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Nokia Booklet 3G: Dawn of the smartbook?
Today Nokia unveiled its upcoming Booklet 3G, the company's first netbook, though it has a few features that make it stand out from the pack. It certainly looks like a netbook, with a full keyboard, an Atom processor that can run Windows 7, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and a 10.1-inch display — plus the added bonus of an HDMI output. But its smartphone-esque features can't be denied: a hot-swappable SIM card, built-in 3G/HSPA connectivity, and GPS (well, A-GPS) with Ovi Maps. Not to mention it's a lightweight, measuring just 0.78 inches thick and weighing 2.75 pounds.
If you believe the 12-hour rated battery life and Nokia's promise of "all-day mobility," the Booklet starts to feel like more than just a netbook… it's really closer to a smartbook — an emerging category in between smartphone and netbook — though running Windows 7 would seem to disqualify it. Is that just marketing semantics, though? And does it matter? We kind of want it either way. We'll see if it's still just as desirable when Nokia announces pricing and release dates next week.
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By ac at 3:40 PM ON 08/24/09
You say A-GPS like its worse than GPS.
Its BETTER.
A-GPS is simply network Assisted(A) GPS - so while the device is locking onto the satelite with GPS, it uses network location to give a quick, less accurate fix (within 20m). Allows a much nicer start up for navigation and LBS
By PeterPachal at 5:08 PM ON 08/24/09
@ac: My understanding of A-GPS is that the "assisted" cuts both ways: The device uses the network to help position itself, getting you a lock much more quickly, but the complex computational chore of determining your location is also done by the network. That makes an A-GPS device dependent on your cellphone network, whereas a regular GPS device will work anywhere. At least, anywhere you have a line of sight to the sky.
Whichever system you'd prefer depends on what you're doing with it, but there's no question that a regular GPS is a more self-contained solution.
By Whomiga at 5:13 PM ON 08/24/09
A-GPS is worse if there is not a GPS receiver onboard to get a better fix (like many cellphones that use A-GPS). If there is an actual GPS receiver, then it doesn't matter if it can also use A-GPS or not, as a good GPS fix will eventually be enabled. (looks from the site, as if it will have a GPS, so that will be good)
By Whomiga at 5:15 PM ON 08/24/09
Hmmm... The Video says "A-GPS" while other text on the site says "GPS", so not sure if it has an actual GPS or if it is reliant on the low resolution A-GPS alone.
By Kaled Ali at 7:21 PM ON 08/24/09
wow! Nokia is coming out with a netbook/smartbook? This is great but the netbook market needs a lot of work and this seems to be kicking it off.
By 4r4nd0mninj4 at 4:46 PM ON 08/27/09
I like it, but wake me when it runs Android.
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