Crave TV: Meet the gesture-controlled Toshiba UMPC
Toshiba's designers have been busy working on a brand new ultramobile concept that packs more interesting features than all existing UMPCs put together
Ultramobile PCs -- rubbish, right? Not if you ask Toshiba. Its designers have been busy working on a brand-new UMPC concept that packs more interesting features than all existing UMPCs put together.
There are some funky additions, including an accelerometer. This lets you scroll
vertically or horizontally through Web pages simply by hitting an activation button and tilting
the device up, down, left or right. Genius!
Then there's the gesture control system. To launch the on-screen virtual keyboard, just swipe your finger in an upwards motion against the display. To launch the virtual mouse trackpad, just swipe it from left to right. Swiping in the opposite direction causes the virtual mouse or keyboard to disappear.
"What about battery life?" you say -- Toshiba has that covered too. The standard model uses a lithium-polymer battery, but the company has already developed a prototype that uses a direct methanol fuel cell, which gives the UMPC an all-day battery life.
If released, this bad boy will come in various states of bling. There are multiple colours, textured finishes, and even some with gemstones set into the chassis. Load up the video to see it in action. -Rory Reid