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Just when we thought netbooks were the be all and end all of portable computing, along comes smartbooks. A smartbook is of course a mobile device that falls between a smartphone and a netbook to deliver features commonly found in both. White Tiger put together more info here. Let’s have a look at who is manufacturing them and what their first devices are like. These are the early days, where a lot of R&D is going on behind closed doors. A lot of the information I’ve found so far was from coverage of the Computex trade show in June 2009, where several manufacturers had prototypes on their booths.

Asus Eee PC

During the Computex trade show in June 2009, a new prototype of Asus Eee PC was spotted. Unlike other Eee PC models, this Eee PC falls under the smartbook segment and it is based on a 1GHz Snapdragon chipset. The prototype was running Google’s Android OS. As it is employing the Snapdragon smartbook chipset, it was very power efficient, fanless and hence, offered incredible battery life.

As you can see, it has a great slim design and features all the usual ports and amazingly, the 1GHz version can play 720p HD videos without a problem. To have a close look at Asus’ Eee PC smartbook prototype, check video coverage from the Computex trade show:

Nokia N900

Nokia, a company well known for mobile phones, has recently been in the news for joining the netbook segment but they’re also after the smartbook segment with their high-end Linux-powered touchscreen device, the N900. The Nokia N900 features an ARM Cortex-A8 CPU, WVGA touchscreen, a full QWERTY sliding keyboard, 1GB application memory, 32GB of built-in storage, microSD expansion, 3G HSPA and WLAN connectivity, 5MP Carl Zeiss lens camera, dual LED flash and also features GPS geotagging. Nokia claims the N900 is capable of doing multitasking like a PC and allows several applications to run simultaneously.

The Nokia N900 is available for preorder in Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, Spain, UK and USA.

For detailed information, jump over here.

Elonex smartbook

Elonex is well known for making low cost and ultraportable netbooks, with the Elonex One model breaking the £100 barrier in the UK. Netbook Italia spotted an Elonex smartbook prototype at the IFA tradeshow in Berlin in August 2009. Rather than sticking with silver, white or black, the Elonex smartbook samples are like bright little tic tacs, with the standard white or black for those of you with more boring tastes.

The samples were shown running Windows CE. They feature an ARM 11 processor and have a 7 inch screen, 2 USB ports, two audio jacks, and a flash card reader. As the smartbook is so compact and thin there’s no room for an Ethernet port, so it comes with a USB to Ethernet adapter.

The availability and price of the Elonex smartbook has not been announced yet.

Foxconn Qbooks

Foxconn, one of the largest Taiwan based manufacturers of electronics and computer components, has been asked by many telcos in China and elsewhere to develop low cost smartbooks, said Young Liu, special assistant to the CEO at Foxconn. According to Liu, Foxconn is currently working on not less than five smartbooks right now.

Foxconn’s smartbooks are codenamed Qbooks and expected to use Google Android or a different version of Linux. The smartbooks from Foxconn will have screen sizes between 7 and 10 inches. Liu has said that Foxconn’s first smartbook will likely to be available next year.

Lenovo

According to DigiTimes, Lenevo will be launching a smartbook by the end of September 2009 which will feature NVIDIA’s Tegra platform and the Google Chrome OS. It’ll be interesting to see Lenevo’s smartbook running on the web-centric Google Chrome operating system. Smartbooks will operate more in the cloud than any previous computing device and Google is of course keen to develop their OS to leverage their extensive online services and cloud computing apps.

Sharp NetWalker PC-Z1

In August 2009, Sharp Corporation announced the Sharp NetWalker PC-Z1, an Ubuntu based smartbook for the Japanese market. According to Sharp’s press release, “The PC-Z1 features a quick launch function similar to mobile phones, enabling users to conveniently check e-mail while on the road. Also, a long battery running time allows users to fully enjoy net services, such as videos or blogs. The high-resolution, 5-inch touch-screen LCD enables intuitive touch operation while the full keyboard provides for comfortable text input. Additionally, in business settings, users can create documents, spreadsheets, presentation materials, etc.”

Engadget already got their hands on one and they said, “We're having a hard time deciding whether Sharp's Ubuntu-running PC-Z1 NetWalker "smartbook" is a total tragedy or total triumph of technology. On one hand, it's running a full Ubuntu install at a relatively high resolution and a rather snappy pace. On the other hand it's nearly impossible to use, with a too small optical track pad and a too high pixel density -- combined they make hunting down just about everything in the OS a painful affair. The QWERTY keys are also astonishingly bad for their size, spongy and brittle all at the same time... but, somehow, we're still fond of this device. Perhaps it's just that unrequited Zaurus love rearing its long-repressed head. Video is after the break.”

Lanyu's LY-EB01 eBook

Last month at Shanzai.com we reviewed Lanyu's LY-EB01. Rather than being a product that’s just a prototype, we actually bought it. OK, we ordered it and picked it up from Shenzen, China – but it is available. Did we like it? Read the review and find out.

Sony Ericsson

Sony have already released a phone, the XPERIA Rachael, which is based on the Qualcomm QSD8250 Snapdragon platform. That should give them some practice with the ARM processor and the Google Android OS. According to this news, Sony Ericsson is working on a smartbook as well.

“Sony-Ericsson is working on a new device, that will enter the market soon. We can’t tell right now, if it will be based on the Qualcomm Snapdragon platform or any other “non x86″ developments, but we can tell one thing for sure: Intel is getting quite some competition pretty soon!” - netbooknews.com.

“Details of the Sony Ericsson smartbook are unknown at present, including whether it will be built on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon platform as with ASUS’ Eee PC prototypes or an alternative chipset such as NVIDIA’s Tegra as used in the Mobinnova elan. Both use an ARM core with frugal graphics and connectivity, with smartbooks based on the chips promising battery life in excess of ten hours and always-on 3G WWAN.” – SlashGear.