Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/08/18/asus_eee_pc_1018p_1016p/
Asus rolls out 'executive' netbooks
Snazzy job for the Japanese market
Posted in Laptops, 18th August 2010 06:09 GMT
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Asus has sexed up its Eee PC netbook line, adding USB 3.0, Bluetooth 3.0, a metal-look casing, the latest in Atom chippery, a full version of Windows 7 and even a fingerprint reader.
So much for netbooks as small, cheap computers... No wonder Asus' Eee sales may be on the decline [1]...
To be fair, there's no sign yet when or if the Eee PC 1018P will debut outside of Japan where they like their laptops small and favour portability over performance.
The 1018P packs in a 1.83GHz Atom N475 [2] CPU, 2GB of memory and a 320GB hard drive on which Asus has installed Windows 7 Home Premium in its 32-bit incarnation.
In addition to the aforementioned connectivity options, the 1018P has 802.11n Wi-Fi and Gigabit Ethernet, plus a USB 2.0 port - there are two USB 3.0 connectors, both USB 2.0 compatible.
The 262 x 179 x 18-21mm, 1.1kg mini laptop is priced at ¥59,800 - equivalent to £451. Ouch, Asus [3]. Not cheap, in other words, and you still only get a 1024 x 600 screen driven by Intel's integrated GPU.
A cheaper option is the ¥44,800 (£338) Eee PC 1016P, which has a similarly striking case design but lacks USB 3.0 and the fingerprint reader. It makes do with 1GB of memory, a 1.66GHz Atom N455 [4] processor and Windows 7 Starter.
Again, there's no indication if the 1016P will appear over here. ®