I’d take this with a grain of salt for now, but a person who claims to work in the PC industry has posted an image of an Asus roadmap for existing nad upcoming Eee PC models. In a nutshell, three new products will reportedly be launched in the fourth quarter of 2009, right around the time Windows 7 is released on October 22nd:

Asus Eee PC 1201N

This model will reportedly have a 12 inch display, 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 CPU and NVIDIA ION graphics. It will also have a 250GB hard drive, 2GB of RAM, a 6 cell battery, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, and Bluetooth and run about $499. The computer will reportedly run Windows 7 Home Premium.

Asus Eee PC 1005HA-P (updated)

This netbook would replace the existing Eee PC 1005HA-P series. In most respects, it’s the same computer, but th enew model would have a higher capacity hard drive and ship with Windows 7 Starter Edition. It would have a 10.2 inch screen, 1.66GHz Intel Atom N280 CPU, 250G hard drive, 1G of RAM, and a 6 cell, 10.5 hour battery. It also comes with Bluetooth and 802.11b/g/n WiFi and will reportedly sell for about $399.

Asus Eee PC 1005HA-M (updated)

The model would overlap with the current Eee PC 1005HA-V, which may not be phased out for a while. The 1005HA-M would have most of th esame specs, including a 6 cell, 8.5 hour battery, 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 CPU, and 1GB of RAM. But the 1005HA-M would also have a 250GB hard drive and ship with Windows 7 Starter. The netbook would also have 802.11b/g/n WiFi, but there’s no mention of Bluetooth. It will reportedly cost about $349.

You can read more about these products and see a higher resolution photo in the EeeUser Forum.

It’s interesting to note that while the new models will reportedly run Windows 7, none will ship with a next generation Intel Atom processor. Intel has claimed that its Pine Trail chips will be ready before the end of the year, but the same source suggests that the first netbook from Asus that may use an Intel Atom N450 chip would be the Eee PC T101P which won’t be available until early 2010. The Eee PC T101P will be the first 10 inch touchscreen netbook from Asus. Think of it like the Eee PC T91’s big brother, which will have a larger keyboard and hopefully a more powerful processor.

The same source also reports that the Eee PC T101P, which is a touchscreen device

via Netbooked

The fight over the term “smartbook” is starting to look about as contentious as the battle for “netbook.” The difference is that the Germany company that owns the trademark for Smartbook might have a better case. It’s currently selling products under the name and it’s actively working to protect the trademark just a few months after chip-maker Qualcomm tried to coin the term as a word to describe low power mini-laptops with ARM processors and 3G internet connections. And “smartbook” isn’t exactly a widely used, generic term the way that “netbook” is, at least not yet.

The latest update is that a court has ordered Qualcomm to stop using the word in Germany. There’s a €250,000 for failure to comply.

It’s not clear if there are any implications outside of Germany. Qualcomm could decide to stick with the Smartbook name and just restrict the web sites used to promote the category from showing up to users with German IP addresses. Or it might be easier to just give up on Smartbook altogether. Some folks have suggested ARMbook as an alternative, but that could be a bit tricky. Right now Qualcomm is using ARM-based processors, but who knows what technology the company will use in the future?

via jkOnTheRun

The Asus rumor parade continues today with news that the company may soon have a few ultrathin laptops to compete with the Acer Aspire 1410 and Dell Inspiron 11z. DigiTimes reports that Asus plans to launch two new thin and light notebooks on September 7th, using upcoming 45m chips from Intel. One machine would use the Intel Celereon 743 processor, while the other would pack an Intel SU2300 CPU.

The laptops will reportedly ship in Taiwan, China, and Europe first. The United States always seems to get the cool toys a bit late, but on the bright side, they’re usually at least a few bucks cheaper by the time they get here.

DigiTimes suggests that MSI and Acer will also announce new products based on the Intel chips soon. This report comes at the same time as a source has leaked what may be a product roadmap for upcoming Asus Eee PC netbooks. But most folks consider mini-laptops with Intel’s Consumer Ultra Low Voltage (or CULV) processors to be a step above netbooks, and the machines generally have 11.6 inch or larger displays. I’d be surprised if Asus slaps the Eee PC name on these models. If they exist.

cyberport

A few months back there was a rumor going around that the Lenovo Ideapad S10-2 would eventually be available with a higher resolution 1280 x 720 pixel display. And it looks like eventually means today, because the netbook is available from a number of retailers in Germany with the high resolution display for about 349 Euros (about $499 US).

The Lenovo IdeaPad S10-2 M21BCGE has a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N280 CPU, a 10.1 inch display, 1GB of RAM, a 160G hard drive, and a 6 cell battery as well as a 1.3MP webcam, 3 USB ports, 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth, and a 4-in-1 card reader.

While the netbook has the same Intel 945GSE chipset as most Intel Atom powered netbooks, some stores report that it uses Intel’s 4500M graphics media accelerator, while other retailers say it has the same Intel GMA 950 graphics found in most netbooks.

While the new model isn’t available in the United StatesВ  yet, I did notice today that Lenovo is offering US customers a few more configuration options for the Ideapad S10-2. You can now customize your own netbook with a base price of $330.

For a bit of extra cash you can upgrade the processor from an Atom N270 to an N280 chip, choose to add Bluetooth, and opt for a 6 cell battery instead of the standard 3 cell version. Adding all the bells and whistles brings the price of a grey, white, or black model to $401.25. If you want pink, you’ll have to pay $15 more.

What’s interesting is that you can get a white model with the exact same specs for $399 if you order a pre-configured unit.

Update: It looks like the HD version of the S10-2 is headed to Japan as well.

via NetbookNews.de

The Sharp NetWalker PC-Z1 has a 5 inch touchscreen display, a tiny keyboard, and runs Ubuntu Linux. It’s really more of a MID (Mobile Internet Device) or Smartbook (if I can use that word) than a typical netbook. But it does have a full QWERTY keyboard, even if it’s too small to touch type on. And it does run a full desktop operatng system complete with an office suite, web browser, and other utilities.

Netbooked has posted a roundup of videos showing the NetWalker in action. It looks a heck of a lot more powerful than a typical smartphone, but more difficult to use than a typical netbook thanks to the cramped keyboard. But when was the last time you saw a netbook with a 10 inch screen that you could fit in your pocket?

The Ubuntu Linux interface seems to feature a custom program launcher. It doesn’t look like the Ubuntu Netbook Remix interface, but it’s been a while since I checked in on Ubuntu MID Edition, so it’s possible that the NetWalker interface could be based on that.

You can check out a couple of the videos after the break, or visit Netbooked to see more.

Read the rest of this entry »

When Dell launched the Inspiron 11z laptop a few weeks ago, it had a low $399 price tag, which meant you could pick up this 11.6 inch laptop with an Intel CULV processor, 1366 x 768 pixel display, GS45 integrated graphics, 2Gb of RAM, and a 250GB hard drive for about the same price as many netbooks.

But this weekend Dell tweaked the price, first raising it to $524 for a few hours before settling at $449. That’s still a pretty good price for a laptop this small and light, but the sudden price change ha’s left a lot of potential customers scratching their heads.

According to Laptop Magazine, a Dell salesperson indicated that the price change is because the new models have an improved WLED display. But some users are reporting that they’ve been told the original $399 price was a limited time promotion.

Either way, the Dell Inspiron 11z is now the same price as the Acer Aspire 1410, another 11.6 inch laptop with a CULV processor. There are some differences. The Aspire One has a 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Solo CULV SU3500 processor while the Inspiron 11z has a 1.2GHz Intel Celeron 723 CPU. And the Acer laptop has a 6 cell, 48Whr battery while the Dell model has a 3 cell, 28WHr battery.

At first blush, the MSI Wind U210 looks a lot like the company’s line of 10-inch netbooks. But unlike the U100, U120, and U123, the MSI Wind U120 has a 12.1 inch display and an AMD processor and ATI graphics. First spotted in Europe just over a week ago, the Wind U210 is now available for pre-order in the US. And with a $430 price tag, it’s significantly cheaper in the US than in Europe, where it sells for $569 and up.

The Wind U210 is actually the second 12.1 inch laptop from MSI with this form factor. The company has also introduced the Wind U200 in Europe. That model has a an Intel CULV processor and integrated GMA 4500MHD graphics.

The MSI Wind U210 has a 1.6GHz AMD Athlon Neo MV-40 processor and AMD RS690 + SB600 chipset plus AMD Radeon X1250 graphics and an HDMI output. The computer has 2GB of RAM, a 250GB hard drive, and a 12.1 inch, 1366 x 768 pixel display. It runs Windows Vista Home Premium and has a 5 cell, 5200mAh battery rated at 5 hours. The laptop has 802.11b/g/n WiFi, measures 11.7″ x 7.4″ x 1.2″, and weighs 3.2 pounds.

The MSI Wind U210 is available from Amazon for $429.99 in black and white.

via Engadget

13The Sony Vaio W is a nice looking netbook with one feature that really sets it apart from most other mini-laptops on the market: a higher resolution, 10.1 inch, 1366 x 768 pixel display. The problem is that the netbook’s 1.66GHz Intel Atom N280 CPU and integrated graphics have to work a bit harder to pump out graphics to every corner of the screen than they would with a lower resolution display. And that means that some lower resolution netbooks might actually feel snappier than the Vaio W.

Of course, there are ways that you can improve the performance of virtually any netbook, such as upgrading the RAM and/or replacing the hard drive with a faster model or a solid state disk. One German Vaio W owner decided to do both of those things, and sent the pictures of his minor netbook surgery to NetbookNews.de.

It looks like the hard drive upgrade process is relatively simple. Sony put a single access panel on the base of the computer. All you need to do is unscrew the access panel and then remove the hard drive by undoing 4 mounting screws.

In order to upgrade the RAm, you need to pop off the keyboard by removing 3 more screws located on the base of the netbook. Once the keyboard is off, you should see the RAM near the lower left side. Just pop out the old module and replace it with up to 2GB of RAM. There’s no point in using any more memory than that, since the motherboard will only recognize up to of 2GB.

You can see more pictures at Netbook News.de (English translation)