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ASUS Eee PC 1215T with AMD Neo on sale now
Been waiting on an Eee PC 1215N with an AMD Neo processor? Or how about an Eee PC 1015T with a 12.1-inch display? We know, you need a damn almanac to keep up with all of ASUS' netbooks, but if you have in fact been waiting on the respective strengths of those two Eee PC variants, the company's got you covered with its new 1215T. Forgoing the Intel Atom / NVIDIA Ion 2 combo for a single core 1.7GHz AMD Athlon K125 processor, the 12.1-inch notbook (our word for a machine that's not really a netbook anymore) packs 2GB of RAM, an 320GB hard drive and Windows 7 Home Premium. The system looks to have the same chassis as the $485 Eee PC 1215N we reviewed not too long ago, but instead rings up at around $436 on Amazon right now. We obviously haven't tested the AMD version nor have we seen any reviews, but we'd venture to guess that while you may save $50, you'll give up the better battery life of the Intel / Ion-powered 1215N -- the AMD Neo laptops we've tested haven't lasted longer than four hours on a charge. That's just our hunch, but hey, don't let us stop you from hitting that source link and ordering one right now. [Thanks, Sal]
Samsung refreshes X Series laptop lineup with Core i3 ULV chips
If you've got a hankering for some battery-sipping Core i3 ULV processors and live south of a certain 38th parallel line, you'll probably want to take a close look at one of Samsung's new designs. We hear on good authority that Sammy's refreshed its X Series laptops with the 1.2GHz Core i3-330M processor, including the 11.6-inch X180 (with the same 3GB of DDR3 memory, 320GB hard drive and most everything else included in the X170 that came before) and the 14-inch X430, which leapfrogs its predecessor the X420 with dedicated GeForce 310M graphics. Both actually report less battery life than their forbears, as the new laptops are rated closer to eight than nine hours, but in the X430 it's a small sum to pay to avoid integrated Intel video. We're also hearing word of a AMD-powered 11.6-incher called the Samsung X125, which should be hitting Europe any minute now for €499 (roughly $647). It's got a 1.7GHz Athlon II Neo K125 chip, 3GB memory, ATI Radeon 4225 graphics, and a manufacturer-reported five hours of battery life, all of which honestly sounds pretty unimpressive for the price. We know you can do better, Samsung. We believe.
Gateway LT32 to hit retailers soon for $450
We're not sure why Gateway's waited so long to release the details and pricing on the LT32 -- considering it's pretty much a rebadge of the Acer Aspire One 721 we just reviewed -- but lo and behold the HD-capable, 11.6-inch ultraportable will be hitting the street soon for $450. Just like the $430 Aspire One 721, the LT32 is powered by AMD's 1.7GHz Athlon II Neo K125 CPU, runs Windows 7 Home Premium, and packs a 250GB hard drive and 2GB of RAM. It also has ATI Radeon HD 4225 integrated graphics, which as we saw on the recent Acers handles 1080p flash and local video like a champ. From the looks of things the LT32 also seems to have a similar chassis to the 721, so we're not totally sure why you'd choose it over the Acer when it's $20 more, but perhaps there's just some Gateway diehards amongst us. Hit the break for the full release.
Acer Aspire One 521 and 721 review
On the surface Acer's 10.1-inch Aspire One 521 and 11.6-inch Aspire One 721 appear to be fairly run-of-the-mill netbooks -- or ultraportables for those that are morally opposed to calling a laptop with a 11.6-inch display a netbook. They're rather small machines, measure just about an inch thick, and ring up at under $430. But there's a lot more than meets the eye with this Aspire One duo – instead of Intel Atom or ULV processors, both are powered by a new AMD 1.7GHz Athlon II Neo K125 processor and promise 1080p playback thanks to ATI Radeon HD 4225 graphics. We've certainly been pumped about these two systems since their French debut, but fear of AMD's usually poor battery life and scorching temperatures have been holding us back from all-out excitement. Do we have nothing to fear but fear itself? We've spent the last few days with these two systems, and will reveal all in our full review after the break. %Gallery-96636%
Acer comes clean with new Aspire One availability and pricing
We've pretty much known about all of these Acer netbooks that are officially being announced today, but their very tempting price tags are definitely new to us. First up is the 11.6-inch Aspire One 721 and 10.1-inch 521, both of which we checked out last month. While the duo are powered by the same AMD Athlon II Neo K125 processors and ATI Radeon HD 4225 graphics, the 721 will start at $429.99 while the 521 at $349.99. And let's not forget that, unlike Intel Atom powered netbooks, they sport HDMI ports and claim to be "HD capable." Speaking of Intel netbooks, Acer's got those in store too -- the 10-inch, Atom powered Aspire One D260 and 533 will also be available later this month. The D620 packs an Atom N450 processor, 1GB of RAM and a three-cell battery for $298. On the flip side, the $330 Aspire One 533 has a slightly faster N475 processor, a 250GB hard drive and a six-cell battery. Enticing, right? The full press release is after the break, but hopefully we'll be able to assist you in choosing one of these with some full reviews soon.
