If Google's calling their Snapdragon-based Nexus One a "superphone," then LG has the right to call their Intel Atom-packing GW990 darn near anything they want. The GW990, with its 4.8" widescreen display and Ultra Low Voltage Intel Moorestown processor, won't hit the market until later this year, and isn't, in its current incarnation, the most practical device for sticking in your pocket and using for a daily diet of calls and texts. But man, is it nifty.
We got a back-room demo of the GW990 in action, and most of what we saw was meant to show off how much it can do, and how much it can do all at the same time. First we saw high-def video being played at full 1024 x 480 resolution. Then we saw the video shrunk into a half-sized window to make room for a newly-launched SMS window next to it. Then we saw both of those windows minimized a tad more to make way for the launching of a calendar app. Three apps running side by side by side without a hitch - nary an audiovisual stutter was to be seen or heard the whole way through.
LG said the GW990 - or other devices like it - could run Android or another Linux-based platform when it launches later this year (if i understood them correctly, anyway). The demo we saw used LG's own S-Class UI, which looked great but doesn't quite have the marketability of, say, "The world's fastest Android phone." Snapdragons beware: ULV Atoms are coming to town. The jury's still out on what mobile processor will wind up yielding the best combination of performance, portability and battery life, but in Vegas last week all eyes were on that Intel-based LG GW990.
Previous: Lenovo LePhone
Next: Palm Pre Plus
