Digital Home Thoughts: ASUS Prepares To Release Dual Core Goodness

"Today we got a first look at the Eee PC 1201N, which will sell for $499 with Windows 7 Premium. This 12.1-inch system looks a lot like a larger 1008HA, a design we like. It’s a sleek 1.3 inches thick, only 3.2 pounds, and sports the same dimpled trackpad as the 1008HA but the chiclet-style keyboard seen on the 1000HE."

With a 12.1 inch screen, I am not quite sure that I would consider this a netbook, but it certainly contains the guts of one. The big difference here, of course, is that this is the first ION based netbook that also offers a dual core CPU, namely the Atom 330. The 330 has be absent from netbooks probably because of battery life concerns, but that has not stopped ASUS from giving it a go, and I am anxious to see how this affects performance over anything else. With a listed battery life of 5 hours, it should also last long enough for the casual trip as well. Laptop Magazine only has a pre-production version right now, so a review is not available, but one should be forthcoming soon.