Phoenix Apricot launches ultra-mobile

Apricot, one of the great names of early UK computing has made a comeback, albeit as a brand with no direct connection with the original company.

The company was founded in 1965 as Applied Computer Techniques but the name was changed to Apricot in 1985.

It was bought by Mitsubishi in the 1990s and closed down. But the brand has been bought by Shahid Sultan, now chief executive of the revived company.

Its first product is a £279 (including VAT), 0.98kg ultra-mobile called the Picobook Pro, running either Linux or Windows XP, with a 60GB hard drive, a 8.9in screen, Wimax support, and a claimed battery life of four hours.

It uses an 1.2GHz ultra-low voltage Via C7-M processor and sports two USB ports, 11a/g Wifi, wire Ethernet and Bluetooth.

Sultan said: “A mobile PC user fundamentally wants to be able to connect to the internet whenever and wherever they are and to be able to use it for a prolonged period of time, without needing to charge the batteries. We have created a PC that is truly mobile and – despite its high-quality credentials, functionality and look and feel – it is also affordable.”