(Click here for a larger view of the Everex Cloudbook Max)A first generation of the CloudBook was based on Via's
Nanobook reference design, which offered a 1.2GHz Via C7-M and a 7-inch, 840 x 480 pixel screen. This design shipped in Europe with Windows XP Home Edition as the
PackardBell EasyNote XS, but Everex selected a
Google-oriented Linux distribution for the Cloudboook, which our sister site
LinuxDevices.com called "quirky and appealing" (click
here for hands-on review).
For the 2.2-pound CloudBook Max, though, Everex has forsaken Linux in favor of Windows Vista Home Basic. Keeping pace with the latest version of Asus's
Eee mini-laptop -- which will run Windows XP, thanks to
continued availability announced yesterday by Microsoft -- the Max will sport a 8.9-inch screen.
The screen, which will run at 1024 x 600, is driven by Via's single-chip VX800 chipset, announced earlier this week. The VX800 succeeds Via's
VX700 chipset for small form-factor mobile devices.
The VX800 brings the CloudBook Max its support for up to 2GB of DDR2 DRAM. Other touted features include an 80GB hard drive, S-Video out, 802.11b/g WiFi, and Bluetooth. The device also includes a two-megapixel webcam and an integral GPS receiver.
Built-in WiMAXThe CloudBook Max's most notable feature for "road warriors" is its integrated WiMAX radio, supplied by GCT Semiconductor. Though Everex did not confirm the part number, the radio module is apparently GCT's GDM7215, also announced earlier this week. The GDM7215 integrates WiMAX and WiFi radios, an ARM9 processor, a 32-bit uniscalar DSP, and "a full range of advanced interfaces for network, storage, and audio/visual device applications," according to GCT.
The radio module, switchable from WiFi to WiMAX modes by a slider on the front of the CloudBook Max (right), will allow the device to connect to Sprint's WiMAX-based
Xohm network. Touted as offering "anywhere, anytime" downloads of up to 4Mbps, and uploads of up to 3Mbps, XOhm is scheduled to launch in Chicago, Baltimore, and Washington D.C. this spring.
WiMAX was pushed early on by Intel as a way to
extend low-cost broadband to areas of low population density, such as rural and developing areas. However, most industry interest appears to have come from cellular carriers, who see WaMAX as a potential delivery option for broadband "4G" data services. The market for WiMAX goods and services is
slated to grow from $27 million in 2007 to $500 million in 2012, according to recent figures from Strategy Analytics.
Richard Brown, Via marketing VP, stated, "Consumers and mobile workers want to experience the real Internet and all their favorite applications with the same high speed and full functionality whether at their desk or on the go."
Bin Shen, VP of partnerships at XOHM, stated, "We expect this collaboration, along with others like it, to result in a robust portfolio of WiMAX capable devices."
Features and specifications listed by Everex for the Cloudboox Max include:
- Processor -- 1.6GHz Via C7-M ULV
- Memory -- 1GB of 533MHz DDR2 RAM, expandable to 2GB
- Display -- 8.9-inch display with 1024 x 600 pixel resolution
- Camera -- 2 megapixel webcam
- Storage -- 80GB HDD
- Wired networking -- 1 x gigabit Ethernet
- Wireless:
- WAN -- WiMax
- WLAN -- 802.11b/g
- PAN -- Bluetooth
- GPS
- Other I/O:
- 3 x USB 2.0
- headphone and line audio outputs
- Expansion -- 4-in-1 card reader
- Battery type -- 4-Cell, 2600mAH lithium-ion battery
- Battery life -- "up to four hours"
- Dimensions -- 9.4 x 6.9 x 1.1 inches
- Weight -- 2.2 pounds
The CloudBook Max will not ship until Q1 or Q2 of 2009, according to Everex. However, Via, Everex, and GCT were showing off a prototype of the device at this week's CTIA Wireless show in Las Vegas.
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