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Tags : Gigabyte   Mobile   PC   portable   Reviews   U60   Ultra Mobile   UMPC  

Introduction The Chipet Specifications Photo Gallery The Package and Contents Benchmarks: PCMark and 3DMark Benchmarks: CPU and Multimedia The Battery Accessories, Docking Station and Usage Verdict and Conclusion

Gigabyte enters the UMPC market with the U60  ... offering good functionality and mobility

 

Introduction

Gigabyte recently showed the world their Ultra Mobile Personal Computer (UMPC) called the U60 at CeBIT and again at Computex earlier this year.

 
Many of you may have seen some of this review before on the net, but since the launch of the Gigabyte U60 under the Medion brand name, designed for commuters and other mobile professionals who can keep in touch on the go, it makes sense to review it closer to home. The average selling price for the Medin version is around £799.99 (inc. VAT). We got our hands on one of the early production samples from Gigabyte and took it through some tests. Being based in Taiwan is great for new technology, but sadly this sample is not pre-loaded with the exact software that will ship with it in Europe and UK. Gigabyte will be shipping the U60 with software dependent on each region, and Medion will most likely install their own software variations too. This of course makes sense when considering the GPS software, because there are different software suites that are dominant in different areas. In Taiwan for example the dominant GPS software is PapaGo. However I have been given the list of all the software that the U60 will ship with. So rest assured that this review will cover as many of the features that you will experience with this interesting innovative creation from Gigabyte. Before we go further I should hint that this product has impressed me no-end and definitely has the makings of an award winner. Let’s look deeper and see if it is all that it is hyped up to be.

 

For those of you tuning in and wondering “What is an UMPC?” look no further since UMPC’s are the new buzzword in the IT industry and are supposed to fill the niche between a PDA/Smartphone and a tablet PC or laptop. Ok, so with all the definitions out the way, let’s get right down to it.

 

 

This UMPC runs off VIA technologies C7-M processing unit clocked at 1GHz. The technology integrated within the chip claims to be very ecologically friendly and competes directly with the Pentium M (Centrino chipset platform) segment of the market. This unique targeted niche seems to be VIA’s strategy in competing in the crowded chipset market, and with Chipzilla(Intel) dominating in almost all the high-end segments, companies like VIA have to tweak out a living on the fringe until they come up with an answer to Intel’s dominance. This particular solution is a more heat efficient solution than anything else the market has to offer.

 

 

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Introduction The Chipet Specifications Photo Gallery The Package and Contents Benchmarks: PCMark and 3DMark Benchmarks: CPU and Multimedia The Battery Accessories, Docking Station and Usage Verdict and Conclusion