Walking around Shibuya today I noticed a new item that is hopefully the harbinger of things to come in the emerging field of handheld Internet devices. The Sharp ‘em.one’ (Japanese site) is a 4.1cm x 7cm unit held horizontally, similar to the Sony PSP which has become a ubiquitous item among high school and university students here in Tokyo. The styling is also somewhat similar as well although it appears to have a bigger screen.

Even though the unit is very slim at only 1.8cm thick it contains a slide-out qwerty keyboard and two navigation controls, one is similar to a cell phones center navigator, the other is more like a very small joystick, used for controlling the mouse. It also comes with a stylus for touch screen functionality. The slide down keyboard can also slide out to the right to reveal only the navigation controls for simple browsing, a clever idea since it is much more natural to hold it this way.

As for the OS, it runs Windows Mobile 5.0 and has wireless LAN capability, claiming 3.6Mbps Internet wireless transfer in its promotional material. Whether there is a way to connect to 3G phone networks is not clear however. Browsers included are Internet Explorer Mobile and Opera Mobile, which will be good news for some as there is a huge community of Opera users online.
Not solely an internet device, the em.one also receives television signals, allows viewing and editing of Microsoft Word and Excel files, syncs with Windows XP, Vista, and 2000 and contains a 1.3 megapixel camera on the back of the keyboard.
The em.one is available only in Japan at the moment and runs for around 40,000 yen if you opt for the two year hosting plan, close to 100,000 if you don’t.

I’ve recently been hoping to find such a device as they can make web based business much more mobile, freeing one from constantly being in the office. No word yet on when the unit will be released stateside.
There’s an interactive promotion video here, it’s in Japanese but still gives you a nice idea of the product. This device is hopefully the first of many.

Microsoft is gearing up to take on rival iPod in the digital music industry, and have brokered for top quality placement in GameStop and EB Games stores. This move indicates Microsoft’s desire to capture a market so far untapped by Apple - gamers, and marks the first time that either store has carried an mp3 player.

The launch date and pricing information for the Zune was accidentally leaked by Amazon.com last week. Zune will launch on November 14th - just in time for the holidays. It features a 3 inch screen and a 30 GB hard drive, and will be available at for $249.00, pricing that is in direct competition with Apple’s iPod Video player. So further sweeten the deal, the Zune will come preloaded with content including songs from Sub Pop, V2, Astralwerks, and Quango, as well as music videos from BT, 30 Seconds to Mars, and Paul Oakenfold. Several video clips will also be included to allow users to sample the Zune’s video playback capabilities.

Pictures of the device have also surfaced, and can be seen here. Additionally, pricing for Zune accessories have also been revealed:

• Zune Home A/V Pack and Travel Pack for $99.99
• Zune FM Transmitter for $69.99
• Premium Earphones for $39.99
• Dock for $39.99
• Remote (dock also required) for $29.99
• Car Pack for $79.99
• Various interface cables from $19.99 to $29.99

Other than the preloaded content, which frankly doesn’t interest me in the slightest, what’s the Zune got that Apple hasn’t? What do they have to convince me to switch from the iPod to the Zune? It’s not any cheaper, and they don’t offer a smaller version, like the Nano. If they want to win over the geeks like me who are already addicted to their iPods, they really have to come up with something that really sets themselves apart. I’m still waiting to be amazed.

Underlining the company’s leadership in developing hardware and drivers to support Microsoft Corp.’s Windows Vista operating system, ATI Technologies Inc. today announced that its driver has been granted the graphics industry’s first Windows Hardware Quality Lab (WHQL) certification for Windows Vista by Microsoft. WHQL certification sets a high bar for quality and reliability, and is considered essential by many business and home users.

Looks like AMD sticks with the ATI brand for now which is probably the best decision.

Dell and Apple were the first to announce major recalls of laptop batteries, and now Toshiba is joining in. The laptop batteries in question were all supplied and manufactured by Sony.

Dell and Apple’s Sony batteries were reported to overheating, in some instances causing serious personal injuries, as well as fires.

The Sony batteries used in Toshiba laptops have not been reported to have caused any injuries. However, these batteries either stop charging, or run out of power.

The Toshiba recall is projected to affect 100,000 computers in the U.S., and another 45,000 sold in Japan.

Of the Sony battery recalls this is the smallest. Dell recalled 4.1 million, while Apple recalled 1.8 million. Though despite its smaller impact on the consumer, the Toshiba recall marks the latest in a series of embarassing (and costly) manufacturing screw-ups by Sony.

After months of speculation, Nintendo has finally announced the last details of its next generation video game console - Wii. The Wii wil be released on November 19 of this year, and will go on sale at $250.

The Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess remains the company’s flagship title, and a copy of Wii Sports will be packaged with each console. Like the GameCube before it, the Wii will once again not be launching with a Super Mario title. Nintendo expects to have 25 to 30 titles available for the console by the end of the year (just in time for Christmas, perhaps?).

Games included in Wii Sports include tennis, golf, baseball, and more, all of which utilize the Wii controller’s motion sensitivity. Each system comes with just one controller, and also includes a nunchuck attachment.

If you’re looking to pick up a Playstation 3, also on sale in November, good luck. Nintendo will be shipping approximately 4 million Wii units to the US by the end of the year, while PS3’s shipped to the US will be nearly half of that number.

The Nintendo Wii will also be much more affordable than the PS3, which will cost at least $500 for the lowest level model.

The battle of the game consoles is just beginning. Which one will you be buying? (or hoping to buy? or maybe hoping to receive as a Christmas present?)

While it is purely speculative, at the moment, word has been spreading that AMD may decide to drop the ATI brand name and label all products under the singular AMD label. Want to know what’s spurring the talk? Well, marketing manager for AMD, Richard Baker, has made it clear that AMD took over ATI and that it was not a merging of two companies. On top of that, the head P.R. guy at ATI, Chris Hook, has been quoted saying that he has “no emotional attachment” to the ATI brand. Are we about to see the end of the ATI brand? Only time will tell.

I’d personally be very surprised if they dropped any of those product names or the brand ATI itself.