Hi-tech Frontier

Samsung YP-U5 and YP-Q2 media players We've already seen Samsung's Q2 and U5 media players out and about, but just today the company has made the pair official here in the US of A. Starting with the YP-Q2 PMP, you'll find both 8GB and 16GB variants with 50 hours of battery life, a 2.4-inch QVGA display, black and white color options, DNSe 3.0 sound enhancement technology, FM radio / recorder, a text viewer and a Smart Button that allows the user to designate a specific function for quick access. The YP-U5, on the other hand, was tailor made for gym rats; said audio stick sports a touchpad, 1-inch OLED display, USB connectivity, up to 20 hours of playback, an FM radio module and 2GB of internal storage. Check 'em this April for $99.99 (8GB Q2), $129.99 (16GB Q2) and $39.99 (U5).

MSI officially launches the touchscreen Wind Top AE1900 We caught sight of MSI's Wind Top AE1900 back at Cebit, and now it's been officially launched. The nettop boasts a 19-inch 16:9 LCD, an Intel Atom 230 CPU, up to 2GB of RAM and a 160GB hard drive. It's also got a DVD burner, a 1.3 megapixel webcam, WiFi, four USB ports, and a 4-in-1 card reader. MSI claims that the AE1900 uses only about "45 watts of power while in full operation," which, if true, would indeed make it one of the more energy efficient PCs on the market. We'll just have to wait and see on that though, as there's no word yet on availability or pricing.

Sanyo's QWERTY-packin' SCP-2700 Not that we're blindsided by its official introduction or anything, but it's still good to see Sanyo's SCP-2700 in one clear, crisp, cohesive press photo. Available exclusively on Sprint, the QWERTY-equipped handset boasts a 1.3 megapixel camera, Sprint Navigation, threaded text messaging support and Bluetooth. Prospective buyers will need to choose between Impulsive Pink (with a subtle floral overlay) and Deep Blue (which has a tactile square designer pattern on its back), but considering that you've got until May 10th to decide, we'd say there's no real hurry. Oh, and pricing? $29.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate and signing away your cellular soul for two long, painful years.

Samsung 5MP Omnia It's a little sad that Samsung's 5MP Omnia is just now getting around to Canada's CDMA carriers -- you know, given that you're already savvy on the OmniaHD -- but at least it's coming, right? The WinMo 6.1-equipped handset won't be changing in terms of specs, but we are told that it'll be splashing down on both Bell Mobility and Telus this April. The pain? MobileSyrup has it that Bell's Omnia will run $549.95 outright or as low as $349.95 on a three-year contract, which sounds patently absurd and completely believable at the same time.

Samsung Instinct S30 That didn't take long. After Samsung showed off its Instinct S30 (a.k.a. Instinct Mini) last night with some official imagery -- and less than an hour after we spotted it in the wild at CTIA -- Sprint's gone ahead and made it official with a press release. The carrier-exclusive touchscreen phone features a 2.0 megapixel camera, GPS, Bluetooth 2.0, and virtual QWERTY keypad, along with Opera Mini 4.2, Sprint TV, and Sprint Music Store. It's also got a Speech to Action function for controlling the phone by voice and alllegedly more access to the core Java API for development. Color options include Cobalt Metal or Touch of Copper. Launch date is April 19th, which is exactly what we saw in that leaked Sprint playbook, and price is $129.99 with a two-year contract.

LG GB210 Nah, this one won't make your eyes quite literally pop out of your head, but it'll handle the basics just fine. LG's GB210 sports a candybar frame, 1.3 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, microSD card slot, built-in FM radio, MP3 player and a 1.77-inch display that greatly assists Earthlings in making phone calls. You probably won't find this one wandering too far from its home market of Ukraine, but folks in the region shouldn't have to pay more than 950 UAH (around $118).

Samsung new HT-WS1 soundbar In addition to that new AS730 HTIB, Samsung's kicking around a new soundbar audio system, which packages a 260W 2.1 setup (capable of virtual 5.1) with a sizable wireless subwoofer for the passable price of $350. The HT-WS1 is fairly diminutive as far as soundbars go, and is wall mountable if you're into that. The bar is styled in Samsung's "Touch of Color" grey and red to match your Samsung TV (you do have a Samsung TV, don't you?), and the whole kit will be available in April.

Panasonic DMP-BD60 Blu-ray player Panasonic's DMP-BD60 hits the scene as the successor to the well-received DMP-BD35, packing Viera Cast features on top of BD-Live capability in a slim (& more power efficient) package. CNET's reviewers threw the new boss on their test bench and found a lot to like, while the Internet features weren't flawless with some control issues on YouTube videos, however it lags the competition without wireless Internet capabilities. Picture quality was up to par, but it seems to have fallen off the pace compared to the latest offering from Samsung in terms of speed, taking longer to load some movies from off mode. Check the full review for all the details, but with the price currently at $299 this player might not have enough value unless Amazon VOD and Picasa access is particularly important.