Microsoft giving away Tablet PCs at PDC

Posted by | 11/20/2009 | 2 Comments

Acer Aspire 1420P“Giving away” may not be the most accurate phrase considering a full pass to the event could have set you back $2,095, but getting handed an Acer Aspire 1420P Tablet PC for attending PDC (Professional Developers Conference) is a darn sweet rebate.

I found word this morning from Liliputing, but apparently other sources slipped my notice the past couple days (CNET has an unboxing). Reported to include the following:

  • 11.6″ 1366 x 768 Display with multi-touch input
  • Intel Celeron SU2300 (1.2GHz, Dual-Core) processor
  • 250GB HDD
  • 2GB RAM (supports up to 8GB)
  • Intel GMA 4500MHD Graphics
  • Gigabit LAN / 802.11n Wi-Fi
  • 3G Mobile Broadband
  • Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit with touch pack and Office Professional Plus 2010 beta.

Okay, maybe a PC powered by a Celeron processor isn’t that sweet, but ensuring that serious developers have access to tablets with multi-touch input demonstrates Microsoft’s strong commitment to get multi-touch applications in Windows 7. I must wonder, of course, did I miss an earlier Tablet PC giveaway in the seven years since Microsoft announced the form factor?

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Category: Hardware

About the Author (Author Profile)

My name is Mark Sumimoto; I am Sumocat. I dabble in all areas of mobile computing, but my focus is Windows-based Tablet PCs and pen input. They’ve been part of my arsenal since 2004, and I’m proud to have pioneered the field of ink blogging, earning a spot as a Microsoft MVP for Touch and Tablets in the process. My current tools include a Fujitsu Lifebook T900, TEGA v2, and iPhone 4. Email me: sumocat [at] notebooks.com
  • W

    The Celeron processor seems to be an old branding for a new(er) low voltage processor. The processor appears to be true dual core (not HT like the current Atoms). If you look at the easiest benchmark at hand, the performance index number for CPU is significantly higher than an Atom.

    The full FAQ (including specs) is at http;//www.microsoftpdc.com/tablet.

    In the past, MSFT has given away large-ish (for the time) USB disk drives with all the software on it. They have offered (at very reduced rates – but not free) PocketPC and other devices.

  • http://bbusybookworm.blogspot.com BBusyB

    This Giveaway may have been influenced by what the Australian division did at TechEd 2009.

    There they gave away HP Mini-note 2140 to all the Paying delegates. It probably made them realise how handy it is it give everyone a computer with a custom image with everything they would need preloaded so that everyone can get started in using without having to install on a VM or on their own machine.

    Their Backstage coverage at http://www.techedbackstage.net/ is a pretty interesting read as they’ve gon into a lot of detail on what goes into planning one of these.

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