Asus to Release $200 Eee PC Netbook in 2009

According to the president of Asustek, Jerry Shen, the company expects to launch an Eee PC priced at US$200 in 2009.

When Asus first announced the plan to make low cost laptop, they promised to make it as low as $200. This target has not been achieved since the cheapest Eee PC to date (Eee PC 2G Surf) is around $250. Now looks like Asus is trying to keep their promise by releasing a $200 model in 2009. The specs is however unknown at this time.

Jerry also says that the 7 and 8.9-inch Eee PCs will slowly phase out of the market to be replaced by 10-inch products.

[Source]

HP Mini 1000 Announced

HP has officially announced the new 1000 Mini netbook.


Different from Mini-Note 2133 which use the VIA processor, the HP 1000 Mini netbook will be running on Intel’s 1.6GHz Atom N270 processor. Other features of the netbook includes: a choice of 8.9-inch 1024 x 600 or 10.2-inch 1024 x 600 BrightView displays, 512MB or 1GB of DDR2 RAM and either a 60GB 4,200rpm hard-drive or 8/16GB SSD.

The HP Mini 1000 is now available on HP’s online store for $399. It will comes with a pre-installed Windows XP Home OS, packs with Ethernet jack and two USB ports, has WiFi and Bluetooth wireless connectivity features plus a 3G connectivity coming soon. Also, HP will release a Vivienne Tam Edition of Mini 1000 with a starting price of $699 in December.

[via Liliputing]

Dell Inspiron Mini 12 Hit Japan

Dell is expanding it's netbook business by launching a new category of netbook -- the Inspiron Mini 12.


The features of the Inspiron Mini 12 includes: 1.3GHz Atom Z520 or 1.6GHz Atom Z530 processor, 12-inch 1280 x 800 display, up to 80GB drive, 1GB of RAM, and Bluetooth / WiFi. In terms of portability, the new Inspiron Mini 12 is only one inch thick and weight 2.72-pound.

The 12-inch netbook is currently available only in Japan, and will be hitting US late November with a starting price of around $600.

[via Laptop Computer News]

Dell Inspiron Mini 9 Gets Rebranded as Vostro A90

Inspiron Mini 9 is getting a coat of black paint and renamed as Vostro A90.



Typically targeting the business user, the all-black Vostro A90 certainly make it looks better. Other than that, all other specs of the netbook is identical to the Inspiron Mini 9:

• 8.9 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display
• 1.6GHz Intel Atom CPU
• 1GB of RAM
• 8GB of flash memory
• Bluetooth
• 4 cell battery
• Windows XP

Currently, the Vostro A90 netbook is launched only in Japan, and the price is set at ¥92,830 (about $998 US), which cost way more than the Inspiron Mini 9 and certainly not what we'd expect a Vostro machine to go for.

[via Engadget]

Apple Netbook in Development?

Latest Apple's netbook rumor:

“That would seem to confirm findings that a search engine company shared with me on condition that I not reveal its name: The company spotted Web visits from an unannounced Apple product with a display somewhere between an iPhone and a MacBook. Is it the iPhone 3.0 or the NetMac 1.0?”

(From New York Times)

From the statement, Apple seems to be working on a new device with a display somehwere between an iPhone and a MacBook, and the new device which might be still in experimental phase is used to surf the web.

MSI To Release The New Wind 120 model

According to the recent interview of Laptop Magazine with MSI’s Director of U.S. Sales, Andy Tung, there will be a business oriented Wind netbook called Wind U120 coming soon.

The new MSI Wind model will get a new look with a slightly more angular case compare to the MSI Wind U90. Here are some pictures of the upcoming MSI Wind U120 netbook from Fudzilla:




The basic specs for the new netbook model includes a 10 inch display, an Atom processor, 1GB RAM, a 120GB HDD or a 40/80 SSD, Wi-Fi and a built-in 3.5G modem with a SIM card slot. It's expected to be released around late November or early December with a price below $600.