A recent check upon LG’s patent filings has revealed that the company is once again looking into making convertible tablet notebooks. We say once again because, apparently, the company came out with a convertible tablet netbook back in 2007, when netbooks weren’t even “invented” yet. The new convertible notebook, according to the patent, will have two different operating systems. One for “notebook mode,” and another for “tablet mode.” Of course, the patent makes no claims that the product will be out soon, but it’s in the works if the drawings and descriptions in the patent are any indication. We’ll update you as soon as more information regarding this product comes out.

USPTO via Electronic Pulp

In an ongoing effort to protect its supposed patent for the now generic term “netbook,” Psion has countersued Intel and has charged the company with Trademark Infringement Under The Lanham Act, Common Law Unfair Competition, and Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, among other charges. Psion has also demanded a “trial by jury on all issues triable by right to a jury.” This whole issue is slowly getting ugly. Why can’t we just get along with a name and move on to making great new products that people will actually care about and use to make their lives better, eh Psion?

Via Save the netbooks

It looks like an Apple tablet PC or mobile Internet device is about ready for prime time, as shown in a recent patent application filed by Apple at the USPTO. The patent, titled “DISPLAY HOUSING FOR COMPUTING DEVICE”, shows what is obviously a touchscreen-equipped tablet with an Apple logo on its back (above is an exploded view of the device in question). If you recall, Michael Arrington of TechCrunch started a rumor just before the New Year that Apple was going to launch a “large-sized iPod touch in the fall of 2009″. Well, this perfectly fits the bill, and now the only thing left for us to ponder is what variation of OS X this computing device will run. Hopefully, more details will come up in the next few weeks/months. See more photos at the site linked below.

Via Electronic Pulp

Asus netbooks are among the most popular in the industry. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said about its UMPC offerings. With that in mind, the company seems to be planning to offer something slightly better: a UMPC with a full touch display first for input, and a full keyboard underneath it. What’s more, the company will make it so that the display can be tilted and positioned just like a regular notebook display, facing the user. Currently, this upcoming Asus MID/UMPC can be considered to be in the development stage, as only its form factor is revealed in one of the company’s latest patent apps, titled “Portable electronic device.” I don’t know, at least it seems better than the keyboard-less MIDs that they are currently selling. Perhaps, when they release a product like this in the future, we’ll see if the company can get it right.

Via Electronic Pulp

We know Acer will soon be delivering its recently officialized 10.1-inch Acer Aspire 103 netbook, but after that, it’s not clear what other products the company will offer in the netbook category. Well, we have a somewhat informed answer now, courtesy of a patent application found on the USPTO web site pertaining to an Acer-designed mobile Internet device that we’ve got pictured here. This MID doesn’t come with a spec sheet in the patent application, but from its photos, we gather that it has a wide touchscreen display, dock connector, several ports and a 3.5mm headphone jack. If it features an Intel Atom processor at release, we wouldn’t be surprised. We’ll update you with more info on this find when we find them.

Via Electronic Pulp