MSI Introduces AMD Congo-Based Wind12 U230 Netbook, Calls It "Showpiece" of the Year

Claiming that it's this year's "showpiece" of the netbook world, MSI has recently introduced the Wind12 U230 netbook. Not unjustly named the "showpiece" of the year, this masterpiece of a netbook features a dual-core CPU, an integrated ATI Radeon HD3200 GPU, and the capacity for 4 GB of RAM and a 320 GB hard drive. The Wind12 netbook also has an HDMI output port, Ethernet, and three USB ports, and ships with Windows 7 Home Premium. Might as well call it a laptop, no?

MSI has also expanded the surface of the keyboard to cater to users' needs of comfort. Overall, the Wind12 netbook weighs roughly 1.3 kg, including a 3-cell battery that holds about four hours of juice. Overall, not bad specs compared to other netbooks, considering its performance capabilities.

Via TechSpot.

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DIY Multi-Touch Screen Kit Demoed on Aspire One

Here we have a certain YouTube user named, RASTouch7 demoing a multi-touch screen panel that was installed on an Acer Aspire One D150 netbook. When we say installed, we mean "soldered." So, the DIY kit is certainly for those who are brave enough to tinker with the inside of their netbooks, particularly the Acer Aspire One.

The 10.1-inch multi-touch screen panel is currently selling on eBay for $119.95. Hopefully the price also include instructions on installing the kit.

Here are the other parts of the video demo:

via Netbooked

A post from the Asus Eee PC blog.

DIY Multi-Touch Screen Kit Demoed on Aspire One

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Netbooks that Will Run Google Chrome OS

Google, specifically the folks at the Chromium Developer Site has put up a list of netbooks which have hardwares that fully supports the early build of Chrome OS. If you've been dying to test drive Google Chrome OS but is not particularly sure whether your netbook could run the OS succesfully, netbooks listed on the chart were all tested by the Google Chromium developers.

Among the netbooks on the list include old netbooks such as the Eee PC 700, Eee PC 900, Toshiba Mini NB200 and NB205, and Eee PC 1000 with SSD.

Of course other newer netbooks were also tested to run the Chrome OS succesfully. These include the HP Mini 5101, Lenovo IdeaPad S10v among other newer netbooks.

The Google list also include other issues you need to consider when installing the Chrome OS on your netbooks.

via Liliputing

A post from the Asus Eee PC blog.

Netbooks that Will Run Google Chrome OS

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Medion Akoya Mini E1217 Netbook Hits Europe

There hasn't been much news in North America about Medion netbooks, but they're a pretty hot commodity in Europe. The company has just released their latest netbook, the Akoya Mini E1217, on their website.

This sweet looking netbook is pretty standard of its species, with a 10.1″ screen display, a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 processor, 1 GB of DDR2 RAM, and a 160 GB SATA hard drive. It also has an 802.11 N-capable Wi-Fi adapter, Bluetooth, and the Windows 7 Starter OS.

The Medion Akoya Mini E1217 netbook boasts a price tag of 329€ (nearly $500 USD), a bit on the high-end, if you ask me.

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Netbook and Laptop Compatibility Check for Google Chrome OS

The Google Chrome operating system isn't pre-installed on netbooks just yet, but if you're interested, below are some netbooks that have been "officially" tested and that claim to be compatible with the software. On these netbooks, you can assume that everything works, including 802.11 Wi-Fi, Ethernet, the touchpad, and the suspend/resume functions.

• Acer Aspire One AOD250* – $299.99 at Amazon.com
• Acer Aspire One AOP531h – $269.99 at TigerDirect.com
• ASUS Eee PC 1008HA – $339.95 at Amazon.com
• ASUS Eee PC 900 – $282.25 at Amazon.com
• Gateway LT20* – $259.99 at TigerDirect.com
• Toshiba Satellite A205-S5000 (This is a 15.4″ laptop, but you can get one at netbook pricing for about $350 on eBay.)

*These netbooks ship with both Atheros and Broadcom 802.11 wireless adapters. The Atheros adapter works out-of-the-box with the Chrome operating system, but the Broadcom adapter does not.

Via Google.

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Asus Eee PC 1201HA released in US

Asus have released their latest netbook, the Eee PC 1201HA in the US. It's more or less the same as the Eee PC 1101HA but, with a 12 inch screen instead of 11. It's also capable of playing 1080p HD video. Like many netbooks, it will include a 160GB hard drive, 1GB of RAM, Windows XP, along with Wifi an an Intel Atom processor.

The netbook is available from Best Buy for $329.99. Thanks to Cyber Monday, shipping is currently free on the netbook.

via

A post from the Asus Eee PC blog.

Asus Eee PC 1201HA released in US

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Enthusiast makes 64-bit build of Google Chrome OS available

Opinions are split on whether or not 64-bit is worth bothering with yet. It's an even bigger question mark on netbooks, where the 32-bit Atom reigns supreme. However, more netbook models are appearing with VIA, AMD, and even Intel's low-voltage non-Atom CPUs. And that means someone is going to put out 64-bit OS builds aimed at those systems.

Why not start with the new kid on the block, Google's Chrome OS?

Developer Teo En Ming has compiled the Chromium source code and released a 64-bit version which you can download from his web page.

This seems a bit strange to me. After all, Chrome OS is basically a bootable web browser – and surfing web sites isn't something that generally requires the added muscle of 64-bit processing. It certainly doesn't require 4GB+ of memory, either.

But hey, if you're in the select group of users who can actually run this on your netbook – why not go for it? You can run it from a flash drive after all, so there's no real risk involved.

Chromium OS 64-bit .VMDK file: [download]

Use WinImage to write the virtual disk to a physical SD Card or USB Flash Drive

Post from: Liliputing

Enthusiast makes 64-bit build of Google Chrome OS available

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Amazon cyber monday deals

After black friday there is cyber monday. Amazon is going to have some sweet deals on the following netbooks:

Acer AOD250-1694 10.1-Inch White Netbook (Windows 7 Starter) – Price is presented at 08:00 PM PST.

Dell Inspiron 11 11.6-Inch Obsidian Black Laptop (Windows 7 Premium) – Price is presented at 10:00 PM PST

Samsung N130-13B 10.1-Inch Slate Blue Netbook – Price is presented at 12:00 PM PST.

Dell Inspiron Mini 10 10.1-Inch Obsidian Black Netbook – Price is presented at 2:00 PM PST.

There is alot of more sweet deals, check them out at Amazon.com

A post from the Asus Eee PC blog.

Amazon cyber monday deals

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Five Sizzlin' Hot Cyber Monday Deals on Windows 7 Netbooks

If you weren't able to get in on all the Black Friday netbook action, here are some Cyber Monday Windows 7 netbook deals to check out.

Dell Insprion Mini 10v – Touting the standard 10.1″ screen display, 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor, and 1 GB of RAM, the Dell Inspiron Mini 10V netbook is available on Dell.com for $299, a $98 discount from the original price of $398.

Dell Inspiron Mini 10 - Also equipped with a 10.1″ screen display, 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor, and 1 GB of RAM, in addition to a 1.3 megapixel webcam and HD TV tuner, the Dell Inspiron Mini 10 netbook will be available at Walmart.com for $398 with free shipping. In comparison, it sells for $499 on Dell's website.

Toshiba Mini NB205 – This 10.1″ netbook boasts 1 GB of RAM, a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N280 processor, and a battery that can last up to 9 hours. You can grab your very own Toshiba Mini at Amazon.com for $329, which includes a $50 discount from the original price of $379.

Acer Aspire One AOD250 – Available at Walmart.com for $328 (with free shipping), this netbook's tech specs are no deviation from the standard. It has a 10.1″ screen display, a 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor, and 1 GB of RAM. At least it has a 6 hour battery.

HP Mini 110 – Equipped with a 10.1″ screen display, a 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor, and 1 GB of RAM, this Mini is available at Kmart.com for $309.99. That's only $20 off the original price, but a discount nonetheless.

This year, netbooks are on fire and Windows 7 is hot hot hot, so if you're interested you'd better get to these sizzling deals before they're gone. Otherwise, if none of these netbooks tickle your fancy, check out some of our previous Cyber Monday articles for more great deals. Happy (online) shopping!

Via RedmondPie.

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Liliputing Holiday Giveaway: Universal car mount from Ultimate-Netbook

Car-mounts for netbooks are fascinating things. Add a GPS receiver and your netbook can instantly become a full featured GPS system with an enormous display (by GPS standards). You can also use a mount to plug a netbook into your car audio system and use it as a jukebox, although I'd recommend having the person in the passenger's seat manage the media player controls.

UK-based retailer Ultimate-Netbook offers a universal car mount that can accommodate netbooks ranging from 7″ to 13″ in size. It normally retails for about $36, but Ultimate Netbook has offered up the universal mount along with a $25 universal netbook car charger with a USB port for the Liliputing Holiday Giveway.

In order to enter, just leave a comment below explaining what you plan to do with this car mount and car charger set. The contest is open to anyone in the world, and I'll randomly select a winner after the contest closes at 12:01AM Eastern on November 27th.

Make sure to read the official contest rules before entering.

Post from: Liliputing

Liliputing Holiday Giveaway: Universal car mount from Ultimate-Netbook

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Eee PC 1000HE and Samsung N120 Top Netbook Rankings

Here we have the latest netbook rankings by TestFreaks.com. Interestingly, despite the slew of new and far advanced-featured netbooks, the Asus Eee PC 1000HE still leads the netbook rat pack according to TestFreaks. Following the Eee PC 1000HE is Samsung's N120 netbook. Both Eee PC 1000HE and Samsung N120 got a perfect score of 10 out of 10 in the rankings.

As a review, TestFreaks rankings is based on FreakScore which is a weighted index of all aggregated professional and user reviews of consumer electronics products.

The rest of the netbooks in the Top Ten include:

• Samsung N110 (9.7)
• Eee PC 1002HA (9.7)
• Eee PC 1005HA (9.5)
• Acer Aspire 531 (9.5)
• Samsung N510 (9.5)
• Samsung NC20 (9.5)
• Toshiba mini NB205-N210 (9.5)
• Lenovo IdeaPad S10e (9.3)

The last time we featured this rankings, the Eee PC 1000H was the top scorer.

A post from the Asus Eee PC blog.

Eee PC 1000HE and Samsung N120 Top Netbook Rankings

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Rumor: Intel Atom Cedar Trail chips won't be much faster

Over the past few decades, people have gotten used to computer chips getting faster and faster. And so it's not surprising that some folks expect the next generation of Intel's Atom processor to be faster than the version available today, and for the model coming after that to be even faster. But that's kind of not the point of the Atom line. And so I'm not surprised to see that Fudzilla is reporting that the Intel Atom Cedar Trail platform which is due to hit the streets in 2011 won't be much faster than the Atom Pine Trail platform due out early next year. Which is to say, you shouldn't expect much of a performance boost over what you see in Intel Atom powered netbooks today.

In fact, according to Fudzilla, Intel reps are saying the Cedarview chipset will only be about 5-10% faster than the upcoming Intel Atom Pineview chipset. They will, however, use less power. The goal for the Cedar Trail platform is to produce a chipset that uses less than 10W for the whole platform including the CPU, graphics, and memory controller.

And that's really the whole point of the Atom platform: To provide decent performance with a low power draw. If you want a faster computer, you can certainly get one. It just won't have an Atom chip and it will probably cost more than a typical netbook.

Post from: Liliputing

Rumor: Intel Atom Cedar Trail chips won't be much faster

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AMD-powered MSI Wind U230 U230 gets the hands-on treatment - Video

In terms of performance and battery life, MSI's new Wind U230 seems to fall somewhere between the other Wind netbooks and MSI's line-up of larger, more traditional notebooks. It's got a solid ATI GPU under the hood, and performed well in gaming tests – though the AMD Neo processor couldn't keep up with Intel's SU7300.

Nevertheless, the thin-and-light U230 is (based on MSI's history) going to be pretty aggressively priced and may be a popular choice for netbookers who plan on doing a bit of gaming on the go.

Netbook Newsscored some quality time with the U230 [translate link], and they have now shared a hands-on video. Check it out after the break!

Post from: Liliputing

AMD-powered MSI Wind U230 U230 gets the hands-on treatment – Video

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MSI Wind U230 Full Hands-On Video

MSI has just officially announced the new Wind U230 a couple of days ago, and here comes the folks Netbook News already getting a full hands on of the said machine.

While this sub-netbook doesn't seem to belong to our usual netbook fare, it's AMD CPU which is clocked at 1.6GHz is only within the level of most netbooks we know so far.

But having the AMD CPU makes the Wind U230 fit for gaming purposes. And with a 12-inch display, gamers would find this notebook handy whenever they are on the move.

Anyway, watch this video to see if the Wind U230 fits your taste.

A post from the Asus Eee PC blog.

MSI Wind U230 Full Hands-On Video

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Pre-Cyber Monday deals of the day - Samsung N130 for $269

Black Friday might be over, but netbook deals are still easy to find. Plenty of online merchants have great savings going on this week – and Cyber Monday is tomorrow.

No need to wait, though! Here are some of the best deals we've found on the net this morning – including $130 off a Samsung netbook at Newegg!

Netbooks and Notebooks:

• Acer Aspire One AO751h 11.6″ 1366×768 Atom Z520/1GB/160GB/refurbished for $259.99 at Geeks.com
• Acer Timeline AS4810TZ 14″/SU2700/3GB/320GB/DVD-burner for $451.34 at Amazon.com
• Apple ibook G4 PowerPC 12.1″ 1.33GHz /1GB/40GB HDD/Refurbished for $329.99 at Geeks.com
• ASUS 1008HA 10.1″ Atom N280/1GB/160GB/802.11b/g/n for $289 at ZipZoomFly with coupon ZZF100631
• ASUS 1101HA 11.6″ 1366×768 Atom Z520/1GB/160GB/Windows XP Home for $369.99 at NCIX.com
• Intel Classmate Tablet by Mirrus 8.9″ Atom N270/1GB/60GB SATA HDD/water and drop resistant for $478 at Walmart.com
• Dell Inspiron Mini IM10 (green) with Integrated TV Tuner for $368.73 at Amazon.com
• Samsung N130 10.1″ Atom N270/1GB/160GB/6-cell batt/Windows 7 Starter for $269.99 at Best Buy
• Samsung N310 10.1″ Atom N260/1GB/160GB/8850MaH battery $344.99 at Newegg.com
• Toshiba NB205-N210 10.1″ Atom N280/1GB/160GB – 9 Hour Battery for $321.57 at Amazon.com

Accessories:

• ACOMDATA 500GB 2.5″ USB 2.0 external hard drive for $79.99 after MIR at NCIX.com
• Built NY 15″ Laptop Case (Olive) $29.99 ($70 off!) (also available in black) at Amazon.com
• Kensington SlimBlade wireless mouse w/nano receiver for $19.99 at Amazon.com
• Microsoft Bluetooth laptop mouse for $24.99 at Best Buy
• Targus Slim USB 8x DVD burner for $50.99 at Best Buy
• Targus 10.2″ Slipskin Peel netbook sleeve for $5.99 at Amazon.com

Post from: Liliputing

Pre-Cyber Monday deals of the day – Samsung N130 for $269

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Pixel Qi to mass produce low power displays starting in December

Pixel Qi plans to begin mass production of its low power, high contrast 3qi displays next month. Pixel Qi's technology allows a screen to be used in two modes. In full color saturation mode, you'd be hard pressed to spot the difference between a Pixel Qi display and a normal LCD. But in an ePaper-like high contrast mode, the color display uses significantly less power which helps prolong battery life. And the display is also easy to read outdoors or in other brightly lit conditions.

Pixel Qi founder Mary Lou Jepsen, who was also one of the lead designers of the original OLPC XO Laptop, has been showing off glimpses of the company's 3qi screens for months. But with mass production just around the corner, it shouldn't be too long before we start to see the displays show up in actual netbooks.

The company isn't just focusing on netbooks. Pixel Qi is also developing and HDTV that operates with less than 10 watts of power. That's about 10 times less energy than most HDTVs use, and it's designed to make high definition TV displays available and practical in places with limited access to power. At just 10 watts, the TV could be operated by battery and charged with a solar panel or crank.

While the 3qi computer screen should be coming soon, there's no word on a launch date for the HDTV.

via SlashGear

Post from: Liliputing

Pixel Qi to mass produce low power displays starting in December

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Cyber Monday Deals - Free Shipping on Netbooks, Notebooks and Printers

If you think the gloriously thoughtless spending is done now that Black Friday has passed, you obviously haven't heard the news – tomorrow is Cyber Monday, where you can reap the benefits of gutted price tags online even if you didn't make it to the Black Friday doorbusters a few days back.

Huliq has already discovered some of these deals, which are as follows:

Dell

• Inspiron Mini 9 netbook for $299, a 50 dollar cut. Shipping is free for all Dell orders over $129.
• Dell Insprion Mini 10v for only $250.
• Inspiron 1525 laptop for $519. Specs are a 15.4-inch widescreen display, Intel Pentium Dual Core CPU T3200, 3 GB of RAM, a 250 GB SATA Hard Drive and DVD+/-RW Drive, and Windows Vista Home Basic SP1.

Best Buy

• Acer AL2216Wbd flat-panel Widescreen 22-inch LCD HD monitor for only $169.99 with free shipping, a $50 price cut compared to most retailers
• Free shipping on laptops $699.99 and up and desktops $499.99 and up.

Walmart

• Compaq CQ50-139QM notebook for $498, which comes with an 8 GB flash drive, carrying case, and HP printer. If you just want a printer instead, hit Staples.com for a $149 Xerox Phaser 6125 Color Laser Printer, a price drop made available by their $200 instant coupon.

Sony

• Drop promo code CYBERMONDAYVAIOCS at Sony.com for a $200 subsidy of their CS Vaio notebook.

Apple

• Apple offers free shipping on orders over 50 bucks. You can also get free gift advice at 1-800-MY-APPLE if you're completely weird.

HP

• Free shipping on overs over 60 dollars at HP.com.

I hope your appetite has been whetted, ladies and gentlemen. Check back for more info as Cyber Monday draws closer.

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Google Chromium OS Beta Available For Dell Mini 10v Netbooks And More

The Chromium OS has been open-sourced for hardly a week and some industrious tinkerers over at Dell have already delivered a beta version especially designed for the Dell Mini 10v netbook.

Here's how to get it:

I have released an USB key image file to: http://linux.dell.com/files/cto. The file name is: "ChromiumOS_Mini10v_Nov25.img."  It contains a functioning image of my USB key loaded with ChromiumOS.  In addition, I have made a best effort attempt to get the Broadcom Wi-Fi adapter working in this image.  It's definitely not perfect (read: highly experimental, untested, unstable, yada yada…) but it does appear to function.

This version's boot time is around 12 seconds, a bit longer than earlier reported. The makers mentioned a few other minor issues you might be interested in knowing about:

• It will take more than 5-10 *minutes* for the ChromiumOS network connection manager to "see" the access points and allow you to select and connect – be patient.
• Wired connections appear to work fine and appear quick to connect.
• There are currently issues with both the connection manager as well as the underlying components (wpa_supplicant) that can easily break or get hung. When in doubt, reboot and give it another try.
• Use this image at your own risk – it comes to you totally unsupported and very minimally tested.

Still, for the amount of time that the Chromium OS has been available for netbook users to mess with, it looks like a solid effort. For more info on how to get Google's new operating system on your netbook, read the article over at Dell.

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Google Plots to Take Over the World... with $20 Smartbooks

Google wants everyone to use their browser and what better way to do that than to provide low-cost bare-bones smartbook or netbook technology pre-installed with Chrome OS? Google may look into advertising to cover the losses they may have to take for providing these smartbooks and netbooks, but they also just acquired Teracent, a company that specializes in personalized display advertising.

The Chrome OS is free and most data is stored in the cloud anyway, so this situation would be quite feasible for Google. $20 per unit may seem a bit low, but you never know what'll happen. Think Google will give out free smartbooks and netbooks? It could happen.

Via I4U.

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Pineview-Based Fujitsu Lifebook MH380 Netbook Appears on FCC's Website

Pineview netbooks are starting to pop up left and right. Here's one that's recently been spotted on the FCC's website – the Fujitsu Lifebook MH380. The rumored tech specs so far include a 10.1″ screen display with 1366×768 resolution, a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N450 CPU, Atheros 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, and Realtek 8103EL-GR 10/100 Ethernet.

RAM is rumored to be 2 GB DDR2 and storage is rumored to be 160 GB or more. No other news is yet available on this netbook, but since it's a pre-production sample, specs could be very likely to change. We'll keep you posted on any developments.

Via WirelessGoodness.

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Dell Provides Free and Easy Google Chrome OS Download for Its Inspiron Mini 10v Netbook

The Chrome OS doesn't yet provide anything that the Chrome web browser doesn't, but we thought we'd share the procedure for downloading it onto your Dell Inspiron Mini 10v netbook anyway. First, grab yourself a USB drive that's 8 GB or greater. (The actual download is roughly 7.5 GB.)

Essentially, the installation involves copying the Google Chrome OS image file onto your netbook. You'll also need access to a computer that's running Linux in order to turn the downloaded IMG file to a bootable file.

Technically, a Dell employee (nicknamed Doug A) came up with this entire process as he was testing out compiling a copy of the Google Chrome OS for himself after seeing it run on various netbooks last week. Doug A explains:

"To copy onto an USB key (8GB minimum), find another Linux machine and utilize the "dd" command to put the image onto the USB key. Example: dd if=ChromiumOS_Mini10v_Nov25.img of=/dev/sdb. In this example, /dev/sdb is my entire USB key… use "fdisk -l" to see how your USB key is named for your particular environment. Be careful to select your USB device (again, use fdisk -l to double verify and confirm the correct device filename) and not another device…"

The Google Chrome OS image file for the Dell Inspiron Mini 10v netbook is named ChromiumOS_Mini10v_Nov25.img and can be found here.

Via MobileComputerMag.

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NES controller styled case for netbooks

Fancy a change from the regular netbook cases? How about the NES controller styled case? Each case is handmade by SplashingKoi and sold by Etsy. The case retails for $49.99. It's noted that, while they may look cool, they are made of felted material so it doesn't offer the best protection for your netbook. Still, if you're not going to be taking it anywhere where it needs a bit of protection, the case is great for carrying from A to B.

via

A post from the Asus Eee PC blog.

NES controller styled case for netbooks

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LiliGaming: QuakeLive lands on Jolicloud!

While I can't say for sure if Tariq Krim's crew was checking out our roundup of 5 current games which play well with netbooks, it's obvious that Jolicloud hasn't forgotten the importance of a little R&R. And what better way to unwind than with a quick round of frag the newb?

Included among this week's featured Jolicloud apps is Quake Live. ID Software's web-based, ad-supported FPS has been a smashing success since opening this year. Sure, it's not quite as practical as some of the apps which are plugged in to Jolicloud, but who cares? You can't be all business all the time, even on your HP Mini 5101.

Jolicloud's blog post contains a nice, blown-up (size wise, not with explosive devices) version of the screenshot which you can check out here. If you're lucky enough to be part of the beta program already, enjoy!

If not, have patience. It probably won't be too much longer before Jolicloud opens things up to the public.

Post from: Liliputing

LiliGaming: QuakeLive lands on Jolicloud!

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Get a Dell Insprion Mini 10v Netbook on Cyber Monday for $249

Black Friday is almost coming to an end and we're getting ready for some great Cyber Monday netbook sales. Here's a sneak peak of some of the action that's in store.

CyberMonday.com, a website powered by Mall Networks and initially created by retailers as a one-stop shop for awesome Cyber Monday deals, will be offering a Dell Inspiron Mini 10v netbook for $249, after a $139 discount. The Mini 10v netbook will come with the Windows XP operating system.

On CyberMonday.com, they'll also have a Deal of the Hour every 60 minutes. These items and offers will be announced on Sunday, November 29th, but are not limited to just netbooks – there'll be free shipping specials, price discounts, percentage discounts, and free gifts with purchase. If you're interested in getting some new stuff, make sure to check it out.

Via Duniyalive.

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Black Friday Netbook Deals for Under $200 Coming Your Way

If you're like most mobile internet users, you're probably in the market for a brand new lightweight and versitile netbook. Well, you're in luck: today is arguably the best day to make some legendary Black Friday deals, and bring home with you a brand new spanking netbook. We've done the searching for you and have compiled an excellent list of netbook deals that are priced below the 200$ pricetag.

If you take a trip to Best Buy, you'll notice they're offering a $197 Hewlett-Packard laptop running Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) with a 15.6-inch screen and an Intel Celeron processor. Other specs include 2GB of RAM (expandable to 4GB), 160GB hard drive, and Wi-Fi connectivity. Because this is an in-store only special item, you'll have to line up early.

Everyone's friendly Wal-Mart Supercenter is offering an eMachine running Windows 7 Home Premium for $198. This computer also features a 15.6-inch screen, 2GB of RAM, and a 160GB hard drive.

Office Depot's are showing an ad @tgiBlackFriday.com offering an Acer Netbook with a 10.1 inch screen as well as an Intel Atom N270 processor priced at a very wallet-friendly 199.99.

If Dell netbooks are your thing, you can find a $199 Inspiron Mini 9. The mini sports a 8.9-inch screen, 1 GB RAM, an Intel Atom N270 processor, and a 4GB solid-state drive. While it only offers a 0.3 megapixel webcam, they'll allow you to upgrade to a 1.3 megapixel for a mere $10!

Via PCWorld.

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MSI Officially Launched the Wind12 U230

MSI has officially launched a new notebook under its Wind product series – the Wind12 U230.  Obviously, this machine has a 12-inch display, could not be easily categorized as a netbook still. But then, with the current trend among netbook manufacturers, it seems like netbooks the way we saw it before has already changed – in size.

Anyway, going back to the MSI Wind U230, this powerhouse machine features AMD Congo 1.6GHz Dual Core CPU, runs Windows 7 and was said to consume less power than other MSI Wind notebooks.

Other features of the Wind12 U230 include – AMD RS7800MN and SB710 chipset, DX10 and ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics, 3-4 hours battery life, fingerprint scanner, glossy display, 4GB of RAM, and 160GB of HDD.

The MSI Wind12 U230 is expected to be released in January 2010 for around £399.

via Netbook Choice

A post from the Asus Eee PC blog.

MSI Officially Launched the Wind12 U230

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Asus Eee PC T91MT dissected: the battery can be replaced

Unlike most Asus netbooks, the Asus Eee PC T91MT and Eee PC 1008HA have batteries that are not user replaceable. Most netbooks have batteries that slide out of the back or bottom of the computer. But these models are thin, light, and hide the batteries away inside the case making it much more difficult to remove or replace the batteries. That can be a problem if you want longer battery life or if your battery is defective or old.

But MyT91.info determined that if you go through the trouble of actually taking an Asus Eee PC T91MT apart (and it is apparently a lot of trouble), you can actually remove the battery fairly easily. Finding a replacement battery, on the other hand, might be a bit more difficult. Apparently there's also an antenna missing which may affect 802.11n WiFi performance.

The web site has detailed instructions for disassembling the touchscreen netbook. Keep in mind, doing so will void your warranty. So if you really need the battery replaced and don't want to risk doing some serious damage to the laptop, you might just want to contact Asus to see if you can send the netbook in for repair.

via Netbooked

Post from: Liliputing

Asus Eee PC T91MT dissected: the battery can be replaced

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We may have to come up with a new name for smartbooks... but probably not

In an effort to differentiate ARM-powered, always-on, low-power mini-laptops from the more traditional PC-like netbooks that have flooded the market over the past two years, Qualcomm started suggesting we refer to the new machines as "smartbooks" earlier this year. The folks at German company Smartbook AG weren't too pleased with that, and a few months ago the two companies got into a little tussle.

Now it looks like Smartbook AG is starting to go after bloggers and the press.

On the one hand, this all feels a lot like the trademark battle over the term "netbook." Electronics maker Psion held the trademark for a device that it had produced a few years ago and which it insisted was still being sold. But after a few rounds of back and forth, Psion reached a settlement with some of the powers-that-want-the-term-to-be generic. On the other hand, I'm not sure that "smartbook" is generic. It's not as widely used as smartbook, and while it does a nice job of describing a product class that sits somewhere between a netbook and a smartphone, there are plenty of other words that could be used to describe these new and upcoming devices.

Netbook News.de points out that Smartbook AG doesn't exactly have an extensive line of mini-laptops, and it's not clear that calling these new devices smartbooks is going to damage the company's standing in any way.

I'm not a lawyer and I really don't know how this will all shake out. But I wouldn't be surprised if we're headed for another settlement… or if smartbooks end up going by a different name in Germany only.

Post from: Liliputing

We may have to come up with a new name for smartbooks… but probably not

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Verzio TrueBook N50: 10 inch Atom powered netbook from Singapore

The Verzio TrueBook N50 is a rather unremarkable 10 inch mini-laptop with one claim to fame as far as I'm concerned: I hadn't heard of it until recently. Otherwise, the TrueBook is pretty much par for the netbook course, with a 10 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display, 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 CPU, 1GB of RAM, 160GB hard drive, 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth, and a 4 cell, 4400mAh battery.

There's no information about the operating system, but with those specs, I'm going to assume this model either ships with Windows XP, or an option for the nearly 10 year old operating system. It should be able to run a number of Linux distributions as well.

via All About Netbooks

Post from: Liliputing

Verzio TrueBook N50: 10 inch Atom powered netbook from Singapore

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Newegg Black Friday Sale Already Underway, Includes Netbooks and More

Newegg Black Friday sales started earlier today at 3 p.m. PST. The deals are published on their Facebook page and if you become a fan, you'll be able to see the entire list.

The Gateway LT2021u and LT2022u netbooks for $199.99 that were on sale starting today have already sold out, but another noteworthy deal that's still available is the LG BD270 blu-ray player that's going for $99.99. If you're still interested in the Gateway LT netbook, check out Verizon's Black Friday deal.

On Black Friday, the Acer Aspire One netbook with a 3-cell battery will be available for $189.99, in addition to a TomTom GPS for $59.99.

If you're interested in more deals, be sure to check out Newegg before they're all gone. Also, be sure to keep your eye out for upcoming Cyber Monday deals. In the meantime, happy shopping and Happy Thanksgiving!

Via I4U.

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New Black Friday Deals By Verizon - Netbooks and More

You'll be able to get an all new Gateway LT netbook from Verizon on Black Friday for only $30 bucks, with a 2-year 3G contract and $100 mail-in rebate.

The netbook weighs less than three pounds and offers Wi-Fi access, among other features. It runs on an Intel Atom CPU with a 10.1-inch screen, 160 GB HDD, and 1 GB of RAM.

Not interested? Verizon has a heck of a lot of other deals this Black Friday, courtesy of HotHardware:

• HTC Ozone: Wi-Fi capable global smartphone for only $9.99 (buy one get one free)
• LG Versa: the touchscreen phone for gamers, for only $29.99 (buy one get one free)
• MiFi 2200 Intelligent Mobile Hotspot: Wi-Fi wherever you go for up to five people for only $49.99 after $50 mail in rebate. (Black Friday only.)
• Nokia 7705 Twist: offered this weekend for only $29.99
• Blackberry Pearl Flip: one of the most popular Blackberry phones for only $9.99 (buy any Blackberry device, get one free)

Now get up early, kids, and grab yourself one of these machines.

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Asus Outs the Eee Box 1501 in the UK

Oh finally, Asus' highly anticipated nettop is shipping tomorrow (that's November 27 for all you UK folks). The catch is, it will only be hitting UK store shelves just yet.

The Eee BOX is equipped with NVIDIA ION Graphics which makes it a perfect display for HD movie viewing. In addition, it is loaded with Intel Atom Dual Core 330 CPU, 2GB of RAM, 250GB of HDD, DVD Burner, and Windows 7 Premium.

Amazon has already listed it up for pre-order but since shipping days usually takes 1 to 2 months, you can order it from play.com instead.

Price tag is at £339.

via Netbook Reviews

A post from the Asus Eee PC blog.

Asus Outs the Eee Box 1501 in the UK

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Verzio TrueBook N50 Netbook Slips Out Unnoticed

I first learned about the company Verzio a couple of years back when their company invited me for the launch of their digital camera product. After releasing several digital cameras and handycams, nothing much has happened with the company since then.

And I didn't know as well that they already have their own netbook product line. This one is called the Verzio TrueBook N50. Unfortunately the specs of this netbook are nothing much to brag home about.

Let's see – Intel Atom N270 CPU, 10.1-inch LED panel, 160GB HDD, 1GB RAM, 1.3MP webcam, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, 4-in-1 card reader, 4-cell battery and pretty much that's it.

I'm not really sure whether Verzio has officially launched this netbook yet. I'll probably checking out their concept store to see if they are selling the netbook right now.

via Liliputing

A post from the Asus Eee PC blog.

Verzio TrueBook N50 Netbook Slips Out Unnoticed

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