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Is the Surface Pro a tablet or a laptop? Well, let's put it this way: benchmarks put it squarely in the laptop category, leaving Apple and Android tablets in the dust.

Chip review site Anandtech ran benchmarks on the solid-state drive in Microsoft's new Surface Pro tablet, underscoring the performance gap with the flash drive in Apple's iPad 4.

It's a "full blown" SSD, wrote Anand Shimpi of Anandtech, referring to Micron Technology's C400 solid-state drive in the Surface that Anandtech tested.

The Micron SSD posted speeds of 400 megabytes-per-second when reading data … Read more

A fresh review of a Windows 8 Acer tablet by chip site Anandtech shows it beating ARM-based devices pretty consistently on central processor unit performance benchmarks but not on graphics. The site also noted a "bug" that has delayed the release of some Intel-based tablets.

"The [Intel] Atom architecture is still faster than every single ARM based [processor] core on the market today with the exception of the Cortex A15," -- ARM's newest chip design -- wrote Anandtech when it posted a review of the Acer W510 today.

Intel's Atom z2760 "Clover Trail&… Read more

Sharp will begin sales of an ultrathin IGZO 4K LED display from early next year.

The Japanese display maker said Wednesday that it will launch sales of a Full HD 3,840x2,160 resolution 32-inch LED-backlit display starting on February 15, 2013.

Including the chassis, the model PN-K321 display is 35mm thick and compatible with DisplayPort and HDMI connectors.

Probably its most salient feature is the use of IGZO technology -- something Apple has had its eye on for the iPad because IGZO can yield very-high-resolution yet thin displays.

Sharp has a production target of 1,500 units a month. … Read more

If the iPad Mini is a Gucci tote bag, the Retina iPad is a Rimowa Topas suitcase.

Use the iPad Mini for a while, then reach for the Retina iPad. It's a mild shock every time. That extra metal and glass add up.

So, you might ask: wasn't there some way Apple could have made the Retina iPad less like a dense slab of aluminum attached to a great display?

Probably not. The Retina's 2,048x1,536-pixel screen is demanding. The grams begin to pile up quickly when you pack a display assembly supporting 3 million-plus pixels … Read more

Microsoft's Surface RT tablet topped Samsung's Galaxy tablet in a "shoot-out" done by display testing firm DisplayMate Technologies.

The Surface RT's display outperformed all of the standard resolution full size 10-inch tablets that DisplayMate has tested to date in its Shoot-Out series, Raymond Soneira, president of DisplayMate Technologies, said in a research note today.

"On-screen text is significantly sharper, it has a better factory display calibration, and also significantly lower screen reflectance than the iPad 2 and all full size 1,280x800 Android tablets," Soneira said in a statement.

For example, it bested … Read more

I think I might need a support group -- I seem to be hooked on gadget snuff films.

The latest one from my hookup, the device warranty outfit SquareTrade, sees a third-generation iPad, the iPad Mini, and the Google Nexus 7 being methodically abused to see which holds up best.

The real development in this latest in a long series of face-off videos is the use of a new "drop-bot" that helps ensure a more fair drop of each device. In the past, the fate of each tortured device seemed to depend on a randomly determined point of … Read more

Mea culpa: In yesterday's post about the free Inpaint program (now expired), I neglected to warn users about the big, blue, fake Download button on Giveaway of the Day's cluttered download page. That's a commonly used adware ploy found on a lot of sites, and I know some people clicked it and got stuck with unwanted toolbars and other junk.

For the record, I did include a direct download link within the post (meaning you needn't have visited GotD at all), but I still feel awful about what happened. It's really important to look before … Read more

Though it's typical that the youngest and littlest sibling gets all the attention, he or she isn't always the favorite member of the family. The same can be said for the iPad Mini. In addition to the competition it faces with non-Apple tablets, the fun-size iPad still has some big shoes to fill from its own lineage.

To find out what's new and what stayed the same, we fashioned this handy comparison chart to see how the iPad Mini stacks up against its own siblings -- the recently announced fourth-generation iPad and the new iPad, which was … Read more

Just got a third-gen iPad? Apple might be willing to exchange it.

In an unexpected move, Apple refreshed its 10-inch iPad today, leaving many third-generation iPad owners groaning at a suddenly subpar device.

Apple customers like Roger Cheng have (until now) slept soundly knowing that any Apple product purchased is the "latest and greatest" for at least one year. Today, Apple killed that notion.

Considering the fourth-generation iPad offers relatively incremental upgrades, not all iPad owners will be peeved. However, if you know you'll lose sleep over the iPad you purchased less than one month ago, you'… Read more