Topics: Digital Life

Sony Unveils Its 'Ultra Mobile PC'

Posted by Mike Elgan, May 16, 2006 11:13 AM

After Microsoft unveiled its Ultra Mobile PC, or "Origami," concept March 9, we witnessed a flurry of new hardware interpretations from a variety of vendors. The basic idea is a mobile device bigger and more feature-rich than a smartphone or PDA, but much smaller than a laptop.

Sony has posted a page on a Japanese Web site showing off their entry into this burgeoning hardware category: The Sony VGN-UX50 UMPC.

The UX50 steals from the T-Mobile Sidekick playbook with a screen that slides up to uncover its QWERTY keyboard.

The UX50 is very light -- just 520 grams -- and very small -- only 150mm x 95mm x 32mm. It offers 3.5 hours of battery life, integrated Bluetooth, five-second startup, CF card support and a built-in camera, according to the Web site.

It also comes with a docking station that has three USB 2.0 ports, an Ethernet port, and a monitor port, so you can use this tiny device as a PC with a full-size desktop monitor, keyboard and mouse!

Best of all: This isn't a prototype or proof-of-concept. It actually goes on sale in July for about $1,800, according to Sony. (via Gizmodo and Mobile Whack)

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