Intel announced the second generation of its Classmate PC at the Shanghai IDF today. There are two new models, with 7in and 9in screens, but both use the same 900MHz Celeron M processor as their predecessor.

Upgrades include 512Mb RAM and a 30Gb hard disk – the previous model had just 256Mb RAM and 1Gb of flash storage. Both models also sport a webcam and 802.11g Wi-Fi is now backed up with mesh network support. Intel also claims that battery life is longer and there’s now the option of both four- and six-cell batteries.

The Asus Eee PC 900 has a challenger in the shape of the newly announced Everex CloudBook Max, unveiled at CTIA Wireless 2008 in Las Vegas. It's an update to the US version of our Packard Bell EasyNote XS and boasts an 8.9in 1024x600 screen, WiMAX and a new multi-skilled chipset courtesy of VIA that makes it 'Vista capable'. More info and images after the cut.

The ability to brick stolen mobiles by blocking their IMEI numbers has made expensive phones much less attractive to thieves. Sadly, laptops are still high on their shopping lists, with often little more than a car window between them and a lucrative snatch. Now, though, Intel's doing something about it. It's announced its Anti-Theft Technology - or ATT - initiative that could effectively do for the laptop what IMEI blocking has done for mobiles.

Rumours abound that Microsoft is about to extend the life of Windows XP past the 30th June cut-off. That was when it had originally planned to stop selling XP licenses to encourage us all to move to Vista. According to InfoWorld, the decision's to be overturned because of the unexpected success of stripped-down, low spec laptops like the Asus Eee PC.

Intel’s developer forum in Shanghai has barely started and its Atom processor hasn’t even officially launched yet, but manufacturers are already wowing the crowds with new ultra-mobile devices. Yesterday it was a bunch of Atom-powered Eee PC competitors, today it’s a new mobile internet device (MID) from Lenovo called the Ideapad U8.

There’s precious little information about the Ideapad U8 available at the moment though, beyond knowing it has an Atom processor, 4.8in touchscreen and Edge/3G support, nor is there any word on availability. You can, however, watch its marketing video after the cut.

The fact that Windows Mobile 6.1 is in the pipeline is hardly a secret, but Microsoft formally unveiled this incremental revision to its mobile operating system at CTIA yesterday. As you might expect with a major update (Windows Mobile 7) just around the corner, the changes are largely minor and many are cosmetic – screens are a little less cluttered and there’s a clearer font.

The big news, however, is that Microsoft has finally implemented the feature that all Windows Mobile users have been clamouring for – threaded SMS. In other words, smartphone users will soon be able to follow text message conversations in an IM style, just like on the Palm Treo 500 and Apple iPhone.You can see lots more pictures of Windows Mobile 6.1 over at The Boy Genius Report.

[The Boy Genius Report]

Tosh's latest design statement's been unveiled with a refresh of its Satellite line up in the States. As well as a new finish, the four redesigned notebooks get a feature new to Toshibas - 'Sleep-and-Charge' USB ports that can charge gadgets even when the laptop's turned off or in sleep mode.

Not that handy when you're actually wearing it, Jabra's added a tiny LCD display to its latest BT4010 Bluetooth headset. Unveiled at CITA 2008 in Las Vegas today, it promises to be a cut-price headset with the added bonus of being able to check on battery level, connection status and call status with one glance of the screen.

It measures an ear-pleasing 51x17x28mm and weighs a mere 10g, with a healthy six hour talk time. Jabra has it down for $60 (£30) when it launches in the US this spring. A European launch is expected later.

[Phone Arena] 

HTC's Touch has come close but now VITO Technology has brought slick, finger-scrolling photo viewing to any Windows Mobile PDA. Aiming to show Apple a thing or two, EyePhoto works on any Pocket PC, not just those with hi-sensitive touchscreens, like the Touch.

Putting the 'PA' bit back in to the personal digital assistant's acronym, Intel's unveiled its vision of the future for handhelds. Calling the project 'Carry Small, Live Large', it hopes to come up with the hardware and universal standards for the next generation of PDAs.