Medion "affordable" UMPC means more gadgetry with your groceries : Shiny Shiny

Medion's new UMPC aims to corner the entry level market before the big guns have really even taken off. At £799.99 (although prices may subsequently come down), the RIM 1000 will be available to buy online from May 2007. However, Medion are planning a supermarket launch towards the end of the year.

So does the "budget" UMPC skimp on features? To be honest, not really. More specs and speculation after the jump, and you can expect a video review soon.

A reasonably portable device, the UMPC is handbag-sized at just 28.3mm thick. Slide the ample 6.5" touchscreen up, and a full QWERTY keyboard emerges below. Comfortable for typing? More or less, with some practice. If you'd rather point and click there's a choice of stabbing fingers, stylus or trackpad.

It runs Vista Home Premium Edition, and they've opted for an energy-efficient VIA processor so that the battery life is extended. Bluetooth and WiFi are integrated, although GPS is not. Plans are afoot, Medion assure us, to build the GoPlay technology they're touting into future models.

There's even an integrated webcam so that you can ~~talk to your mates~~ conference call the office.

Is it sexy? Not exactly, but it's smooth and black and not unattractive. Plus there's a leather case and someone's bound to knit / paint / construct some sort of skin for it. A range of bells and whistles accessories will be available from June 2007 including the possibility to make the most of the decent-sized screen by adding a DMB-TV receiver (of the sort the Prada phone has just had an upgrade for).

Medion is definitely reaching out for the lifestyle options. The new GoPlay satnav models are all about MP3 players that can also be GPS (linking up to Google Earth afterwards to plot your course), with the future aim of incorporating fitness functionality like heart monitors.

So the question is, do you buy your gadgets with your groceries? We can already pick up quite a few gizmos, but would you shell out £800 in Tescos on a UMPC? Whilst wandering past the fruit and veg in Sainsbury's, would you think "ah, yes, I must drop a chunk as large as my mortgage payment on a mobile internet device"? I'm inclined to say no, but please, feel free to argue.

Medion