In a recent interview,
Asus CEO Jerry Shen talked up the company's
newest edition to the Eee family, and also dropped a few more details on the forthcoming laptop. Apparently, the new set of miniature PCs will up the SSD capacity, with sizes ranging from 8GB in the XP-equipped model, up to 12GB or 20GB in the Linux versions -- though it's hard to say why the smaller-footprint Linux would need more drive space. Shen also revealed that there are tentative plans to release WiMAX and HSDPA-enabled models sometime in Q3 of 2008, and he confirmed that come May the company will trade up to Intel's
Diamondville (er, Atom) chips. In addition, more colors are on the way, and the base price in the US will be $499 at launch -- though that figure is expected to drop in the following months.
[Via
Eee Site]
posted Mar 9th 2008 7:28PM
None of the EEE PC's have VIA cpu, gah wtf is wrong with people.... I just hope the price is that or cheaper!!
Yeah, the editorial quality of this place is HORRIBLE. I'll bet half the editors only got their jobs because they were supposedly "good writers."
And evidently they once again silently rowback to make the mistake disappear, and you get left looking like a tool. Ah, journalism at its finest!
It'll be because the source says:
"Shen revealed that the low-cost notebook platform will adopt Intel’s Diamondville processor in Q2 rather than VIA’s mobile computing platform."
Even though he actually said that they will continue with Intel, sort of implying that is wasn't VIA beforehand...
The Eee can get cheaper w/o going to VIA chips. I bet ASUS is taking a chunk of profit at these prices. While the build quality is OK, the parts are cheap and the screens are low- resolution and about 93 candela per meter squared (a good laptop screen is 200-350 these days).
I bet the price will drop when the NoahPad and CloudBook are out with larger hard disks and cool features.
on the actual article, it says something like "we will continue to use intel as opposed to the VIA computing platform"
but on both giz and here, they make it (now its made for here, but giz is still wrong right now) seem like asus is MOVING AWAY FROM VIA, when just about everyone, except those unlucky souls who haven't been keeping up and get swayed from articles like this one, know thats just not the case.
"n addition, more colors are on the way, and the base price in the US will be $499 at launch -- though that figure is expected to drop in the following months."
I suspect it'll have about as good a price drop as the 701
"...will carry SSDs as opposed to the flash memory..."
I assume you mean HDDs as opposed to the flash memory...
The original article says SSDs in 8/12/20GB configurations, but also leaves open the possibility of Asus giving consumers the choice of an HDD.
No.
Flash memory = memory embedded on the motherboard/circuit board.
SSD = Solid State Drive which can be swapped out like HDD.
I didn't expect there to be a distinction between flash based SSDs and embedded flash memory, but that makes sense now.
They will never replicate the success of the original EEE PC. These new machines lack: a) Innovation b) Value (same price as a Dell with 15" wide screen LCD c) Cuteness (remember the first time you saw an EEE PC?, just like a puppy!) d) Compactness (think puppy again) e) Versatility (original machine has all but Bluetooth/HSDPA, new machines still lacking that as a base feature). I predict, some other company will launch the next 'EEE PC', if you know what I mean. I want: 7-9" LCD, HSDPA built in (no dongle!), Stereo Bluetooth, slightly larger keyboard (not vital), longer life battery, slightly more RAM. That's all! Not much to ask, but it will be my ideal travel companion. You?
I thought the form-factor was the SAME as the current Eee, except for depth (meaning the space from the spacebar down)? If so, it should be just as cute.
Q3??? i am pretty sure they will delay it again for a couple of months
I'd take one of these with a 20GB SSD over a Mac Book Air.
Ultraportable, more connectivity = none of Apple's bullshit.
You could actually take 3 or 4.
we have a winner!
the MBA is totally impractical. Not enough features to do anything worthwhile, too big to be a real UMPC and too expensive compared to anything in either market.
I love how jobs tries to tout it's big screen as a feature. lol. that's exactly the problem: big screen = awkward to carry. I want something that's like a small novel, not something that fits in a manilla envelope...
Ah but you forgot one very important feature of the MBA, Apple make it, and everyone knows that alone instantly makes it a must have or a thousand times better than the competition...
Here we go with the same old lame Eee / Air comparison. The 2 systems are not in the same class. I'm not defending Apple's Air as a good idea, I think they missed the point with it and I would have preferred to see a 12" as thin as possible but with ports MBP (basically a MPB version of the X300 with a 12" screen), and I won't be getting one, However, the specs on the Air vs. the Eee are not even close. The screen size isn't close, the amount of memory and storage space isn't close, the processor spec isn't close. The design isn't close. The two systems are just not comparable in a really meaningful way, and are aimed at 2 different market segments. Apple deserves some bashing for the Air IMO; I say this as an Apple shareholder, but the Eee/Air comparison is simply stupid.
what exactly is the target market for the Air?
If it's UMPC buyers, they failed miserably to meet their needs. it's too big.
If it's the grandma trying to e-mail her grandkids, then they missed the boat entirely. too expensive, and I doubt granny cares if it fits in an envelope.
If it's a mac power-user (aka a graphics/video guy), then the machine is severly underpowered.
Even for the casual user, there's not enough usb, no firewire, and no dvd drive.
The only concievable market is the mac fanboy then that's trying to load songs on his overpriced iPhone using terribly bloated music management software (iTunes). He's got too much of daddy's money to blow, but likes to wear zip up hoodies, graphic tees and ripped jeans to show that he can be "real" and fit in with all the normal people. He thinks that by buying a mac he's special, yet part of a wholesome family.
"you are not special, you are the same decaying organic matter as everyone else." - Tyler Durden, Fight Club
"The screen size isn't close, the amount of memory and storage space isn't close, the processor spec isn't close.... The two systems are just not comparable in a really meaningful way"
They get compared because, prior to the MBA announcement, everyone expected Apple to do something halfway intelligent and ship something borderline-comparable to the EEE, at the very least in form factor. The MBA is actually BIGGER in terms of width and height than the regular MacBooks - a huge let down, IMHO. That said, they could have produced something with comparable specs all around - They could have stripped their OS down to something in between the iPhone version of Mac OS-X and the desktop builds.
agreed.
Having grown up using only Linux I figure I'll figure that I'll feel right at home when I take one of these babys to college in the fall (I just hope they get them out in time). I can't wait to watch the poor students who's rich parents bought them an air carefully carrying the $1,800 sheet of metal in fear of snapping it in half.
"The only concievable market is the mac fanboy then that's trying to load songs on his overpriced iPhone using terribly bloated music management software (iTunes). He's got too much of daddy's money to blow, but likes to wear zip up hoodies, graphic tees and ripped jeans to show that he can be "real" and fit in with all the normal people. He thinks that by buying a mac he's special, yet part of a wholesome family."
Could you possible make any more stereotypical assumptions in a single sentence?
@ phrozunsun
Talk about a false dichotomy!
Nice list of target users! lol! U chose a bunch of customers who are very unlikely (grandma, powerusers etc) and threw in the fanboy to complete the argument!!!
The Macbook Air is marketed at the rich, overpaid showoff types. People who want to work and have something supercool (thinnest notebook in the WORLD!!!) to boast about and don't really care about the price, expensive equals quality. USB ports don't matter because this is going to be a 2nd computer, to take with them out in their little designer $500 portfolio bags.
There are a lot of people who fit this, maybe not the biggest market segment, but at the top end of the scale, a high price tag and low numbers can be as profitable as a low margin and huge sales figures. Also, it got Apple a lot of press, which gets more people interested in the brand.
While I can understand the dislike it has received from most readers here as it it generally useless for the things we can think of, I think it is shortsighted for people to attack Apple so much about it, when in a business sense, it could actually be a good idea.
I personally would prefer something like the Eee PC, this new 9 incher is sounding like perfection as the 7" model was never going to cut it for me with all that bezel. Throw in a touch screen and have it at
@ CraigJ: It's paragraph, not sentence, fanboy.
@ Simon: I listed the only markets it could vaugely appeal to. (I.E. people who would want something "ultraportable" (UMPC), underpowered (Granny), or just a Mac (Graphics and Video Guys). I even tried to give it a chance with the casual user, knowing sometimes they'll buy any old piece of crap.
@Randavance
yeah, im right there with you. i hope they get this out soon enough before college either to:
A) drop the prices in the 701
B) just come out so i can buy one
The new 9" Eee PCs do look great, but I think they're still going to be a tad on the expensive side for me. Still, if I'm ever able to get a 20GB one with an Atom proessor for
"though it's hard to say why the smaller-footprint Linux would need more drive space"
It doesn't NEED more drive space, you just get more for the same money because your not paying for Windows.
my thoughts exactly. don't forget, windows xp pro is still retailing for ~$300.
I thought it was that the Linux distro was smaller and so there was more left over for blank HD space?
If people start figuring OS overhead into printed hard drive specs, I'ma be angry. I still resent that they use 'one billion bytes' for a gigabyte when I really want to know how many binary gigabytes are on it, like with RAM and such.
...but mostly because they'd assume people used windows, like as not. No thanks.
Exactly. I believe it's just to offset the cost.
It's going to be rather interesting to see people piss on a new XP machine with a 9" screen, 8GB SSD drive, Wifi and is under 4 pounds that retails for less $700 when not too long ago something like that would have retailed for easily over $2000... but then these are the Engadget boards.
The new 9" Eee PCs do look great, but I think they're still going to be a tad on the expensive side for me. Still, if I'm ever able to get a 20GB one with an Atom proessor for less than £300, then I'd be more than ready to part with the cash! It's be great to take travelling, and I'd guess much more durable than my current MacBook.
that macbook already wiped out your savings, eh?
yay, my eee will have a family now!
Am I the only one that notices that the Z and Y keys on the left Eee are switched?
its called a qwertz keyboard. you have a qwerty.
I hadn't noticed that. Thanks for pointing it out. I wonder what the deal is with that?
Qwertz huh? Hadn't heard of that.
The QWERTZ layout is used in German-speaking countries.
The short answer is that QWERTZ keyboards are mostly used in German speaking regions.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QWERTZ
Wow, if it wasn't for the ECS G10L I would certainly be getting the EeePC 900, but if the ECS machine has comparable specs I'll snap that up instead, because it looks so much nicer and rocks that 7.2Mbps HSDPA card. It looks like this one will have HSDPA too though, so maybe that's a moot point. Of course, WiMax is also a good option depending on which becomes more prevalent in the future.
Personally, I'd much rather buy an ASUS product than an "ECS" product. Who or what is an "ECS"? Had you ever heard of them before this product announcement?
Seems silly to me!
You haven't? To be honest, I wouldn't buy an ECS product anyway, but I know who they are. They make the cheap motherboards that are usually given away with CPUs at Fry's Electronics, which is a large warehouse type electronics retailer. Of course, for the average person Asus is a nobody too, even though they make laptops for Apple and stuff (at least, I think they do anyway).
ECS in just the fourth biggest
Quote from their website:
"ECS, the Elitegroup Computer Systems, has been a pioneer in designing and manufacturing computer motherboards since 1987. It was the first motherboard maker in Taiwan to be listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange in 1994. Today, the company also designs and manufactures barebone and complete systems, such as notebook computers and high-end servers, for distributors worldwide."
Quote from wikipedia:
"Elitegroup Computer Systems (or ECS) is a Taiwan-based electronics firm. It is the fourth largest PC motherboard manufacturer in the world (after Asus, Gigabyte Technology, and MSI), with production reaching 24 million units in 2002. Many of these motherboards have been produced for OEM customers and are used in systems assembled and sold by such brand-name companies as IBM and Compaq."
Just for your information...
Is an SSD superior to flash memory, because i always thought they were the same.
SSDs can be replaced with larger SSDs. Before, the flash memory was soldered to the mobo.
Also "an" goes before words that begin with vowels, not consonants.
"an" may be used with "s," when the letter is used as a word. say it out loud, and i think you will find that it begins with a vowel sound. sucker.
Actually, in the pronunciation of "SSD", "S" is actually pronounced "es". Meaning that the word does actually begin with a vowel sound, if not a letter, so "an SSD" is correct. If you want to argue the point you can just ring the FBI and talk to an FBI agent about it.
Actually, Tony "the grammar Nazi"...maybe you need to break out your grammar book again... when an acronym begins with a vowel "sound" (S like 'ESS'), you use AN instead of A.
You may continue...
God, I love that all those comments happened so fast.
Wow, epic fail Tony. Stay in school please.
I read SSD as solid-state drive, so in my head it was "an solid...". If that clarifies anything, not that it matters to any of you since you've already made up your minds.
Tony, even your lame "explanation" doesn't qualify your "correction" as anything other than "wrong".
It's a shame when one encounters people such as yourself who are in such short supply of self-esteem that they can't ever admit when they're wrong, when they absolutely are.
Who cares what your was going on in your head? It's all about what you wrote, the fact that it was incorrect and the mean-spirited manner in which you wrote it.
Actually from what I have heard Eee's memory is kind of a compact flash card with a IDE interface. Don't know if that qualifies as SSD, but what I think the new version will have is a "pure" SSD solution, which will probably be faster (some SSDs can reach speeds higher than 100 mb/s) and more reliable.
@TONY: who appointed you the role GRAMMAR POLICE, this is a F***ing forum, not a book report.
kudos for getting it wrong too.
So I need to beg for forgiveness everytime I get something wrong? I wanted to explain why I wrote what I did, and I did so without being an ass about it. But it's okay for everyone else to be a dick.
No, you just need to lose the grammar nazi job.
Also, when the original interview (http://blog.laptopmag.com/eee-pc-to-get-intels-diamondville-hard-drives-and-fashion-forward-style) said Diamondville rather than VIA, I think they were referring to rumors that they would switch to Isaiah instead of staying with Intel. Looks like the EeePC line is going to ballon in the coming months, which is great. The interview says Diamondville is coming in May, which is when my birthday is, so w00t!
"most of the people are demanding a form of Windows," shen says.
ready, fight!!!
Shouldn't that have been the screen size they went with from the beginning? Those smaller screens were like a prototype level compromise.
I wonder if when they release it the price is increased by $100 like the 2G version. I wouldn't be suprised...Expect 599
It even looked like the black bezel was a rush job afterthought when they couldn't get their shit together.
http://clumpc.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/cimg06695.jpg
But I gotta admit I like the way the black border looks around the screen. Just not the screen size.
I think they should release them in time for people buying new laptops for school. i plan on getting a new lappy for school next year, and i might have to settle for the 7" model.
April (3 weeks from now) soon enough for ya?
yes, that would be in time for my birthday...
It occurs to me that spilling things on the EEE would cause some problems.
someone wake me up when the eee can run crysis
Wake me up when ANYTHING can run crysis
lern2read
http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/27/vias-upcoming-isaiah-chip-can-run-crysis/
wow some ppl can take jokes apparently...
why linux? nobody uses that os except for hackers and
some companies.
Because it's free.
yeah its free but you can't run most programs like windows or mac os x.
A lot of us have erhm "extra" copies of XP laying around, so there's no reason to buy another one. Forcing people to buy Windows with the Eee would jack up prices considerably and overall isn't really needed.
Linux rocks man. Ever used it? Try Ubuntu, it comes with most things you need out of the box.
I use Windows XP and Mac OSX on my main Gaming computer. My older computers run Linux and it all works out perfectly.
Why Linux?
Because its cheap as hell... and your average user won't be using their Eee for anything other than a web browser and email checker. maybe read a doc or two, view a photo.. etc.
The target audience isn't any audience that would actually NEED any software other than that which is already installed on the machine.
Some users request windows, because they are comfortable and familiar with it, and they are willing to pay extra and have less for their lil machines.
Plus, the Eee isn't intended to be a performance machine, and linux works much friendlier on your lil resource scarce Eee
Using Windows as the operating system for their target audience would be silly, since it adds 100+ to the price tag, makes the machine seem slower, and no real benefit is added by users being able to install/run windows apps on it.
---
Many many people use linux. True that it's primarily a business OS. There are still a few issues that keep linux out of the standard home use. But those are being worked on all the time. Not 'some' companies. MANY, very many companies use Linux. Also, linux is a wonderful platform for consumer grade electronic devices. Your router may be running on linux right now. More and more consumer devices these days are being run off linux, because its much easier to throw linux on an embedded device than to write your own custom operating system for every new device you make. Linux is a swiss army knife. It'll do anything you ask it to, with nearly nothing...
Only thing it can't do is look 'non-threatening' and appeal to a majority audience of home users... but the reasons why linux isn't ready for the home computer is a different discussion
No hackers, just people who enjoy logic and knowing that nothing is hidden or restricted.
Even if the novice running Ubuntu decides that he doesn't like how Maximize button in the top right hand corner of his screen looks, he just opens up his file manager, clicks the "veiw hidden fils" option, and navigates to /home/$USER/.themes/that_cool_theme/metacity-1/ and opens up the image file that represents his close button and edits it in The Gimp.
Linux offers a lot that most people don't even think to ask for because they never imagined it existed.
I envy you, Rand. I only switched to Ubuntu last year.
Best IT-related move I've ever made.
I use it, not Xandros though, Ubuntu (like the support of the forums, and the regular updates), and when I get an EeePC I'd run eee-Xubuntu {whatever the heck it's called now}. I'd still use windows XP for gaming {oldschool -- 5years old} and emulation {seems to run better on XP}.
loving and learning: Linux.
I'm assuming that the win xp version will only get a max 8 gb because more would push up the price of the notebook. The cheaper linux OS saves money and allows Asus to add more space for the same price.
$500 for an eee...
if the macbook air were that cheap, id grab a few right now...haha
I would still buy one at $500. Any higher, and Im getting a full size laptop, but $500 for a 12gb+ would be great!
still not so crazy about the Eee PC. It has the perk of being the first decent MID to market, but it doesn't have the battery life/performance i want.
WHEN ARE THOSE ISAIAHS COMING OUT, VIA? GIMME GIMME GIMME!
Finally some new insite to the eee.
Only time will tell what the actual price would be when released.
I think Intel's Atom CPU will poo all over VIA's, they usually do.
I'll be getting one in the summer now that it will be featuring an Atom/HSDPA/1024x600 screen.
Boy did Apple miss the boat, this little device kicks the iPhone between the legs never mind the MBA.
The bonus of an Intel CPU means I'll be dual booting XP & Leopard OSX86 result !
I wonder how long it'll take T-Mobile/3/O2 to start offering these with a mobile web contract.........
the Intel platform will probably beat the Isaiah cores - probably - but power isn't the primary concern of the UMPC/MID formats. if i can do everything that they did in the Digital Kitchen Origami promo vid and do it under $1000, i'm all over it.
I got my Eee 8G from newegg.com for $499. The SSD is on a miniPCIe removable card. If they sell the Eee900 with a 12 or 20G SSD and Xandros that will be sweet.
These cheapo laptops seem to be making a lot of companies nervous, they're either bashing the Eee's or trying to copy them.
It's nice to see Asus has the balls to put its money where its mouth is. The only company that actually has a working product on the market, that's actually usable. Cloudbook please...
Unsaid is the reason why they are using XP instead of Vista. Looks like they are keeping the Intel 900 graphics instead of upgrading to 950 or x3100.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Vista#Hardware_requirements
premium ready requires a 40GB HDD, and 15 GB of free space
If the Linux version was sold on the same hardware, its price would probably be below WinXP equipped units, which would probably limit XP units popularity. For many people, the price (and not the OS) will dictate which flavor of this PC they will get.