The notebooks—part of a campaign created by Ogilvy Frankfurt—were installed in buses and tram shuttles that lead prospective buyers to Lenovo Roadshows all over Germany. The buses were waiting by train stations and airports to get visitors to the events, offering them the possibility to either surf the web or rest their buttocks while having a key massage. I would like to do both at the same time. [Direct Daily]

The X100E looks to be a substantial physical redesign from Lenovo, who typically falls so thoroughly on the function side of the form vs. function debate that they may not even be aware there is another side. The new chiclet (or "island") keyboard looks great, much less busy than previous ThinkPad layouts, and the overall design seems to have calmed down significantly. Hell, it'll even be available in colors. Colors! From Lenovo! (Looks like red, white and black are the extent of the palette, but still).

It should be packing a low-power AMD Athon "Neo" processor, 4GB of memory, up to 500GB of hard drive storage, and boast a 5.1-hour battery life while weighing less than 3 pounds. But the most enticing part has to be the price: Previous ThinkPads have been extremely pricey, often even more than equivalent Macs, yet the X100E is rumored to come in at $500 to start. No info quite yet on a release date, but we'll keep you updated. [Ubergizmo]

The Sonos ZonePlayer S5, an all-in-one wireless speaker system for iPod Touches and iPhones that is pictured above, is now available for your music listening needs. Sonos is well-regarded for the full-blown high-end wireless audio system, but in the ZonePlayer S5, priced at $399, they offer an accessible way to get one started. We reviewed the S5 earlier this month and found it an elegant solution for wireless home audio. The system is equipped with Wi-Fi, ethernet, and audio-in and -out jacks and can be controlled by a free iPhone/iPod touch app. For a location in your home in which a full stereo system is overkill—porch, kitchen, home office—the Sonos ZonePlayer S5 is just the ticket. You can order S5 directly from Sonos.

Designed by the community at Quirky.com, the PowerCurl snaps onto your MacBook's power supply, keeping the cord tidy and the charger looking funky. As an added benefit, the PowerCurl raises the charger off your floor or desk for "improved air circulation and cooling," not that you thought you needed it to begin with. Make all of this bright orange functionality yours by picking up the PowerCurl for $14.99 at Quirky.com.

The Lenovo IdeaPad U150 is now shipping and waiting to be perched awkwardly on your knees or balanced on your hand like a server's tray. The 3 pound, .75" thick ultra-portable has a 11.6" screen and runs on a CULV processor, 3GB of RAM and 250GB hard drive. Those specs can be beefed up by springing for the more expensive model instead of the standard one, already discounted to $749 and $649 respectively. The U150 isn't going to blow anyone away with its power, but it's a svelte little machine and the marbled effect on the exterior might turn a head or two. You can customize and purchase the U150 from Lenovo.

The Yamaha MCR-140 wireless iPod dock sounded good and looked even better when we got a chance to try it out in September. For $399.95, the MCR-140 offers wireless playback from iPods via Yamaha's uncompressed yAired technology, as well as a CD player, FM radio tuner, USB and minijack plugs for other audio sources. The unit is available in ten rad colors and can be had over at Yamaha.

The FLO TV Personal Television, a handheld device for watching television on the go, is finally available to be mocked by regular people in addition to those who got a chance to review the unit ahead of time. (We were one of them.) The device is $250 and requires a $9 monthly subscription, and for that you can watch all your favorite channels, including but not limited to CNBC, Comedy Central, MTV and the like. So you can watch the news, watch John Stewart make a mockery of the news, and watch the contestants on Real World Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins make a mockery of life. But the FLO TV doesn't offer a video out, so you'll be stuck watching it all unfold on the unit's 3.5" screen. If for some reason you want to buy this you can find out where on FLO's website.

There aren't many details available about the model as Qualcomm intends to truly show it off at CES 2010, but they do explain that the Snapdragon chip will result in "lower price and longer battery life than what netbooks offer." [PC World via Electronista]

Let's look at the best-case scenario: The A70z all-in-one. It's thoroughly unremarkable in specs, offering a 19-inch LCD (isn't that kind of small these days? Not that the iMac's insane 27-inch model should be the benchmark, but still...), up to a Core 2 Duo processor, and up to 500GB storage in a decent-looking if not particularly noteworthy package (pictured above). It also boasts of a fast startup and shutdown time and is only 2.4 inches thick (the new iMac is about an inch thick, for reference, though of course it costs several times more). The A70z will start at $500, which sounds pretty cheap, but the base model is likely to include a Celeron proc and a much lower-capacity HDD, for starters, so don't get too excited. The Acer Z5610, for example, costs $800 to start (not that far from an A70z with similar specs) in a much more slick package.

Winning second place (out of two) is the A58e tower. Clearly a $350 business-oriented tower desktop that boasts of "up to 320GB of data storage, up to 2GB of memory and a DVD burner" isn't exactly up our alley—but just as music critics must cover the latest Coldplay album, so must we bite the bullet and mention this snoozefest of a computer. Keep in mind that these prices aren't actually that low: Dell's base package Vostro desktop tower starts at only $300, with similar specs.

It's useless to brand computers like these objectively "good" or "bad." The A58e and A70z don't need to have catchy names, or up-to-the-minute specs, or eye-catching designs or even prices that are all that low. They will be bought, and they will be used. They will churn out Excel spreadsheets and PowerPoints and TPS reports, and they will suffice for those duties. They will provide no joy, unless you are a goofy salesman who sends adorable emails back and forth with your office's frumpy-yet-cute receptionist, and even then it will take about four years before anything happens between you two, so maybe you should just get another job because this one is clearly sucking the life out of you. Yet, they will be bought.

These computers will also match your office's Mr. Coffee. (Note: Speculation.)

At any rate, the 70z is available from the end of November, and the A58e is available now. Press release below. [Lenovo]

Lenovo Introduces its First ThinkCentre All-in-One Desktop PC for Business

Combines Style, High Performance and Extreme Affordability

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC – November 2, 2009: Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) today reshaped its ThinkCentre business desktop line by introducing its first all-in-one (AIO) desktop PC – the ThinkCentre A70z. Built for the needs of small and medium businesses (SMB) all the way up to large corporations, the AIO delivers a compelling alternative to the traditional desktop PC, starting at just $499. Despite the budget-friendly price tag, the high performance all in one comes with Intel Core2Duo processors and delivers blazing fast boot up time as one of Lenovo's Enhanced Experience certified PCs for Windows 7. The ThinkCentre A70z saves 70 percent more space, takes less time to set up and service and consumes less power than traditional desktops1. At the same time, the AIO adds a new touch of style and sophistication for today's modern office.

Lenovo today also introduced the ThinkCentre A58e tower desktop, bringing SMBs an affordable and reliable computing solution.

"We've heard from a number of IT managers in a variety of industries, from education, to finance to healthcare, and they've all told us they need desktops that conserve space, save on energy consumption and are easy to maintain and service," said Dilip Bhatia, executive director, Worldwide Desktop Marketing, Lenovo. "The new ThinkCentre A70z exceeds these needs – not only is it compact, super energy efficient and quick to service, but it's also high performance and extremely affordable."

Click here for a video demonstration of the ThinkCentre A70z.

Reshaping of Desktop Market

According to IDC, the commercial all-in-one PC segment is projected to grow 16 percent year to year worldwide in 2010 with most of the desktop market consisting of small to medium business, small office/home office users and consumers.2 This trend fits into the growing SMB PC market, which is forecasted to grow to more than 99 million PCs in 20113.

ThinkCentre A70z Saves Space, Time and Money

The compact ThinkCentre A70z includes a 19 inch, 16:10 widescreen LCD monitor packed into a 2.4 inch4 black frame that complements just about any office environment. On a desk, the AIO takes up 70 percent less space than a traditional desktop and monitor5. It can also be mounted flush against an office wall, supported with a radial stand or rested against a leg stand similar to how a picture frame works. The AIO's single power cable6 helps eliminate unsightly cable clutter that plagues office desk space, and the built-in handle on the back of the monitor makes transporting easy.

Saving on space doesn't mean skimping on performance though. The AIO features:

* Choices of Intel Core™ 2 Duo through Celeron® Dual Core processors for demanding performance
* Direct X10 support for enhanced games and high-end 3-D applications
* A DVD burner, six USB ports, two audio speakers and optional Wifi
* An optional high resolution webcam and built-in Skype application for voice over Internet protocol web calling with friends and colleagues
* Support for up to 500GB of data storage for lots of photos, music and work files

With simple set up, boot up as quickly as 35 seconds and up to 28 percent faster shut down time7 and easy access to the hard drive for servicing, the AIO helps save time all around, and businesses know that "time equals money." The affordable AIO also comes equipped at no extra cost with Lenovo's suite of ThinkVantage Technologies (TVTs). These value-added tools help businesses save money by speeding productivity and reducing downtime. Additionally, Lenovo's Power Manager TVT helps organizations save energy by remotely deploying power schemes and global settings. The all in one comes Energy Star 5.0 rated for high energy efficiency, but for more savings, using the Power Manager helps save approximately $65 per year over previous Lenovo desktop and monitor solutions8. To help reduce overall packaging material, the A70z ships with reusable protective bag. By using one box instead of two, material savings are equal to approximately 250 paper cups and 139 plastic packaging bags9.

ThinkCentre A58e Extends Desktop Value

Based on Intel Core™2 Duo or Celeron® processors, the ThinkCentre A58e tower equips users to get the most out of their workday with an assortment of features including support for Microsoft Windows 7, up to 320GB of data storage, up to 2GB of memory and a DVD burner. Implementing Lenovo's Power Manager, businesses can reduce electricity costs on their ThinkCentre A58e by up to 69 percent per year10. The ThinkCentre A58e combines the essential computing technologies for just about any day-to-day business task at an extremely affordable price.

Services Tailored to the SMB

Lenovo offers a variety of enhanced warranty options as well as its ThinkPlus Priority Support service plan on both new PCs. Priority Support features 24x7 priority call routing to advanced technical support as well as a host of administrative tools. ThinkPlus Priority Support frees up IT staff to address critical business needs while helping to reduce or eliminate the need for around the clock in-house IT support, which can translate into significant cost savings.

In addition both PCs give customers the option to download a free trial of Lenovo Online Backup, a secure, encrypted offsite storage solution for critical data and files. Lenovo Online Backup lets users automatically back up their files and then restore them anytime, from anywhere in the world, via an Internet connection. The free trial includes 5GB of storage for 90 days.

Pricing and Availability

The ThinkCentre A70z all-in-one will be available at the end of November with models starting at approximately $499. The ThinkCentre A58e desktop is available currently with models starting at approximately $349. Both desktops will be available through Lenovo business partners.

Lenovo is fleshing out their all-in-one lineup (which already includes the cheaper C100) with the terrifyingly angular IdeaCentre B500. It's got pretty decent specs, if you don't want to wait until the new Intel procs take over. The 23-inch 16x9 B500 offers (at its best and most expensive configuration) up to a Core 2 Quad proc, 4GB memory, a 1TB hard drive, DVD or Blu-ray, and an optional TV tuner with remote, in case you want to turn it into a media center.

[Lenovo]

This is effectively an extension of their brick-and-mortar retail push (or is it the other way around?) which will also include third-party hardware, software, and accessories compatible with Windows, and particularly Windows 7. The first round of hardware for sale is heavy on laptops and netbooks, with Dell, Sony, Lenovo, HP and Acer portables all making appearances—basically, a similar lineup to what you'd see at any Best Buy.

This makes a lot of sense for Microsoft, who's watched Apple do pretty, pretty well with a broad, inclusive online store, but who couldn't cash in on a similar concept without their own hardware as an anchor. It's the same direction they're taking with Windows Phone: In liew of Microsoft hardware, they're just drawing others under the Microsoft tent with blanket branding and Microsoft-centric marketing. In other words, to the customer, it may as well be Microsoft hardware. [Beyond Binary]

The team recovered the hard drives from their battered casings, and unfortunately they didn't boot when inserted into another, less smashed ThnkPad. The data was able to be recovered, and once it was it booted up the laptop fine.

Update: Jeffery let me know that the smashed laptops themselves didn't boot, but as soon as the drives were removed and inserted into another system, they booted up fine. No fancy data recovery required. Not too bad considering they fell hundreds of feet to the ground. [Thanks, Jeffery!]

Acer—which owns Gateway, eMachines, and Packard Bell—scored 11.1 perecent of U.S computer sales between July and September this year, according to IDC. Gartner puts that figure at 13.9 percent.

As you can see in the chart above, Garner also puts Dell in the top U.S spot with a 26.2 percent share. IDC disagrees, placing HP first (25.5 percent), Dell second (25 percent), Apple fourth (9.4 percent), and Toshiba fifth (8.1 percent).

The two research firms agree on the rankings of worldwide sales, though their numbers are slightly different.

What's also interesting is that total sales grew by as much as 3.9 percent compared to last year. That's pretty surprising when both predicted the down economy would make us all tech scrooges. Maybe Windows 7 has drummed up interest after all, what do you think? [Gartner Research via BusinessWire | IDC Research via Reuters] [Image Credit]

The Benjamin-a-year plan entitles the user to a service rep to come out next-day, no matter where on the planet you are—provided it's somewhere reasonable, we'd assume. The tech guy came by his office and fixed exactly what was wrong, basically doing an in-house call that Apple stores, even with their notoriously decent service, couldn't match. I mean, in-house? And they even ignored the fact that he put Linux on there instead of his original Vista?

He does some caveats on his experience with IBM/Lenovo as a whole, and you can check that out over at BB. [BoingBoing]

A 21-year-old woman who lives with her brother and parents on the India side of the disputed India-Pakistani border was in her home when three gunmen burst in demanding food and lodging. The woman's father refused and was attacked and the woman, who was hiding under a bed, attacked the assailant with an ax, and then grabbed his gun as he went down, shooting him dead. Feel free to read the full story, it's pretty intense, and the guy may well have been a major Pakistani terrorist. I'll admit, this has little to do with gadgets, but even you have to agree, ax to AK is one hell of an upgrade. [Telegraph UK via a million tweets]

Speaking of upgrades, anyone who migrates to Windows 7 Pro, Enterprise or Ultimate who's still missing XP can officially virtualize that sweet old OS, says our friend Mary Jo Foley, who reports that the lauded XP Mode has been released to manufacturing, and will be present in time for the Oct. 22 Windows 7 launch. [ZDNet]

This is an example of me scratching my head at the way tech business is conducted. GigaOm reports a scoop that Lenovo will likely pre-install Skype on a bazillion new ThinkPads soon, advertising the VOIP maven in the Start menu, and allowing people to "install and sign up for Skype without downloading the software." In other words, one of these companies is taking money from the other one to turn a perfectly decent free utility into crapware, in hopes that, what, some IT guys won't just go and delete it from their deployed fleet of laptops? Sorry, but there has to be a better way to build brand equity than simply being the app people didn't delete during initial setup. [GigaOm]

Generally we love iSuppli's fat pipeline of sound manufacturer-based information, but this time, I think there's something in the pipe besides info: A report today says that by 2013, Windows Mobile will be in second place behind Symbian in world smartphone market share, following a dip where they drop to third place. Whaaaaaaa? We plan to follow this up, since iSuppli is generally a smart source, and the report seems to be measuring licenses rather than actual user base. Still, I wanted to drop it here, because it's insane-tastic. [iSuppli]

• Lenovo's C100 nettop we first spotted a few weeks ago is now shipping, but we're still waiting on Lenovo to deliver some of the more exciting features they promised. The C100 features an 18.5" display, Windows XP, and your choice of either a single or dual-core Atom processor. We heard from Lenovo back in August that they're planning a touchscreen version of the C100 to take advantage of the Windows 7 touch pack, but that option won't be available until at least October. If you don't need all that fancy touchscreen witchcraft or just don't want to wait, you can grab the C100 over at Lenovo's online store today. Starts at $400. [Electronista]

The big news of these two is the 14.1-inch T400s business portable which Lenovo has turned into their own multitouch experiment. They kept much of the hardware the same from when it was released back in June, but added a capacitive screen capable of recognizing four fingers on the screen. Don't believe it?! Good thing we have a full review.

If four finger fun wasn't enough, they've updated the X200T, which again looks exactly the same as its predecessor, except for its capacitive touchscreen which can recognize two-finger input. It has also earned a healthy spec bump across the board: The Core 2 Duo processor is now available at up to 2.13GHz speeds and HDDs now reach up to 500GB while optional SSDs go all the way to 256GB. Besides configuring it with a multitouch screen you can also get it with an ultrabright outdoor-friendly panel.

Lenovo's made sure to give the X200 and T400s something a little extra in the software department, hoping to set them apart from your (soon to be) average Windows 7 multitouch wares. It's called SimpleTap, and it invokes a pretty little pop-up grid of common functions like Wi-Fi switching, adjusting brightness, changing volume and the like whenever you double-tab the screen.

The refreshed X200 and T400s will be available starting today with Windows Vista, with the multitouch versions coming in at $1,654 and $1,999, respectively. Lenovo will send you your Win 7 upgrade disc on October 22. Weirdly, SimpleTap won't be available as a download until October 22 either, but you can probably find a way to enjoy your multitouch tablet without it. [Lenovo]

Lenovo Adds Touch of Simplicity to New MultiTouch Screen ThinkPad PCs

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC – September 15, 2009: Lenovo today is bringing business users a new way to work with multitouch screen technology1 on the versatile and portable ThinkPad X200 Tablet PC and slim and powerful ThinkPad T400s laptop. Lenovo is also introducing SimpleTap, an application that brings simplicity to the multitouch screen experience.

"We see now as the right time for multitouch screens on PCs," said Sam Dusi, vice president, worldwide ThinkPad product marketing, Lenovo. "With touch screens increasingly becoming part of more devices we use routinely and continued improvement of the technology including the integration of touch in the upcoming Windows 7 operating system, the environment for making touch part of our Tablet PC and ThinkPad T400s laptop experience couldn't be better. We've also extended the touch experience with SimpleTap to make frequent hardware-based functions touch-enabled and simple."

Lenovo also today announced a new defense against the sun for outdoor workers with a new super bright optional screen on the ThinkPad X200 Tablet.

Personalizing Productivity on the PC with Touch

Users can now interact with their ThinkPad PC in a more personal way with multitouch screen technology. Designed for highly mobile users, the optional multitouch screen ThinkPad X200 Tablet caters to individuals in fields such as sales, health care and education. Already supporting one finger touch, these users can now use two-finger touch to perform a variety of gestures, including pinching, zooming, tapping and flicking through documents, web pages and photos instead of using a mouse.

The high performance ThinkPad T400s laptop serves professionals in engineering and design. Now these users can manipulate four fingers on the ThinkPad T400s laptop's optional multitouch screen to not only replace the mouse but transform the way they work. They can now use four fingers to manipulate objects, move images with two hands and even have another person touch the screen to collaborate simultaneously. As new multitouch applications are introduced, there will be new possibilities for using multitouch screen laptops.

Using advanced capacitive touch, the screens are sensitive and responsive to even the slightest touch of the finger. Lenovo also optimized the firmware to help compensate for slightly imprecise taps on the screen, such as when closing a window or navigating the Start menu, helping make navigation easier for Tablet users. To combat fingerprints, an anti-fingerprint coating helps keep smudges at bay and the screen clean. The multi-touch screens also allow users to enjoy ultra long battery life with up to nine hours on the ThinkPad X200 Tablet.2

With upcoming ThinkPad X200 Tablet models supporting the Microsoft Windows 7 operating system, these mobile users can also take advantage of improved predictive text over previous operating systems, improved handwriting recognition in more languages and formula input features for math and scientific equations.

More details on the ThinkPad T400s and X200 Tablet are available at www.lenovo.com.

Adding a "Touch" of Simplicity to Touch Screens

Touch screens are designed to make interaction with a PC natural and intuitive, however, often users must switch between touch screen gestures and pressing hardware buttons. Lenovo designed SimpleTap, a ThinkVantage Technology, to enable uninterrupted use of people's touch screens by giving them access to hardware-based functions that may be more easily accessed via touch input. For Tablet users, that means staying in tablet mode longer while on-the-go, saving time and being more productive.

To use SimpleTap, simply double tap anywhere on the screen to launch the application. A clean and efficient grid of colorful and transparent square tiles, inspired by the classic 15 Puzzle, opens on top of the work beneath and allows users to choose several hardware-based functions including: turning on or off the wireless radio, ThinkLight and microphone, previewing the camera, enabling mute, adjusting the volume or screen brightness, locking the screen or putting the PC to sleep. To exit SimpleTap, just tap once anywhere on the screen to close the grid and continue working. As a quick access interface, SimpleTap allows users to get in, perform a function and get out quickly.

Designed to be highly customizable, individuals can create their own tiles to enhance their personal productivity. For example, a sales professional could create a tile that launches a sales presentation with just the tap of a finger. A health professional could similarly create a tile that pulls up a patient's medical information instantaneously. Or a consumer could quickly access his or her favorite website. Users can arrange the tiles however they choose by dragging and grouping them together, and designed to be fun to use, the tiles can even be flicked around the screen.

Click here to see a video demonstration of SimpleTap and here to read more about the design and inspiration behind the application.

Brightening Tablet PC for Outdoor Light

To further extend tablet computing outdoors, users can now choose a super bright outdoor screen that displays images even in direct sunlight. For field engineers, sales professionals, students and others who work outside, outdoor viewability is critical. The new optional outdoor screen on the ThinkPad X200 Tablet offers excellent viewability with a bright 400 nit screen, low 1.2 percent reflectivity and wide viewing angle. Coated with a thin anti-reflective layer, the screen provides crisp and bright images that can easily be seen indoors or outdoors. Mobile workers can also stay productive with the Tablet's all day battery life.

A photo of the ThinkPad X200 outdoor screen compared with a standard screen can be viewed here.

Pricing and Availability3

The ThinkPad T400s with the multitouch screen and the ThinkPad X200 Tablet with the multitouch screen and the outdoor screen will be available starting immediately through business partners and www.lenovo.com. Pricing starts at approximately $1,999 for the ThinkPad T400s with the multitouch screen and $1,654 and $1,704, respectively, for the ThinkPad X200 Tablet with the multitouch screen and outdoor screen. SimpleTap will be available for download after October 22.

On track to ship at the end of October, the IdeaPad S12 with Intel's Atom N270 and Nvidia's GeForce 9400 graphics will be $50 more than the standard Intel Atom version and will retail for $550. Though more than the average netbook, we expect it to be worth it, especially if it truly performs like we've seen.

However, Lenovo's delay may prevent the company from being the first to market with an Ion powered netbook. Samsung's N510 has been confirmed to ship in the U.S. next month for $599. And we have also been told that HP has plans to release an Ion system of their own in the coming weeks. HP would not comment on the rumors.

Updated: According to Laptop Magazine Samsung is also planning to hold off on its N510 for Windows 7.

Nevertheless, Lenovo hinted that the experience of Windows 7 on the S12 would make it more compelling than the Vista version it was originally planning to sell.

The $349 IdeaCentre Q110 has 2GB of memory and a 250GB hard disk, versus the $249 Q100's 1GB RAM and 160GB hard drive. Both use a lowly single-core Atom 230 processor, but I guess they are tiny systems, and Atom is a requirement for Ion.

Each also has Gigabit Ethernet, an 802.11b/g Wi-Fi dongle, and run either XP Home or Vista Premium. No keyboard or mouse is included.

Meanwhile, the IdeaCentre D400 will start at about $499, and support up to 8TB of storage over four hard drives. Specs include an Atom 230 single-core CPU, 1GB memory, Gigabit Ethernet, plus 1eSATA and 5 USB ports.

The company has had a bunch of new gear of late, including the IdeaCentre C100 All-in-One and IdeaCentre Q700 HTPC.

The picture above shows the D400 has four hot-swappable drive bays, and what little English there is on its Chinese site mentions 1 eSATA and 5 USB ports. We'll let you know when Lenovo coughs up U.S. pricing in the next week.

The company has had a bunch of new gear of late, including the IdeaCentre C100 All-in-One and IdeaCentre Q700 HTPC. [Lenovo (Twitter page) via Engadget]

About the size of a DVD player, the compact HTPC sits either horizontally or vertically (with stand), and has a metal liner to shield against electromagnetic radiation. Lenovo also says it'll support 1080p.

On the front you'll find a slot-loading DVD writer, four-in-one media card reader (SD/MMC/MS/MS Pro), four USB 2.0 ports, plus microphone and headphone jacks.

One the back: eSATA and HDMI connections (nice!), VGA, four further USB 2.0 ports, and a variety of audio connections, including S/PDIF-out. Ethernet is standard, while options include 802.11g Wi-Fi, the TV tuner, and various flavors of Windows Vista. [Lenovo via Nexus404]

The IdeaCentre C100 is a 20-inch all-in-one that'll launch at a price point of, as the Lenovo people told me, "around $400." It'll have a 1.6GHz Atom, 1 or 2GB of RAM, a DVD burner and an 80GB-160GB HDD. Interestingly, the webcam and WiFi are both optional, which we suppose is one way to keep the price down.

The demo unit I saw was running Windows 7, but I was informed that they'll be releasing it this month with Windows Vista and without a touchscreen, even though the unit is dying for one. They'll be releasing a touch-optimized Windows 7 version come the OS's release in October, but the price will go up to accommodate the change. We'll update this post with more exact info when we get it, especially a specific price and release date. [Lenovo]

The key and OEM certificate were extracted from Win 7 Ultimate's .wim files. A similar method was used to bypass Vista, and those vulnerabilities were never addressed so there is no reason to suspect that Microsoft will do anything about it now (but there are no guarantees). Supposedly, the crack works with 32-bit and 64-bit Ultimate versions and can be implemented on HP, Dell, and MSI computers in addition to Lenovo. Of course, you would need to engage in a little BIOS magic to fool the OS that you are using an OEM machine before any of this would work in the first place. [Softpedia via Download Squad via Lifehacker]

More recently, Sun Danyong's alleged iPhone suicide has outed the company's brutal practices.

Now, one employee appears to have written an account of what it's like to be recruited and work for Foxconn (in perpetual overtime, for a grand total of about $220 a month) that was published on China Labor Watch. Needless to say, the experience more closely echoes an internment camp than a dull production line:

I was placed in a dormitory that has ten three-level bunk beds, thus accommodating 30 people. While many people refused to stay there at that time, the management said that it is much better than the other dormitories on site that are shared by hundreds of workers...The training begins immediately on the second day upon our arrival. At first I thought we would be informed of some professional operative skills and knowledge, but instead, we were taught the factory's regulations, culture, and acknowledgment of Foxconn's business concept. By now, I think it is safe to say that the training is a part of Foxconn's brain washing process. A supervisor told us that working at Foxconn requires total obedience; you do not need to be intelligent or highly skilled. After a week of training, we concluded that at Foxconn, we shouldn't treat ourselves as human beings, we are just machines. During the week, we also had a health examination, a very simple blood test, a blood pressure test and a vision test. We did not receive any results afterwards.

To read more on a business culture that will go so far as to fine its employees for uneaten rice in the cafeteria, hit the link. [China Labor Watch via Silicon Alley Insider]