LG X110 - LG’s Netbook?
July 23, 2008
Is LG on the verge of selling an LG-branded version of an MSI Wind U100?
DigiTimes is reporting on information their sources passed along that LG Electronics maybe getting into the netbook game, with target markets that include both Europe and North America.
The netbooks are probably going to be manufactured by Micro-Star International (MSI) (who also make most of LG’s notebooks). MSI manufacturers the aforementioned 10-inch Wind U100, and so they would definitely have the experience in manufacturing a notebook, especially if the notebook is based on Intel’s Atom CPU (and they don’t have plans for an 8.9-inch Wind for North America, more on that in a second).
With that said, LG will not be focusing on the low-end of the market (such as Asus is doing with the Eee PC 900), and would instead focus on design and quality of materials. This reflects their philosophy governing the design of their ultraportable notebooks as well (which are not low-end either).
Specifications:
- Intel Atom platform
- 8.9-inch LCD display
- 2GB of RAM
- 120GB Hard Drive
- Windows XP (no word on Linux)
- Price: Around NT$19,000-24,000 (US$625.5-790.11).
They are looking at October of this year for the launch date.
The interesting thing to me is that MSI is not selling an 8.9-inch version of the Wind U100 in North America, even though the demand is clearly present. It could be that this is the reason why, that they had been planning on manufacturing an 8.9″ netbook for LG.
Read: DigiTimes
MSI Wind U100 and Vista (NotebookReview.com)
July 16, 2008
Kevin over at NotebookReview.com has put together the second part of a look at the 10″ MSI Wind U100, with a special emphasis on running Microsoft Windows Vista.
He loaded Windows Vista Home Basic onto a Wind that’s powered by a 1.6GHz Intel Atom CPU, 1GB DDR2 memory, and an 80GB 2.5″ hard drive.
As he notes, MSI is not officially supporting Windows Vista on the Wind U100 (at least not for now). He was able to get drivers loaded for the networking (both wireless and wired) as well as the card readers by loading drivers for Windows XP off of the MSI site.
He disabled a few “features” of Vista (System Restore, etc.) and found the experience better than anticipated. The little sub-notebook even saw an increase in battery life in Vista versus Windows XP.
Read: NotebookReview.com
Acer Aspire One in Stock (US), Also MSI U100 Updated at Amazon
July 14, 2008
Some fairly significant news tonight - for the first time that I’ve seen, the 8.9-inch Acer Aspire One is showing up in stock at a US retailer (we’ve already seen it in stock in Canada).
It’s showing online - for $379.99.
Specifications:
- Model #: AOA110-1295
- Part #: LU.S020A.012
- Color: Seashell White
- OS: Linpus Linux Lite
- Memory: 512MB (Maximum 1.5GB)
- Hard Drive: 8GB Solid State Disk (SSD)
- Battery Life: 3 hours
- Weight: 2.19 pounds
Also, a slight change on the MSI U100 at Amazon. Model MSI Wind U100-002LA (Windows XP Home, Black, 1 GB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive) is now properly showing the MSRP of $479, which reflects the price of the 3-cell battery versions (which is in line with other retailers). It’s still showing 3-5 weeks, but obviously the entry has been recently updated.
It appears the floodgates are finally starting to open on the Intel Atom-based netbooks. Now if the 6-cell batteries would just start rolling out…
If you know of any other retailers carrying any of these in stock (the MSI U100 or the Acer Aspire One or some of the others that haven’t been too widely available in the US or Canada, or anywhere for that matter), please leave a comment or contact us.
MSI Wind U100 Shipping in the US, 6-cell Delayed
July 8, 2008
We mentioned yesterday that the 10-inch MSI Wind U100 had started showing up at online retailers.
MSI is making it official, announcing that they have started to ship all pre-ordered Wind U100 netbooks (probably the ones order through MSI and not Amazon, etc.).
They mention that it will be sold through Fry’s, which should give quite a few people the chance to see one in person. Unfortunately it looks like 3-cell battery versions for now.
CITY OF INDUSTRY, CA – July 8, 2008 – MSI Computer, a leading manufacturer of computer hardware products and solutions, has begun shipping all the pre-ordered Wind U100 notebooks. The Wind, with its speedy new Intel Atom™ 1.6GHz processor, is also on sale at Fry’s and online at www.new egg.com, www.amazon.com, www.frys.com, www.zipzoomfly.com, www.mwave.com, and www.buy.com. These first notebooks sold will feature Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition and a 3-cell battery.
In September, MSI will begin selling a Windows version of the Wind with a 6-cell battery , as well as the Linux version with a 3-cell battery. MSI will also carry a 6-cell battery for customers who wish to upgrade their 3-cell battery in late September.
Kind of a bummer about the 6-cell, but it’s not MSI’s fault, and the shortage should be over in the next two months.
Read: Engadget
MSI Wind U100 in the US With 6-Cell Battery
July 7, 2008
Buy.com is listing five different 10-inch MSI Wind U100 laptop models for pre-order in the US, for either $479.99 (3-cell battery) or $499.99 (6-cell battery).
That 6-cell battery tidbit is important - Amazon was listing a black 3-cell version for pre-order (Model # MSMU1-035LABK) for $499.99, however that model number at Amazon matches the model number below for the black, 6-cell version.
Pocketables mentions that not only does Buy.com list 3-cell and 6-cell models, but that Dynamism is listing a July 15, 2008 date for availability/shipping.
6-cell Battery Models:
- MSI Wind U100-053LA: Black, $499.99
- MSI Wind U100-036LA: White, $499.99
- MSI Wind U100-039LA: Pink, $499.99
3-Cell Battery Models:
- MSI Wind U100-035LA: Black, $479.99
- MSI Wind U100-002LA: White, $479.99
via Pocketables
MSI Wind U100 -Taken Apart
July 7, 2008
It didn’t take long - after their U100 review a few days ago, bit-tech.net has taken apart their 10-inch MSI Wind U100 (in the aptly named article, “Breaking Wind”).
The photos give a good idea of just how small this laptop is and how important the Intel Atom is in reducing the cooling requirements.
One interesting note they mention - you do have to partially take apart the U100 if you wish to upgrade the memory on the sub-notebook, and MSI realizes this, saying “if a customer wants to upgrade the memory in their Wind that they register it with the MSI Notebook support team and MSI will send them a special warranty sticker to place back on their Wind”.
Going by their comments and photos, the U100 is one of the easist in this class to take apart. They do show that you can replace/upgrade the 2.5″ hard drive to something large, as long as you stick with Serial ATA (SATA). They also show the memory slot that allows you to upgrade it to 2GB.
Read: bit-tech.net
