Toshiba intros the Portege M780 tablet and Satellite Pro U500 laptop
Toshiba's Digital Products Division has today officially released a couple of touch-enabled portable PCs, the Portégé M780 convertible tablet and the Satellite Pro U500 laptop. Both these products are pre-loaded with Windows 7 Professional which features built-in touch capabilities, and include Toshiba's touch-enabled ReelTime and Bulletin Board applications, which help users more easily find and organize information.
The Portégé M780 boasts a 12.1–inch LED backlit (1280x800) display, a spill resistant keyboard, and makes use of a Core i5-520M or i7-620M CPU, up to 8GB of RAM, a 250/320GB or an 128GB SSD, integrated graphics, and a DVD writer. This model starts at $1,279 and has a one-year warranty (which can be extended to 4 years).
As for the Satellite Pro U500, this one starts at $949 or $1,099, depending on the CPU option - a Core 2 Duo or 32nm Core, 
HP readies the EliteBook 2540p notebook and 2740p convertible tablet
More portable PC fun is prepared by HP who's cooking up a couple of fresh EliteBook series machines, the EliteBook 2540p rugged notebook and the EliteBook 2740p convertible tablet. Set to start off at $1,099, the 3.3-pound 2540p features a 12.1-inch LED-backlit display, an Intel Core i5/i7 processor, up to two hard drives (or one HDD and one optical drive), a 2 megapixel webcam with business card reader software, Gobi-powered mobile broadband, and a 3-, 6- or 9-cell battery, the for up to 4, 8 or 10.5 hours of operation respectively.
The EliteBook 2740p starts a 3.8 pounds and $1,599, has a 12.1-inch screen that can be equipped with multi-touch, has specs similar to the 2540p, and has a 6-cell battery for up to 5 hours of uptime. Those who want more will be able to get the HP 2700 Ultra-Slim Battery and use the laptop for up to 11 hours on one charge.
The EliteBook 2740p and 2540p meet the MIL-STD 810G military-standard tests for vibration, dust, humidity, altitude, and high and low temperatures. Both models are expected to start shipping in the US next month.
