New MSI Wind Will Have 3G, TV
Posted in: netbooks, Today's Chili
MSI has announced yet another addition to the Wind line of netbooks. The U123 will join the original (U100) and its slimline successor (the U120), and brings two big new features.
The U123 will have the same upgraded Atom processor as the U120 — the N280 — which runs at a slightly faster 1.66 GHz (against 1.6 of the previous generation) and, more importantly in a netbook, uses much less power. The case itself will be the same, but inside MSI has added a 3G radio and a TV tuner.
Both of these are welcome. 3G, we’re sure, is set to become standard in netbooks this year — they’re so portable it seems churlish to require something as creaky and old as Wi-Fi. The TV tuner is a neat addition, too. I have no 3G in my Wind clone, but I can still get entertainment on the go by hooking up Elgate’s EyeTV via USB. Putting the TV tuner inside makes more sense, and if you couple this with a big external monitor you have a portable DVR.
The tuner means the new Wind gains an antenna socket to complement the usual three USB ports, D-sub monitor connector and SD card reader. There’s also a 160GB HD, 1GB RAM and a six cell battery. The price has yet to be announced but expect it to be a) similar to the current Wind’s $350-$400 and b) heavily subsidized by mobile carriers.
MSI Gets Official About Wind U123 and X320, X340 [Laptop Mag]
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