Computer and Technology

At first we considered making sarcastic comments about paying the same for a miniature 7" monitor that you would for a monitor three times the size. Then we took a closer look at the Mimo Mini USB monitor and realized it is powered entirely via USB, no external AC adaptor or video card needed. This miniature display marvel also runs in landscape or portrait mode and also comes in a touchscreen version. Mimo Mini, we think we love you - full specs after the jump.

News site TechCrunch on Monday said that its CrunchPad tablet project has 'self destructed' due to a legal dispute. The touchscreen slate was to have been unveiled soon but is effectively being shut down as the actual developer, Fusion Garage, has claimed it will sell the device without further input from the co-developer and would only carry the CrunchPad name, using site founder Michael Arrington only as a product evangelist.

Arrington has rejected the option and pointed out that the decision, supposedly made under pressure from Fusion Garage's shareholders, amounts to intellectual property theft. TechCrunch had been jointly developing the product and still owns both part of the technology rights as well as the CrunchPad name. The site is filing lawsuits to prevent the sale without its involvement and refuses to accept any counter-offers, comparing it to a contractor betraying its client at the last minute.

"This is the equivalent of Foxconn, [which builds] the iPhone, notifiying Apple a couple of days before launch that they’d be moving ahead and selling the iPhone directly without any involvement from Apple," Arrington wrote.

The project was intended to prove that a web-only, touchscreen device could be made for $300 and was receiving help from multiple sources to reach that price target, including a "major multi-billion dollar retail partner" that would have sold it at cost, steep discounts from Intel for Atom processors, and ad sponsors that would subsidize the cost of the device. It would have carried a 12-inch capacitive touchscreen, run Linux and had just 4GB of storage onboard, instead depending entirely on sites like Hulu, YouTube and others for media and similar features; it could also have theoretically run Google's Chromium OS or even Windows 7.

Many had expected the CrunchPad to stand as an alternative to closed-source and likely more expensive alternatives expected next year that could include, among others, Apple's rumored tablet or a production version of the Microsoft Courier.

As promised, Canadian wireless and cable provider Bell on Monday has began offering the Novatel Wireless MiFi 2372 Intelligent Mobile Hotspot. The device uses Bell's recently launched HSPA network and will let up to five users share a single 3G connection over Wi-Fi.

The announcement makes Bell the first to carry the MiFi 2372 in Canada. The device is compatible with Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems and will allow for 7.2Mbps transfer speeds, which is fast enough for streaming video and some forms of online gaming. The MiFi also has a microSDHC memory card slot, letting it double as a thumb drive.

The Novatel router is available for $100 CAD ($94) on a three-year data contract or for $250 CAD ($235) without a contract.

Sources from: electronista

Japanese PC maker Kohjinsha has taken its dual screen notebook concept it showed off at last month's CEATEC show and made it into a production PC. The DZ6HKE16E is the first of the DZ-series of notebooks, and comes with a 1.6GHz AMD Athlon Neo MV-40 CPU, 1GB of RAM. There is also an integrated ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics chipsets to drive the two 10.1-inch displays, each with 1024x600 resolution and an LED backlight.

For storage, there is a 160GB hard drive preloaded with Windows 7 Home Premium and users can connect to the web over the Wi-Fi connection or gigabit Ethernet port. A 1.3-megapixel camera, Bluetooth 2.1 and a multi-card reader are integrated, while the battery is said to provide 4.5 hours of life on a full charge. The system weighs just over 4lbs. There are also three USB 2.0 ports onboard.

Prices start at the equivalent of $928 in Japan and the PC is now available. A release in North America is unknown.