Ergo Electronics have announced a few new devices. The main one that caught my attention was the GoNote which is an Android 4.0 10″ Touchscreen Netbook.
So it sounds interesting to me. Spec wise it is fairly basic but there are quite a few extras that could really make it back useful addition to your collection of essential gadgets.
So let’s have a look at the GoNote then.
Here is the spec of the GoNote:
- Android 4 Operating System
- QWERTY Keyboard, Touchpad and L&R Mouse Button inputs
- 10 inch diagonal display
- 1024 x 600 pixel resolution
- 2 finger Resistive Touchscreen Technology
- QWERTY Keyboard & Function
- Supports Resistive Stylus input(stylus not included)
- 1.2GHz ARM Rockchip RK2918 CPU
- 1GB RAM DDR3 (depending on model)
- 8GB onboard Storage** expandable via Micro SD Card Slot (maximum 32GB)
- VGA Front Camera- for Hangouts and Skype video calls
- 4 x USB 2.0 Ports – high-speed file transfer
- Mini HDMI v1.3 Port – output HD videos to your TV
- 3.5mm Audio Port – play music to earphones or speakers
- 3.5mm Mic Input- use a microphone to record Audio
- Height – 247mm, Width – 172mm, Thickness – 24mm, Weight – 970g
- Rechargeable Lithium Polymer Battery 9000mAH 3.7V Capacity
- 802.11 b/g/n high speed wireless (requires Wi-Fi boardband access)
- RJ45 Ethernet ‘cable’ Broadband Input
- Play Full 1080p HD Movies0 x 1080 HD video
There are a few interesting things here. The one spec that demands attention is the fact it’s a resistive screen! Other things that caught my eye were an RJ45 socket for Ethernet connection, Micro SD card slot, 4 usb ports and hdmi out.
The GoNote is meant to sell for £149.99 which is decent price, but it puts it in competition with all of those cheap 7” Android tablets combined with a Bluetooth keyboard. I think it would be a really useful tool to have. Sometimes you really do not want to carry round a huge laptop or an expensive tablet. This would be ideal for checking emails on the train or as a cheap beginners laptop for a young child. Or even just as a cheap laptop to leave round the house for quick web browsing.
Obviously playing games on it would be painful using the resistive screen, but I could see it being a great media centre for the home, streaming music from Spotify or TuneIn, or even just from your memory card.
The four usb ports as well would lend themselves to no end of expansion possibilities. External hard drivers or small usb sticks could easily be used to swap files form one to another.
Hopefully in September we will get our hands on one and see how it shapes up.
Here is the official Press Release for the GoNote:
BIRMINGHAM, England | 21 August 2012
Today the dual function 10” GoNote™ is officially launched, creating a new product category. The netbook is the UK’s first combining a traditional ‘laptop’ layout with a ‘tablet’ style touchscreen, running the hugely popular Android™ 4 (Ice Cream Sandwich). GoNote is one of the first Android products specifically designed to help school-children and students with their studies, promoting creativity and productivity. GoNote also aims to bridge the digital divide by being one of the most affordable Office equipped netbooks, available for the start of the new school year for a SRP of only £149.99.
Recently, Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, scrapped the current ICT curriculum saying it was “demotivating and dull” and that “inadequate grounding in computing was in danger of damaging Britain’s economic prospects”. Sam Goult, Design Director comments, “The future business prospects for students will undoubtedly be digital, and those with a solid computing know-how will be at the forefront. An engaging piece of hardware like GoNote can help our children to make the ‘A’ grade whilst at school, entertain them with apps once the work is done, and give them the experience and vision to be the future wave of app developers.”
GoNote brings Android to the forefront of ‘work’ computing, where its not just about sofa surfing. With GoNote, Android gets serious, helping students unleash their ideas, access information, capture their thoughts and maximise their learning potential. GoNote comes with an Office suite pre-loaded so users can create, edit, collaborate and save Microsoft® Office™ format Documents, Presentations and Spreadsheets to the GoNote’s onboard storage or to the Cloud. GoNote also comes with Google Play Store™, giving users access to 400,000 Android™ Apps to help them learn, interact and relax at the end of the day.
Goult continues “GoNote™ and GoTab™ Epic are quite special – sitting in a unique place halfway between a tablet and a laptop, getting the best of both worlds. Touchscreen is intuitive to use and for kids its ideal- it’s’tap-and-go’ computing. GoNote is a must-have Back-to-School addition and a fantastic Christmas present because both parents and children will love it- its got something for everyone!”
GoNote availability: White / Black – £149.99 from September.
Source – Ergo Electronics
Via – Clove