AcerCloud or iCloud? Acer unveils copycat service at CES

Acer will launch a new iCloud-like service called AcerCloud in the coming months that will connect content on Acer laptops, Android phones and other PCs, the company announced today in Las Vegas at CES.

We predicted that consumer cloud services would be a major trend this year in our CES 2012 preview. Apple often sets the agenda for the year with its own products and services, so when the company debuted iCloud and iTunes Match … Continue Reading

Acer has a quad-core, 1080p Iconia Tab on the way

Being first has its advantages.

Taiwanese computer maker Acer was the first major company to hold a press conference at the Consumer Electronics Show Sunday, where it briefly showed off a powerful new Iconia Tab slate with a quad-core processor and high-resolution 1080p display.

Acer VP of mobile computing Campbell Kan teased the 10.1-inch Android tablet to the CES crowd, saying simply, “Isn’t it cool?”

The new Iconia Tab will be powered by Nvidia’s Tegra … Continue Reading

Acer not pulling the reins on tablet development, according to founder

Computer hardware manufacturer Acer will not be letting go of its tablet division, the company’s founder Stan Shih confirmed today, after rumors circulated that the company just couldn’t keep up in the mobile world.

Companies from all walks of digital technology, such as HP, which makes PCs like Acer, e-commerce giant Amazon, smartphone manufacturer Research in Motion, e-reader company Kobo, bookseller Barnes & Noble, and more have turned to making tablets. But, like many ventures … Continue Reading

Get ready for crazy-high resolution MacBooks & ultrabooks in 2012

Apple, Acer and Asus are getting ready to blow your mind with new, higher-resolution displays in the first half of 2012.

Taipei-based tech blog Digitimes, which has particularly close ties to the supply chain vendors of many major consumer electronics manufacturers, reports today that at least three new models will be coming in the first half of the new year.

The blog says sources in Apple’s supply chain are aware of a new MacBook Pro … Continue Reading

Google celebrates holidays with Chromebook price drop, OS update

Google’s ”Chrome team elves” have been busy prepping for the holidays and will be celebrating with an update to the Chrome OS and a price drop on Acer and Samsung Chromebooks to $299, the company announced.

Google’s foray into “Chromebooks” — basically Chrome OS-based netbooks with some additional functionality — hasn’t been as smooth as its move into smartphones with Android, which has spread like wildfire through the mobile world — Android is now the … Continue Reading

Ultrabooks are the new tablets, 30-50 models expected at CES 2012

Tablets were everywhere during CES 2011, following the success of the iPad, but come next year, thin and light Ultrabooks will likely be hogging the spotlight (yes, following the success of the MacBook Air).

Between 30 and 50 different Ultrabooks will be featured on the CES 2012 show floor in Las Vegas, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) revealed during a press event in London today.

As PC Pro notes, the news comes as a bit … Continue Reading

Nvidia unveils its 3D Vision 2 glasses for 3D gaming

Nvidia has created a second generation of stereoscopic 3D glasses known as 3D Vision 2, the company said today. The glasses will be bundled with specially designed monitors to create a much better quality experience for gamers who want to fully immerse themselves in 3D games.

These improved glasses will solve part of the problem of the slow adoption of 3D graphics. With costs as low as $99, Nvidia is removing a lot of the … Continue Reading

Acer Aspire S3 Ultrabook fights MacBook Air with its $899 price tag

Acer’s first major MacBook Air competitor, the Aspire S3-951 laptop, will go on sale this week, the company announced today.

The MacBook Air has run virtually uncontested in the ultra-thin laptop category with its blazing fast speeds, SSD hard drive and tiny form factor. But Intel’s Ultrabook line, starting with the Aspire S3, will provide a Windows-7-powered challenge to the Air.

The biggest difference between the S3 and the Air is the price. The first … Continue Reading

Microsoft gets more Android money: signs patent deals with ViewSonic, Acer

Add two more companies to Microsoft’s collection of Android patent partners. ViewSonic and Acer  have signed patent agreements with Microsoft to license patents for their Android smartphones and tablets, Microsoft announced today. That means Microsoft will receive a licensing fee for every Android device those manufacturers ship.

Microsoft is already said to be earning as much as $150 million from its Android licensing deal with HTC. Now the company will be further intertwined with Android’s … Continue Reading

Android tablets peel away 20% of iPad’s mega market share

Android-based tablets have wrested away 20 percent of worldwide market share from the Apple iPad in the past 12 months, according to ABI Research.

Tablets running versions of Google’s Android OS include the semi-popular Samsung Galaxy Tab and Motorola Xoom (left), and today saw the release of a new one, with the Acer Iconia Tab A100, the first 7-inch tablet running the latest Honeycomb version of Android. The sheer variety of Android tablets available, with … Continue Reading

7-inch Acer Iconia Tab A100 on sale today

Acer’s new Iconia Tab A100 tablet goes on sale today and only one major thing separates it from the flock of Android tablets currently available: it’s the first Honeycomb tablet with a 7-inch display. That means you get all the features of Android optimized for a tablet in a smaller, lighter form factor.

With their wide-ranging models and prices, Android tablets have collectively wrestled 20 percent of the media-based tablet market from the mega-popular Apple … Continue Reading

Acer’s leaked ultrabook looks a lot like a MacBook Air

Even though Acer’s founder doesn’t think much of tablets or ultrabooks (super thin and portable laptops), that’s not stopping the company from taking a stab at making those devices.

Today we caught our first glimpse of Acer’s upcoming Aspire 3951 ultrabook, thanks to the Vietnamese gadget site Sohoa. Not surprisingly, it looks pretty much the same as Apple’s MacBook Air.

I suspect that many computer manufacturers will follow Apple’s lead when it comes to ultrabooks, … Continue Reading

Acer founder: Tablets, MacBook Air-style Ultrabooks just fads

Acer founder Stan Shih has been out of the tech limelight since he retired in 2004, but that’s not stopping him from laying the smackdown on newfangled devices like tablets and ultrabooks (extremely thin laptops like the MacBook Air).

Shih recently called both types of devices “fads” and “short-term phenomena”, the Taiwanese news site Digitimes reports. He urged notebook component makers to “come out with more value-added products through innovation” — seemingly ignoring the fact … Continue Reading