Medion rolls out AMD-based Akoya Mini E1312 netbook
By Donald Melanson 
posted July 6th 2009 2:14PM
posted July 6th 2009 2:14PM
The AMD-based netbook train may have been a little slow to get out of the station, but it looks like it's finally starting to pick up a bit of steam, with Medion the latest to roll out an offering of its own. That comes in the form of the company's new Akoya Mini E1312, which opts for a low-power AMD Sempron 210U processor and ATI Radeon Xpress 1250 graphics instead of the usual Intel combo. Otherwise, you can expect to get a 16:9 11.6-inch display, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB hard drive, HDMI out, and a six-cell or nine-cell battery. No word on a release 'round here just yet, but folks in the UK will apparently be able to pick this one up exclusively at Aldi stores starting July 12th for £339.99 (or just under $550).
True that it is better to get a USB dongle you can use anywhere, but if I were to do this, I'd definitely go with the Sprint option! You have a rock solid network as opposed to AT&T's network, and you save money... just like the Pre instead of the iPhone, which I was thrilled to toss my iPhone 3G for. No more dropped calls!!!!!!
im getting this
You must be kidding because no Engadget reader would ever spend that kind of money on a processor that is crappier than the already-quite-crappy Atom N270.
puff, puff, pass.
The battery time is horrible (2,5 hours heavy use and 3,5 for movies) and the screen has sooo much glare. I just uplaoded a bunch of videos and the full review on my Site. here is the link: http://ndevil.com/de/index.php?s=e1312
I know it is all in german but i have the translation on the top left!
yeah thats near ABYSMAL for a 6 cell.
It's okay for an 11.6 inch screen. After the graphics test I understood the powerdrain. It's double the speed as the atoms with the gma950 chipsets. Gonna test some games like farcry and of course Windows 7 on it this week, so stay tuned! Here is my vlog: www.youtube.com/ndeviltv/
Sempron?
*throws up*
ATI Radeon, huh? What's the 720p experience on this thing, then?
Aldi stores are scattered around in the US, like here in SC. I've seen Medion kit for sale from time to time, so who knows, it might show up sooner than you think.
I got (still have) a Medion computer. I've had no problems with it. Haha, and I've purchased some Medion products at Aldi before. Actually, they made one of my favorite mp3 players and I got it there. Nothing says high tech like canned food and rental shopping carts.
And the reason to get this over the similarly spec'd Gateway model is? I know it can be price cause that what 50-100 cheaper depending on ram and battery. Does this like have a better battery life over the Gateway?
what's similarly speced?
I don't know of a Gateway notebook with a real graphics chip, or high res display, and besides, UK prices never translate to US prices for electronics
John, Gateway has a netbook with a AMD Athlon™ 64 L110 Single-Core Processor (1.2GHz, 800MHz FSB, 512KB L2 Cache) processor, 2GB of DDR2 533MHz RAM, a 250GB hard drive, and a 6 cell battery that can last for 5 hours on a single charge all for $399. That is the netbook that Al (or is it AI?) is talking about. Oh, and before I forget; the Gateway netbook has a 11.6" screen that has a 1366X768 resolution. The only thing that the Gateway model doesn't have over the Medion one is HDMI out, Gateway (actually Acer) stuck to VGA.
There really isn't any reason for U.S. consumers to get this Medion netbook as it will likely be higher priced and it looks like it comes with an inferior processor, half the ram, and a smaller hard drive. The 9 cell battery option might be able to push it longer on a single charge but that is something we will have to wait and see about. According to darkpros, the 6 cell version operates for 2.5 hours which means that the 9 cell battery may push it up to 3.5 hours. The Gateway model will easily get that with screen brightness set to 60% with wi-fi left on.
Yes that is the one. I forgot the model number but yeah.
God, I'm so sick of netbooks, these poor people better be using them to log onto DeVry.
Gee, thanks for the input, I bow to your immense wisdom.
German price is 399 €.
http://aldi-süd.de/de/html/offers/angebote_ab_mo-06kw2809-multimedia.htm
Assuming the usual conversion factor backwards, this would be $399 instead of $550.
Any idea about its performance and battery life? The MSI Wind U115 with a Z530 seems much more interesting. 16.5 hours from one charge!
The Euro hasn't been 1:1 with the US dollar for quite a while (or even close). 399 € converts right now (according to xe.com) to ~$558 US
@rmasson: Yes, but electronics prices typically follow about a 1:1 conversion rate between US and Europe - regardless of the actual currency exchange. Also bear in mind the German price probably includes tax. If this is €400 it definitely won't be $550.
As for this netbook, it's obviously a piece of crap: clue is in the 'six-cell or nine-cell battery' line. What? Yeah, no. AMD can't make processors that are low-power enough for netbooks; not exactly news, but worth remembering.
I like this, and will buy it come 12th...
It's already for sale in Germany. (@ Aldi-Sued anyway)
Aldi-Nord, too, since Monday, July 6th.
I bought this laptop yesterday and my conclusion is simple: buy this.
A comparable spec laptop is the HP DV2 and the price difference is noticeable - €400 for the Medion from ALDI and €600 for the DV2 from DABS.
Here are the specs from Cpuz:
AMD Athlon Neo MV-21 [Sempron 210u] - 65nm - 1.5MHz - ATI RS690/RS690M Chipset - ATI SB600 Southbridge - 1GB DDR2 RAM PC2-6400 (400MHz)
The Sempron (Neo) processor is very nimble. I own an Acer Aspire One and the Aton N270 is not as competent. Also the ATI chipset is impressive and the fan only emits a low hum.
The heat generated by the laptop is not uncomfortable and is easily many degrees less than an Atom with the GMA 950 chipset.
It is as light as a feather and the battery modes available from the taskbar are comprehensive. The 6 cell battery lasts 3 hours and is a trojan compared to the Aspire One's puny 1 hour. I'll buy the 9 cell from Medion
For €400 this laptop is a steal.