netbooks

Intel perhaps most of all, but a lot of technology vendors are pushing the idea of MIDs (Mobile Internet Devices) and Netbooks (essentially scale-down, low-cost notebooks). Intel's interest here is pretty straightforward: the more a mobile device resembles a traditional PC, the more Intel's x86 franchise gives it a leg-up. By contrast, smartphones are based on any number of low-power processors, typically something other than x86 architecture.

I'm skeptical that these categories between the smartphone and the notebook will amount to a whole lot.

The issue I see with MIDs and Netbooks in the general case, however, … Read more

If you had Lenovo in your who-will-be-the-next-to-release-a-Netbook pool, come forward and claim your prize.

Lenovo on Monday announced the IdeaPad S10, the company's first Netbook, scheduled for an October release. Ingredients that make up the IdeaPad S10 include a 10.2-inch LED-backlit display, an Intel Atom processor, a keyboard that's 85 percent the size of a full-size laptop keyboard, and Windows XP. Lenovo will release two models initially.

A $399 model will include 512MB of RAM and an 80GB hard drive, and $449 will bump those specs up to 1GB of memory and a 160GB drive. The IdeaPad … Read more

Intel is working on the next version of its low-cost laptop, which could be ready in the next month or so, according to a report in PC World.

There are no pictures, and very few concrete details on what changes are in store for the device, which is intended for school children. Intel would only say it will have a "new look and feel," and will get both hardware and software upgrades.

We may already have a clue as to what tweaks the software might be getting. Last month, Sugar Labs, a spin-off of rival low-cost laptop maker … Read more

It was nice while it lasted. After a multi-week break from overwhelming netbook news, we were hit with a second tidal wave of tiny systems from Asus, Acer, and Sylvania. Feeling a little left out of the party, LG is supposedly mulling over a netbook of its own. Rumor has it that HP is contemplating a low-cost version of its 2133 Mini-Note. And Asus, not quite content with its many varieties of Eee PC, is reportedly working toward "whole-day" battery life on its netbooks.

The elderly among us may remember that before there were netbooks, there was the … Read more

Sure, it's a popular new form factor, but we've been hit by a literal flood of new Netbooks in the past few days.

This tiny laptop tsunami includes the new 10-inch version of the Asus Eee PC, plus a 7-inch system from Sylvania (yes, the lightbulb and microwave company, although it looks like someone just licensed the name), and Acer's 9-inch Aspire One. We're testing all three systems right now, but here's a quick rundown in the meantime.

Asus Eee PC 1000: The 10-inch version of the Eee PC has a few new tricks up … Read more

Perhaps the better question is, "Who isn't getting into mini-notebooks these days?"

The latest rumor floating around is that Korean electronics giant LG has asked MSI to build for it a tiny notebook based on Intel's Netbook reference design containing an Atom processor.

This one was started by Digitimes, and it says that MSI will make a Windows XP-based mini-notebook with an 8.9-inch screen, 2GB of memory, and a 120GB hard drive.

Those specs are closer to Hewlett-Packard's mini-notebook, the 2133 Mini-Note, released this spring, than MSI's much-talked about Netbook, the Wind. (MSI … Read more

Advanced Micro Devices has its eye on the ultra-low-cost notebook market. Dirk Meyer--the company's new CEO--and other executives discussed this and ways to make the company profitable during the company's earnings conference call Thursday.

Meyer--promoted to CEO on Thursday--made it clear that AMD is serious about the so-called Netbook market, where Intel's Atom processor has been the most successful so far. (Though Intel CEO Paul Otellini made a perplexing comment Tuesday about the Atom processor.)

Netbooks have two hallmarks: they are typically under $400 and are extremely small and light. The Asus Eee PC is the most … Read more

The ever watchful eye of Crave spied Acer's Aspire One Netbook on a few online resellers last week (while our British brethren got their hands on one last month), and today Acer makes it official by announcing the U.S. availability of its 8.9-inch Netbook. The company outlines three models, which range in price from a very low $379 to $449. By comparison, the latest Asus Eee PC 901 comes in at $599, while the MSI Wind is priced at $479.

All three Aspire One models use the 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor (which is what we … Read more

If you dug the pictures of the upcoming 9-inch Acer Aspire One Netbook that have been flying around online, you'll be pleased to know that with no official notice from Acer, the Intel-Atom-powered system has been spotted for sale at a handful of U.S. retailers, including CDW.

We've seen two models offered online. Both have the 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor and 1,024x600-pixel resolution 8.9-inch displays. The $399 version (model number A110-1295) has 512MB of RAM, Linux, and an 8GB solid-state hard drive, while another version (A150-1006), for $422 (from CDW, at least), has … Read more