Finally, the SmartQ V5 is available at AllPMP for $178.99/€124.73. I ordered mine immediately so you can expect videos and a full review within a few weeks. The SmartQ V5 is the successor to the SmartQ 5 (full SmartQ 5 review here) mobile internet device with a 800×480 touchscreen, wifi, bluetooth etc. The SmartQ V5 version is capable has HD video playback with HDMI output, more memory, a new design and Linux, Windows CE and Android pre-installed with multiboot.
Our friends at DealExtreme finally started selling some cheap accessories for the SmartQ 5, 7 and V7 devices. Nothing too fancy, but soft protective pouches and screen protectors are always nice to have. In typical DX style, the items are dirt cheap and the price includes worldwide shipping. Just get them while you can, because they might sell out pretty quickly.
The SmartQ V7 is now available at Allpmp for $238.90/€159.60 and is dubbed an ‘HDMID’, which basically means it now also supports HD video up to 1080p. Ofcourse, watching hi def movies on a 800×480 screen wouldn’t be tremendously useful, so Smart Devices decided to drop the USB OTG port and replace it with an HDMI port. They also decided to double the RAM and built-in flash memory to respectively 256MB and 2GB, so the device should work a bit more snappy. Sadly, all this comes at a rather steep 25% price increase, which almost places this device in the netbook price range. Luckily the SmartQ 7 is still available for $189.10/€126.33 for those who don’t need HD video playback.
Smart Devices released a new firmware version for their SmartQ 5 and SmartQ 7 MIDs. It now uses the latest version of Ubuntu 9.10, has some bugs fixed, a tweaked looked and new functionality. The added docking bar on the bottom is plain useless and annoying, but can be removed (check out this thread on Smartqmid.com for instructions). However, the best new feature is the full screen transparent keyboard pictured above. While it is a bit slow to pop on and off, it’s finally possible to thumb type on the SmartQ 5 and it works suprisingly well.
The new firmware can be downloaded from the manufacturer’s website, but because of the horrible download speeds(it took me about an hour to download the 172MB file, which usually takes me about a minute) I decided to upload the files to Megaupload and Netload. Links after the break.
It doesn’t happen too often that a company from China releases a device that immediately sparks a buzz amongst tech enthusiasts around the globe. Meizu managed to do it with their products, and now it’s Smart Devices’ turn with their Linux based SmartQ 5 and SmartQ 7 Mobile Internet Devices(MIDs). The SmartQ 5 is the smallest of the two, but unlike the term MID suggests, this pocket sized device is capable of doing much more than just some simple web browsing, mailing and instant messaging. Driven by a Ubuntu based Linux OS, the SmartQ 5 is perfectly capable of performing tasks like running e-book/comic book readers, remote desktop apps, torrent clients and some light multimedia playback.
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Everybody’s favorite 7″ mobile internet device is now available in pink for $204.90/€143.35 at Allpmp. Besides the new color, nothing has changed. It’s still the same MID we all love with it’s 7″ 800×480 touchscreen, wifi, bluetooth, multiple operating systems and tons of free applications.
While the default software keyboard of the SmartQ 5 / 7 functions pretty well, there were some things I just didn’t like. The cursor keys had a horrible layout (up, down, left, right on one line), you couldn’t enter any special characters, it didn’t have function keys and the backspace key was just too small. I decided to make my own keyboard layout…
So far, so good. The SmartQ 5 arrived in a slick and solid box. Nothing too fancy, but it will make sure the device will survive a long flight from China. Build quality of the MID is quite decent. The SmartQ 5 doesn’t sport the chrome edges pictured on the box, so it doesn’t have that iPod Touch knockoff look. The default OS is a bit sluggish, but is still pretty usable for most tasks. I ordered it from Allpmp.com for $154.90/€109. Full review coming soon and some photos after the break.
I buy most of my stuff from the following webshops. These are all very reliable, so it's safe to order from these webshops.
HouseofDAP sells quality products for good prices. Free and fast shipping.
AllPMP sells quality products from China, but also items from renowned brands like Sony and Apple for low prices. Shipping is very fast when in stock.
Lots of items, very low prices and free shipping. Orders might take a few days to ship.
Probably the most popular webshop from China. They sell practically everything. Free shipping, items might take a while to ship.
Lots of items, free shipping. Orders might take a few days to ship.
Reliable webshop, not the cheapest, but quality and a lot of products you won't find in other shops.
