Yes, I'm not kidding on the subject there. It's not like I have some kind of grudge against Asus, or anything like that. Previously I even intended to purchase either an Eee or MacBook Air (MBA), which both have a contrast difference in price range. I was just waiting for the next shipment of Eee PC to come to Indonesia so I can compare it with MBA, where the first stocks were all sold out fast.
At first I thought it'll be worth it to get the Eee 700 instead of the new released 900 series, where aside the screen difference of them both; I heard the price on 700 will be dropped significantly. But I'm very surprised to read the news at PCW Business Center here, where it reported that Asus is planning to release Eee PC with 10-inch display! Although Jerry Shen (AsusTek CEO) didn't mention any specific launch date or price, it's still possible Asus plans to launch it this same year.
If you think it's imposible for Asus to re-launch their Eee PC line-up with better specs that could hurt the older sibling's market prospect, I think of the otherwise. The reason is very simple: competition from other manufacturers such as ECS (G10IL), MSI (Wind), Acer & Gigabyte Tech. They all have been preparing their own low-cost laptop line-up, to fight in the same market as the Asus Eee PC. And those Eee competitors are all equipped with more than 8.9-inch display, Asus need to step up their game plan if they wish to stay ahead.
But if you think that this display war is not going to stop, then you're mistaken. I think Shen's explanation should clears the fog: "An Eee PC with a 10-inch screen ... will be the biggest screen an Eee PC will ever get. The company defines anything with a 12-inch screen or larger as classic notebook PC, not an Eee PC."
Okay, let's just say I'm ignoring above news & proceed with my plan to limit my options between Eee or MBA (the truth is I can't ;-p). But then another news pop-out: Jerry Shen (yup, the same AsusTek CEO up there) made an announcement that Eee PC will be armed with Intel's Atom, as soon as on this June when the Taipei's Computex trade show is on! Again, Shen declined to comment on more specs details & price.
So I'm currently thorn inside, it's not merely a display difference anymore but also the processor power-horse that is matter on affecting my buying compulsive. The before un-included Eee PC killer laptops mentioned above (G10IL & Wind), now have become a tempting additional options in my next-to-be laptop list. What should I do now...
[blogged with my Treo 750v]