Android By Lee Mathews Apr. 28, 2014 1:45 pm
Heads up, people: HP’s toying with yet another OS on their laptops. A leaked 14-inch model was just spotted running Android, and it could have some hidden gaming power under its hood.
Unlike HP’s Chromebook 14, this new model doesn’t use an Intel processor. It’s running an Nvidia chip, though it’s not yet known whether the leaked Slatebook runs an Nvidia Tegra 4* or a K1. Either way, there’s a good chance that it could be GameStream compatible like Shield. If it is, then this laptop could turn out to be a very low-cost way for you to play your PC games without being stuck in front of your desktop or waiting for the HTPC to be freed up.
What else was revealed in the leaked video (which has already been pulled from the company site)? The Slatebook 14 will ship with 2GB of RAM, 16GB of onboard storage, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Beats Audio. The keyboard has been tweaked for Android: you’ll find menu and home buttons next to the control key. There’s also an airplane mode button in the top row, so 3G/4G compatibility may be baked in.
It’s also apparently been given the thumbs up by Google, who haven’t been too keen on letting OEMs put Android on laptops up until now. They preferred companies like HP stick with Chrome OS, but that might be changing. HP notes that the Slatebook offers full Google Play access, which seems to indicate official approval from Mountain View.
Android laptops aren’t exactly common, at least not from major PC OEMs. Other companies — like Asus — have built convertibles, but actual laptops are pretty rare. Toshiba built one a few years ago, but it never really garnered much attention.
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Unlike HP’s Chromebook 14, this new model doesn’t use an Intel processor. It’s running an Nvidia chip, though it’s not yet known whether the leaked Slatebook runs an Nvidia Tegra 4* or a K1. Either way, there’s a good chance that it could be GameStream compatible like Shield. If it is, then this laptop could turn out to be a very low-cost way for you to play your PC games without being stuck in front of your desktop or waiting for the HTPC to be freed up.
What else was revealed in the leaked video (which has already been pulled from the company site)? The Slatebook 14 will ship with 2GB of RAM, 16GB of onboard storage, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Beats Audio. The keyboard has been tweaked for Android: you’ll find menu and home buttons next to the control key. There’s also an airplane mode button in the top row, so 3G/4G compatibility may be baked in.
It’s also apparently been given the thumbs up by Google, who haven’t been too keen on letting OEMs put Android on laptops up until now. They preferred companies like HP stick with Chrome OS, but that might be changing. HP notes that the Slatebook offers full Google Play access, which seems to indicate official approval from Mountain View.
Android laptops aren’t exactly common, at least not from major PC OEMs. Other companies — like Asus — have built convertibles, but actual laptops are pretty rare. Toshiba built one a few years ago, but it never really garnered much attention.
More...
