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TAIPEI, Taiwan--Among the Windows 8-based devices that Acer announced at its Computex press conference are two white-clad Aspire 7 ultrabooks.

Both are extremely slim and light, with the smaller, 11.6-inch version measuring just 12mm thick. The 13.3-inch model has a glossy Gorilla Glass lid that reminds us of the HP Envy 14 Spectre.

Only the lid on the 13.3-inch model gets the Gorilla Glass treatment. The 11.6-inch version, however, is all aluminum, with a matte finish. Both models have touch-screen support, as you would expect from devices designed to run Windows 8.

More importantly, the displays on both ultrabooks are full-HD and from our limited time with it, the viewing angles are quite good despite all the gloss. Acer is the second PC vendor we know that's putting 1,920x1,080-pixel screens on its ultrabooks. … Read more

TAIPEI, Taiwan--While all-in-one touch screens have never lived up to the promise, the launch of Windows 8 later this year will mean a rash of new devices hitting the market. Will compelling touch-screen Windows apps for the desktop finally happen?

The bigger 7600U comes in at 27 inches and has a full HD resolution. Here, you can spot a slot-loading optical drive.

The touch screen allows up to 64 simultaneous inputs, which could have fascinating implications for multiuser programs. It can also be tilted flat like a table, and rotated for easy access.

Screen quality was excellent at first glance, and the Metro aesthetic translates really well to the large screen. We're looking forward to seeing if usability is up there as well. The product manager joked that vertically oriented, it's the world's biggest e-reader. From the sharp text we saw, he may not be far off the mark.… Read more

With four months to go before the final version of Windows 8 is expected to land, the parade of devices putting its faith behind Microsoft's next operating system has officially begun.

Acer got the ball rolling Monday at the Computex 2012 trade conference in Taipei, unveiling a bevy of Window 8-enabled devices. The company unveiled a pair of ultrabooks running Windows 8 -- considered a key combination to sparking growth in the PC market.

The Aspire S7 series includes two touch screen models: a 13-incher as well as the company's first 11.6-inch Ultrabook. The company was light … Read more

I don't get nearly enough press releases detailing the announcement of a new In-Plane Switching (IPS) monitor. All else being the same, IPS monitors are so much more satisfying and exciting to write about than their Twisted Nematic (TN) counterparts.

Much to my relative pleasure (IPS monitors are more exciting, but come on, they're still monitors), today Acer announced the release of its new IPS monitor, the Acer B243PWL.

The monitor is available now, starting at $329 and comes with Acer's standard three-year warranty.

The 24-inch monitor has a native screen resolution of 1,920x1,200 pixels, … Read more

Owners of Acer's Iconia Tab A100 and A500 tablets can look forward to a dollop of Ice Cream Sandwich in another week and a half.

An Acer support document confirmed that the two tablets are scheduled be on the receiving end of Android 4.0 in the U.S. on April 27. Other countries, including Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and Latin America, will also receive the update on or around the same time, but all updates should be out and about by the first week of May.

Released last summer with Android 3.0 Honeycomb, the Acer A100 is a … Read more

Expect the first of Intel's Ivy Bridge chip announcements on April 23, when the chipmaker will unveil its high-performance models, sources tell CNET.

The first Ivy Bridge processors will be quad-core mobile and desktop, an industry source, who is familiar with the rollout, told CNET. More power-efficient ultrabook-specific dual-core chips will come later in the quarter.

Ivy Bridge is the first in a series of upcoming Intel mainstream chips that emphasize graphics and multimedia processing over more traditional compute tasks. And most importantly for consumers, Ivy Bridge chips will power the wave of Windows 8 ultrabooks that will break … Read more

Despite a weak economy and constraints in hard-disk supplies, PC shipments scored a gain of 2.3 percent last quarter compared with a year ago, according to IDC's Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker.

Though nothing to brag about, the results surpassed the firm's February forecast of a drop of almost 1 percent.

IDC had anticipated a down quarter due to the sluggish economy, competition from mobile devices, and uncertainty about the impact of Windows 8.

The limited supply of hard-disk drives had some bearing on the industry but not as much as anticipated. Supplies have been constrained since last … Read more

The first of a series of Ivy Bridge chip announcements is expected on April 23, CNET has learned.

Previously, CNET had been told the launch would happen between April 23 and April 29. Buy today an industry source familiar with Intel's plans said the initial rollout will happen on April 23.

Ivy Bridge is the first in a series of upcoming Intel mainstream chips that emphasize graphics and multimedia processing. … Read more

The trend these days in pico projectors is bigger, brighter, and more affordable.

Take Acer's new $259 100 ANSI lumens C120 projector. It's slightly bigger than some of the early ultraportable pico projectors, but it's still very compact, measuring 1 inch by 4.72 inches by 3.23 inches (HWD) and weighing 6.34 ounces. It has native WVGA resolution (864x480) resolution, but Acer says you can upconvert to WXGA (1,280x800). Also, the projector has a USB power option if you want to connect it directly to your computer sans AC adapter.

It's worth noting, however, that if you do go with USB power, you can't project at full brightness; you get bumped down to 75 ANSI lumens. … Read more