The Medion Akoya Mini E1210 netbook was little more than a rebanded MSI Wind U100. But it sold relatively well in parts of Europe where the MSI netbook was unavailable or overpriced. Now Medion is back, this time with the E1211 and E1215 netbooks, this time built by Wistron instead of MSI.

Golem.de spotted the two new laptops at CeBIT in March. Unlike the E1210, which had a 10.2 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display the new models have 10.1 inch, 1024 x 576 pixel screens. The rest of the specs are pretty standard. Both machines have 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processors, 1GB of RAM, 160GB hard drives, and 802.11b/g/n WiFi as well as Bluetooth. The E1211 stops there, while the E1215 has an integrated UMTS modem for connecting to 3G wireless networks.

via Engadget and Netbook News.de

European laptop distributor Medion has decided to redecorate the Medion Akoya Mini (which is just another rebranded MSI Wind U100 netbook) and slap a higher price tag on the computer. So what does the extra 110 Euros buy you? Either a Hello Kitty decoration or a lid with Swarovski crystals in the shape of a butterfly.

Seriously. That’s it. Under the cover, this netbook is identical to the original Medion Akoya Mini or MSI Wind U100. It’s got a 1.6GHz Intel Atom CPU, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB hard drive, and a 10.2 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display. It has the same measurements and weight. But it sells for 479 Euros, while you can pick up a basic Akoya Mini for 379 Euros.

I understand that Medion isn’t the only company looking to charge a higher price for “fashionable” netbooks. But at least the Asus Eee PC S101 is thinner and lighter than the Eee PC 1000H, even if it offers the same performance. For all intents and purposes, Medion is charging 30% more for exactly the same machine.

via Eee PC News.de and PC Welt

The Medion Akoya Mini was one of the first rebadged versions of the MSI Wind netbook to hit the market. Available in Europe, the Akoya Mini is identical to the MSI Wind U100 in all but name — and price. Register Hardware reports that Medion will be selling the netbook through UK grocer Sainsbury’s for just £279, or about $483 US. That makes the Medion Akoya the cheapest version of the MSI Wind available in the UK at the moment.

This particular model, known as the Medion Akoya Mini E1210 has 802.11b/g and n wireless, but no Bluetooth. It packs a 10.2 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display, a 1.6GHz Intel Atom CPU, 1GB of RAM and an 80GB hard drive. You can read more about the Medion Akoya Mini in the Liliputing Product Database.

I go offline for a day or two, and look what happens? Here’s a brief roundup of news that broke while I was in the process of moving and getting my broadband connection up and running:Asus Eee PC News

• Elantech, the maker of the Eee PC 901 touchpad have issued a software update that enables additional multi-touch features like task switching, rotating, scrolling, and zooming. Jkkmobile has more, plus a video which you can find below.
• Jkkmobile also added an internal 3G card to his Eee PC 900. You can check out a ton of pictures and some video on his site.
• But wait, there’s more. Jkkmobile also decided to slap a touchscreen display in his Eee PC 900. This isn’t jkkmobile’s first foray into touchscreen Eee PCs. He was also one of the first folks to add a touchscreen to an Eee PC 701. You can check out a video of the touchscreen Eee PC 900 below.

  PC Retail Magazine says it has received confirmation from Asus that the company will indeed be releasing a laptop bearing the Eee PC 904 moniker. The Eee PC 904 HD will be available in the UK within the next few weeks, and will be the same size as an Eee PC 1000, but while that means it will have a larger keyboard than the Eee PC 901, it will have the 901’s smaller 8.9 inch display (and a big bezel around the screen). The price hasn’t been set, but PC Retail Magazine reports it will be around £250, or about $500 US.

• 

  A whole slew of Eee Monitor photos leaked out this week. The Eee Monitor is basically an all-in-one PC that bears a vague resemblance to the Apple iMac. In other words, it basically packs all your usual PC components into a case that’s not much bigger than an LCD monitor. Oh yeah, and it includes an LCD monitor, plus 6 USB ports, a webcam, ethernet, and audio ports. Word on the street is that this puppy will start at around $500 and will run Linux or Windows XP.

MSI Wind News

• While it should be a few more days before the Wind notebook lands in the US, it looks like the company has managed to push a handful of units out the door in Europe. Scan Computers in the UK had a few units in stock briefly. And reviews and hands-on videos are starting to pop up. [via Mobility Site]
• The Medion Akoya Mini, which is basically identical to the MSI Wind in all but name is also on sale in Europe. And you can find unboxing photos and reviews for that as well. Sascha Pallenberg promises to post an English language video later today.

Acer Aspire One NewsIt looks like the Acer Aspire One will come in several flavors. Acer has announced a new 150 series to compliment the 110 series. The 150 will have a higher price tag and a larger hard drive. Oh yeah, and Acer appears to have bumped the price up a notch. According to the product pages at Netbooksbillinger.de, here’s a rundown of the prices and specs:

• Acer Aspire One A110L – 329 EUR (or $522 US), 512MB RAM, 8GB SSD, Linux OS
• Acer Aspire One A150L – 359 EUR (or $570 US), 1GB RAM, 120GB HDD, Linux OS
• Acer Aspire One A150X – 399 EUR (or $633 US), 1GB RAM, 120GB HDD, Windows XP Home OS

It’s not clear yet whether those prices will be reflective of the US price. Acer had originally promised to release a $379 laptop, and generally computers do cost less in the US. But $140 less? We’ll just have to wait and see.[via Eee PC News.de]

Eee PC multi-touch:

Eee PC 900 with a touch screen display:

It looks like Medion and MSI aren’t the only two companies selling computers made by the same OEM. The Mouse Computer LuvBook U100 bears a striking resemblance to the MSI Wind U100 Notebook.

The Medion Akoya Mini set to go on sale in Germany and Austria next week. But Eee PC News.de has confirmed that the computer will ship with a 3 cell batter, not the 6 cell battery that had originally been advertised.

Given that the Medion Akoya Mini is pretty much the same computer as the MSI Wind, this news should come as no surprise. MSI has been saying since June 16th that it would be shipping the lower capacity battery due to a global battery shortage.

Both MSI and Medion say that they will make 6 cell batteries available at a later date. But computer makers have a tendency to charge an arm and a leg for spare batteries, so if you want an extended battery your best bet is usually to buy one when you buy your computer. Unfortunately, that doesn’t appear to be an option at the moment.

There is a silver lining here. Both computers are built around the new Intel Atom CPU, which provides decent performance (for a cheap ultraportable) while consuming very little energy. If you can expect 5 hours of battery life from a 6 cell battery, it stands to reason that you should be able to get about 2.5 hours out of a 3 cell battery, which is not bad. Not great, but not bad.

The Medion Akoya Mini is basically the same computer as the MSI Wind. That is to say, it’s got the same size, look, and specs, and was probably built by the same OEM for both Medion and MSI. But while the Medion Akoya Mini is set to drop in Germany and Austria next week, It might be a bit longer before you can find the MSI Wind in Germany.l

German computer maker Medion has its upcoming low-cost mini-notebook on display at Computex. The company announced the Medion Akoya Mini back in April, but now we have a few more details, thanks to TweakTown:

Medion has released a few more details about its upcoming Akoya laptop. But just a few. French site Blogeee reports that the Medion Akoya will cost 399 Euros, will sport a “latest generation” processor which we assume means Intel Atom, and will have 1GB of RAM, an 80GB hard drive, and a “stable operating system,” which we assume means Linux.

One more tidbit. The press release says this laptop will have an 802.11n adaptor — which seems highly unlikely in a low-cost laptop. On the one hand, 802.11n connectivity would certainly set the Medion Akoya apart from other low-cost ultraportable notebooks. On the other hand, that’s because 802.11n components cost more than 802.11b/g parts. No word on when this laptop will be available, but it’s safe to say it won’t be hitting shelves before June.