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Vendors Jump on Jupiter

Does Windows CE still have a future in mininotebooks? Japanese vendors say yes.

By Michael Drexler, IDG News   

JVC's new notebook joined previously announced machines from Hitachi, Fujitsu, and Sharp. The products will be shipped in Japan; plans for sales elsewhere have not been announced.

The machines showed off last week were Jupiter-class devices, which have larger screens and keyboards than their Win CE-based handheld siblings but lack some features of notebooks running Windows 98.

In the U.S., several vendors are already shipping Jupiter-class machines, including Hewlett-Packard with its Jornada device and Vadem with the tablet-style Clio.

JVC's First CE Device

JVC, more known for its sound systems than its computers, showed off the Win CE 3.0-based Interlink mininotebook. Weighing a little more than 1.5 pounds, the machine is the lightest of its class, according to a JVC official.

The Interlink is loaded with multimedia features. An attachable camera, sold separately, captures digital still images or up to 20 seconds of video, which can be displayed on the unit's 7.1-inch color LCD. The Interlink's processor is based on Mips Technologies' RISC architecture; it includes 32MB of ROM and 32MB of SRAM. It will ship in September and will retail for around $900.

Also on display was Sharp's Win CE Telios, which was released earlier this year and costs just over $1000. Hitachi's Persona HPW-600JC began shipping in Japan on Monday, with prices starting at just under $900. Hitachi claims its Win CE model is the first to support Qualcomm's cdmaOne (code division multiple access One) mobile technology. Fujitsu rounded out the field with its Intertop CX, released in May and priced at around $1100.

Fighting Full-Featured Notes

While vendors continue to roll out Jupiter-class devices, they appear confused over how to differentiate these machines from the ever-smaller inexpensive mobile PCs like Toshiba's new Libretto mininotebook. Announced last week, the newest Libretto weighs just under 2 pounds, a shade more chunky than JVC's Interlink and lighter than some Win CE machines.

"Vendors are trying to cover all bases. They want to keep the Wintel architecture because they have invested so much money into it, but nobody is sure which way the market is going," said Kevin Williams, an analyst at International Data Corporation, Japan.

Hitachi, which sells both CE machines and notebook PCs, sees the former appealing to users who want a machine that is easy to use, according to one official.

"For some people, especially the over 40-generation, full-function PCs are too confusing. They have too many features," said Yasuo Sakai, senior engineer at Hitachi's Digital Media division. "The CE machines let users do what they need to do--word process or use e-mail,"

Win CE vendors argue that the devices' instant-on capability, long battery life, and lower price make them a potentially winning product class. Jupiter-based machines get about 50 percent more life out of their batteries than do mininotebooks, according to an official at Sharp.