The folks at CTL were kind enough to send me a 2Go PC convertible netbook/tablet to play with for the next few days. I’ll have a full review soon, but after playing with the computer for a few hours, I wanted to share a few initial thoughts:

• Con: The keyboard is awfully small and takes some getting used to. This probably isn’t a huge problem for the target audience: children, but if you need a large keyboard this may not be the computer for you.
• Pro: The touchpad, on the other hand, is quite roomy and responsive. The mouse buttons don’t make that nice solid clicking noise I’ve grown used to on other computers, but they’re also quite responsive.
• Pro: Since the speakers are on the display, the audio quality doesn’t suffer when you’re using the netbook in tablet mode. Well, no more than they suffer from being small cheap speakers in the first place.
• Pro: The status LEDs on the side of the display are quite useful, especially the battery meter which actually gives you a rought idea of how much power you have left.
• Con: I have no idea why anyone uses 3 prong adapters for netbooks. Sure, you can get over 5 hours of battery life out of the 2Go PC with a 6 cell battery. But if you do need more than that, it’s often hard to find a place to plug in 3 prong power supplies at coffee shops and libraries.
• Con: While 1024 x 600 pixel displays are usually plenty roomy enough to display web pages, if you rotate the screen for use in tablet mode you wind up with a 600 x 1024 pixel display which means you may have to spend a bit more time scrolling around than you’re used to.

I’m still getting a feel for the preloaded software. The CTL 2Go PC is based on the Intel Classmate PC reference design, and it looks like Intel developed some of the software while CTL chose some other applications to include. The computer ships with Windows XP Home Edition instead of Tablet edition, but it includes a handwriting recognition application and two separate program launchers for use with the touchscreen.

I’ll have a full review in a few days, but if there are any burning questions you have, feel free to ask away in the comments and I’ll do my best to either answer them here or in the review.

The CTL 2Go PC convertible tablet/netbook is one of the first sub-$500 touchscreen tablet PCs to hit the market. The mini-laptop is based on the third version of Intel’s Classmate PC design and while it’s not quite as rugged as early versions of the Classmate PC, it is much more versatile thanks to its 8.9 inch touchscreen display, accelerometer, and integrated software suite.

I should be getting a demo unit to review next week, but in the meantime, you can read a full review over at Laptop Magazine. Laptop’s Joanna Stern has been playing with the latest 2Go PC since the end of CES, and she’s reached the same basic conclusion that I have: While this machine is clearly built for educational markets, it’s the first Classmate PC-based device that will also appeal to mainstream customers.

You can buy the 2Go PC for $499 from CTL’s web site.

If you’re holding out for a slimmer, more professional looking netbook/tablet, Asus will release the Eee PC T91 and T101H touchscreen netbooks within the next few months. No word on pricing for those units yet.

You can read more about the CTl 2Go PC Convertible netbook in the Liliputing Product Database.

Want to get your hands on a touchscreen tablet with a full keyboard for under $500? M&A Technology is now taking orders for a convertible netbook/tablet with an 8.9 inch touchscreen display based on Intel’s Classmate 3 reference design.

The M&A Companion Touch is available for $499.99 and comes with a 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 CPU, Windows XP, and a 4 cell battery. It also has 1G of RAM, a 60GB hard drive, 802.11b/g/n, 2 USB 2.0 ports, an SD card slot, a VGA port.

CTL is also selling a Classmate-3 based netbook for $549. The only major difference is that the CTL 2Go Convertible Classmate PC comes with a higher capacity 6 cell battery. It’s also possible that the two companies have put their own software on the netbooks. I know CTL was proud of the handwriting recognition software included on the 2Go. If you can hold out a few weeks, it’s also likely that you’ll be able to find the CTL 2Go PC with the 6 cell batteyr for the same price as the M&A Companion Touch with the 4 cell battery. But today, the two machines are about $50 apart.

Update: The 6 cell 2Go PC from CTL is now available for $499.

via Engadget

Intel is officially launching the Classmate PC 3 reference design today at CES (although this isn’t exactly the first time we’ve seen it). The Classmate 3 is a touchscreen tablet style PC with a ruggedized design to stand up to the beating it may take at the hands of students. 

As mentioned, CTL will be bringing the Classmate 3 to market in the US, but Intel says it has already partnered with 8 companies who will be selling the computers in countries including the US, UK, Australia, France, and Chile. 

The Classmate 3 will co-exist with the older Classmate 2 design, which provides a higher level of ruggedization, but no touchscreen. The Classmate 2 devices will likely continue to sell for about $100 less than the Classmate 3-based devices like the new CTL 2Go PC.

The next generation of Intel’s Classmate PC design looks a lot like the second generation in that the netbook has a rugged design, an 8.9 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display, a 1.6GHz Intel Atom CPU and runs Windows XP. But there’s one major difference: It has a touchscreen display that can swivel 180 degrees and be folded down so that you can use the netbook as a tablet PC.

CTL will be selling the Classmate tablet in the United States. The machine is primarily targeted at educational markets. But CTL will also make the netbook available to retail customers, likely through Amazon and other online stores. 

We’d already seen a few photos of an early build of the Classmate 3. But now Laptop Magazine has gotten up close and personal with a unit that’s pretty close to the netbook that will ship in mid-January. The hardware is a bit sturdier and the software has gotten a major tuneup. In addition to the custom program launcher application, Intel has added some handwriting recongition software and an on-screen keyboard.

CTL and Intel certainly aren’t the only ones planning on adding touchscreen capabilities to low-cost ultraportable computers in the near future. But they’re the first companies to announce they’ll be showing a touchscreen netbook at CES next month.

The first and second generation of Intel’s Classmate PC designs were quite obviously designed for educational markets. Like most netbooks, the Classmate PCs tend to have 7 to 9 inch displays, full (if a bit cramped) keyboards, and a clamshell laptop design. But unlike most netbooks, the Classmate PC tends to feature a ruggedized design that makes it a bit more resistant to scrapes and scuffs, but also makes it look a bit toy-like.

But when it comes to the Classmate 3, which has the same Fisher Price-like design, I couldn’t care less. Because the Classmate 3 has a touchscreen and a swiveling display which will make it the first convertible tablet PC with a sub-$500 price tag. Sure, it still has that silly handle on the back of the unit with a spot for students to write their names. But a cheap tablet is a cheap tablet. And while the Classmate 3 is targeted squarely at educational markets, some retailers including CTL plan to sell netbooks based on the design directly to consumers in the US and other regions.

Yesterday a whole bunch of Classmate 3 documents made their way to the FCC web site. You can find the user manual, a few photos, and a bunch of test reports for things you don’t really care about. Oh, and if you’re trying to figure out whether you can power up the netbook with some extra memory, storage, or a 3G modem, I’ve posted a bunch of photos of the netbook’s insides after the break.

via Engadget

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Intel has finally developed a version of the Classmate PC that I actually want to own. Granted, the Classmate PC and the Classmate 2 aren’t really designed for me or for you. They were designed for educational markets. But that hasn’t stopped companies like CTL from selling computers based on the Classmate design directly to consumers.

But the Classmate tablet PC or Classmate 3, or whatever it’s actually called (I’ve seen some conflicting reports about this), has many of the features you’ll find in commercial netbooks like the Asus Eee PC 901 or Lenovo IdeaPad S9 and then some. At its most basic level the computer Intel unveiled at IDF in San Francisco today has a 1.6GHz Intel Atom CPU, 1GB of RAM, an 8.9 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display, and a solid state disk. But it also features a touchscreen display, a rugged case, and an accelerometer.

In other words, you can grab this little laptop by the handle and toss it around a bit without fear of breaking it. You can rotate the screen 180 degrees and use your fingers or a stylus to interact with the PC. And Intel even added palm recognition that lets you rest your palm on the screen while using your fingers to click, write, or draw.

The webcam has been modified to rotate up to 180 degrees for use in tablet mode. And Intel has developed a full screen application launcher that works with Windows XP to make it easy to start commonly used programs with your fingertips. The program launcher actually looks a lot like the Asus Eee PC easy mode, or the interface for Linpus Linux Lite or Ubuntu Netbook Remix.

You can check out a few videos of the Classmate tablet in action after the jump. No word on pricing yet, but this device’ll probably cost at least a few bucks more than the current generation Classmate 2 which runs around $400. The Classmate tablet should be available by the end of the year.

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It seems like just yesterday that Intel announced a major update to its OLPC-not-quite-killer, the Classmate PC. Now the company is poised to shake things up for a second time this year. PC World is reporting that Intel will announce details of the Classmate 3 laptop next month.

While the Classmate 2 has a larger screen, more storage, and a higher price tag than the original Classmate, there’s absolutely no word on what changes we’ll see in the Classmate 3. I’m guessing it might be time for a processor upgrade. The current generation uses a 900MHz Intel Celeron chip. All we know at the moment is that the next generation of Classmate PC will include new hardware, software, and a new design.

As the name would suggest, the Classmate laptop line is aimed at educational, not consumer markets. But at least one company, CTL, has used the Classmate reference design to produce a consumer oriented laptop – the 2Go PC.

[via Eee PC.net]