Haleron has announced a mini-laptop that runs Windows CE 6.0 on a 266MHz ARM processor. The "Mio Smartbook" includes a seven-inch display, 128MB of RAM, 1GB of flash storage, plus both wired and wireless networking, according to the company.

Haleron's Mio Smartbook joins the growing number of mini-laptops (netbooks, smartbooks, call them what you will ...) that employ ARM processors instead of x86 CPUs. Like the recently announced Delstar DS700, Sungworld netbook, and Lanyu eBook LY-EB01, Haleron's product (right) is designed to be sold cheaply, omitting a webcam and displaying its Windows CE operating system on a relatively small seven-inch screen.

According to Haleron, the Mio Smartbook uses a 266MHz ARM processor manufactured by Via. Though no further information was provided, the CPU appears to be a version of the ARM 9-based Prizm 8510, announced earlier this year by Via subsidiary WonderMedia Technologies (see later in this story for details).

Haleron doesn't specify the resolution provided by the Mio Smartbook's seven-inch screen, but other devices of this type have displayed 800 x 480 pixels. The device comes with 128MB or 256MB of RAM, from 1GB to 4GB of flash storage, and includes an SD expansion slot, according to the company.

As well as offering stereo speakers, a microphone input, and a headphone output, the Mio Smartbook is said to include 10/100 Ethernet, 802.11b wireless networking, and three USB ports. The system can be booted from a USB memory stick containing an alternative operating system such as Linux or Android, the company claims. (Misleadingly, Windows XP is also cited as possible, though Haleron elsewhere concedes that this OS requires a $55 "processor upgrade.")

Features and specifications listed by Haleron for the Mio Smartbook include the following:

• Processor -- Via ARM CPU clocked at 266MHz
• Memory -- 128MB or 256MB of RAM, 1GB or 4GB of flash storage
• Display -- 7-inch display; resolution unspecified
• Expansion -- SD slot
• Networking:
  LAN -- 10/100 Ethernet
  • WLAN -- 802.11b/g wireless
• Other I/O:
  • 3 x USB
  • Mic in, headphone out
• Battery -- n/s, but six hours' usage claimed
• Dimensions -- n/s
• Weight -- 1.54 pounds (700g)

Via's ARM-based SoCs

Via subsidiary WonderMedia Technologies used this year's Computex show in Taiwan to launch a ARM9-based system-on-chip (SoC) aimed at "smartbooks," digital picture frames, media players, and other devices. The Prizm 8510 (right) includes an ARM926EJ-S core, a programmable digital signal processor (DSP), gigabit Ethernet, and a wide variety of interfaces, according to the company.

As seen in the diagram below, the SoC is built around an ARM926EJ-S or ARM1176JZF core, and an MMX-enhanced, programmable "uDSP 2.0" digital signal processor (DSP). The Prizm also offers video decoders for MPEG 1/2/4, H.264, and JPEG, a video co-processor, and engines for 2D graphics and security acceleration, WomderMedia says.

Prizm 8510 architecture
(Click to enlarge)
The Prizm is equipped with a gigabit Ethernet MAC, as well as interfaces for WiFi, 3G, Bluetooth, camera input, PATA/SATA, USB 2.0, Smart Card, and a DVB-ready MPEG-TS interface. For display output, it supports 656/DVO and TV/VGA/LVDS/LCD displays. Other I/O, including I2C, SPI, UART, and GPIO, can be seen in the diagram above.

The SoC appears to support a wide variety of memory types, and WonderMedia touts the Prizm 8510's "low power consumption," though further details haven't been offered. Meanwhile, the SoC's "broad operating system compatibility" is said to include Windows CE, Linux, and Android. "Strong BSP, SDK, and RDK support" is offered for both Windows CE 5.0/6.0 and MontaVista Linux Professional Edition 4.0/5.0, the company adds.

Meanwhile, two other WonderMedia ARM CPUs -- the VT8430 and VT8500 -- have cropped up in various products, such as the Sungworld netbook featured earlier in this story. WonderMedia has not provided any information on these processors, but according to NorhTec, which uses the VT8500 in its MicroClient TC, they're similar to the Prizm 850 but omit certain multimedia extras.

WonderMedia Technologies bills itself as a fully owned subsidiary of Via Technologies that is headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, with teams in Shenzhen and Beijing, China, and Silicon Valley, Calif. The parent company is primarily known for its x86-based processors and chipsets for the mobile and embedded markets, including the Eden and Eden ULV, the C7-M ULV, and the 64-bit Via Nano, a 65nm design with an out-of-order execution unit.

In 2006, however, Via announced that it had expanded its licensing agreement with ARM to include the ARM926EJ-S and ARM968E-S processors, after previously having licensed ARM7 cores. At the time, Via said the processors were licensed to help Via and its subsidiaries improve products aimed at mobile phones, set-top boxes, telematics, and personal media players.

WonderMedia provided an informal look at Prizm-based reference designs as far back as January's Consumer Electronics Show (CES)
Source: Via Technologies
(click to play)
Further information

Haleron's Mio Smartbook is said to be available now for approximately $190. More information may be found on the company's website, here.

As far as we're aware, there's no connection between Haleron and Mitac International, which owns the Mio brand most commonly applied to PNDs (personal navigation devices). Meanwhile, Haleron has previously claimed to have crammed two Intel Atom N270 processors into a single netbook, the Swordfish Net 102 Dual. For more information, see our previous coverage, here.

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