Asus introduces new Eee PCs at CeBIT

Author: Tim Smalley
Published: 7th March 2008
Comments (28) Stumble
The Eee PC 900 will use the same CPU as the Eee PC 700-series devices, but will feature a number of improvements.

The Eee PC 900 will use the same CPU as the Eee PC 700-series devices, but will feature a number of improvements.

Asus is showcasing a lot of products out at CeBIT this week, but the ones gathering by far the most attention are those in the expanded Eee PC family.

The company has announced two additions to the family – an older 7-inch that comes with Windows XP pre-installed and a second, newer design that incorporates a 9-inch display.

The new model, which is dubbed the Eee PC 900, comes complete with 1GB of DDR2 memory and up to 12GB of solid-state storage with either Linux or Windows XP installed. The 9-inch screen has a resolution of 1024x600 – this is something that has been much sought after since the release of the Eee PC 700-series.

Interestingly, Asus remained quiet on the rest of the hardware included inside the new Eee PC—especially with regard to what CPU is being used. Could it be that Asus will use one of the new Intel Atom processors, since this is the type of device that Intel has designed those processors for?

After a bit of digging, I managed to find out that the Eee PC 900-series sub-notebooks will use the same CPU as the one in the current 700-series devices.


Click to enlarge

To some, that might be a little disappointing, especially with Silverthorne and Diamondville on the roadmap very soon, with the official launch probably likely to be at Computex 2008 in June. If you're waiting for an Eee PC based on Intel's new ultra low power microarchitecture, I wouldn't be surprised if we saw an Atom-based Eee PC by the end of this year.

Aside from the resolution increase, memory and storage, Asus has improved the position of the microphone and the quality of the webcam as well. The company expects the product to hit the market in the summer at around €399 (inc. VAT).

From what we're told, the Eee PC 701 with Windows XP pre-installed will come with more accessories and will have a suggested retail price of about £260 (inc. VAT) – that's about the same price as the current Linux-based Eee PC 701 4GB sub-notebooks are selling for, but that's because the demand is high and supply isn't quite as good as Asus would like at the moment.

That's said to improve though, as the company expects to sell between three and five million units over the course of this year.

Are you looking forward to one or other of the new devices? Let us know in the forums.

Updated: Here's some shots from the CeBit show floor. The pictures are clickable to larger images.

Quote freedom810 7th March 2008, 16:16
Looks alot better than the original, but for me as a gamer. Its horribly far off from me buying it. Dell laptops all the way :p
Quote Firehed 7th March 2008, 16:30
How about battery life? My work dell laptop, while considerably bulkier than the EEE, is rated to give me more than six hours on a charge. I'd really love to be able to write a bit of code from the road and an ultraportable would be great for that, but if it only gets 2-3hrs, that's not really going to let me justify the purchase.
Quote steveo_mcg 7th March 2008, 16:32
I think i'll wait for the windows version to come out that should knock £50 of the linux ones especially if supply picks up.
Quote Bindibadgi 7th March 2008, 17:05
Quote:
Originally Posted by Firehed
How about battery life? My work dell laptop, while considerably bulkier than the EEE, is rated to give me more than six hours on a charge. I'd really love to be able to write a bit of code from the road and an ultraportable would be great for that, but if it only gets 2-3hrs, that's not really going to let me justify the purchase.

It's 4 Cell and not using an especially ultra low voltage CPU which will cost more - it's 2-3 hours. Until the Atom version arrives, this won't change because you're talking ~8/10W + more for the chipset down to 4W + specialist chipset and design.


I've updated the article with more pictures of it from the show floor - they are clickable for larger image too. I have to say, the XP version was really very good but it's interesting to see what will happen when MS stops selling XP - who needs who more - Asus or Microsoft? Both are big companies and if Asus can sell its Eee without Microsoft, who leaned on who?
Quote HourBeforeDawn 7th March 2008, 17:25
this new model is probably whats going to be competing against HP Compaq 2133 and if priced right could be a winning factor as the HP version is expected to be around $699us but the res on it for a 8.9" screen is much nicer at 1366x766
Quote DXR_13KE 7th March 2008, 19:43
i would change that CPU if i were you ASUS.....
Quote wuyanxu 7th March 2008, 20:16
so will an Intel Atom CPU EEE book be out any time soon?

i personally don't mind a sub £200 laptop with an ARM processor, with Linux in it. is there such thing?
Quote CardJoe 7th March 2008, 20:27
Arse. And I ordered a 4G today.
Quote Cupboard 7th March 2008, 20:29
Good. I will be snapping one of these up as soon as it is on the market and I have the money. Linux all the way though - there is no need to have Windows on it, and it just add unnecessary cost and bloat.

On one hand I can't believe that M$ would lean on an OEM to make them sell their old OS, but them again it would be a bit odd if it happened the other may round.
Quote Tyinsar 7th March 2008, 20:47
I had a 704 model and returned it the next day. The bigger screen is a nice step forward but at ~$450 it's still too much of a compromise between a similarly priced laptop (which is bigger but also more powerful & has much more built in (DVD)) and a pocket PC (I bought an N800). It's a really nice idea but to me it needs to be one or the other.
Quote Firehed 7th March 2008, 20:53
Quote:
Originally Posted by CardJoe
Arse. And I ordered a 4G today.
See Joe - this is what happens when you step outside the games bubble and into the world of technology.
Quote EQC 7th March 2008, 20:55
Can anybody spot the speakers on the new 9" model? They were so (painfully) obvious on the older models...
Quote Tyinsar 7th March 2008, 21:39
You're right! Perhaps they are hidden. I wonder if this version will have as much internal free space for modding
Quote Cupboard 7th March 2008, 22:49
Apparently the speakers are underneath
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/hardware/0,1000000091,39362122,00.htm?r=1
and it will cost £300
I can't help thinking that it would have been cheaper to use a more normal screen resolution like 1024*768
Quote Tile 8th March 2008, 00:34
The new EEE is way better than the original (larger screen and larger dimensions). The Achile's heel of the EEE series is the embedded SSD and if it dies the whole laptop is as good as dead.
Quote Anakha 8th March 2008, 03:28
Well, if Asus don't update the CPU, you can bet other people will: http://blog.tom.com/guryhwa1121/article/2915.html
Quote -EVRE- 8th March 2008, 03:35
after doing a little google curency exchange rate, the new EEE seems to be priced between $550 and $600USD at that price its not a product for me, I'm going to cash my paycheck and put in an order for an EEE with the 7" screen for $299. If I wanted to pay more than $499 for a laptop I'd wait for Staples to do their special on Acer laptops again....

For my use I need a mobile PC that has wifi and ethernet for my wifi diagnosis and setup.
Quote Tyinsar 8th March 2008, 05:59
Quote:
Originally Posted by -EVRE-
...For my use I need a mobile PC that has wifi and ethernet for my wifi diagnosis and setup.
I believe it has those but I agree about the price. I'd only start looking at these seriously again when the price hits $250 or less.
Quote IanW 8th March 2008, 06:07
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tile
The new EEE is way better than the original (larger screen and larger dimensions). The Achile's heel of the EEE series is the embedded SSD and if it dies the whole laptop is as good as dead.

From what I've read elsewhere, only the 2G & 4G versions have the SSD on the mobo. 8G & above will be using SSDs which fit an onboard miniPCIe socket.
Quote FR34K 8th March 2008, 07:17
I'd love to get a hold of one of these, but I'm gonna wait to see what they have in store for the future. hoping they up the storage and work out the power a little better, cause 2-3 just won't cut it for someone like myself. Would be great even as a little web and small work system for future college use.
Quote supertoad 8th March 2008, 08:03
i still don't understand the draw of these. the only advantage to a $400 clearance laptop is size, but it is still big enough that you need to put it into a bag to carry it. why would you want a 7" laptop? either go pocketable with a nokia tablet, or go full featured.
Quote Tim S 8th March 2008, 09:36
Quote:
Originally Posted by -EVRE-
after doing a little google curency exchange rate, the new EEE seems to be priced between $550 and $600USD at that price its not a product for me, I'm going to cash my paycheck and put in an order for an EEE with the 7" screen for $299. If I wanted to pay more than $499 for a laptop I'd wait for Staples to do their special on Acer laptops again....

For my use I need a mobile PC that has wifi and ethernet for my wifi diagnosis and setup.

It'll probably be closer to $400 US. Typically you can translate Euros into Dollars fairly well with a 1:1 ratio (VAT is included in the price here, whereas US sales tax is applied afterwards).
Quote zhangmaster12 8th March 2008, 15:50
uk is always more expensive than us, 3e 4g suf in uk is £240 (amazon.co.uk) a direct translation would turn that into around 480, but the 4g surf in the us is 350.

The price for this is more likely to be around 500.
Quote The_Beast 8th March 2008, 17:34
They look pretty good ;)
Quote Tile 9th March 2008, 13:56
If the higher capacity models have a replaceable SSD this is a good thing and it will eliminate the problem.
Quote zhangmaster12 10th March 2008, 01:10
edit* gave wrong url
http://blog.laptopmag.com/eee-pc-to-get-intels-diamondville-hard-drives-and-fashion-forward-style

$499base
Quote Xir 10th March 2008, 11:57
Bah...the 7" 4G is $299...and also 299€

which is >$450.
I need to buy one when abroad :D
Quote zhangmaster12 10th March 2008, 19:24
*delete* thought little button on the main page meant quote d'oh
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