EeePCNews.de have a very interesting news article about a possible AMD CPU aimed at netbooks and UMPCs. Its a 64 bit, single core CPU running at 1Ghz with a TDP of 8W. Effectively half of a Turion X2 dual-core CPU.
Note that the CPU includes the memory controller (Northbridge) but no Southbridge or GPU. At 8W TDP, it is an option for netbooks and possibly high-end ultra mobile PC like the AMD ultra mobile PC seen at Computex but unless an underclocked version appears at 5W or less, it’s probably not going to be cool or even small enough to squeeze inside an MID. For that job, only the Atom and ARM-based products fit the bill.
Engagdet got a nice little present yesterday – details on the Dell ‘E’ PC. Very interesting specs, a large standard battery and a range of SSD configurations. It hardly looks like its for ‘developing countries’ though! More the Eee PC killer methinks. There are going to be three versions of the 8.9" version, all with different SSD sizes and with the possibility of a webcam and Bluetooth. Prices will start at $299 and the launch target is, as we heard before, August.
This will certainly compete well with the HP, Acer, ASUS, MSI and ECS and if battery life and mobility is your concern, it looks like one of the better choices.
JKK, Sascha and I review the main MID, ultra mobile PC and netbook news that came out of Computex. We talk about the top players in the netbook market, pricing and the new platforms from VIA and AMD. Its another long podcast that could have been much longer!
Acer have a big advantage in the netbook race. Pre-established sales channels and partners.
The Aspire One is already showing up in price comparison engines in Germany with the base model being advertised for 329 Euro (8GB, Linux, 512MB) which is just 50 Euro more than the Eee PC 701 4G! The high-end Linux model (80GB, 1GB) for 399 Euro which is 40 Euro less than the ‘old’ and less equipped Eee PC 900. Availability looks like 4-7 weeks although one reseller is quoting 10 days.
Because of its size (smaller than HP2133 and MSI Wind,) style, dual SD card slots, availability and low-low price, I won’t be surprised if this ends up as one of the most popular netbook choices of 2008.
Acer’s entry into the netbook space was seen a few weeks ago, but hasn’t been seen on their site until recently. An entire mini-site dedicated to the Aspire One can be seen over at Acer’s website. One of the first things you will read on that site is the following:
The Aspire one is more than just another ultra-mobile notebook: it’s an all-new communication device designed to deliver continuous access to the internet and a simplified wireless experience no matter where you are.
I really hope they have some magic to back up that claim. As far as I can tell, it is in fact “just another ultra-mobile notebook”. Granted, it looks very slick but so far I can’t say there are any features that make this one stand out from the crowd. The site gives only information that has already been know; the Aspire One will be available in many different colors, and weigh in under 1kg (2.2lb). Interestingly Acer has chosen to use Linpus Lite for the OS, and the site says that they have kept startup/shutdown times very low. Of course some people need software compatibility so I’m sure we’ll see XP as popular choice for the Aspire One. And then there is the standard 8.9″ LCD screen running at 1024×600, and the whole thing is running on Intel’s Atom. Could this netbook be any more generic?
That apple-red Dell netbook you may have spotted a few weeks ago is expected to be hitting the market in August, but its keyboard will be lacking a dedicated row of F-keys. For certain users this is nearly preposterous. However for some, such as myself, it isn’t that big of a deal. I personally could live without a dedicated row of function keys. I don’t use them frequently enough to justify a whole separate row. That being said, they should still be accessible through a modifier key which at this time APCmag is saying that is not the case.
It’s true that the alpha keys are all of a good size, although others are noticeably slim, and the function keys have been dropped altogether: the Fn modifier activates hardware-related shortcuts mapped onto the keyboard, with no facility to call up the usual F1-F12 keys. [my emphasis]
It’s one thing to remove the row of keys entirely, but not providing a way to press them at all is a peculiar decision on Dell’s part. It may have something to do with the target audience. While tech enthusiasts will inevitably end up buying the Dell netbook if it turns out to be a quality product, Dell says it is targeted toward students and first time computer users. If Dell’s audience for this netbook is truly first time computer users, removal of the row of function keys makes a bit more sense. First time computer users are certainly not acquainted to keyboard shortcuts and only a small percentage would make use of them. So why not remove these keys and be able to make the rest of the keys more finger friendly? Sounds logical to me at least.
The yet to be named 9″ Dell netbook is predicted to feature Intel’s Atom, and knowing Dell, XP and Ubuntu will most likely be choices for the OS. Specs have not been announced yet but Dell says they will bring the product to market “…later this summer”, expect to specs in the next few weeks.
What is everyone’s opinion on big companies (HP , Sony, Dell) getting into the netbook explosion?
Sascha has been busy today. Here’s his video of the G10IL which I haven’t seen launch info for yet. It looks like it might have an Express/34 slot. Or is it a card reader slot?
Its a good day for Moblin. Not only will the core be used by Xandros in the Eee PC at some point in the future but a competing, Canonical-led distro called the Netbook Remix has been launched. As with their Ubuntu Mobile distribution for small-screen MIDs, it will be made available to others that wish to use it in their systems and won’t really be an end-user software package but i’m sure we’ll see it picked up and modded onto all sorts of netbooks before long. Some OEMs have already picked it up for devices to be released later in the year.
Full story, some more images and the full press release over at Engadget.
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