touch-screen

Four recommendable Windows 8 all-in-ones under $1,300

If you are considering an all-in-one desktop purchase, you may have noticed higher prices for Windows 8 PCs than Windows 7 systems with comparable hardware from a year ago. Where a reasonably fast 23-inch all-in-one used to cost about $1,000, you can expect to pay $100 to $200 more for the Windows 8 equivalent today

The good news is that PC vendors seem to have finally internalized the calls for better-looking Windows PCs and more-innovative features. Those things alone don't account for the higher prices we're seeing at retail, but they do help lessen the impact.… Read more

An attractive Samsung all-in-one with just enough substance

Samsung's tidy, new $1,099 Series 7 all-in-one mirrors others in its price range, offering a relatively frictionless entry point for those interested in a touch screen, Windows 8-based PC. A poorly implemented gesture control scheme is a minor sticking point, but given the price of this system, Samsung isn't asking much of a a premium for gesture input.

Among other 23-inch Windows 8 all-in-ones, the Samsung Series 7 is one of the most affordable, without sacrificing too much in terms of its core features. Other all-in-ones offer some more intriguing features if you're willing to spend … Read more

Windows 8 ultrabooks, hybrids to see uptick this year

Laptop suppliers will continue to see weak demand in the first half, but things should pick up later in the year, IHS iSuppli said today.

After a "bleak" first quarter and a "slow" first half overall, Windows 8-based ultrathin laptops will "help revive the market" later in the year, the market researcher said.

Notebook PC shipments from the Top 5 laptop manufacturers, referred to as ODMs or Original Design Manufacturers, are forecast to amount to 35.2 million units during the first quarter, down 15 percent from 41.4 million in the fourth quarter … Read more

A keyboard that rises up from flat touch screens

A few weeks ago, right before the new BlackBerry 10 phones were announced, I dragged a cameraman to San Francisco's Financial District during lunch hour and asked random strangers to name BlackBerry's best feature. Care to guess what the results of my highly unscientific poll were? Even iPhone and Android users agreed -- the famed keyboard is BlackBerry's top trait.

Increasingly, we "mobile device addicts" are favoring our smartphones and tablets over our traditional computers to meet our digital demands. Trouble is, a lot of us still despise typing on these beloved touch-screen devices. One Silicon Valley startup has created a new kind of keyboard that could help reduce typos and other fat-fingered mistakes.

Fremont, Calif.-based, Tactus Technology uses microfluidics to make physical keys bubble up from the surface of a touch screen when you need to type and disappear, when you don't. Microfluidics may sound foreign, but if you've operated an inkjet printer you've used the technology. … Read more

Microsoft: We're going to broaden Surface lineup

During Microsoft's second-quarter earnings conference call today, the company's chief financial officer reiterated that the lineup of Surface devices will expand.

After Microsoft reported reported earning today, Chief Financial Officer Peter Klein spoke about future Surface products -- though he was mum about specifics.

"We had limited distribution this quarter in our stores and we're excited about expanding that [distribution]," he said, responding to an analyst's question.

"We're going to expand geographically, we're going to expand the product lineup, we're going to expand retail distribution and capacity," he said, … Read more

Toshiba's fast, familiar Windows 8 all-in-one

Toshiba is best known for its laptops, but after entering the U.S. desktop market in 2011, the company has put out straightforward, attractive all-in-one PCs at a steady cadence. The $1,399 LX835-D3380 is no exception, offering a safe, fast, and slightly more expensive entry point to Windows 8.

The difficulty for Toshiba, and for every all-in-one in this price range, is the Dell XPS One 27, the $1,399 version of which has slower components than the Toshiba and no touch capability, but comes with a 27-inch, 2,560x1,440-pixel-resolution display. The Toshiba's 23-inch, 1,920x1,080-pixel … Read more

Hisense teases sexy transparent screens for commercial use

LAS VEGAS--Digital signage could vastly change in the next decade, especially if companies such as Hisense get marketers to sign on with transparent display technology.

One Hisense display, as seen above, adds 3D to a traditional transparent LCD. The demo illustrates how a real estate company could show off a real-life model town behind the LCD screen, while 3D video (passive glasses required) plays on-screen to show off some of the town's properties for sale.… Read more

CES postscript: The touch laptop, like it or not

The laptop was reinvented at CES.

Or maybe I should say there was a vigorous attempt to reinvent the laptop. Because we won't know how successful touch has been until next year this time.

Intel's CES booth -- still a large presence in the CES Central Hall -- had one basic unmistakable message: touch has arrived.

Windows 8 convertibles, detachables, touch-screen laptops, and just plain tablets from Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Samsung, Acer, Asus, Lenovo, Toshiba, Sony, and others blanketed Intel's booth.

And just to make sure the touch message was crystal clear, Intel issued an edict to PC … Read more

Best of CES PCs and Tablets: Lenovo Horizon Table PC

Do we really think the Lenovo Horizon Table PC will launch a nation-sweeping trend of computer-based family game nights? No.

What the Horizon does do, though, is demonstrate that the PC industry still has plenty of interesting ideas.

You can read our full hands-on with the Horizon here. The gist of it though is that it's a 27-inch Windows 8 all-in-one touch-screen computer that you can lay down flat. It also has a battery. You would not use this giant computer as a walk-around-the-house device, but its portability does mean that you can set it up in a den, … Read more