Hands-On With the MSI Wind U160 Netbook
Posted in: hands-on, msi, netbooks, Notebooks, Today's Chili
LAS VEGAS — MSI has launched yet another upgrade for its popular Wind netbook, dubbed the U160.
The new model gains a brand new polished case, a bumpy trackpad and a Chicklet keyboard with elevated keys. It includes Windows 7 Starter, a 1.66-GHz Intel Atom N450 processor, a 250-GB hard drive and a 6-cell battery that lasts 7.5 hours, according to MSI.
I had some hands-on time with the Wind U160, and though it looks different from its predecessors, the experience is mostly the same. The U160 is noticeably lighter, weighing only 2.2 pounds. It sports a glossy champagne finish, a black keyboard and a screen with a black border. It kind of looks like a miniature MacBook Pro.
Its keyboard still suffers from an awkwardly small question-mark key. I disliked the puny trackpad on the first MSI Wind (which I used to own), and I dislike the U160’s bumpy trackpad even more: The purpose of the bumps is to mouse around more accurately, but I was doing the opposite.
This upgrade is mostly about looks, which isn’t surprising because netbooks are generally a repetitive, monotonous product category. More interesting at CES this year is the “notbook” — a new flavor of netbooks adding some variety to 10-inch mini notes. Some examples include the Lenovo Skylight smartbook, which features an ARM-based processor, and the Lenovo S10-3t, a convertible touchscreen tablet.
See Also:
Photos: Jon Snyder/Wired.com
Post a Comment