Google Chrome OS Targeting Netbook Market

Google recently announced that they will be releasing Google Chrome OS, which will be a lightweight, open-source system based on Linux OS. The Google Chrome OS is expected to be made available on netbooks in the 2nd half of 2010. More info about Google Chrome OS is available on Google Blog.

Sony To Release VAIO W Series Netbook

Sony is one of the few big companies that's still not in the netbook game.. until recently, it finally announced that it will be releasing the first 10-inch netbook called the VAIO W.

The Sony VAIO W netbook will have the following specs which is similar to most other netbook in today's market:

• 10.1-inch screen, 1366×768 resolution
• Intel Atom N280 1.66GHz
• 160GB HDD
• 1GB RAM
• webcam
• 3.5-hour battery pack
• Bluetooth
• GMA 950/W-LAN
• Windows XP Home Edition

The Sony VAIO W series netbook will be available in 3 colors: white, brown, and pink. It's expected to hit US market in August with a starting price of $499.

via

Asus Eee PC 1005HA Gets Official Specs

Asus Eee PC 1005HA is the second model of the Seashell netbook after the 1008HA model. The main difference between the 1005HA and the 1008HA is that the 1005HA model comes with a removable battery while it's predecessor doesn't.And because of this, the Eee PC 1005HA netbook is also slightly thicker than its predecessor.


As of now, Asus has not announce the release date of the Eee PC 1005HA yet, but the product page is already up on Asus website. Here's the specification for the Eee PC 1005HA:

• 10.1" LED Backlight WSVGA Screen (1024x600)
• Intel Atom N270/ N280 CPU
• 1GB RAM
• 160GB HDD + 10GB Eee Storage
• 3 x USB 2.0
• 1 x VGA Port (D-sub 15-pin for external monitor)
• 1 x LAN RJ-45
• 2 x Audio Jack (Head Phone / Mic-in)
• 1.3MP webcam
• Wi-Fi, Bluetooth
• Card Reader: MMC/ SD(SDHC)
• Hi-Definition Audio CODEC, Stereo speaker
• 3-cell (up to 4 hrs usage) or 6-cell battery (up to 10.5hrs usage)
• Linux / Windows XP

Asus Eee PC 1008HA To Be Released in UK on May 15th

Asus Eee PC 1008HA, the thinnest and lightest 10 inch laptop in the Asus Eee PC line, will be available in the UK next week on May 15th.


The netbook weighs just 2.4 pounds and measure 10.3″ x 7″ x 1″. The specs are 1.66GH Intel Atom N280 processor, 160GB hard disk, 1GB of RAM, 10.2-inch screen with 1024 x 600 pixel display, and GMA graphics.

The tax-inclusive UK price for the Eee PC 1008HA will be about £379 (or $572 US). No word on when this netbook will be available in the US yet.

New Netbook Models From Samsung Released

Samsung has recently released quite a few new netbook models. Here's an overview for each of them:

1. Samsung N110


N110 is similar to the NC10 netbook but with better designed touchpad and higher capacity battery.

Specification:

• 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor
• 1GB RAM
• 160GB Hard Drive
• 6 Cell Battery (up to 9.5 hours of battery life)
• Microsoft XP Home with Service Pack 3
  

2. Samsung N120


Similar to N110 but with a full-size keyboard.

Specification:

• 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor
• 1 GB RAM
• 160 GB Hard Drive
• 6 Cell Battery
• Microsoft XP Home with Service Pack 4
• SuperBright 10.1-inch glossy LCD screen
  

3. Samsung N310


N310 comes in a rubberized case and features the latest medical technology that smear the keys with a special finish that makes it "almost impossible for bacteria to live and breed.

Specification:

• Intel Atom N270 processor
• 1GB of RAM
• 160GB hard drive
• four-cell battery for up to 5 hours runtime
• frameless 10-inch screen

The N110 and N120 netbooks are currently for sale on Amazon.com for $475.99 and $465.99 respectively. N310 is available only in Korea for the moment.

[via: Small Mini Laptops]

Sharp Mebius NJ70A With LCD Trackpad is Cool But Expensive

Sharp recently announced the first netbook of their own, Mebius NJ70A, which comes with a 4-inch LCD trackpad. With 854 x 480 resolution, not only it recognizes text and drawing, it also allows you to perform some finger-based functions, like rotate, zoom in/out, and other multi-touch functions.


Other than the LCD trackpad, other specs for this machine is similar to other standard netbooks on the market: 10.1-inch 1024×600 Screen, Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz CPU, 1GB RAM, and 160GB HDD.

The LCD Trackpad is no doubt a really exciting feature, but it comes with a price.. Dynamism online store has listed the Sharp Mebius NJ70A for pre-order with a price of $999, making it one of the most expensive netbook so far!

[via]

Samsung N120 Now Available

Samsung has announced quite a few new netbook models lately. One of the model, N120 is now available on Amazon.com. The specs are as follows:

• 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor
  
• 10.1″ WSVGA 1024 x 600
• 1 GB DDR2 RAM
• 160 GB, 2.5″, 5400 RPM HDD
  
• Intel 945GSE
• 1.3 megapixel webcam
• 802.11 b/g / Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR
• 3 USB (2 chargable USB ports)
• Multi Card Slot 3 in 1 (SD, SDHC, MMC)
• 6 cell lithium ion battery
• 10.27″ x 1.19″ x 7.3″, 2.8 lbs.

The price for Samsung N120 listed on Amazon is $466.

Asus Eee PC Touch Demo Video

The touch screen version of Asus Eee PC is going to be released later this year. While waiting for it, here's a video demonstration of the Asus Eee PC Touch.

10-inch Acer Aspire One to sell for under $400

According to Digitimes, there will be 10-inch version of Acer Aspire One netbook released in Febbuary this year, with a price of US$399. The 10-inch version of Acer Aspire One will be available in 3 colors which are red, black and white.

NoteMagix M10 Netbook from Velocity Micro Announced

Here's another new netbook entering the market -- NoteMagix M10 from Velocity Micro.


Velocity Micro is a popular boutique PC maker. The NoteMagix M10 Netbook will come with the following specs:

• 10.1-inch screen
• Intel Atom processor
• 160GB HDD
• 1GB RAM
• 1.3 megapixel webcam
• 3-in-1 media card reader
• 4 cell-battery
• Wi-Fi
• Windows XP OS

The netbook is expected to ship by Spring with a price of around $379.

[Source]

Sony VAIO P Released for Pre-order

Sony VAIO P unveiled at the CES 2009 is now official. The specs for the VAIO P is as follows:

• Intel 1.33 GHz CPU
• 2GB RAM
• 60GB HDD or up to 128GB SSD
• 8-inch (1600×768) LED backlight XBRITE-ECO screen
• Up to 4 hours battery life or 8 hours for a larger capacity battery
• Memory Stick PRO, SD, MMC media slot
• Wi-Fi, Bluetooth
• Windows Vista Home OS

With a price tag of $799.99, the P-Series netbook from Sony will be available in garnet red, crystal white, emerald green, and classic matte color design and weighs only 1.4 lbs. You could already pre-order this “world’s lightest 8-inch notebook” on Sony Style.

HP Mini 2140 Unveiled

HP has unveiled another new model of netbook after the Mini 1000. It's called the HP Mini Note 2140, and is the successor to the HP 2133 Mini-Note. The appearance of Mini-Note 2140 is pretty similar with the 2133 model, with a sleek aluminum case and excellent keyboard design.


In terms of technical specs, the Mini Note 2140 is quite different from the older model:

• 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor
• 10.1-inch display with 1024 x 576 or 1366 x 768 resolution
• 160GB HDD or 80GB SSD
• 3 or 6 cell battery
• 2 USB ports, mic input, headphone out, VGA port
• HP 3D Drive Guard

The HP 2140 Mini-Note will be released some time this week, with the price of $499.

[Source]

Sony VAIO Netbook

More information is revealed about the Sony VAIO netbook that we read about few days ago -- jkOnTheRun reported that this product placeholder about a new Sony VAIO series that goes by the monicker “P”.

The P laptop series of Sony VAIO will come with the following specs:

• 1.3 GHz Intel Atom processor
• 8-inch LED Backlit Display
• 60 GB HD or 128 GB SSD
• Windows Vista

At this moment, Sony has yet to make any announcement about this "new netbook' which we believe is coming soon. Hope to hear from Sony soon!

HP Compaq Mini 700 Released in Europe

Compaq Mini 700 is another netbook from HP which was announced together with the Mini 1000 several weeks ago. It's now released in European countries.


The specification for this netbook is as follows:

• 1.6 GHz Intel Atom Processor
  
• 10.2-inch display with 1024×600 resolution
• 1GB of RAM
• 60GB of HDD
• GMA950 graphics processor
• Wi-Fi & Bluetooth
  
• 3-cell battery
• 2-in-1 card reader
• Altec Lansing Speakers
• Webcam
• Windows XP Home

According to Notebook Italia, the HP Compaq Mini 700 will retails for around $594. No announcement on when this netbook will be available in the U.S. yet.

Samsung to Release NC20 in Febuary

According to Notebook Italia, Samsung will be releasing a new netbook model called NC20 in February 2009.


The Samsung NC20 will have the following specs:

• 12.1-inch display
• 1.3 GHz VIA Nano U225 processor
• 1GB RAM
• 160 GB Hard Drive
• 3-in-1 card reader
• Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Ethernet
• 1.3 megapixel camera

The price of the NC20 will be around around $642. By looking at the spec above, the NC20 which comes with a 12-inch display and VIA Nano processor might not be considered as a netbook, but just a budget notebook instead. But being named as NC20, Samsung might want to relate it with the NC10, and still categorize it as netbook.

Sony VAIO Netbook Finally Here?

It appears that Sony is going to release a new VAIO model which will "change the way you look at laptops forever" on the 9th of January. The teaser page is posted on Sony's New Zealand site.

As of now, most of the big laptop manufacturers have already released their own netbook, except for Sony and Apple. Many are guessing that Sony will be launching a netbook, which we think is highly possible.

New Configuration and Price for Dell Inspiron Mini 12

Probably due to the review and feedback of the slow performance of Windows Vista on the Inspiron Mini 12, Dell has recently added Windows XP option in three new configurations/prices on their product page.

Here's the new configuration and price for the Inspiron Mini 12 netbook:

Inspiron Mini 12 Ubuntu Linux Version - $499

• Intel Atom Z520 (1.33GHz)
• 1GB RAM
• 40GB HDD
• Ubuntu Linux 8.04.1
• 3-Cell Battery
  

Inspiron Mini 12 - $549

• Intel Atom Z520 (1.33GHz)
• 1GB RAM
• 40GB HDD
• Windows XP Home
• 3-Cell Battery
  

Inspiron Mini 12 - $599

• Intel Atom Z530 (1.6GHz)
• 1GB RAM
• 60GB HDD
• Windows XP Home
• 6-Cell Battery
  

[via Laptop Magazine]

Lenovo IdeaPad S9 Hits US

The sibling for Lenovo IdeaPad S10 netbook, IdeaPad S9 is now available in US online stores. It's spotted on Geek.com and Buy.com for $344.99 and $359.46 respectively.

The IdeaPad S9 netbook has the following specification:

• 1.6GHz Intel Atom CPU
• 8.9 inch 1024 x 600 pixel display
• 512MB RAM
• 4GB solid state disk
• Linpus Linux Lite

MSI Wind U110, U115, and U120, Arriving on January 2009

According to an interview with Andy Tung, the Director of Sales for MSI U.S., the company is planning to release 3 new models of MSI Wind -- U110, U115, and U120 in January 2009. In addition, there will be a 13.3-inch MSI notebook called U300 which will not be branded as MSI Wind released in the same month.

Andy Tung has confirmed that both the MSI Wind U110 and U115 will come equiped with the newest Intel Z530 Atom Processor, 1GB of RAM (2GB max), 10-inch LED backlit displays, WiFi b/g/n, a choice of 1.3-megapixel or 2-megapixel webcam, and either a 3-cell or 6-cell battery. Only the U115 will support the dual storage setup: the U110 will have either a 160GB or 250GB hard-drive, the U115 can pair either of those with 16, 32 or 64GB of SSD capacity. With the same 6-cell battery, the MSI Wing U110 is said to have 8 hours of battery life, while the U115 will have up to 10 hours of battery life.

Other than releasing the 3 new models of MSI Wind, the company is also planning to launch a touch-enabled MSI Wind during the CES 2009.

Price Drop for HP Mini 1000

HP has has recently cut the price of the Mini 1000 netbook from $399 to $359, a price drop of $40. The specs that you will be getting from the new price is the same which is 1GB RAM, 8GB SSD, 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor, 8.9-inch screen, and a 3-cell battery.

The price for the Vivenne Tam edition netbook however is not changed at $699.99.

[via Liliputing]