Remember that press event HTC’s got coming up early next week? There are plenty of rumored HTC devices that could be announced — and a few in particular we know readers are pulling for — but it looks like we’ve got at least one here that’s a lock to see the spotlight. Known to many by the codename “Nike,” the HTC Touch Slide takes the original Touch’s small, finger-friendly package and makes good on two of its indiscretions by adding a slide-out keyboard (similar in layout to RIM’s SureType) and a 3G radio. Other features should include WiFi, 128MB of RAM, 256MB of Flash, and from what we can tell, a diminutive case that holds true to its forebear despite the fresh slide mechanism.
[Via MoDaCo, thanks ZSX]

Gallery: HTC Touch Slide

    
from engadget

Hot on the heels of Matra’s MS1 comes yet another human / electric-powered hybrid bike, but Marcus Levison-Hays’ Electrobike Pi definitely rocks a more unorthodox design. This blindingly red transporter “combines the lightweight portability of a bicycle with speed and self-propulsion more akin to a motorcycle,” as it includes a 36-volt pack of NiMH batteries that provides “about one horsepower” to the 58-pound device. The unit can be fully charged “from any standard household outlet in 2.5 to 3 hours and can run for 25 to 30 miles,” and according to a report from the LA Times, the 20mph maximum stock speed can be increased to around 46mph “with a little after-market hot rodding.” Granted, the base price on this thing is said to be around $7,500, so it looks like the most of us will have to stick with the trusty Huffy ten-speed for the time being.

[Via AutoblogGreen]
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We know, Microsoft’s resurrection of the SideWinder brought back fond memories for most us of, but with all the alternatives already out there in the gaming mouse niche, it’s going to take a bit more than fuzzy feelings to get our $80. Thankfully, the folks over at I4U News spent some quality time with the new SideWinder mouse, and after realizing that it looks a bit gentler in person, they proceeded to crank through hours of gaming to see how it fared. Notably, the LCD screen was dubbed “actually useful,” the 2,000dpi was said to be “plenty of sensitivity,” and the thumb buttons were deemed “perfect from a tactile feedback perspective.” Still, reviewers found more hype than substance in the Quick Turn button, and while the scroll wheel seemed “great for gaming,” it wasn’t as friendly during everyday tasks. Nevertheless, the crew awarded the revived critter a very generous nine out of ten stars, but if you’ve still got your doubts, hit the read link and check out the full skinny.

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Sure, we’ve seen all flavors of electric motorcycles over the years, but Matra’s iteration takes a slightly different approach. The MS1 looks more like a bicycle and less like a Harley, and it provides commuters with a backup source of energy that should never fail so long as you’re properly fed, hydrated and rested. That source, of course, would be your legs / feet, which can pedal this bad boy away long after the electric motor runs out of steam. Reportedly, the bike has a range of around 62 miles without any pedal assistance, captures usable energy when you apply the brakes, and sports a speed limiter that kills the juice just before you exceed 28mph. No word on when this thing will hit shops, but it’ll supposedly run you around €3,500 ($4,951) whenever it does. Click out a couple more shots after the break.

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Well, here’s the shiny little Centro, in all its slightly-less-than-breathtaking beauty. Truth be told, the phone doesn’t look or feel too bad — we still don’t get the gray stripe through the middle, but what can you do? The keyboard is unbelievably tiny, but we’ll take it where we can get it. The surface of the cherry red or metallic black phone is quite slick, and we suspect will go tumbling out of sweaty hands like gang busters. Of course, the EV-DO connection was snappy, but the thing we’re most stoked about is the fact that Palm has finally eliminated that 2-pixel border around the screen. Hey, no new OS… but that border is gone. The Centro is due mid-October for the shockingly low price of $99.99, which should help push more than a couple of these out the door. Hit the gallery and check out all the hot photos.

Gallery: Hands-on with the Palm Centro

    

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ASUS is showing off their design chops again today with the introduction of the U6S. That nudges their total laptop model tally to 48 by our count — we’re not talking custom builds mind you; ASUS now offers forty-fracking-eight different series of laptops with an endlessly complex matrix of submodels — the apparent curse of being both an OEM and retail brand. That travesty aside, the new 12.1-inch U6S design is simply smokin’ in our not so humble opinion. Hitting Europe in October for €1,999 (about $2,833), it offers a balanced compromise of power and portability with a sweet list of specs tucked into that sleek little 3.3-pound (1.5-kg) package.

[Via DailyTech]

• LED backlit 1,280 x 800 display with an integrated 0.3 megapixel webcam
• Core 2 Duo T7500 processor
• HDMI and SPDIF outputs
  
• 802.11a/g/n WiFi, Gigabit Ethernet, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, and HSDPA data
• 128MB of nVIDIA GeForce 8400M G graphics
• 250GB disk and 2GB DDR2 memory
• Dual-layer DVD writer
• ExpressCard 54/34 slot, fingerprint reader, 8-in-1 memory card reader, 4x USB
  
• 5-hours of juice off optional 6-cell battery
  

Also announced are updates to their G2S and F8S laptops. In short, the 14.1-inch F8S sees a bump to 512MB of ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2600 graphics while G2S Extreme Limited Edition now offers an overclockable 2.6GHz X7800 Core 2 Extreme processor for all your gaming delights.

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ASUS’ R2H UMPC — one of the original trio of UMPCs — has finally ditched that 900MHz Celeron in favor of Intel’s latest A110 processor. Better yet perhaps, the new R2E UMPC now combines HSDPA with 802.11b/g WiFi to live up to its previously unrealized, “ultra-mobile” namesake. There’s also a beefier 80GB disk option with up to 1GB of DDR2-400 memory now supported. Otherwise, its physical appearance remains unchanged as does that 7-inch 800 x 480 display and optional integrated GPS. €1,119 (incl. VAT) or about $1,586 when it drops for Europe next month.

[Via DailyTech]
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