More details on Acer's Eee PC-competing laptops trickle out

We'd already heard a few tantalizing details about Acer's forthcoming Eee PC competitors, but now thanks to some unspecified "sources at notebook ODMs" speaking to DigiTimes we have a few more tidbits on the low-cost laptops. If this latest report is to be believed, Acer will be shipping both the 8.9-inch Aspire and 12.1-inch Slim Gemstone Aspire in the second half of 2008, with at least the 8.9-incher unsurprisingly based on Intel's budget-friendly Atom processor. That model will also apparently be available with your choice of Linux or Windows XP, and your choice of SSD or regular hard drives (no word on capacities), with it setting you back between $300 and $450 depending on the configuration (that's a slight change from the $350 to $400 we heard earlier). Details on the 12.1-inch model are considerably lighter, unfortunately, although DigiTimes says that Acer ordered a million of the 12.1-inch panels in March, and that they cost between $40 to $50 less than other "high-end" panels of the same size. It also looks like Acer is trying to match Asus in the boasting department, with it reportedly declaring that it'll ship a hefty 5 to 5.5 million of the 8.9-inch models in the second half of 2008 alone.

[Via Electronista]

[retro77 @ Apr 7th 2008 6:31PM]

Too late to the game.

[AJ in the East Bay @ Apr 7th 2008 6:34PM]

Not for me. I'll take one with a 12.1 screen if the price is right.

[tekdroid @ Apr 7th 2008 7:44PM]

nah, early days yet.

The market will explode this year and next, IMO. And it's nice to have a choice of regular HD over SSD (and Atom CPU). The price competition that will occur will be great as the market is flooded with these small things.

[Wisam @ Apr 7th 2008 11:03PM]

If they just let you swivel the screen into tablet mode, that would be freaking awesome. I could finally use the 9" model as an e-book reader. That alone will force me to buy one of these though I have a laptop and Pocket PC.

[chris @ Apr 7th 2008 6:47PM]

Together this new class of budget laptops will do for the Computer World what the Model T did for the Car World. It won't be long before we're outsourcing php jobs to New Guinea as opposed to New Delhi. For anyone interested I wrote a piece on the 2go from CTL, a similar model which I prefer the look of...
http://www.trade2save.com/blog/2008/04/03/see-the-expression

[Juaquin @ Apr 7th 2008 6:49PM]

Sounds good, but 5 million is being too optimistic.

[Cal @ Apr 7th 2008 6:53PM]

Grr this is gonna be a toughie, I'm waiting for my wallet to fill up and a nice, but cheap, 10-14" to drain it. But just about everyone I know with an Acer laptop has had problems with it...

[Terpy @ Apr 7th 2008 7:01PM]

Acer makes garbage, I will never buy their crap again.

- Disgruntled former Customer

[darkstar @ Apr 7th 2008 7:12PM]

wheres the HP 2133 that was supposed to come out today???

[kev @ Apr 7th 2008 8:50PM]

Go to Froogle, search for "hp mini-note" and check the Digital Universe links. Apparently they're taking orders and shipping within a couple weeks.

[Michael @ Apr 7th 2008 7:16PM]

im pretty sure the other "high-end" panels they are referring to is the MacBook Air

[Vesh @ Apr 7th 2008 7:35PM]

"than other "high-end" panels of the same size"

Good point.....except for the fact that the Macbook Air has a 13.3" Screen while this has a 12.1" screen, so I doubt that's what they are referring to.

[Michael @ Apr 7th 2008 7:38PM]

well, i dont care what you think...apple is what everyone wants to be...and emulate!

[Superevil @ Apr 7th 2008 7:50PM]

Spoken like a true fanboy mike

[Michael @ Apr 7th 2008 8:08PM]

*takes a bow* its hard work trolling all these forums, making sure apple is properly forced down everyones throats i appreciate the acknowledgment

[marcin @ Apr 7th 2008 7:18PM]

competition... fuck yeah.

i think i'll wait til september to see how this umpc war plays out. by then all the manufacturers should have their models out.

[bob cobb @ Apr 7th 2008 7:26PM]

Awesome, I'm so anxious to see a 9 -12" cheap ultraportable.

[Superevil @ Apr 7th 2008 7:49PM]

Quick word of advice Acer; Big Bezel = No Sale

[AJ in the East Bay @ Apr 7th 2008 8:11PM]

Agreed! That is one thing NOT to copy from the EeePC.

[ug @ Apr 8th 2008 1:49AM]

I don't care how damn big the bezel is as long as it's got 1024 horizontal res. I don't know why people keep fixating on bezels (or iMac "chins").

[BigTeebo @ Apr 7th 2008 8:17PM]

The key thing here is to be competitive on features & stay small, but don't put it over X amount of dollars. once you go over that amount, it's just a low-end laptop. Steady steady.

[nxtiak @ Apr 7th 2008 9:00PM]

I saw one at Best Buy today. (the box that is), it was in a locked cage.
I was able to stick my hands in and move around the box. But I don't think it's Windows XP cuz the picture on the box wasn't XP. Also the security tag was cut, so I think someone bought it and returned it.

[nano404 @ Apr 7th 2008 10:17PM]

Uhh... Acer? never again, you would think after i replaced my hard drive the trouble would be over? Nah, when i finally got the laptop to start again after it just wouldn't start up one morning, most of the keys aren't working...

Fuck Acer.

Giving me this shit would be the epitome of insults...

[paul @ Apr 8th 2008 3:03AM]

hmm.. i have an acer and have had no problems. i even record music on the things. workes pretty damn good. i guess people want a whole lot for a whole little. to the mac guy... come on, not everyone is that rich. or that easily swindled.

but yah, i guess acer is hit or miss. i must admit i completely removed all the progs that came with it. they were crap and kept throttling my cpu and drive. probably why you have had problems. or maybe you just use your laptop as a seat cushion or play frisbee with it, who knows.

im not really an acer advocate just think i got an exceptionally good deal on this laptop and its run better than any dell or hp or vaio i've ever come across. word.

go ahead hate. i need more haters. (ever seen kat williams? oh thats right you're a nerd and have better things to do with your time like play WoW)

[Anthony @ Apr 8th 2008 9:07AM]

What is the point of arguing about an envolving product? Just like the Gen 1 Apple iPod, great products are alaways progressively envolving. Do you know my dream? Having economical PC solutions like Epc and get a set in every bathroom. Life is good with digital. www.conico.com.