04 Mar 2008 17:52
The Eee 900 will come with Windows XP as an option — at an extra cost of course, due to the licence. The operating system will benefit from the enhanced resolution of the upgrade Eee, at 1,024x600 pixels rather than 800x480 pixels. The older Eee 701 will also be made available in Europe with Windows XP. Both will go on sale in April.
The Eee 900 will also come in a Linux flavour, at €399, which equates to £305 although the UK price has not yet been confirmed. The Windows version will be pricier, although it is not yet known by how much.
Asus chief executive Jerry Shen unveiled the Eee 900 on Tuesday at the CeBIT technology fair in Germany. He said the device would help Asus enter the top six of laptop manufacturers within the next three years — it currently resides at the number-seven spot.
Shen showed journalists at the Eee 900's unveiling some sketches drawn up by the designers of the original Eee PC.
Shen also outlined the various aspects of the Eee philosophy, ranging from "compact and light" to "stylish". It remains to be seen how "short boot time" will be affected by the addition of Windows XP.
Asus executives joined those from Microsoft on stage, as well as representatives of T-Mobile Germany, the operator which is to distribute the Eee PC bundled with free Wi-Fi minutes or HSDPA dongles.
The Asus/Microsoft press conference drew a large crowd of journalists, pictured here waiting to get in after the event was delayed by a Wi-Fi failure. The connectivity issue was allegedly solved through the use of a T-Mobile HSDPA dongle.
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