We knew good and well that Freescale wouldn't let Qualcomm go and have all the fun with these newfangled smartbooks, and already we're seeing a few new devices powered by Freescale-branded semiconductors. In the video posted just after the break, the company's own Steve Sperle sat down to talk about a new Pegatron netbook (which handles 720p video playback with ease) as well as an Inventec "smartbook" which is just marginally larger than your average smartphone. In fact, we're rather impressed with the layout: a larger-than-average 4-inch display, a slideout QWERTY keyboard and Google's Android OS. Unfortunately, Mr. Sperle would only stick close to the "later this year" launch time frame that we'd already heard about, but so long as these smartbooks end up looking like overpowered smartphones, you can certainly consider our interest piqued.

You may be doing your best to plug your ears and pretend that Moblin's no big deal, but blissful ignorance is only effective for so long. At a Moblin press event over at Computex, the Inventec handset you see pictured above was demonstrated. Reportedly, the MediaPhone was a working unit based around Intel's forthcoming Moorestown platform, and the talking head made it clear that we wouldn't see a "netbook experience" simply shoved in here. We also get the idea that this particular device is just the beginning of a short to medium list of similar products, but there's obviously no word yet on what other handset / MID / UMPC makers are swallowing the Moblin pill. Live demonstration video is just past the break.

We couldn't get the thing to turn on -- prototype buffoonery, zapped battery, or a classic case of trade show jitters, we figure -- but Inventec's curious V112 was on display inside Qualcomm's booth at CTIA. Why Qualcomm, you ask? Well, Qualcomm owns Qualcomm MEMS Technologies, which has been pushing its mirasol display tech for several years now; the main draw is that it's super high-contrast which eliminates the need for a backlight in many situations where a traditional LCD would need a little help, and the WinMo-powered V112 uses a small mirasol strip as a secondary display surrounded by nav controls. Even though we weren't getting any Windows Mobile action, we did manage to engage the mirasol display (also known as "the cool part") where we saw an example of what the V112 might be able to do without turning on the battery-destroying LCD up top: show basic status information and the current time. It's a good idea; we're not sure that the V112's implementation is perfect since there's zero tactility to the d-pad, but you've got to start somewhere, and mirasol could use as many commercial implementations as it can get.

Last time we Qualcomm's mirasol display in action, it was still enjoying its black-and-white simplicity. While the ultra-efficient, ambient light-loving technology hasn't gone through that Pleasantville epiphany just yet, a 1.1-inch bichrome mirasol touchscreen has found its way onto Inventec's V112 Smartphone alongside a decidedly more colorful bigger brother. It'll serve to show time, incoming and missed calls, email and SMS alerts, MP3 song information, and other information that doesn't require a lot of space or hue. As for the phone itself, we've got GPS, WiFI, Bluetooth, a three megapixel camera, and no word on pricing or availability. Additioanlly, Inventec has announced an agreement with LG to include use mirasol -- presumably also as secondary screens -- into one more commercial handsets sometime in the future. A great deal for Qualcomm, for sure, but how about a few more details on what exactly those phones will be?

Read - Inventec V112
Read - LG mirasol agreement

3.5's the magic number with Pharos' new Windows Mobile-based offering: 3.5-inch display -- wide VGA, no less -- and 3.5G data. The Traveler 137 rolls deep with the best HTC has to offer (owing in no small part to their ODM partnership with Inventec, we figure) with 512MB of Flash, 256MB of RAM, AGPS, 7.2Mbps HSPA on T-Mobile USA (seriously!) and European bands, WiFi, 3-megapixel cam, and the kitchen sink thrown in for good measure. Kinda sounds like a keyboardless X1, doesn't it? Look for it to hit retailers this quarter for a nickel under $600.

Guess what? You'll be able to use Velocity's weak-sauce 83 without any strongly-worded objection from the boys and girls at the Federal Communications Commission! Okay, okay, maybe that's not fair -- with WiFi and GPS, it does its job at the bottom end of Velocity's lineup -- it's just that when you compare it to the 103 and the 111, it comes up a little short (ahem, QVGA display, EDGE radio, we're looking at you guys). We're not really feeling that gnurled back, either -- especially in light of the FCC lab's less-than-stellar photography skills -- but if it floats your boat and you're stationed stateside, you can start to feel a little less illegal now.

We thought it was funny in a nerdy, chortle-quietly-to-ourselves sort of way when we realized that HTC would essentially be competing with itself this fall in the very upper echelon of the Windows Mobile market by releasing the Touch Pro and making the X1 for Sony Ericsson. Now it seems that they're adding at least one more player into the mix -- just for sport, we suppose -- if DigiTimes' claim that the contract for Palm's Treo Pro has gone to HTC is correct. Recently, Palm has favored Inventec over HTC for many of its models -- though the on-again, off-again relationship with Peter Chou's company stretches all the way back to the Treo's early days, so there's definitely some precedent. That, and the fact that HTC seems to really know what it's doing lately.

[Thanks, Marios S.]

If you thought Velocity Mobile just rolled over and died after showing off a few handsets at CTIA earlier this year, you'd be exactly wrong. The outfit's Windows Mobile-powered 103 has just surfaced in the FCC's lair, giving us a smidgen of hope that a US release is but moments / weeks / months away. Unfortunately, this filing doesn't spill the beans on any other specifications, but the 67 page User Manual does dive into great detail on changing the battery, inserting microSD cards and navigating around within the operating system. C'mon Inventec, give us the good stuff.

It's not every day that a new phone manufacturer backed by one of the world's largest ODMs gets off the ground, so this might just be worth keeping an eye on. Seattle and London-based Velocity Mobile -- with support from electronics giant Inventec -- will be revealing itself and its product line at CTIA next week, adding some sort of entry to the crowded smartphone market. We can only assume there'll be something here to set 'em apart from the crowd, since anonymity is a recipe for a new entrant's quick, profitless death. Inventec's been responsible for some lovely kit in recent memory, so they're definitely capable of pulling off some sort of coup; then again they've also brewed up disasters like the i-mate JAQ, so we don't think we're in a position to use our jump to conclusions mat here without seeing the goods. Hang tight on this one, folks.

According to Bill Chen, General Manager of Motorola Taiwan's Mobile Device business, the second generation Linux-based Ming handset won't launch until Q2 of 2008. Not February as initially rumored. What's more, the handset will be introduced in high-end and entry-level configurations -- unfortunately, both are GSM/EDGE, not 3G capable. DigiTimes says that Inventec won the manufacturing contract of this MOTO Beijing designed handset. Given the unusual (for MOTO) use of a lower-case vowel in the name, there's a good chance this was never meant for Stateside consumption anyway. Too bad, eh?

Not too many details on this one just yet, but Inventec was apparently showing off the Okwap-built K871 at Computex, and aside from boasting a slideout QWERTY keyboard and a standard number pad, it also comes loaded with the latest version of Windows Mobile. Additionally, the smartphone packs a three-megapixel camera with auto focus, a few handy hotkeys surrounding the number pad, built-in 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, USB 2.0 connectivity, and the ability to hop on the 3G highway via HSDPA. Still looks a little thick for our tastes, but feel free to click through for a couple more shots from the show floor.

By any measure, i-mate and one of its post-HTC era manufacturing partners, Inventec, had some explainin' to do after the debacle that was the JAQ; while packing Windows Mobile Pocket PC Phone Edition into a device of its form factor was pretty innovative for its time, the chubby dimensions and somewhat bizarre appearance left us wanting. Enter the JAQ4, which will become i-mate's first phone to launch with Windows Mobile 6 (Professional, no less) and makes good on the JAQ's indiscretions with a more understated look integrated into a black shell. Specs are pedestrian but workable, starting with a quad-band GSM / EDGE radio (no 3G here), 802.11b / g, 128MB ROM, 64MB RAM, Bluetooth 1.2, a camera of the 2.0 megapixel variety, and a 2.8 inch QVGA touchscreen. Follow the gallery link for some shots of the JAQ4 doing its thing, including some alongside i-mate's Ultimate 5150, which is also being announced today. Oh, and don't worry about the blasphemous presence of Windows Mobile 5 on the phone -- we've been assured that it'll be hitting with 6.

What's that one killer feature missing from the HTC Apaches, Wizards, and Hermes of the world? Biometric security? Naw. DVB-H reception? Try again. It's an integrated barcode scanner, of course! ODM Inventec is about to correct that grave injustice, though, having pushed its "Iris" through the FCC for Opticon, which'll apparently sell it in two flavors as the H-16A and H-16B (not sure where the difference lies). The Windows Mobile Pocket PC looks fairly standard otherwise, featuring a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and support for both GSM 850 and 1900. Better watch your back, Symbol.

It's alright, Inventec; we know that your ODM relationship with Palm is in its early years and you're still learning the ropes. Still, we have to admit, forgetting to connect the microphones on those Treo 680s before you ship 'em out the door is a pretty big no-no! Rumor has it that Inventec rendered not 100, not 1,000 -- but 144,000 of the new entry-level smartphones deaf and still managed to send them out to retailers. Needless to say, this isn't the kind of thing that can be fixed with a firmware update; every last one has had to go back home to get reworked. Oopsie!

[Thanks, big8tenor]

It's official: i-mate isn't just a HTC rebrand shop anymore. Their new JAQ and SPL models have just been announced for reals, and neither relies on their ol' standby partner to provide the goods. The JAQ hails from Inventec, packing Pocket PC Phone Edition into a fairly clever looking (or different looking, if nothing else) QWERTY chassis with 128MB of ROM, 64MB of RAM, miniSD expansion, Bluetooth, and a 2.8-inch display. The SPL, on the other hand, bears a striking resemblance to a device we first saw outta TechFaith. The slim candybar Smartphone rocks stats similar to its JAQ sibling with the same 128MB ROM / 64MB RAM, miniSD, and Bluetooth, but with a more Smartphone-appropriate 2.2-inch LCD. i-mate is positioning both of these devices as mid-range, suggesting that they might be looking at non-HTC handsets to bring Windows Mobile on the cheap while their HTCs will stay positioned at the top. [Warning: PDF link]

Update: We've gotten word that the JAQ will roll for $499, while the SPL can be yours for a hundie less at $399. Both prices are, of course, subsidy-free.