NEC launches Transmeta notebooks in U.S.

NEC's Versa notebooks offer active-matrix color displays and Intel processors

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By Martyn Williams

(IDG) -- NEC Computers Inc., a U.S.-based unit of Japan's NEC Corp., unveiled Monday two new notebook computers based on processors from Transmeta Corp. The machines incorporate three power-boosting technologies to take battery life to eight hours on a single charge, the company said in a statement.

The Versa DayLite machine features a Transmeta Crusoe processor running at 600MHz. The processor uses less energy than conventional chips from competitors like Intel Corp. or Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) -- the first of three areas where NEC is able to extend battery life.

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Just as important is the computer's 10.4-inch TFT (thin film transistor) SVGA reflective liquid crystal display (LCD) panel. Unlike conventional display panels, which use a power-guzzling backlight to illuminate the screen, reflective LCDs make use of ambient light. This means no backlight is required, which offers space savings in addition to the power benefits, but does mean that users might have some problems using the machine in low light conditions. NEC is advertising it for use outdoors.

The third area where battery life is extended comes in the battery itself. The machine has an internal lithium polymer battery, a higher capacity battery than the lithium-ion packs that are common on other notebooks.

The combination of these three technologies adds up to eight hours of battery life on a single charge for the Versa DayLite, said NEC.

The Versa UltraLite, the second Crusoe-based machine announced by NEC Monday, includes the same 600MHz processor but has a higher resolution 10.4 inch TFT XGA display with backlight. It has a combination lithium-ion and lithium polymer battery.

Standard configuration on each machine includes 128M bytes of memory, a 20G-byte hard disk drive, USB (Universal Serial Bus) CD-ROM and floppy disk drives and Windows 2000 operating system. Both machines are expected to retail for between $2,299 and $2,499, said NEC.

NEC first launched Transmeta-based notebook computers in Japan in October last year.

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NEC is latest to unwrap Crusoe-powered notebook
(IDG.net)
Transmeta says flawed Crusoe chips unlikely in other PCs
(InfoWorld.com)
NEC recalls Transmeta-powered notebooks
(IDG.net)
Transmeta finds a home in Microsoft's Tablet PC
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(IDG.net)

NEC Computers Inc.
Transmeta Corp.

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