Asus to add touch to Eee PC

Author: Gareth Halfacree
Published: 10th October 2008
Comments (8) Stumble
Asus to add touch to Eee PC

The Eee PC is due a hardware refresh at the start of next year, with models featuring touchscreens and dual-core Atom chips confirmed.

Just in case you thought that it was only bad news that came out of Asus these days, here's something to cheer you up: an official Eee PC model with integral touchscreen.

According to an article over on Gizmodo, Asus is looking to release the touchscreen variant of its popular Eee PC netbook some time during the first quarter of next year – with the first models likely to surface at CES in January.

The touchscreen mod has proved particularly popular amongst Eee PC owners who don't mind losing the warranty associated with the device, and it's not hard to see why: with a form factor only slightly larger than an old-fashioned palmtop, the ability to navigate the OS via fingertip is certainly a temptation. While the official touchscreen Eee PC model won't go as far as some homebrew modifications have done – the ability to rotate the screen in the manner of a teeny-tiny tablet PC is unlikely to appear – it's certainly another option for anyone who wants something a bit special but doesn't have the soldering skills or confidence required to roll their own.

The news gets better for Eee PC fans, too: according to DigiTimes the company is also planning some new top-end models using Intel's dual-core Atom chips, and a new entry-level system that keeps things closer to the Eee's original design spec of an ultra-low-cost PC with an MSRP of just $300.

Would you be tempted by an official touchscreen Eee, or is the whole idea just too gimmicky for you to swallow? Share your thoughts over in the forums.
Quote Firehed 10th October 2008, 09:14
I only think that touchscreens really make sense in the context of tablets, so definitely not for me.
Quote Xtrafresh 10th October 2008, 09:24
I have a convertible tablet/laptop, and i must say it makes a LOT of sense to use the touchscreen in laptop mode. This only applies to small laptops (mine's a 12") and netbooks though.

I like the addition, though this will (again) make the eee more expensive. I'd like to see Asus develop BOTH ways (low end and high end) instead of just high end.
Quote Joeymac 10th October 2008, 10:07
Quote:
Originally Posted by Xtrafresh

I like the addition, though this will (again) make the eee more expensive. I'd like to see Asus develop BOTH ways (low end and high end) instead of just high end.

errrrrrr. Didn't you read?

"The news gets better for Eee PC fans, too: according to DigiTimes the company is also planning some new top-end models using Intel's dual-core Atom chips, and a new entry-level system that keeps things closer to the Eee's original design spec of an ultra-low-cost PC with an MSRP of just $300.
"
Quote Xtrafresh 10th October 2008, 12:05
yep, standard RTP-protocol violation there, my bad :o
Quote HourBeforeDawn 10th October 2008, 19:59
ha I knew they were going to bring the dual atoms to the EeePC market instead of just the EeeBox market, good move now I shall wait for a dual core atom EeePC then ^^
Quote CowBlazed 10th October 2008, 21:04
Now to see if they get a better chipset for these, the 22W TDP 945 just doesn't cut it anymore. The "GSE" version is supposed to have a lower TDP and heat but haven't seen any info about it.
Quote BlackMage23 10th October 2008, 21:26
There was always going to be a dual core atom machine since the ataom came out, they just didn't want to hurt sales of the old models.
Quote DXR_13KE 11th October 2008, 15:48
300$ for a laptop of that kind is very nice...
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