest MID might be too bulky to become your day-to-day smartphone, it could well replace your netbook – or even notebook – for those trips where you want to travel light.
Sadly, launch pricing has not yet been announced – and without knowing when the device will hit EKING’s native China, it’s hard to guess when – or even if – the rather snazzy gadget will make it to the shores of the US.
