computex

SUNTEC, Singapore--We've seen Shanzhai iPhones and BlackBerries, but this has got to be a first: a Samsung Galaxy Note imitation.

While pounding the halls at the PC Show 2012 tech fair here, this writer noticed the familiar-looking supersize smartphone going for just $279 Singapore dollars ($218).

Upon closer inspection however, the "Note" was running Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich), instead of Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) out of the box. More interestingly, the user interface seemed to be inspired by HTC's Sense UI, with its "3D box effect" when scrolling through the home screens. … Read more

TAIPEI, Taiwan--Singapore-based Gajah International showed up at Computex here to hawk its award-winning tablets and e-book readers to manufacturing partners. Despite touting its latest Computex design awards -- this is the third consecutive year Gajah has snagged wins at the trade show -- we don't know of any major brands that actually source their designs from the company.

While Gajah's latest design wins included a touch-screen e-book reader with a 6-inch e-Ink display and a 9.7-inch Android tablet running Ice Cream Sandwich, we found the company's attempt to develop a kid-friendly tablet more interesting. … Read more

Asus probably wins the smorgasbord award at Computex for showing off the widest range of tablets and hybrids.

Yet another in a collection of Android and Window 8-based designs is the Tablet 810, which runs Windows 8 on top of Intel's yet-to-be-officially announced 32-nanometer dual-core "Clover Trail" Atom chip.

"The Netbook is back, this time in the guise of a tablet computer with a keyboard dock," wrote CNET Asia.

That's not exactly a compliment as Netbooks of yore (circa 2009) were invariably slow. In short, they attempted the impossible: running resource-intensive Windows 7 on … Read more

TAIPEI, Taiwan--We stumbled upon YoungYear Electronics' new fanless PC case made of mesh here at Computex and did a double take. Instead of being fully enclosed, with fan ports for proper airflow, the Green Mesh Computer Case does away with all that in favor of an open-air approach. It looks nothing like your usual PC chassis.

That's right. There's nothing to stop the dust from accumulating inside the case, not even a filter. But according to the Taiwanese manufacturer of power supply units (PSUs), this open-air design is actually the reason dust will not magically accumulate inside the case. In fact, the company claims it will have three to four times less dust than a normal PC tower. … Read more

The dating Web site eHarmony got hit by the same group that released a list of LinkedIn member passwords yesterday, so be sure to change your passwords for both if you have accounts.

Buzzfeed also parsed through the list of leaked passwords to reveal some pretty depressing sentiments from employees. While many accounts used overly simplistic passwords like "LinkedIn" or "password1," some of the more disturbing pass phrases include things like "suicide," "solonely," "iwishiwasdead," and "divorce." They're still not very strong in terms of security, so be sure to add a special character or a number during the bleak changeover.… Read more

TAIPEI, Taiwan--Evouni's leather Arc Cover might seem like a normal iPad case, but there's more than meets the eye.

The flexible leather lets you roll and shape the case according to how you want the device to be propped up. There are just so many ways to contort the case that we've decided a video would do the job better. So don't blink, or you'll miss something. … Read more

An exhibition of electronic products surely wouldn't be the same without an exhibition of local models, students, and other women who would like to earn a little money in exchange for smiling a lot.

If you can't get a comely woman to hold your new tablet and thrust it at potential customers, then how on earth are you going to sell it?

It seems, though, that -- despite this week's kerfuffle featuring a sad sexist tweet from Asus -- booth babes will not be disappearing anywhere soon.

Indeed, reports from this week's Computex exhibition in Taiwan … Read more

The Taiwanese tech confab Computex has revealed the first trickle of Windows 8 hardware, offering a little clarity to the muddy waters of the operating system's future.

Most of the Windows 8 devices on display were prototypes only. Few manufacturers released detailed specs, and fewer allowed attendees to even hold the prototypes. Nevertheless, there's some important things we can glean about how the new hardware will meld with the new operating system.

First, thin is in. Way in, and that bodes well for device weight. Even Asus' unusual and unique dual-screen Taichi is expected to come in at … Read more

The time has come for every Internet denizen to take a stand against the worst atrocity (and probably the biggest problem) on the Web: vertical videos. Big thanks to the puppets in this PSA spreading the word about Vertical Video Syndrome.

You can blame Flip video cameras, the ubiquity of videos shot with an iPhone, or just the tech-ignorance masses, but it has to stop. With the help of Ariel, Richard, and Joseph on today's episode, we all hope to put an end to the vertical video travesty.… Read more