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"Google Chrome OS is an open source, lightweight operating system that will initially be targeted at netbooks. Later this year we will open-source its code, and netbooks running Google Chrome OS will be available for consumers in the second half of 2010. (...) Google Chrome OS is being created for people who spend most of their time on the web, and is being designed to power computers ranging from small netbooks to full-size desktop systems."

This will basically make the desktop obsolete. Sounds great.

We built litl to enjoy the web at home. When you see our main navigation screen, you'll immediately know how to use it. Just point and click. Litl eliminates menus, icons, and folders. In fact, we've removed all computer administrative debris between you and the web.

Driving litl is a joy. We’ve built the browser right into the user interface so it’s instantly available. A search box stands ready at all times. We always give you a full screen view; you never resize or juggle overlapping windows. And no matter where you are, hit the litl blue button and get back home.

When you flip litl into easel mode navigation remains easy. Inspired by an old television dial, we use a wheel to change channels. And for the remote, we've replaced a billion buttons with the same wheel design. Simple.

看起來很有趣的新筆電概念，不過我覺得獲得重大成功的機會並不明顯。稍後有時間再來多研究一下。

This is an idea that I don't see a big chance to win, but it's interesting. Will take more time to look into it later when I'm available.

Boy, do we have a nice slab of data for you to sink your teeth into today. The 3-year service history of more than 30,000 laptops has been pored over, analyzed, and reduced to gorgeous comparative charts, which you know you're dying to know more about. We should note, however, that the service was provided by SquareTrade, whose primary business is selling extended warranties, but that shouldn't completely prejudice us against reaching conclusions on the basis of the presented facts. Firstly, netbooks have shown themselves to be on average 20 percent less reliable than entry-level laptops, which in turn are 10 percent more likely to break down than premium machines. In other words, you get what you pay for -- shocking, right? The big talking point, though, will inevitably be the manufacturer comparison chart above: here ASUS and Toshiba (rather appropriately) share the winners' spoils, while HP languishes in the ignominious last place, with more than a quarter of all laptops expected to suffer a hardware fault of some kind within three years.

Not really surprising. I've always liked Asus products and the fact that they provide a 2 year manufacturers warranty with every laptops means they believe in their products.

Toshiba has always been my second favourite choice even though they've didn't offer cutting edge technology (e.g. 15" laptop with num keys, eSata ports, Blu-ray drives etc) on their laptops till months after Asus and Sony did, they've always made sure their laptops have a pretty solid build.

Thanks

"The idea for Litl really came watching my family use computers around the house," says CEO John Chuang, a serial entrepreneur best known for founding and selling Aquent (aka MacTemps). People aren't after hardware; they're after content, and that content lives on the web. The best home computer, therefore, is one that comes closest to completely disappearing. Based upon that insight, Chuang took almost three years to develop the Litl, which begins shipping this week for $699.

Your typical computer is performance oriented--when's the last time you saw Dell or HP advertising a computer's user interface (which is ruled by Microsoft anyhow), rather than the processor speed or screen inches? The Litl is designed around how people actually use their computers in the home. As such, it's not really a laptop or a netbook or even a smart TV. It's a hybrid unto itself.

The computer they produced has no hard-drive--the idea is that you don't need one, since your average at-home computer user just needs web access for getting at their content. The OS, therefore, is dead simple, and utterly devoid of clutter--web pages each get a "card," which you can click on to enlarge. The case, meanwhile, is suited to calling up content, and then sitting back to consume it: There's a traditional laptop mode, and then it flips over to an "easel" mode, suited to passive viewing. If you need a bigger screen, the device has an HDMI jack, for connecting to your TV.

On paper, the Litl may not look like much--your typical netbook is similarly powered, works offline, has a hard drive, and is $200 cheaper. But Litl isn't selling hardware specs; they're selling a stone-cold brilliant design. And to appreciate it, you have to be able to play with the device.

But for now, Litl is only being sold online. And therein lies the problem. Without handling it, you'll never appreciate the thoroughness of the design language--the scroll wheel on the laptop, echoed in the scroll wheel of the remote; the perfectly weighted hinge which doubles as a handle and hides the battery; the sturdiness of the case; the brightness of the screen; the way the packaging and branding looks domestic but not quite feminine; or even the fact that when the power pack is plugged in, a tiny, embedded LED illuminates the dot of the '"i" in "Litl".

The computer really does disappear in easel mode--you can barely see the keyboard behind, because of the black and white color contrasts of the case. All while occupying a tiny footprint, meaning that you can set it down on a nightstand, a couch, or a kitchen counter.

It all amounts to a massive gamble: Sure, computers should be better suited to how we actually use them. Litl shows they can be. But will people really appreciate the problems it solves? Or are they content with making due? The venture is self-funded. Chuang hasn't brought in venture capitalists. He wants the company to be able to tolerate risk in a way that investors would not.

As for sales, Chuang argues that if users finally get their hands on the Litl, they'll appreciate what lies behind the premium price. Meanwhile, the company is also backing up the device with a two-year money-back guarantee, on the idea that seeing is believing. And if that still doesn't convince people? James Gardner, Litl's chief marketer, offers the hard sell: "How much is it worth to you, to never have to fix your mother-in-law's computer?"

via fastcompany.com

Watching this video you realize how many vestigial elements persist on our hardware: caps lock, function keys...to name a couple. This little gem is an Intriguing concept, but not without its marketing challenges.

BTW, here is the web site for the litl: http://litl.com/

How someone can write a story like this and NOT include a URL to the product is astounding to me.

After looking at about 12 pages on the site, I came upon this page. It's a very thought-provoking piece about the decisions that the developers of litl made regarding the OS, hardware and business—and why they made them. The best part of the site for would-be Rev developers, designers and entrepreneurs.