Contrary to rumors, Microsoft’s highly anticipated Windows 7 Starter edition will not have a three application limit. This means that users can have more than three applications running at the same time. This is good news for netbook owners and potential users who would want Windows 7 for their new operatin system. Microsoft Windows 7 is being positioned as the next Windows operating system for netbooks following a re-surgence of Windows XP.

Here an announcement taken from the Windows 7 Team Blog:

“There of course will also be Windows 7 Starter edition, but based on the feedback we’ve received from partners and customers asking us to enable a richer small notebook PC experience with Windows 7 Starter, we’ve decided to make some changes compared to previous Starter editions. For the first time, we will be making Windows 7 Starter available worldwide on small notebook PCs. We are also going to enable Windows 7 Starter customers the ability to run as many applications simultaneously as they would like, instead of being constricted to the 3 application limit that the previous Starter editions included.”

But don’t expect the Microsoft Windows 7 to be too eye candy and ultra-powerful compared to its Windows Vista counterparts. Windows 7 Starter will not have the Vista Aero graphical user interface but will have the Microsoft Windows Basic theme similar to Microsoft Windows XP. Also missing are features such as DVD playback, multi-monitor support and personalization tools such as changing the desktop wallpaper, colors and sound themes.

According to Michael Cherry (analyst with Directions on Microsoft), “They’re really doing everything they can to remove any barrier to the OS, and by removing these barriers, they really are working to make as smooth a transition as possible into Windows 7.”

The new Microsoft Windows 7 is expected to be released in time for the 2009 holiday season.

SOURCES: ELECTRONISTA, ARSTECHNICA, COMPUTERWORLD

There has been rumors that Palm’s latest phone gadget called the Palm Pre can actually synchronize with iTunes. The treatment will be the same. The Palm Pre will be recognized a any iPod or iPhone gadget by iTune. Thus, linking the Palm Pre to iTunes and enabling it to receive music and videos. Unfortunately, should you have DRM-clasped music files, you cannot transfer these to the Palm Pre.

Should this be the case, we can expect some lawyers throwing lawsuits at Palm Pre for violating their sole use of their intellectual property. This could be a treat against their iPods and iPhones because users can just purchase the music via iTunes and transfer them to their Palm Pres.

Let us just wait and see if this is true. But there is no denying the buzz the Palm Pre is creating especially with their WebOS operating system that is reported to be very stable.

SOURCES: Engadget

Dubbed as “a new category in flat panel TV design”, this unit is targetted for those who are photo enthusiasts and professionals who want to project their  photos in high-definition glory. Also, the JVC Xiview LT-42WX70 has a 52 picture-quality adjustment properties for tweaking both still and video images. A PC connector is also part of the input modes. It is ENERGY STAR 3.0 compliant and features different ways to connect your media such as three HDMI CEC terminals, D-Sub 15pin with component video, and an audio input jack. The unit comes with a remote control and has an intuitive menu design.

You can have the JVC Xiview LT-42WX70 and its 42-inch screen sweetness for $2399.95.

SOURCES: ENGADGET, POCKET-LINT, HIDDEN WIRES

Still hot on Lenovo news, Lenovo’s newest notebook could well be the first to have a NVIDIA Ion chipset. With NVIDIA’s ION graphics platform, users will enjoy brilliant 1080p high definition video with smooth playback. According to Rene Haas (General manager – Notebook GPUs, NVIDIA), “With enhanced graphics, the Lenovo IdeaPad S12 netbook is perfect for watching movies, playing popular games like Spore, flipping through vacation pictures or enhancing family videos.”

The Lenovo IdeaPad S12 is a 12-inch netbook with a 100-percent full-size keyboard, an apparent 1080p video playback (which is especially great for HD) and weighting at 3lbs. Other specifications include the following: WXGA (1,280 x 800) resolution LED-backlit panel, Intel’s 1.6GHz Atom CPU (the one big “ugh”), 1GB of DDR2 memory, 160/250/320GB HDD options, an optional 6-cell battery, Ethernet jack, WiFi, Bluetooth, three USB 2.0 sockets, an ExpressCard slot, a 4-in-1 card reader and VGA / HDMI outputs.

According to Dion Weisler (Vice president, Business Operations, Idea Product Group of Lenovo), “We’ve heard from consumers loud and clear about the need for affordable and extremely portable computing devices, and we’ve responded by introducing our third netbook with a completely new form factor, making mini-computing more usable and redefining value in today’s market. We are pioneering new territory in the developing netbook arena by being the first vendor to give customers high quality video and entertainment capabilities in a netbook with optional NVIDIA ION graphics.”

The  Lenovo IdeaPad S12 is shipped with Windows XP and will be available by June at a $449 value.

SOURCES: ENGADGET, CNET

Memorial Day is also somehow a “Lenovo Day” as Chinese PC maker Lenovo rolls out the IdeaPad U350. The Lenovo IdealPad U350 is a ultra-thin notebook that has a 16:9 aspect ratio, 13.3 inch LED, HD 1366 X 768 which is just perfect for watching movies and viewing websites. The HDMI connector allows you to fully enjoy watching movies or other multimedia in high definition.

With about 1-inch in thickness, the Lenovo IdeaPad has a Core 2 Solo, Pentium ULV or Celeron processors with up to 8GB of RAM and up to 500GB of storage. This ultra-thin notebook has a battery life of 10 hours with 8 cell battery pack and 5 hours with 4 cell battery pack. Connect wirelessly via Intel WiFi Link 5100 wireless b/g and Bluetooth. Standard specifications are Ethernet connections, 1.3 megapixel camera, Multi-card reader, Dolby Sound room via the 1.5 dual speakers and come with Windows Vista Home Basic or Home Premium.

A cool feature is the Ambient Light Sensor technology (taken from the IdeaCentre desktop line) which dajusts the screen’s brightness when in different lighting conditions for the best screen quality. Another is the VeriFace facial recognition technology which provides security via making your face as the password.

The Lenovo IdeaPad U350 will be priced between $700-$800.

SOURCES: ENGADGET, GIZMODO, CNET

The MSI Wind U115 Hybrid boasts of being the first netbook computer to operate both SSD and HDD hard drives simultaneously. This brings a world of benefits such as shock absorbency, better energy consumption and speed. This units has Intel’s latest Poulsbo chipset with a 160GB hard-disk drive plus a 8GB solid-state drive. The 16GB SSD + 120GB HDD options are on the way. The Z series Atom processor promotes power efficiency for those long hours of computing.

With the newer Intel mainboard chipset, the MSI Wind U115 Hybrid can decode of H.264, MPEG-2 and VC-1 videos. Talk about bringing you videos on the go. The MSI Wind U115 Hybrid has a 10-inch (1024 x 600) matte display with a 1.3MP webcam and internal microphone. Battery life is a whopping 13 hours on a 6-cell pack and 25 hours on a 9-cell pack.

The MSI Wind U115 Hybrid is on sale for about $675-$750. It does sound quite pricey. But remember the benefits you will get especially the 13 hour battery life and the 720p video playback. The MSI Wind U115 Hybrid seems to be worth every penny.

SOURCES: ENGADGET, ELECTRONISTA, NETBOOKCHOICE, MSI HOMEPAGE

Recently, the faculty has provided for free Apple iPhone 3Gs to the 550 students and staff of their School of Social Informatics. This will enable them to see if the students and staff are within the school premises and prevents them from cheating during roll calls thanks to the built-in GPS feature of the iPhone. This is made possible with a tie-up with iPhone provider Softbank Mobile Corp. as part of the companies project entitled “Mobile & Net Society Education and Training.” Aoyama Gakuin University pays of the basic charge and does not pass any extra financial stress to its students.

Though still in its experimentatl stage, Aoyama Gakuin University hopes to bring this new method in full throttle by Autumn. To totally take advantage of the iPhone, the school plans to roll out test questions, homework submissions, viewing video courses, digital lectures and other university-related functions. It seems that Aoyama Gakuin University is pushing the iPhone and technology to its advantage.

Aoyama Gakuin University has taken this program so seriously that they even launched a program to design and develop original iPhone applications for the iPhone AppStore.

SOURCES: ENGADGET, MAINICHI DAILY NEWS, IBLAST, DVICE

The Imobile phoneV588 looks like something that came out of Disney’s Totally Spies cartoon. But this one is real. Alternatively called the G88i, this mobile phone is a compact face powder case. For the guys, this is the one your ladies use when they want to powder their noses. This unique dual-band GSM phone is encased in a circular pop-up lid with a built-in mirror. In it, you will find a 2.6 inch LCD screen which will display information such as contact numbers and text messages. Not just a mobile phone but it is a MP3 /MP4 player and USB connectivity. We’re thinking this is how you can transfer your mp3/mp4 files to and from the “compact” phone.

According to reports, this lovely phone can record video, can listen to music via its multiple speakers and send and receive files using its Bluetooth capabilities.

What could have been cool would be to use the mirror side of the compact as a display unit. Unfortunately, the mirror is just a mirror. Nothing fancy. But at least you can watch yourself while you text. Not to ordinary compact powder case, I suppose.

Who would actually buy this phone is my guess? Does this unit really meet a need or is it just something cute and fancy to have?

The unit is on sale for $120. Make-up sold separately.

SOURCES: ENGADGET, UBERGIZMO, PMPTODAY

In the immediate future, Asus will launch the Eee PC 1005HA. The newest Netbook from Asus sports a 160GB Hard drive (with 10GB complimentary online Eee Storage), a 10.1-inch LED-backlit display (1,024 x 600 resolution), 1GB of DDR2 RAM, VGA output, three USB 2.0 sockets, a 0.3 or 1.3 megapixel webcam,  Ethernet, 02.11n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, a multicard reader and audio in / out. The Asus Eee PC 1005HA comes in two models which differ in processing power: model 1005HA-M with Intel Atom N270 or the model 1005-HA-H that comes with the Intel Atom N280. Both units come with Windows XP Home.

However, one of the intriguing parts of the Asus Eee PC 1005HA is the rumored removable battery that lasts for an astonishing 10.5 hours. Should this be true, the unit’s weight will slightly be heavier. However, this should be a small sacrifice to carry for a longer battery life. It remains to be seen.

The ASUS Eee PC 1005HA-M will go on sale for $405 while the Asus Eee PC 1005HA-H at $473.

Asus is aggressively sending out new models and campaigning heavily due to other companies such as HP and Acer that are jogging for position in the netbook industry.

SOURCES: SLASHGEAR, ENGADGET, FUDZILLA, NETBOOKCHOICE, ITPROPORTAL

The Palm Pre boasts of a true multi-touch display and a unique interface for multitasking. It comes with a fully accurate browser and a slide out QWERTY keyboard for those who still prefer typing on actualy keys. The Palm Pre will debut its new operation system called webOS which was built from the ground up and focused more on internet connectivity. Palm plans to use webOS more on its other upcoming products. But still has to see if consumers will like it or not before they roll it out.

The Palm Pre comes with a built-in 8GB storage which is great for videos and photos. It comes with a 3-megapixel camera for those quick photo shoots. Also, it supports 3G over EVDO Revision A, GPS and Wi-Fi so you can stay connected anytime.

The Palm Pre offers additional accessories such as the Touchstone Charging Kit (Touchstone dock and Touchstone back cover) for $69.99.  Although, you can buy the dock and back cover separately for $49.99 and $19.99, respectively.

The Pre will be sold online and at Best Buy, RadioShack, and some Wal-mart stores. With Wal-mart having more than 2,000 stores in the United States alone, the Palm Pre can be at the hands of many potential customers by June 6. Talk about heavy pushing of the product against the iPhone which claims to be the number one mobile phone today. Interestingly, the launch is just two days before Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) and is rumored to be full of iPhone goodies. Will this affect the sale of the Palm Pre.

SOURCES:

ELECTRONISTA, CNET, INFORMATIONWEEK