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As we expected, Panasonic has officially unveiled its Atom-based UMPC in Japan, now officially called the CF-U1. As expected this tablet is powered by Intel’s Atom CPU, and to be more specific, it’s a 1.33GHz Z520 ATOM processor.

In addition, the CF-U1 tablet PC will have 1GB of RAM, 16GB SSD, a 5.6-inch wide touchscreen LCD (WSVGA), Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, USB port, audio input and offers a choice of either Windows XP or Vista Business Edition. Of course, all the rumored rugged features of this Toughbook tablet PC are finally confirmed as it is said to be dust, shock, vibration and water resistant.

Panasonic has scheduled the release of this tablet PC in Japan sometime in October. Again, we’re hoping for the international release to follow soon. No word just yet on how much the CF-U1 will set you back.

Via [Akihabara News]

So, it looks like the atom-based Panasonic UMPC we told you about a couple of months ago will finally be announced, that is, if some reliable sources are really reliable. And like we told you in our previous post, the Panasonic Toughbook UMPC will have Intel Centrino’s Atom platform and will also have a 5.6-inch touchscreen display, aside from a full QWERTY keyboard.

Additionally, this UMPC will sport various sockets which will be placed around its edges and will be covered with rubber hoods for an added water and dust proof features.

As this will be a pretty exciting new machine, we’re hoping that Panasonic won’t keep us waiting any longer and officially announce this Toughbook UMPC as rumored.

Via [PC World]

JVC may have beaten Panasonic with its three AVCHD camcorders announced yesterday, but two new Panasonic camcorders have something that the JVCs don’t have - 3MOS system which according to Panasonic provides superb video image quality. These two new Panasonic camcorders are the HDC-SD100 and HDC-HS100. Both camcorders include manual control features for zoom, focus, iris, shutter speed and white balance. They also boast of Panasonic’s new Intelligent Auto (iA) mode which automatically activates and makes video capturing easy and seamless.

As we said, these two camcorders employ a 3MOS system which has been newly developed by Panasonic based on its 3CCD technology. In simple terms, this system provides good image quality even in low-light environment, reproduces superb color, captures more vibrant, true-to-life colors and offers richer gradation of video resolution.

In addition to the 3MOS system, these two camcorders also features Panasonic’s HD Advanced Pure Color Engine and a Leica Dicomar lens which allows for the production of images in full-HD 1920x1080 resolution. These lens also allows the camcorders to have both 12x zoom power in a compact body.

Other features of these two camcorders include HD Writer 2.6 software for Windows, iMovie 08 for Apple, support for Panasonic’s VIERA link for connecting the camcorders to a VIERA HDTV using HDMI cable. It also allows the camcorder to be operated by a TV remote control.

The Panasonic HDC-SD100 and HDC-HS100 will be available sometime in September for $1,299.95 and $1,099.95 respectively.

Read [Market Wire] Via [Electronista]

Panasonic has launched the Lumix TZ50 digital camera in the US market, and as speculated when it was released in Japan last month, the camera will support direct photo uploads to Google’s Picasa web albums. Unfortunately, there is no support for direct upload to Yahoo’s Flickr site. But the the US release of the camera still sports the same features we mentioned in our coverage for its Japanese release. This include a 9.1-megapixel CCD, 28mm wide-angle lens, 10x optical zoom, HD video support, and Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g connectivity.

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A new solid state drive from Panasonic was recently announced at the ongoing NAB Show. Called the Panasonic AJ-P2C064, this disc offers the ability to record more than 2 hours of DVCPRO50, 64 minutes of DVCPRO HD or AVC-Intra 100, as well as, more than 4 hours of DVCPRO footage. Sadly the new drive is yet to be officially available, as of now the pricing is still unknown, but the drive is expected to be available during the fall of 2008. At present, Panasonic only offers a 16GB or 32GB P2 card but thanks to the introduction of the 64GB P2 users will be able to take advantage of quite a bit more available recording time.

Via [I4U]

Do people still buy standard definition video cameras? Panasonic seems to think so. The company has announced that its pocket-sized SDR-S7 will be arriving in Japan later this month. Weighing only 182grams with its battery and SD card, the camera can record 16:9 or 4:3 video at VGA (640 x 480) resolution in MPEG-2 format. The camcorder can shoot in three video modes: XP (10 Mbps), SP (5 Mbps), and LP (2.5 Mbps). Video recordings are stored via SD cards, with up to 16GB support—allowing up to 13 hours of recorded video in LP mode.  The featherweight SDR-S7 is equipped with a 2.7-inch widescreen display, 10x optical zoom, stereo microphone, 0.6 seconds Quick Start, and USB 2.0 for fast file transferring. Panasonic is touting the camcorder’s 3.8 seconds boot up time and battery life of 70 minutes. Unfortunately, no HD capability is included, which is a bummer. However, if you’re in the market for something entry-level, ultra portable, and compact the SDR-S7 should fit the bill. It even comes conveniently bundled with Panasonic’s MotionSD STUDIO 1.3 video editing software.

The Panasonic SDR-S7 measures 1.61 x 2.32 x 4.01-inches and will come in black or silver. The release date is April 25th in Japan for 44,800 Yen ($440). A US release is expected to follow in May.

Via [Electronista]

AT&T’s new mobile TV service won’t just get new phones on the next update to its handset lineup, but possibly new Panasonic cellphones with low-voltage plasma technology under the hood as well. Details about this move were revealed by the consumer electronics product maker in a recent press conference, where it announced a few revamps to their telecom and HDTV divisions.

Mark Balsama, a Group Manager of the Communications Systems Division, says that these new cellphone plasma displays will “rival OLED displays for brightness, contrast and thinness, and can be manufactured for much less money.” For much less money, eh? But how come they can’t even do it with their Plasma TVs in the first place? Anyway, Panasonic seems really keen on putting this technology to work on cellphones, and claims that they’ve been working on this for about 10 years now. One piece of advice that I’d like to offer, is that they make these cellphone displays touchscreen-enabled. And then strike at deal with Apple. That ought to help them “revolutionize the consumer electronics business.”

Via [PR Newswire]

Do you find yourself digging through jackets to find your phone?  Do you dig through the hamper chasing a funky ringtone after leaving your phone in a pants pocket?  If you are like me, you’ve taken many trips, running through your pad trying to track down that ringing mobile phone.  And if you too perform this act, more often than not it stops ringing just as you were getting close.  Panasonic aims to stop our panic run.

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Panasonic has upgraded its Toughbook 19 rugged convertible tablet PC, and they have upgraded it big time. If the previously release of the Panasonic Toughbook 19 was all about durability and defying severe physical conditions, the new Toughbook 19 is more about power and processing capability.

The new Panasonic Toughbook 19 now features a Core 2 Duo processor, 1GB of RAM and an 80GB hard drive. Panasonic even poured in an anti-glare, anti-reflective sunlight viewable display, a backlit keyboard, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth connectivity, mobile broadband-ready (WWAN), GPS and a 2-megapixel webcam. In short, after releasing a sub-performing Toughbook 19, Panasonic is now offering the real deal, which comes in a 5.1-pound package.

Now with all those upgrades comes the biggest upgrade of all, the Panasonic Toughbook 19’s price tag shoots up to an estimated price of $3,199.

Read [Panasonic] Via [Engadget]

Panasonic has announced the Lumix TZ50, a Wi-Fi enabled digital camera that looks and performs like the previously released Lumix TZ5. The 10x optical zoom, the 3-inch LCD and the appearance of the Lumix TZ50 are reminiscent of the older Lumix TZ5. But that’s not saying that the Lumix TZ50 has nothing better to offer. The Lumix TZ50 is a powerful digital camera in itself besides having built-in Wi-Fi 802.11b/g. 

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