MobileWorld

I’ve mentioned the Intel CULV, or Consumer Ultra Low Voltage, platform several times this year. That’s the product that will help bridge the gap between underpowered netbooks and powerful, but less portable, notebooks. Mark Spoonauer offers up an insightful observation over the LAPTOP Magazine blog on this space. He notes that a $399 Acer Aspire [...]

While the tech-loving world continues to debate the merits of the Droid following its launch on Friday, it's pretty safe to say that the Android platform has seen a pretty hefty influx of users as of late. In the past two weeks alone, we've seen the aforementioned Droid, it's cheaper, younger sibling, the Droid Eris, and the Sprint Moment all hit the shelves; if any of them sold even reasonably well, there's a lot of new folk cracking open the Android Market for the first time right now. Whether you're an iPhone convert, an ex-Nokian, or just a stranger to smartphones as a whole, the Android Market can be a pretty daunting place. While Android might not have quite as many apps as the leading competition, it still has a bit over 10,000 - and that's a hell of a lot for any newcomer to weed through. For their sake, we've thrown together a list of some of our favorite Android apps. The list is by no means exhaustive, but it's a good place to start. Got a favorite of your own? Throw it...

Looking to buy a Barnes & Noble Nook e-reader in time for the holidays? Better place your orders now. When B&N first announced the e-reader on Oct. 21, it said they would be available by the end of November, but people purchasing the devices online are now being told that they will have to wait until Dec. 11, according to Brighthand.com. If you already pre-ordered, you are scheduled to ship on Nov. 30, but future buyers will have to wait an extra week or so. That is, if the devices actually make it to the shelves. Last week, Spring Design filed suit against B&N, accusing them of stealing the idea for the Nook and asking the court to stop B&N from selling their device.

Worldwide PC micro-processor shipments jumped a record 23 percent in the third quarter, according to Monday data from IDC. That represents an all-time high for a single quarter, driven largely by mobile PC processors for Atom-based netbooks, and particularly those made and sold in China. "Compared to where the market was at the beginning of 2009, PC processors have come back remarkably strong," said Shane Rau, director of semiconductor and personal computing research at IDC. Unit sales were up 23 percent, but revenue was up only 14 percent, due to the low average selling price of netbooks. However, "since PC processor shipments overall just slightly exceeded shipments in 3Q08 - which was itself a record quarter at the time - we know that the processor market is recovering," Rau said. Unit sales for mobile PC processors, including Intel's Atom processors for netbooks, grew 35.7 percent compared to the second quarter. Desktop processor sales grew 11.4 percent, while x86 server...

Windows Mobile gets no respect from smartphone makers, with a number of them already deserting the phone OS for alternatives. An investment note claims that consumer electronics giant Samsung is also scaling back the phones it will produce using WinMo. HMC Investment Securities analyst Greg Noh says that Samsung’s phone line will drop from 80 [...]

The enTourage eDGe, a dual-screen eBook reader that sports both a 9.7-inch e-ink display and 10.1-inch LCD, is part e-book reader, part netbook, and will cost $490 when it hits the market in February. The eDGe was originally designed with students in mind, but I can see how the fully integrated device, which offers both Wi-Fi and an optional 3G module, could appeal to a much broader audience, including a variety of professionals. The 10.75-x 8.25-x 1-inch (HWD) device weighs 2.75 pounds and is larger and heavier than most eBook readers, thanks to its dual displays and vastly superior connectivity options. The device's LCD offers a 1024-by-600-pixel resolution, and features resistive touch, responding to anything from a stylus to your finger for navigation. The 1200-by-825-pixel e-ink display is Wacom Penabled, so you'll need to use the included stylus for navigation and note taking. The eDGe includes 3GB of usable built-in storage, BlueTooth 2.1, an SD card slot, two USB ports,...