Hardware
AMD's Neo Processor Ignores the Atom, Gives Netbooks the Tiny Cold Shoulder
Posted by John Herrman at 9:25 PM on January 6, 2009
AMD's anticipated answer to the Atom is coming soon, but there's a catch: It's not an answer to the Atom. It's more expensive, faster, sucks more power, and isn't intended for netbooks. Oops!

Overclocking is nothing new, but rarely is it promoted by a PC manufacturer, let alone in a netbook. But MSI has released the v1.09 BIOS update for their
The Pomera DM10 will not go on the internet or send you emails. It can't grab RSS from a Wi-Fi connection or even display in colour. But the Pomera Digital Memo does take notes, and it takes them hard. Booting in just two seconds off two AA batteries, the Digital Memo features a fold-out keyboard and monochrome TFT LCD, storing up to 8000 characters per file on a MicroSD card. The Digital Memo will be pulled from its nuclear fallout shelter following 10 years of quarantined development this November when it hits the Japan market for $US270. [
Now that netbooks have lowered how much we're willing to pay for laptops with a smaller footprint, it looks like ultra-portables are looking for ways to justify their higher price point. In that vein, Fujitsu's upcoming P8020 is packing a multitouch trackpad that'll allow those pinching zoom in, zoom out motions and circular unlimited scrolling gestures currently seen on Macbook Pros. Is that, and the 1.4Ghz Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB of memory, 120GB hard disk, DVD burner and GMA 4500MHD video card enough to make it worth $US1,800? I guess we'll see come November. [
MSI hasn't been shy about their Wind U120, a 10" netbook that should pack a 120GB hard drive, SSD options, 802.11n Wi-Fi and 3G (HSDPA) fun. But from these first official shots of the unofficial sequel to the praised MSI Wind, we see that not much has changed about the exterior beyond adding a new two-tone style with a black border around the screen (probably to help colours pop). Then again, popping in a SIM card to surf the web from anywhere is a pretty solid update in itself. Look for the Wind U120 priced under $US600 this December. [
Samsung is the latest to join the UMPC/netbook
In an interview with Impress, MSI's Neo Lin (Notebook Product Manager) leaked some details of upcoming
Say it with me everyone: 8.9" screen, 1.6GHz Atom processor, up to 1GB of RAM, 120GB HD and...you get the picture. Toshiba's offering is definitely style-aggressive, packs Ubuntu and promises a (6 cell?) battery life of 4 hours, but it's pretty much the exact $US500ish system we've seen cloned and crapped out by every laptop manufacturer in the known universe. Is there some club we don't know about where hardware developers get together for rights of passage involving ritual branding, hallucinogenic concoctions and the release of one's first netbook? We sure hope so, because otherwise this beat is getting really tired. [
While information has been arriving in fits and starts on Asus' 
