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Sharp Mebius Subnotebook Review

Posted by timothy on from the smallness dept.

Tong writes "PDA Buyer's Guide has published a hands-on review of the Sharp Mebius CV50. "The smallest notebook we've seen in years. This Japanese Import is available translated into English from Dynamism, and is smaller than a hardback book. It weights just under two pounds, has a 1 GHz Efficeon processor, a wide screen 7.2" display and absolutely stunning looks and style." Read the full review."

11 of 195 comments (clear)

  1. Wow by postgrep · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Finally a laptop that isn't a brick! my back will be saved!

  2. Re:The real reason this on slashdot... by xanthines-R-yummy · · Score: 3, Interesting
    Oh yeah, the reason I thought it would be more compatible:

    Sharp produces a product that actually IS a PDA which runs linux quite well.

  3. Not a good bang for the buck by ciurana · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I have purchased several items from Dynamism. While I've been happy for the most part, I believe that this machine is overpriced in relation to what you get out of it. With a $1,900 USD tag, you might as well get a 12" PowerBook that will do a similar or better job, have a better screen, and include built-in wireless, Bluetooth, Ethernet, modem, etc. with about the same footprint. You'd get OS X. You can run Office:Mac if you must, at about the same price as MS-Office or cheaper. You'll have access to better quality software (i.e. OmniGraffle vs. Visio) if you must pay for it, or tons of OSS stuff that just compiles and runs, or installs with a button click.

    Besides, chicks dig the PowerBooks. They look cool, not geeky.

    Cheers,

    E

    --
    http://eugeneciurana.com | http://ciurana.eu
  4. Re:a $1900 sub-laptop, read all about it by jarich · · Score: 2, Interesting
    Agreed... for 2 grand I'm going to have a nice big screen with a 64 bit AMD chip in the laptop! Actually, those are going for $1,500 these days...

    Does anyone actually need a small laptop enough to pay that much of a premium for it?

    --
    Agile Artisans
  5. Concidentally the Sharp Mebius PC-RD3D... by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 3, Interesting

    ... was renamd the " Sharp Actius RD3D " for the US market. The Mebius PC-RD3D was the first autostereo display notebook ever made, released around a month or two later, under a different name for the US market. Maybe if this new Mebius CV50 comes to the US, it will be renamed the Actius CV50 ?

  6. Sorry, Fujitsu P-1000 series was out much earlier by frank_adrian314159 · · Score: 2, Interesting
    OK. Someone tell me how this is better than the P-1000 series from Fujitsu?

    Although it weighs 0.1 pounds less and has a (slightly) faster processor, it also is 1 inch wider (though its screen - non-touch pad, BTW - is an inch narrower), it's battery life is shorter, and it doesn't have a built-in modem and cabled ethernet socket. All-in-all, I don't see a lot of difference and what is different seems to be worse. Oh yeah, the P-1000 is also less expensive at $1200 and doesn't need a third party to retrofit for English use.

    So again, why is this news?

    --
    That is all.
  7. Re:a $1900 sub-laptop, read all about it by joggle · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I know, but it seems that something with an iPod hard drive, a 7" color LCD, a cheap CPU (just enough to do terminals and x-windows) and an integrated wireless card or ethernet card shouldn't cost $2k. Not that the product in the article meets these specs (it would be overkill of course), I'm just wondering why, AFAIK, such a product doesn't exist yet.

  8. PowerBooks are VERY heavy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Compare mm20 to a 12 inch powerbook
    MM20 is only 1.99 pounds while a 12 inch powerbook weighs 4.6 pounds. Besides,12 inch powerbooks have a BIG defect: NO PC CARD SLOT (MM20 has a PC Card slot, 2 High Speed USB slots, audio and video out slots)

    I like to read books while traveling; for this reason I need to be able to hold a laptop in a single hand for hours. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DO THIS with a PowerBook; no problem with MM20

    Another defect of the powerbooks: the trackpad drivers under linux are not good ; whathever driver I use, the mouse is very jumpy. In contrast mm20 runs without problems under linux, everything works perfectly, including the wireless card; no jumpy mouse under linux.

  9. Re:They could have done without the screen bezel by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Well, in their defence (?), the thing *does* cost $1900 already.

    I think the reason it cost more was because of it's miniaturisation rather than the screen size. A slightly larger screen with the same horizontal and vertical resolution (not dpi) shouldn't cost much more. In fact, it probably may cost less, because pixel density may cost more. They should have made the monitor lid thicker to put whatever electronics are in the bezel behind the screen.
  10. A better sub-notebook is coming (a tablet, too) by galtenberg · · Score: 2, Interesting

    None of the sub-notebooks introduced since Sony released the C1 series has given us a reason to upgrade. My C1XS (PII 400Mhz, 128Mb RAM, 30gig HD) is 5 years old and is still thinner and smaller (9.81"x5.99"x1.14", 2.21lb) than its later lookalikes.

    Only one model is even up for consideration, in my mind (no, not even the Sony U50/70 - you -gotta- have a real keyboard attached). The Flybook is gonna have _everything_, including GPRS, and it's a tablet, too. Exactly what I've been waiting for. Would the rest of you Far East-whipped toy companies wake up and get us computers like these?

  11. Re:a $1900 sub-laptop, read all about it by Bazzargh · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I just did some digging again and found a component based solution which does some of this stuff, unfortunately its *even more* expensive:
    http://www.antelopetech.com/en/index.a spx?view=i-o rdering_OnlineOrdering.htm

    thats based around a 3" x 5" x 3/4" "modular computing core" ... this was an IBM invention around the time of the OQO's original debut, if you recall; Antelope licensed it. The trouble is, even as components, the core (CPU, HD) is $1.5k and the handheld shell (battery, screen) is another $1.5k. Eek.