When Engadget first broke the news that Dell's upcoming Eee PC-killer would be called the Dell "E," a lot of folks lamented that the name seemed a bit silly. Now that Dell's web site has its first official mention of the computers, the name makes a little more sense. It looks like the E series will follow Dell's usual naming convention and you'll be able to pick up a tiny laptop with a name like the Dell latitude E630 in the not too distant future.

There's not much more information available on the web site. The only way you can even find this little image (which doesn't look much of anything like the laptop Michael Dell was carrying around earlier this year) is by searching for E-Family. And when you click the link, you get taken to the D-Family landing page. But at least Dell is acknowledging the fact that the letter E exists... and will be used to label some upcoming PCs.

[via Engadget]

Update: As readers here and over at Engadget have pointed out, it's quite possible this Latitude E-Family has nothing whatsoever to do with the upcoming Dell netbook. But then again, maybe it does. Or maybe it doesn't.

It looks like Dell is releasing a few more details about the company's upcoming cheap ultraportable laptop. But just a few. First, the computer, which may or may not be called the Inspiron Mini, will be released in August.

Second, the reason Dell is waiting until after every other computer maker on the face of the earth has already announced or released a similar device is because the company's been busy tinkering with the keyboard. And not necessarily in a good way.

APC Magazine reports that in order to make the keys on this tiny laptop larger and easier to use, Dell decided to do away with the Fn keys altogether. Sure, most people don't need to hit F12 very often on a daily basis. But these keys come in handy when you're trying to provide keyboard shortcuts that do things like adjust the volume or screen brightness or turn the WiFi on and off.

Fn keys are also often used to access the BIOS setup screen when booting a computer, although it shouldn't be hard for Dell to map that function to another key. But as APC describes it, the hardware keys for adjusting or toggling volume, brightness, standby mode, battery meter and other settings are "littered around the keyboard."

On the bright side, the computer has a VGA port for connecting an external monitor, 3 USB ports, and a card reader.

Keep in mind, the unit APC got a look at is a pre-production model and things could still change. We also haven't heard anything about the processor, storage capacity, RAM, operating system, or price.

The Computex technology trade show starts on Tuesday, and while there will be over 1700 exhibitors, there are some companies and products that are worth keeping a closer eye on than others.

Asus

Asus will probably introducing a few dozen devices at Computext. OK, that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but over the past few weeks the company has let loose with some limited amount of info about its upcoming Eee PC desktop, two new laptops, and a Wii-mote inspired remote control.

• Eee PC 901 - This will be the first mini-notebook from Asus sporting an Intel Atom CPU. We haven't seen an official price or list of specs yet, so I suspect that Asus will release those this week. The 901 is rumored to have a price as high as $650, which is a far cry from the mythical $200 laptop the company first promised last year. But you get what you pay for, and in this case that could mean longer battery life and better performance.
  
• Eee PC 1000 - Asus will also be introducing its first mini-laptop with a 10 inch display. No word on the processor, price, display resolution or release date.
• Eee Box - A few web sites have already gotten their hands on the upcoming Eee Box or EBOX. This desktop computer will likely come in Windows XP and Linux varieties. Both will be tiny by desktop standards and lack an optical disc drive. While it might be tempting to stick one next to your TV and use it as a media center, the noisy fans and relatively slow CPU will limit their utility for home media center use. Plus, you know, that lack of an optical drive. On the plus side, hard drives will range from 80GB to 250GB. There's no need for solid state memory if your PC is going to be sitting in one place most of the time.

Acer

We've heard next to nothing about the Acer Aspire One -- the upcoming low-cost laptop from Acer. A few leaked photos hit the web last week, but that's about all we have to go on. No word on pricing, availability, or specs. Stay tuned.
MSI

The MSI Wind laptop is probably the most exciting subnotebook since the Asus Eee PC. The computer sports an Intel Atom CPU, up to 7 hours of battery life (if you believe the official specs), a full sized keyboard, and a 10 inch 1024 x 600 pixel display. The computer weighs less than 3 pounds, which means it's a bit heavier than the competition, but still small by today's notebook standards. And best of all, the Linux model will reportedly cost just $399 while the Windows XP version will sell for $549, making the MSI Wind one of the most affordable computers on the market without sacrificing performance. MSI also plans to release a desktop version of the Wind.

Dell

We've known for a while that Dell was going to be entering the low-cost ultraportable market. It's still not 100% clear whether Dell's upcoming subnotebook will be available in developed markets or if it's just meant for distribution in developing nations (think the OLPC XO Laptop). But we do know one thing for certain: It sure looks pretty. Gizmodo's Brian Lam talked CEO Michael Dell into letting him snap a few photos last week, and the company followed up with a few press shots of its own.

HP

Last we heard, HP doesn't plan to offer an updated version of the HP 2133 Mini-Note for another 5 months or so. But with the Intel Atom CPU coming out in June and the VIA Nano processor set to launch not long after, I wouldn't be surprised to hear a little something from HP next week. While the Mini-Note has the most attractive screen and keyboard of any existing low-cost subnotebook, the sluggish VIA C7-M CPU really drags down the computer's performance. If HP can upgrade that chip soon, it should be able to hold its own against Asus, MSI, and Acer in this space.

I'm sure there will be a few other exciting announcements. At the very least, we can be certain that some of the less well known computer makers I've been covering for the past few months will be presenting their PCs at Computex. But for now, I'd say Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, and MSI are the companies to keep a close eye on. What do you think? What computers and companies are you hoping/expecting to hear more from next week?

Update: As Josh points out in the comments, Dell and HP are not on the exhibitor list. I wouldn't put it past either company to make an announcement to coincide with Computex. But it's kind of wishful thinking on my part that HP might announce anything this week. Dell, on the other hand... yeah, that might be wishful thinking too. But it does look like they at least have a prototype, since Michael Dell was carrying one around with him last week.

Dell still hasn't released any details about it's upcoming mini laptop. We don't know how much it will cost, what OS it will run, what kind of processor it will use, or what the screen resolution will be. We don't even know if it will be available in the US and Europe. But shortly after Gizmodo posted a few shots of the computer Michael Dell was carrying around with him, Dell went and published a few publicity photos, which you can see above. Ooh, shiny.

Gizmodo's Brian Lam managed to convince Michael Dell to let him snap a few photos of a prototype mini-laptop. We've known for a while that Dell plans to launch an Eee PC/HP Mini-Note competitor. But there's been no real word on what the PC would look like, what kind of specs it would have, how much it would cost, or when it would be released.

Most of those questions are still unanswered, but the little PC that Michael Dell had under his arm is certainly one of the more attractive low-cost ultraportables I've seen. I'm hoping that his willingness to show it off (even if he didn't let Lam power it up or find out what operating system it was running) means we'll be seeing more of this unit next week at Computex.

The computer is targeted at customers in developing markets. But given the success of the Eee PC in developed nations like the US and Europe, I wouldn't be surprised to see the Dell mini (or whatever it's called) released in developed nations as well.

It looks like the computer's got 3 USB ports, a VGA output, an SD/Memory stick slot, Ethernet, and audio ports.

You can check out some more photos over at Gizmodo.

A few weeks ago, Dell CEO Michael Dell indicated that the company would be entering the low-cost ultraportable market sometime soonish. But there weren't many details available regarding the actual device Dell would be putting out. That hasn't really changed today. There still aren't many details. But there may be a few.

Dell has announced plans to sell a low-cost notebook called the Dell 500 in India. No word on the screen size, weight, or processing power. But the Dell 500 is designed for educational markets, and will cost Rs 24,500 or about $600 US.

The computer will be available in Windows XP or Ubuntu Linux flavors, and will sport an 8-in-1 card reader and wireless connectivity. And that's pretty much all we know about it. Whether this is the same model that Dell will eventually release in the US remains to be seen.

[via Engadget]