Summary: Samsung showed off a range of Windows 8-powered mobile devices at IFA in Berlin - two Smart PC hybrid tablet-notebooks, a 10.1-inch tablet and a smartphone.
Samsung ATIV Smart PC :
Samsung has taken the wraps off a range of Windows-powered devices at IFA in Berlin, breaking out a new brand for the two Smart PCs, phone and tablet.
ATIV (the Latin word 'vita', or 'life', spelt backwards) is the umbrella name for the family of Windows-powered devices, the South Korean company announced on Wednesday.
Heading up the new range is a pair of tablet/notebook hybrids, the ATIV Smart PC and Smart PC Pro. The Windows 8 devices come with a detachable keyboard-docking station that lets users switch between a tablet and clamshell design.
The lower-specced ATIV Smart PC (pictured) has an 11.6-inch (1366 x 768-pixel resolution) screen, Intel Atom processor, 2GB memory and 128GB flash hard drive. The front camera is a 2-megapixel affair, while the main camera on the rear is 8-megapixels. The device is 9.9mm thick (making it the same depth as the ZTE Grand X) and weighs 750g in tablet form or 1.45kg with the dock.
Both Smart PCs come with a "10-finger multitouch screen", which Samsung says allows for more interactive touchscreen gestures, and both are equipped with the Wacom-made S Pen stylus.
Rounding off the key specs are multiple USB 2.0 ports (two of which are on the keyboard), mini HDMI port, 3G/4G connectivity and Bluetooth 4.0.
Samsung declined to comment on the release date for the device nor pricing in the UK. However, a company executive told ZDNet's Ed Bott that the family of ATIV devices will range in price from $799 to $1,199 in the US, and from 799 to 1,199 in Europe.
The South Korean hardware maker also told Bott that the devices will not come with S Launcher, the Windows Start menu replacement seen in engineering samples.
The beefier ATIV Smart PC Pro comes with an Intel Core i5 processor, a higher-resolution (1920 x 1080) display and a 256GB SSD hard drive.
The trade-off is a shorter battery life, at eight hours as opposed to the Smart PC's stated 13.5 hours. The Pro is also slightly heavier and thicker: it weighs 884g as a tablet, 1.6kg as a clamshell, and is 11.9mm thick.
Here, the PC Pro tablet is shown docked with the keyboard.
Like its better specced sibling, the Smart PC Pro also comes with two additional USB ports on the keyboard, and also has one USB 3.0 port on the unit itself. Other connectivity features such as mobile data and Bluetooth remain the same as the Smart PC.
The 10.1-inch ATIV Tab runs Windows RT on a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, weighs in at 570g and measures 8.9mm thick; making it considerably lighter and thinner than the ATIV Smart PC and Smart PC Pro.
The ARM-based tablet comes with either 32GB or 64GB of internal storage, plus additional microSD expansion up to 64GB.
On the rear of the ATIV Tab (shown here), there's a 5-megapixel camera. On the front, there's a 1.9-megapixel forward-facing camera for video calling.
Other features include tap-and-send functionality using near-field communication (NFC); it also comes with Office 2013 home and student RT Preview.
Samsung's ATIV range is rounded off with a Windows Phone 8 (Apollo) smartphone, seen here from the front.
The 4.8-inch ATIV S features a 1.5GHz dual-core chip, HSPA+42 connectivity, and an 8-megapixel rear camera and 5-megapixel forward camera.
The ATIV S handset, seen here from the rear, weighs in at 135g and is 8.7mm thick.
All four ATIV devices come with Samsung's ChatOn messaging tools and Family Story software.
