With a fast Qualcomm Snapdragon mobile processor, the stylish Lenovo Skylight is a smartphone done large.
Are netbooks a little too powerful for you? Is your smartphone too small? If so, you're in the market for a smartbook, and Lenovo's new Skylight is the first device for this new market category. The Lenovo Skylight uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor running at 1 GHz, a chip that's mostly identical to the processor in the LG Expo and the HTC HD2. Thicker, heavier netbooks typically use Intel Atom processors, like the new Intel Atom N450, but the smartbook category seeks to borrow cell phone parts for a larger form factor. To that end, the Lenovo Skylight is thinner than a bulky smartphone.
Unlike newer netbooks, the Lenovo Skylight runs a proprietary, Linux-based operating system, instead of Windows 7. Lenovo is obviously keeping things simple to avoid taxing the processor too hard, but the OS should still be useful with custom Live Web gadgets on board, including an Amazon MP3 store and Roxio's CinemaNow service, which will let you download and watch videos on the Skylight.
Even with its mobile chip, Lenovo claims the Skylight will be able to play high definition videos on its 10-inch screen. The screen can display a 1280 by 720p resolution, perfect for HD content at 720p.
The smartbook comes with 20GB of flash memory built in to store media, but you can expand that flash memory with a miniSD card and Lenovo also offers 2GB of cloud storage accessible by the Skylight's wireless connections. The Lenovo Skylight will ship with support for AT&T's 3G network, and it will also have Wi-Fi built in. Customers who sign up for a data plan with AT&T will also get access to AT&T's branded Wi-Fi hotspots for free.
The Lenovo Skylight weighs less than 2 lbs. Besides the decidedly smartphone specs, the device will feature two USB ports and a 1.3-megapixel camera for video chatting. The smartbook will start shipping in the U.S. in 2H 2010 in two different colors, blue and red. Lenovo is advertising a full retail price of $499, but we'd bet that AT&T will drop that price considerably if you sign up for a 2-year data plan.
|
Archive