Asus is continuing its mission to cram pretty much everything including the kitchen sink into one model of an Eee PC or another. An Asus official tells DigiTimes that the company will be releasing a touchscreen version of the Eee PC during the first quarter of 2009.

Now, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard that Asus would be adding a touchscreen model to the Eee PC lineup. In fact, 9 months ago DigiTimes reported that touch panel makers had indicated that Asus was placing orders. But the rumor looks a bit more solid this time around, with word coming straight from Asus Eee PC general manager Samson Hu.

Personally, I don’t see much need for a touchscreen display on a clamshell style PC. It’s generally easier to use a mouse or trackpad than to pull your finger off the keyboard and tap on the display or even grab a stylus to make more precise taps. But if you can fold the screen all the way back over the keyboard Gigabyte M912-style so that the touchscreen is the primary form of input, then a touchscreen makes a lot more sense.

According DigiTimes, Samson Hu also says that Asus will begin shipping Eee PC models sporting a dual-core Intel Atom CPU as soon as Intel starts delivring the chip. Last time I checked it was unclear whether Intel would be releasing a dual-core version of the Atom processor for netbooks since the chip takes up a bit more space and uses more energy than the single core version. The company is certainly developing a dual core chip for low cost, low power desktop computers. So Hu’s comments either mean that Intel will be releasing a laptop version of the chip, or that Asus plans to figure out how to accomodate the larger, more power-hungry CPU in future netbook models.

We’ve seen plenty of people install OS X on netbooks by now. There’s the Dell Mini Mac, the Lenovo IdeaMac S10, the Asus Mac PC, and of course, the MSI Windbook. But consider the game officially upped. Because one YouTube users has managed to successfully load OS X on a Gigabyte M912X.

The Gigabyte M912 series of computers have the same basic specs as many netbooks, including a 1.6GHz CPU, 1GB of RAM, and an 8.9 inch display. But there are two things that set the M912 apart from most other netbooks. First, it has a touchscreen display that can be folded down on top of the keyboard for using the PC in tablet mode. And second, the higher end models feature high resolution 1280 x 768 pixel displays which are much crisper than the 1024 x 600 pixel screens that you usually find on netbooks.

In other words, what this YouTube video shows is a tiny tablet PC running OS X. And running it pretty well. There’s an on-screen keyboard for entering text, and it looks like you can use a finger or stylus at least as well as a mouse for most tasks. This particulare Gigabyte M912X also apparently has an internal 3G wireless mod and dual boots OS X and Vista. Unfortunately the user who uploaded the vided hasn’t posted any instructions. But it’s probably just a matter of time before he or someone else posts all the gory details online.

You can check out the video after the break. And you can read more about the Gigabyte M912X and M912M in the Liliputing Product Database.

via SlashGear

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While Eee PC users wait to see whether the Aeeeris Tablet kit which will let them turn an Eee PC 701 into a tablet style computer ever materializes, it looks like at least one Acer Aspire One User has figured out how to build a cheap tablet PC out of his netbook.

There’s not much in the way of information at the moment, but there are a series of photos of the homemade UMPC over at the TodoUMPC forums. It looks like a full article with instructions could be coming soon.

It looks like the designer basically took an Acer Aspire One, swapped out the display for a cheap 8.9 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel touchscreen and somehow flipped the screen so that it lives where you’d normally expect to see a keyboard. That means you won’t be able to type on this machine. But it shouldn’t be that hard to install an on-screen keyboard, or even a custom Linux distro (like Ubuntu Mobile) which comes with one preloaded. For now it looks like the builder is running Ubuntu Netbook Remix.

via Mobility Site

A pre-release version of Ubuntu Mobile has been released. What’s Ubuntu Mobile? It’s a custom version of Ubuntu Linux designed to run on handheld MID devices with 7 to 9 inch touchscreen displays. In other words, UMPCs.

Ubuntu Mobile is not the same thing as Ubuntu Netbook Remix, which is designed for netbooks, or small, low power laptops with full keyboards. Ubuntu Mobile is optimized for devices without keyboards. it has nice big buttons that are easy to press with your fingers or a stylus and an on-screen keyboard for typing.

At its core, it’s basically a full version of Ubuntu. Anything you can run on the full desktop version of Ubuntu, you can run on Ubuntu Mobile. It just looks better (and in theory works better) on small screened devices.

While Ubuntu Mobile wasn’t designed with netbooks in mind, my first thought was to see how it runs on a netbook. You can find the answer, plus a few more pictures after the break.

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One of the things that sets most netbooks apart from UMPCs (Ultra Mobile PCs) is the fact that while many UMPCs have touchscreens, few netbooks do. This is partly because touchsreens cost more than standard LCDs. And it’s partly because most netbooks are almost by definition clamshell devices with keyboards and trackpads. Well, they would be if there was a standard definition of a netbook anyway.

But as we’ve repeatedly seen, some folks really want to be able to poke their fingers at their netbook screens and see something happen. And it turns out, it’s not that hard to achieve this effect. This week two different folks posted details about touchscreen hacks. One set of instructions is for the Acer Aspire One, while the other is for the MSI Wind.

Neither hack looks all that difficult for anyone who’s comfortable mucking with the insides of a laptop. But you’d better make sure you know what you’re doing before performing this kind of surgery, because it will void your warranty.

Check out a video showing an MSI Wind with a touchscreen display after the break.

thanks Mike and jkkmobile!

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If you’ve been scratching your head trying to figure out whether the upcoming Gigabyte M912 mini-tablet PC comes with a 1024 x 600 pixel display or a 1280 x 768 pixel display (I’ve seen reports of both resolutions), it looks like Chippy over at UMPC Portal has solved the mystery - there’s more than one model.

I mean, I already knew there’s be several models with different hard drive sizes and operating systems. But here’s the breakdown on the screen resolution. While all models will have an 8.9 inch screen, the M912V and the M912X will have a 1280 x 768 pixel display using inverter technology while the M912M has a 1024 x 600 pixel display using LED back lighting technology.

The M version will have an 80GB hard drive, while the X and V models have 160GB hard drives, Bluetooth, and presumably higher price tags.

While most Eee PC-killers actually look and act a bit like a PC, the Tee PC looks a bit more like a rear view mirror. But aside from the fact that it has a suspiciously familiar sounding name, it’s probably best to think of the upcoming mini-tablet as a highly evolved PDA rather than a cheap computer. That’s because it runs Windows CE 6.0 and has the specs of a device you’d put in your pocket rather than one you’d type up your TPS reports on.

Here’s what’s in the box:

• 7 inch, 800 x 480 pixel touchscreen display
• 400MHz ARM926 CPU
• Windows CE 6.0
• 128MB RAM
• 128MB NAND Flash storage
• SD card reader
• WiFi
• Bluetooth
• Camera: 0.3/1.3MP
• Dimensions: 7.4″ x 4.4″ x 0.5″
• Weight: 0.8 pounds
• Battery: 10.8 Whr

No word on pricing or availability yet.

[via Engadget]

While we’re hearing rumors that HP is already working on its next generation Mini-Note computer, the company has yet to make any official announcements. So we don’t know for certain if the next HP subnotebook will have a larger screen, faster processor, or different type of storage. But it’s a safe bet that it will have at least one or two of the three.

In an interview with PC World, HP’s Phil Devlin said the company is also thinking about adding a touchscreen display. When HP sends Mini-Notes to clients using the computers in educational settings, he says they often come back with fingerprints. That would seem to indicate that people, or kids at least, want to put their fingers on the screen. So why not make sure the screen responds when you do that?

Devlin says the company isn’t committed to touchsreens yet, but he says it is something HP is considering. HP is also thinking about using high capacity solid state disks in lieu of hard drives. Right now HP offers one HP 2133 Mini-Note model with a 4GB SSD. But higher capacity SSDs (think 32GB or 64GB) cost a lot more money and it’s more cost-effective to put a 120GB hard drive in a PC than a 32GB SSD. On the other hand, SSDs have no moving parts which makes them durable and typically much faster than hard drives. And those are features that can be valuable in educational markets.

Want a touchscreen in your Eee PC, but don’t feel like installing one yourself or turning your computer into a tablet? eBay user Fido Dido is selling a touchscreen kit designed for the Eee PC 900.

The Fido Dido kit features an 8.9 inch display that’s practically identical to the one that comes with the Eee PC — except it is touch sensitive. That means you can fit it in the computer case without any modifications. Installation looks pretty simple, and you can even download the drivers and spec sheet from the eBay listing page.

The kit costs about $69, but it ships from Australia Taiwan, so you might have to pay a few bucks extra to order a kit if you’re in another country.

[via jkkmobile]

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:

Taiwanese web store Mobile01 is selling a touchscreen kit for the Eee PC 701. If I’m translating the page correctly (and I’m not at all certain that I am), you can pick up the kit for 2,350 Taiwanese dollars, which is about the equivalent of $77 US.

Australia’s Current is reporting that Asus will unveil a touchscreen “non-clamshell” version of the Eee PC at Computex.

Reviews of the Eee PC 900 have been making the rounds for a few days. But now that real people who aren’t affiliated with tech magazines are starting to get their hands on the next generation Eee PC, we start to get the stuff we’re really interested in, like this unboxing video from jkkmobile:

For the record, I’m guessing the Eee PC 900 will have significantly less packing tape if you wait until it’s available in your country to place an order. But jkkmobile probably ordered his from overseas. For the record, he was the first guy I’m aware of to rip apart an Eee PC 701 and replace the 7 inch display with a touchscreen. It should be interesting to see what he does with his newest computer.

Now that the Eee PC 900 is all official like, we know for certain that it does not have a touchscreen display. It’s got a nifty new touchpad that supports two-finger gestures. But you can poke at the screen all you like. All that’ll happen is that you’ll scratch it and possibly break it.

But we’ve been hearing rumors for months that Asus had plans to add a touchscreen. Honestly, I don’t see the point in adding a touchscreen to the Eee PC unless you redesign the laptop display so that it can fold over into tablet mode. The folks behind most of these rumors are the reporters at DigiTimes, who seem to have a source in the touchpanel display industry who keeps leaking information. DigiTimes is frequently right when they make predictions about next generation devices like the Eee PC 900. But when it comes to the touchscreen, they haven’t been right yet.

Still, they’re insisting that a touchscreen Eee PC is coming later this year. And since it seems likely that Asus will produce at least one more model of the Eee PC once Intel’s new Atom processor is out, we suppose it’s possible they could also squeeze a new display option into the case.

Of course, if you really want a touchscreen, you can probably pick one up off of eBay and install it yourself.