Asus Eee PC plus Windows XP equals Best Buy

Hardly a day goes by when we don't hear some news item about everyone's favorite mini-notebook, the Asus Eee PC. While the current $399 Eee PC runs Linux and comes preloaded with most of the software you'll need for day to day computing (FireFox, OpenOffice, etc.), Asus has always talked up that fact that this little machine could handle Windows XP with no problem.

We've seen a handful of XP Eee PC samples around, but now it's getting a more formal release via big-box retailer Best Buy, according to Laptop magazine. Purportedly starting April 9, you'll be able to snag a 7-inch Eee PC (9-inch versions are on the way), with 512MB of RAM and a 4GB SSD hard drive for $399, the same price as the Linux version.

The timing is perfect, as there should be a lot of action in the mini-notebook market over the next few months, although this XP version won't have any of the new features we expect to see in the second-gen Eee PCs, such as GPS and a touch screen.