The Intel Atom CPU has been all the rage this summer with netbook makers. Companies including Dell, Lenovo, Toshiba, Acer, and Asus have all released or announced low cost ultraportable laptops sporting the power saving CPU.  And chip maker VIA wants in on the action.

VIA’s C7-M CPU shows up in a handful of current generation netbooks, most notably the HP Mini-Note and the Everex Cloudbook. But the C7-M CPU is significantly slower than the Intel Atom. VIA’s been working on a replacement for much of the year, and now the new VIA Nano CPU is finally shipping. 

The Nano consumes more than twice the power of the Intel Atom. But thanks to it’s architecture, it could offer better performance for some CPU-intensive tasks. And the chip is designed so that manufacturers offering computers with a VIA C7-M chip today can easily upgrade to the Nano tomorrow with just a few tweaks.

That said, it could be a little while before we see any Nano-based netbooks on the market. At the moment VIA is shipping the chip to computer makers for machines that are still in development or in the early manufacturing stages. Still, it sounds like we could see a netbook or two with the VIA Nano processor by the end of the year. HP, I’m looking at you.

You may have heard that Intel is shipping the first dual core version of its low power Atom CPU. But there’s something you should know: it’s designed for lower power desktops or “nettops,” not low power laptops or “netbooks.” In other words, don’t expect Asus, Acer, Dell, or anyone else to go putting an Intel Atom N330 CPU in a mini-notebook anytime soon.

There are a few reasons for that, but the main one is that Intel is telling OEM’s not to use the chip in netbooks. The N330 CPU users 8W of power, which is more than three times as much as the single core 2.5W Intel Atom N270 chip that’s currently all the rage in netbooks.

That means you’d get less battery life on a netbook using the chip. But more importantly, it’s larger than the N270 and it runs hotter, which means that cooling it would be more difficult.

Does this mean there’ll never be a dual core CPU for netbooks? No. But Intel isn’t planning to release one anytime soon. And neither is any other company that I’m aware of. VIA still hasn’t even released its next generation single-core Nano CPU yet, so I wouldn’t expect to see a dual core chip from that company for another year or two. And AMD has been somewhat wishy washy, if not downright negative toward the whole idea of netbooks.

So Intel’s probably our best bet for a dual core netbook chip. And it could be a while before we see one.

Sascha at Eee PC News.de has posted some new information about the upcoming VIA Nano CPU. The Nano (formerly known as Isaiah) is VIA’s replacement for the C7-M CPU. The low power chip is well positioned to do battle with the Intel Atom processor in the low-cost ultraportable computer market.

But how does the Nano compare to the Atom in the most important area, performance? It looks like it might be a bit too early to answer that question. Because VIA plans to release at least 6 different versions of the Nano. The top of the line VIA Nano L2100 will run at 1.8GHz, have an 800MHz front side bus, and consume 25 watts of power. The VIA U2400, on the other hand will run at 1.3+ GHz, have an 800MHz FSB, but use just 8 watts of power, making it a better choice for tiny laptops since you theoretically won’t need a big chunky battery to get decent battery life with this chip.

While Sascha has posted some initial benchmarks, it looks like he’s only been able to compare the faster L2100 chip with other processors including the Intel Atom 230, the Intel Celeron M, and the VIA C7-M. While the Nano L2100 certainly blows away the competition, it’s unlikely that we’ll see this particular chip in the upcoming Everex Cloudbook Max or future versions of the HP Mini-Note. It’s more likely that this chip will be used in desktop computers, while the U2400 and other U-series chips will find their way into netbooks.

VIA has released updted drivers for the CN896 chipset and Chrome9 integrated graphics. There are new drivers for both Windows XP and Windows Vista. HP 2133 Guide decided to see how the updated drivers affected performance on the HP Mini-Note.

The Aristo Pico 640 is a sub-$500 notebook destined for Poland. You probably won’t see in the US anytime soon. The specs aren’t spectacular, but the Pico 640 does pack a larger hard drive than you’ll find on many mini-notebooks in this class. Oh, and it has a touchscreen, which is a nice touch. Get it? Yeah, nevermind.

Anyway, here’s what you get for your money:

• Display: 7 inch, 800 x 480 touchscreen
• CPU: 1GHz VIA C7-M ULV
• RAM: 1GB
• HDD: 40GB
• OS: Windows XP Home/Pro and/or Linux
• Card reader: 4 in 1
• Video out: VGA port
• Keyboard: 80 keys
• Connectivity: 802.11b/g, Ethernet, 56k modem
• Battery: 4-cells, 4800mAh
• 2USB ports
• Webcam
• Weight: 1.09kg
• Size: 243mm x 172mm x 28.5 - 42.5mm

[via Cloudbook UMPC]

Eee PC News.de has a nice little pictorial showing about 20 mini-notebooks that were on display at Computex. What do they all have in common? They’re small, light weight, cheap, and they’re powered by the VIA C7-M CPU.

As I mentioned yesterday, Sascha from Eee PC News.de has been spending some quality time with a prototype VIA Openbook. The Openbook is a reference design VIA has published that will let laptop makers create low-cost, ultraportable laptops using VIA processors.

Eventually Openbook-based machines will probably use the upcoming VIA Nano CPU, but the prototype Sascha’s been playing with has a 1.6GHz VIA C7-M CPU, 1GB of RAM, and a 30GB hard drive. In other words, it’s a lot like the HP Mini-Note, but with a smaller hard drive. It’s running Windows Vista Home Basic, but seems rather zippy nonetheless, with a 1 minute boot time. In the video above, you can see Sascha launch a few programs and play some video. He doesn’t go online, so you can’t see how it performs with web video.

One feature that’s rather unusual is that the Openbook has two webcams, one on the inside of the unit facing you, the other on the outside, presumably facing whatever you’re looking at. This is just a reference design, so there’s no guarantee that the OEM versions will have this configuration.

Sascha also confirms that the keyboard and touchpad are rahter small, but there’s a little room in the case to expand either of these components. So perhaps we’ll see hardware makers customize the Openbook platform and release units with larger keyboards or touchpads.

I’m starting to think Sascha from Eee PC News.de has too many mini-laptops on his hands. OK, there’s really no such thing. But Sascha got a chance to stop by VIA headquarters in Taipei and snapped more than a dozen photos of a new VIA Openbook prototype. It’s the one on the far left int he image above (the other computers are an Eee PC 900, Eee PC 901, and HP Mini-Note).

It looks like Sony may be planning to launch a low cost ultraportable this fall. IDG reports that system maker Quanta, )which takes contract orders for PCs which are then sold under other brand names) , was showing off a computer based on the VIA OpenBook reference design at the WiMax Expo in Taipei. Under the system properties, Sony was listed as the manufacturer, but the Quanta rep would not go into any details (and quickly closed the laptop after this was pointed out).

Chip maker VIA has introduced the new OpenBook reference design for low cost, light weight ultraportable laptops. The company’s earlier Nanobook reference design was the basis for a number of ultraportables, the most recognizable probably being the Everex Cloudbook. So it’s not that surprising to see that the previously announced Cloudbook Max (due out in 2009) will be built on the OpenBook reference design.

France’s Surcouf plans to launch an ultraportable notebook that looks a lot like the Everex Cloudbook because they’re both built on the same VIA Nanobook reference design. But just so you don’t confuse La Révolution with the Cloudbook, this one comes in white or gold. Or at least, it’s got some gold coloring. I’m going to go out on a limb and assume it’s not actually made of gold,because while it seems a bit overpriced at €399 (about $624 US), it’s not exactly “made of solid gold” overpriced.

Here’s what’s under the hood:

• Processor: 1.2GHz VIA C7 CPU
• RAM: 1GB RAM
• Storage: 60G hard drive
• Display: 7 inch 800 x 480 pixel display
• Connectivity: WiFi and Bluetooth
• Expansion: Optional webcam, 3G, and GPS modules
• Availability: Scheduled to ship in France starting in May

The laptop will be available in a choice of white- or gold-coloured cases. The former ships in June, but the gold model will go on sale in May.

Surcouf.com is offering the first 200 buyers a free webcam module to slot in, but the retailer’s site suggests other modules will be offered, including a 3G connectivity unit, a GPS pick-up and a phone module.

[via Eee PC.net and Register Hardware]

Both Intel and VIA are set to release new chips this year designed for ultraportable computers like MIDs, UMPCs and low-cost laptops like the Eee PC and HP 2133. While neither the Intel Atom nor the VIA Isaiah processor is expected to be a speed demon, both will use significantly less energy than existing chips while offering decent performance.

Eee PC News.de ran some preliminary benchmarks and fins that an Isaiah outperforms anAtom processor with the same clock speed. This wasn’t a comprehensive raft of tests, and until we see both CPUs start to show up in actual production computers it’ll be hard to make any real judgements. But it’s still fun to look at the pretty little graph, no?

If you think there are a lot of low-cost ultraportable computers hitting the market this year, just wait. Intel officials say the company expects low-cost computer shipments to top 100 million between now and 2011. Meanwhile, Asus president Jerry Shen expects to sell 10 million Eee PCs in 2008 and twice as many next year. This all according to a report from DigiTimes.

Now, this could all be a case of counting chickens before they hatch. After all, while the Asus Eee PC is selling like pancakes, all that shows is that the computer is filling a niche. It remains to be seen exactly how large that niche is. Originally low-cost computers like the XO Laptop and the Classmate PC were targeted at educational markets and developing nations. Now we’re starting to see similar computers marketed toward consumers in developed nations as well. But does everybody who owns a computer need a low-powered device without an optical drive to compliment their existing desktop or laptop? I mean, I know I do, but I’m a bit crazy like that.

On the other hand, we’re starting to see another trend in the liliputing market. While the first few low-cost laptops like the XO, Classmate, and Eee PC all sported flash memory and slow processors, newer models like the HP 2133 come packed with large hard drives and marginally faster processors. And soon Intel and VIA will each release their next generation low-voltage, high(er) performance chips which should give these tiny laptops quite a speed boost, making it possible that we could start to see people picking liliputers up as primary computers, not secondary ones.

There’s no doubt that the HP 2133 provides a lot of computer for a relatively low price. The base model is comparable to the Eee PC 700 with 4G of solid state memory, 512MB of RAM, and a tiny package weighing just over two and a half pounds. For $50 more you can get a 120GB hard drive and a faster processor.

But here’s the rub, the HP 2133 uses the Via C7-M processor, while the Eee PC uses a more common Intel Celeron chip. Now, Celeron ships have a rightly deserved reputation for being something less than speed demons. But as the Eee PC shows, they can get the job done. Meanwhile, when the Everex Cloudbook, with its low powered Via chip came out, Notebook Review found that it lagged behind the Eee PC in benchmarking tests.

According to CNet, HP went with the Via processor because it offers a “mix of performance and price.” But there’s another consideration HP was probably making. The company wanted to get a product to market soon. Wait too long and Asus will release the Eee PC 900, which will feature a larger screen and more memory than the Eee PC 700. But if HP can get their new low-cost ultraportable out the door first, a lot of early adopters could decide to go with the 2133. And looking at the current generation of mobile chips, there aren’t a lot of cheap and powerful options on the market right now.

In a few months, Intel is expected to come out with its Atom processor, which will be a low-cost, low voltage, but much more powerful chip than the Celeron. Via, in the meantime is working on its next generation chip, which will be called the Isaiah processor. HP expects to update the specs on its 2133 line in about six months, and by that time, it looks like the company will have several powerful, low-priced chips to choose from.