Better late than never
"Staying connected to your world - however you define it - is increasingly important to people on the go," announced HP notebook GM Ted Clark, somewhat belatedly, upon the launch of HP's Mini 1000 family of consumer netbooks.
HP has had a netbook-type product out since April, called the 2133 Mini-note PC, but this was designed for and marketed to the education sector. This is the first time HP has decided to directly take on the likes of ASUS on the mainstream netbook sector.
One interesting shift in build from the Mini-note to the Mini 1000 is the replacement of a Via C7-M with an Intel Atom processor. Perhaps the need to chop $100 off the price to make it competitive was one of the reasons.
The HP Mini 1000 is starting at $399 on the US website. We don't have UK pricing and availability yet, but that will probably translate to around £300.
Here are the specs:
CPU: Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz
Display: 8.9 or 10.2 inch
Memory: 512MB or 1GB DDR2
Storage: 8 or 16GB SSD or 60GB HDD
Graphics: Intel 950
OS: Windows XP SP3
Battery: 3 cell
Other: Webcam, optional Bluetooth
The Mini 1000 appears to be the same size (10.3" x 6.56" x 0.99") regardless of the configuration, so paying the extra $50 for the larger (but same resolution: 1024x600) display might be a temptation.
