Asus CEO: Eee PC to get HDD options, Intel Atom CPU
Company still backing Linux
Asus boss Jerry Shen has revealed that the upcoming 8.9in Eee PC 900 will use Intel's Atom processor and may eventually come with a hard drive.
Asus' 8.9in Eee PC 900: coming April/May
In an interview with US title Laptop Magazine, Shen confirmed that the decision to offer an Eee 900 with Windows XP will not end Asus' support for Linux. XP will appear on the 8GB 900, he said, while the 12GB or 20GB model - the size has yet to be set - will come with Xandros Linux pre-installed, as is the case with the current Eee PC 701.
The Eee 900 is due to go on sale in April, Shen said, and while Asus is considering a move to offer a version with a hard drive, that's not going to happen until Q3 at the earliest.
Shen's plan is to roll out the 8.9in Eee throughout Q2. The initial release looks like comprising only a single colour, but Shen forecast "more stylish colours" in the May-June timeframe. He added: "There will be a very new color design introduced in June... you will be very surprised."
Eee PC 701 and friend: looking forward to a hard drive
Shen also confirmed the new Eee will use Intel's 45nm 'Diamondville' processor, now formally named Atom. Curiously, he said this will appear in May, which is probably a more accurate timeframe for the 8.9in Eee's release.
WiMax and 3G cellular links will appear in Q3, he said - the latter once Asus has deals in place with telcos, suggesting it's looking to get carriers on board to sell bundled Eee packages rather than planning to offer a standalone adaptor.
Shen said battery supply was one of the barriers to ramping up Eee shipments, but he indicated he thinks by May this will be much less of a problem.
COMMENTS
Oh come now.
I know the bikini babe is distracting, but did everybody miss the caption? ... waiting for a HARD DRIVE. ? Sorry for the big letters, but really, where's your imagination? Apparently not down in the gutter with mine. As for the EEE, I have had no trouble getting a black 4G model in the States (hate white), have purchased two in the last month, in fact. The first was a mistake only because I ordered a surf on ebay and wanted a webcam. I'd like to have an 8G, but if they're releasing it with XP, forget it. I don't like paying for an operating system I don't use. Otherwise, the EEE is very smart, very upgradeable and very open, especially for an inexpensive item.
Supply problems
Lots of retailers have them available to pre-order, stock checker http://www.pc-how-to.com/laptops/asustek-eee-pc.htm, but never actually have them in stock, whilst others do manage to get them in for a short while until they sell out.
Do you think those who allow pre-ordering are only filling pre-orders and not stocking up, or are they just not trying hard enough? Has anybody who has pre-ordered from the likes of dabs actually recieved the goods?
More importantly, are there any other shots of the beach babe?
Asus need to sort themselves out before shipping
I have an eee Pc and it's main selling point is size and lack of moving hard drives, so you can carry it without worrying, and as it is so small you forget half the time it is there. So you end up sitting on it half the time. It rocks.
But it annoys me that by may you can buy one of the new versions, but the month after you might get a different colour and you could at a later date get a hard drive and then you might also get 3g.
how many variants, models and versions are they planning. The whole point of the asus was it had two models, big and small, everything else was the same. Granted in some countries, big and small were far from equal. :) Us had the 8g and 2g, we got the 4g and 2g.
That is the most annoying thing. Just get it all sorted then ship it with all included in a range of colours.
And where were the pastel shades for the eee 701. My eee pc box has them on but they are not for sale.
Re: eeePsie Girl
Julian Bond wrote"
"I think El Reg should sponsor a small competition for the best photoshopped mermaid's tail on eeePsie girl. Then we wouldn't have to keep looking at the cellulite."
Geez Julian, I'm not complaining!
If that's all the cellulite she's got then she's welcome to check out my PC any time she likes and I'm more than happy to rub suncream onto those legs :-)
Err, that sounds like the phone...
Getting your hands on one ...
I went into Micro Anvika a fortnight ago and paid for an EEE (100% deposit so I'd go to the head of the queue, 'cos I'm a selfish bastard). Got a phone call four days later saying it's waiting for me, collecting it tomorrow.
Although supplies have been a bit limited, anyone who has waited months should be kicking their retailer, not Asus. Incidentally, there are plenty of the 512MB/2GB ones around at about £200 inc VAT. I reckon that's a serious market knowledge cock-up on Asus' part - when the thing's only a two hundred quid, who wants to save 10% enough to cripple the storage?
