Samsung was showing off the Series 3 Chromebox here at CES and given it was sitting just to the side of the shiny new Series 5 Chromebook, we figured we would take some time and check it out. The Chromebox is nice enough to look at and as you can see from the images, it ships with a rather nice looking wireless keyboard and mouse. Similar to the Chromebook, the Chromebox is running Chrome OS. Except, unlike our enthusiasm for the Chromebook we are not really feeling the same for the Chromebox. Somehow, running Chrome OS feels right on a notebook, but not so right on a small mini desktop computer. Oh well, that is just our opinion and we have to imagine that there is a market for this somewhere. With that, hit the gallery below to check out the left, right, front, back and top sides of the computer along with a few shots of the peripherals.

Coming out of CES, Samsung has unveiled some new Chrome OS devices. The new models will include the Series 3 Chromebox and a Series 5 Chromebook. In terms of the Chromebook, this one is going to arrive sporting a 12.1 inch display along with a Celeron processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage and is expected to arrive sometime in the second quarter of 2012. As for the price, $399 for a Wi-Fi only model and $449 for a Verizon capable 3G model.

Moving over to the Chromebox and we have quite a bit less to go on. In other words, Samsung has yet to offer up much in terms of those specs. From what we can see from the model sitting on the CES show floor, the Chromebox will have a handful of ports to include USB, headphone, DVI and Display Port. Otherwise, the Chromebox will ship with a wireless keyboard and mouse and is expected to be priced right around the $400 mark. And lastly, similar to the Chromebook, the Chromebox will debut during Q2 2012.

We’ve seen at least one of Sony’s experimental products at CES 2012 this week. Today, we’ve stumbled upon a concept of what VAIO PCs could look like in the future. Sony simply calls this prototype “Slate.” It has a super thin, illuminated keyboard and a monitor that isn’t connected to anything. It honestly looks like a keyboard and tablet, but it’s not. It’s a VAIO PC. Check out our gallery of this very attractive piece of machinery after the break.

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Read [GadgeTell @ CES 2011]

Yes, I know that headline is a mouthful, but it’s the only way to properly describe one of Sony’s newest prototype PCs. Sony is trying its hand at glasses-free 3D displays. At CES 2012, Sony had a few glasses-free 3D TVs on display and one all-in-one VAIO PC. 

I sat down in front of the PC and observed a trailer for Underworld: Awakening. I was told the PC’s camera would lock on to me and provide me with an optimal glasses-free 3D viewing experience based on my positioning. After waiting a few seconds, the 3D effect gradually got better. The double images I was seeing soon became one image.

The 3D effect was not as prominent as some of the displays I’ve seen that require glasses, but I could definitely tell a difference.

Unfortunately, I started to get a slight pain right between my eyes while watching the 3D trailer. I know it wasn’t psychosomatic because I never thought about eye strain before I sat down.

Like I said, the VAIO all-in-one glasses-free 3D PC is a prototype, so maybe Sony will work everything out before it hits stores.

Read [GadgeTell @ CES 2012]

Vizio has officially entered the PC market. At CES 2012, Vizio will debut three laptops and two all-in one PCs. These devices should be on sale by June of this year, but specific prices haven’t been revealed. Vizio’s Chief Technology Officer Matt McRae teased the issue when speaking with Businessweek by saying prices for the computers will be so low they won’t “seem possible.” If Vizio’s success in the television market is any indication, we can believe McRae’s statement.

Vizio’s first desktop PCs will have screen sizes of 24 and 27 inches. The three laptops will have 14-inch and 15.6-inch screens. Two of the laptops will be ultra thin which will put them in direct competition with the various ultrabooks that will be released this year. Vizio’s computers will also interact with the company’s televisions and audio systems much like the Vizio tablet.

Read [Businessweek]

There isn’t much to go on from Canonical’s shot blog post, but a new UI design for PCs or tablets would seem likely. Users aren’t exactly happy with the current Unity UI that the latest versions fo Ubuntu use. It would make sense for the company to make some changes to appease those users before too many of them jump ship to Linux Mint or any other the the other Linux distributions. Or it could just be a prototype design for an Ubuntu tablet which Canonical has said it want to do in the near future.

Read [Canonical]

With the excitement and anticipation on what new gadgets will be showcased at the upcoming CES 2012 in Las Vegas, Velocity Micro just revealed its new wares which include – projector, a workstation and of course its latest generation of Cruz tablets. Let’s have a quick look at what these new wares are all about.

First on the list is the Velocity Micro Shine projector which is said to be utilizing DLP technology, LED illumination, and a patent pending optical engine which produce big picture quality and crisp, bright and clear images whether you are projecting on screens, walls or even ceilings. The projector will retail for $400. Next is the Velocity Micro ProMagix HD6000, a powerful workstation which the company claims delivers some of the most powerful hardware ever assembled in a retail configuration. Said workstation provides QUAD SLI support, Intel Server NICs, 12-core processors and will be available for $3500.The rest of its specs are equally impressive and include – 32GB DDR3-1600 RAM, NVIDIA Quadro 4000 graphics, 120GB SSD, 1TB 7200 RPM storage drive, Blu ray Burner and Windows 7 Professional. Then there’s the VMUltra Drive which connects to your notebook, desktop or ultrabook via USB and can serve as an external optical drive, USB hub and 500GB back-up storage. This baby will cost $180.

Finally, Velocity Micro will also launch its two latest tablets – the Cruz Tablet T507 and Cruz Tablet T510. The Cruz T507 packs a 7-inch capacitive touch screen, Cortex A8 1.2 GHz processor, 8GB internal storage, HDMI out, front-facing camera and Android 4.0. It will retail for only $150. The T507 on the other hand features a 9.7-inch screen and has the same specs and features as the T507. Pricing for this tablet is still unknown.

Via [PRWeb]

Lenovo is claiming to have the title of “world’s smallest desktop PC” with its new IdeaCentre Q180. While the claim may just be Lenovo’s boasting, the Q180 is certainly a small PC standing at just about the size of a DVD case.

The Lenovo IdeaCentre Q180 can be so small because it’s really a nettop: somewhat underpowered, but perfect if you want to use it as a Home Theater PC. Inside the Q180 you’ll find an Intel Atom CPU clocked at 2.13GHz, 4GB of RAM, and either a 500GB HDD or 128GB SSD. The base Q180 alone doesn’t have a discrete GPU, or disc drive, but Lenovo does offer options for a Radeon HD 6450A 512MB discrete GPU, a Blu-ray or DVD drive, or a larger HDD. The Blu-ray and DVD drives are external, and roughly double the size of the Q180. The Blu-ray drive does support 3D, though, so the trade-off could be worthwhile. Not to mention the fact that the whole machine can easily be hidden by attaching it to you TV.

The Q180 will also come with a wireless keyboard/mouse remote to make it easy to use from your couch, as long as you’re not intimidated by remotes with lots of buttons. It should be a great way to watch your video from any source right on your TV, no matter what service you get it from. Lenovo also claims it’s great for gaming, but unless you’re playing games that aren’t very graphically-intense like Peggle, Plants vs Zombies, or World of Warcraft, you might want to stick with OnLive for games on this thing.

The Lenovo Q180 starts at $349, which is $250 less than the Mac mini, which is one of the more popular HTPC options out there.

Read [Lenovo] via [The Verge]

It’s not everyday we come across decently discounted Apple products. That’s why if you know you are going to purchase a MacBook, MacBook Air or Mac mini, now is the time to strike. Apple will be holding its own Black Friday sale soon, but MacMall is currently at the end of its 37-hour sale. It ends today at 1pm Pacific.

Expect to save hundreds of dollars on various MacBook models. The lowest priced MacBook Air is $799 which translates to nearly $200 in savings. The iPad hasn’t been discounted, but the 4th generation iPod Touch has received a small discount.

The list of discounts we listed below aren’t all MacMall has to offer. There are several other models for sale as well.

• 11.6″ MacBook Air dual-core Intel Core i5 1.6GHz, 2GB RAM, 64GB Flash Storage, Intel HD Graphics 3000, Mac OS X Lion – $939.94
• 13.3″ MacBook Pro dual-core Intel Core i5 2.3GHz, 4GB RAM, 320GB – $1039.99
• 13.3″ MacBook Air 2.13GHz, 4GB RAM, 256GB Flash Storage – $1,149.99
• 21.5″ iMac Quad-Core Intel Core i5 2.5GHz, 4GB RAM, 500GB Hard Drive – $1,120.43
• 8GB Fourth Generation iPod Touch – $189.98
• Kensington KeyFolio Pro Performance Keyboard Case for iPad 2 – $38.01
• iHome App-enhanced Dual Alarm Stereo Clock Radio for your iPhone/iPod – $77.99
• Mac mini Dual-Core Intel Core i5 2.3GHz, 2GB RAM, 500GB Hard Drive – $568.95
• Otterbox iPhone 4S Defender Series Case – $28.79

Site [MacMall]

The next retailer on our Black Friday 2011 list is Office Depot. Office Depot will open its doors at 6am on Black Friday, and will close at 9pm. These deals will be valid until closing time Saturday. If you can’t wait that long, some Black Friday deals will be offered on Office Depot’s website on Thanksgiving day. However, the deals we’re about to show you will be only available in-store.

As our headline suggests, the BlackBerry PlayBook will be sold for $199. Staples will also be selling the PlayBook for $199 on Black Friday. Office Depot also dug up some 32GB HP TouchPads for $149.99, but you’ll have to purchase a HP computer to get the deal. Boo.

Other deals include discounted monitors, external hard drives, flash drives, cameras and other PC accessories. Comb through our list of highlighted deals below.

• BlackBerry PlayBook – $199
• Purchase any HP PC and get a 32GB HP Touchpad for $149.99
• 17.3-inch HP laptop with 4GB of memory and a 500GB hard drive – $349.99
• 15.5-inch Gateway laptop with 4GB of memory and a 320GB hard drive – $299.99
• 15.6-inch Toshiba laptop with 6GB of memory and a 500GB hard drive – $399.99
• Acer desktop with 4GB of memory and 500GB hard drive – $239 (monitor not included)
• Lenovo IdeaPad K1 Tablet – $299.99
• Acer 18.5 LCD monitor – $69.99
• Samsung 21.5 LCD monitor – $119.99
• 8GB flash drives – $8.99
• 8GB Sandisk SD cards – $8.99
• Toshiba 1 terabyte external hard drive – $79.99
• Seagate 2 terabyte desktop hard drive – $79.99
• Buy one, get one free Sony earbuds – $9.99
• Logitech Wireless Optical Mouse – $7.49
• Canon 14.1 megapixel digital camera – $149.99
• M Edge case – $9.99 (with purchase of any Kindle)
• HP all-in-one printer, copier, scanner and fax machine – $49.99

Via [Black Friday]