Asus has unveiled its second netbook using Intel's 1.66GHz Atom N280 processor. The “Eee PC 1008HA” is just an inch thick, weighs 2.4 pounds, has a 10-inch LED-backlit display and 160GB hard disk drive, and delivers five-hour battery life, the company says.

(Click for larger view of Asus's PC 1008HA)

As reported on our sister site, WindowsForDevices, yesterday, the prototype version of the Eee PC 1008HA shown at this week's CeBit tradeshow ran Windows XP Home. The terse press release did not mention operating system (OS) support or many other fine details, but Linux should run just fine on this x86 platform.

Asus became the first — and still only, as far as we're aware — company to announce a netbook based on Intel's 1.66GHz Atom N280, in the shape of the Eee PC1000 HE. Focusing on long battery life, the 3.2 pound PC 1000HE is claimed to allow up to 9.5 hours of run-time.

Asus's second N280 offering, the PC 1008HA, includes 1GB of RAM, a 160GB hard disk drive (HDD), and a 10-inch, LED-backlit display. Connectivity includes 10/100 Ethernet, two USB ports, audio jacks, and an MC/SD/SDHC memory card reader, according to the company. Asus says the PC 1008HA includes 802.11b/g/n wireless networking plus Bluetooth, and will be offered with “3.75G” and WiMAX broadband options too. The device also has a “digital array” microphone, 1.3 megapixel camera, and a multi-touch keypad, the company says.

Looking down the “Pine Trail”

The Atom N280 running on the PC 1008HA is still “semi-secret,” as the chipmaker has yet to offer any public information about the CPU. The WindowsForDevices article, however, has dug up some additional details on the CPU, as well as the new Asus netbook. It also explores rumors about Intel's next-generation “Pine Trail-M” processor platform, which will reportedly combine a “Pineview” CPU with “Tigerpoint,” an integrated northbridge/southbridge.

Availability

Asus had no details on a ship date for the Eee PC PC 1008HA netbook. The full story in WindowsForDevices should be available here.

 
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