Gizmodo: eee box

Asus Eee Keyboard Confirmed For October, Wireless HDMI Included

Danny Allen — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 07:45:16 EDT

Hell yes. Asus has finally committed to an October U.S and European arrival for its entertainment-PC-in-keyboard. The sleek device has a 5-inch touchscreen and Ultra Wideband HDMI (with receiver) to connect to your TV. I want it on my coffee-table.

The Eee Keyboard's netbook-like specs include a 1.6GHz Atom processor, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, 16- or 32GB solid-state hard disk, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, HDMI, and battery (no word on its capacity).

The official confirmation backs up DigiTimes' "industry sources" who not only claimed that October looked likely, but estimated the price should be around $400-$500. Asus didn't elaborate on cost, but fingers-crossed that it can keep things that low. And with Windows 7 debuting on October 22, hopefully the Eee Keyboard will ditch XP altogether (though it may have a Mobilin Linux option). [PC World]

The Crappiest $100,000 Computer Ever

matt buchanan — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:00:00 EDT

I present to you the crappiest $106,414.89 computer in history. Plus $13.46 shipping. And no Amazon Prime either, what the hell? [Amazon, Thanks Rodrigo!]

Asus Eee Keyboard Expected "As Early As October"

Danny Allen — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 06:03:42 EDT

In the latest twist of the Eee Keyboard's delay, DigiTimes reports the entertainment-PC-in-a-keyboard should be ready "as early as October". It also says the 20-inch Eee Top AIO, and two new ultra-thin U/UX series notebooks will arrive in September.

Though it cites unnamed "industry sources" (which could mean anything), DigiTimes gets specific for the Eee keyboard's pricing: around US$400-500. The keyboard has a built-in 5-inch display, 1.6Ghz Atom processor, 1GB of RAM, 16/32GB SSD, Wi-Fi and a wireless HDMI dongle.

Meanwhile, the Nvidia Ion-based 20-inch Eee Top ET2002 AIO, and Eee Box nettop are expected to cost about $670 and $300 in September.

The ET2002 has an Atom 330 CPU, 1600 by 900 resolution, 2GB RAM, 250GB hard disk, and 802.11n Wi-Fi.

Bonus news: DigiTimes also says HP is expected to launch an Ion-based netbook in September, along with some new ultra-thin netbooks. We're gonna be busy! [DigiTimes]

Asus Nettop Eee B203 PC Getting a Faster, Cheaper CPU

Jack Loftus — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 12:00:00 EST

We only just learned about the HDMI upgrade to the Asus Eee Box line with the B204 and B206 models, but there's another update coming in the B203: A Celeron instead of Atom.

Liliputing is reporting via an Italian Eee PC site that the Intel C220 Celeron upgrade is pretty much the only difference between the B203 and the original Eee Box B202. The chip replaces the Intel Atom chip that currently dominates the line.

The rest is pretty standard stuff. It runs Windows XP (Asus "recommends" Vista, cha-ching!), and comes with an 80, 120 or 160GB hard drive. There's also 4 USB ports, a flash card reader, DVI out, Ethernet port and wifi. Pricing wasn't available, but Liliputing expects it to check in slightly lower than the Atom version.

Note: Image is of the original Eee Box. [Asus via EeePC.it via Liliputing]

Eee Box Upgraded With HDMI and Discrete Graphics

Mark Wilson — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 09:10:00 EST

There was nothing wrong with the Eee Box, a PC not so dissimilar to the Wii, except that it lacked any real reason for existence with processing no more powerful than a netbook.

The new Eee Box B204 and B206 look to beef up the line's capabilities into something worthy of HTPC application. While still running light 1.6GHz Atom processors with 1GB of RAM, the systems now feature ATI Radeon HD 3400 series discrete graphics with 256MB of DDR2 memory along with HDMI output to play back high def video on an HDTV. And when you account for the Wireless-N networking and 160GB SATA hard drive, you realize that the the Eee Box could be a contender in the low end home theater PC market.

No word yet on pricing or availability, but the original Eee Box ran a palatable $300. [Asus]

Note: Image is of the original Eee Box.

Touchscreen Eee PC Due Early 2009, Will Run Windows 7 Later Says Asus CEO

Kit Eaton — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 04:25:00 EDT

After the DIY options, and initial hints, official word is out that there'll be a touchscreen Eee PC next year. And that's from none other than the CEO, Jerry Shen, himself. The guys over at Laptopmag got the low-down from Shen, who confirmed the machine will exist by "early 2009," and will actually be running Windows 7 by mid 2009. That's pretty interesting stuff, and though he wouldn't specify a form factor for the touchy Eee, Shen also spilled the beans on a few other aspects of the Eee success story.

Four million Eee sales to date have pretty much secured the Eee's status at the top end of the netbook market, and Shen plans to see figures top five million by the end of this year. The original 7-inch display 700-series version looks like the main seller in these figures.

Shen also promised the EeeTop all-in-one machine will arrive this month, and it'll run XP in Easy Mode. The EeeStick for gaming is also on its way, and may come bundled with some games alongside the EeeBox, EeeTop and Eee PC. Where it's sold elsewhere it'll cost $50 to $100.

The Eee PC will also get a 10-inch screen model at some point in the future, but Shen said that that's where his company is drawing the line between netbooks and notebooks: the N10 was a specific attempt to create a full notebook with a 10-inch display, but future models will start at 11-inches, leaving the 10-inch and smaller range to netbook machines.

And though Shen wouldn't say whether the touchscreen Eee would follow a conventional or tablet form-factor, he did admit "We are considering both. We are considering a tablet one and also a different alternative and form but we cannot talk about the details. We plan to talk about it in Q1 of next year."

Watch this space. And head over to the Laptopmag link for the full details on the interview. [Laptopmag]

Microsoft Adding Its Own Instant-On Feature To Windows?

John Mahoney — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 09:45:00 EDT

This survey, sent to a random sampling of Windows users, seems to indicated that MS is at least thinking of integrating an instant-on mode to Windows. Existing quick-start features like Splashtop, found on the Voodoo Envy, Eee Box and a number of other machines, are usually Linux-based systems that stick their finger into the BIOS. A Windows-native solution would be a similar setup—giving you access to a limited feature and application set after a few seconds boot. That is, unless the respondents to this survey overwhelmingly select "1-2 minutes" as their definition of "instant." [Engadget]

Asus Eee Box B202: Our First Look, Plus Official Specs (Only $300)

matt buchanan — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 11:17:55 EDT

The other toy Asus brought for us to look at is their upcoming Eee Box, which will launch mid-July in the US. Running on a 1.6GHz Atom processor, it comes in Windows XP and Linux versions, both of which are blissfully cheap: $269 for the base 1GB RAM, 80GB storage Linux model, $299 for XP. Memory and storage are configurable, running from 512MB to 2GB, and 80GB to 250GB, respectively. 802.11n is standard, and it has a pleasant number of ports—serious potential as a TV streamer box (as commenters have pointed out, lack of optical drive and HDMI out is definitely limiting here). We didn't get to see it in action, but it's definitely a cute, well-built package for the money. All the dirty details below.

Name and Model: Eee Box B202
OS: Linux System/ Hardware Compatible with Windows XP

Processor: Intel Atom N270 (1.6 GHz, FSB 533)

Memory: DDRII 512 MB / 1 GB / 2 GB (see US configs below)

Storage: 80 GB / 120 GB / 160 GB / 250 GB (see US configs below)

Chipset: 945GSE + ICH7M

VGA: On-board Intel GMA 950, 1600 x 1200 maximum resolution

Networking: 10/100/1000 Mbps LAN, 802.11n WLAN, Bluetooth optional

SD/MMC/MS slot: SD, SDHC, Mini SD, (Micro SD through adapter) ; MMC, MMC plus, MMC4.x, RS MMC, RSMMC4.x (MMC mobile through adapter);MS,MS PRO
Audio: Azalia ALC888 Audio Chip

Front Ports:
USB x 2
Card Reader x 1
Headphone-out jack (WO/SPDIF) x 1
MIC x 1

Rear Ports:
USB 2.0 x 2
Gigabit LAN x 1
DVI out x 1
Line-Out (L/R) with S/PDIF x 1
WiFi antenna

Accessories:
19Vdc, 4.74A, 65W power adaptor
Mouse (optional)
Keyboard (optional)
VESA mount (optional)
WiFi antenna
Stand

Dimensions: 8.5" x 7" x 1"
Net Weight: 2.2 lbs.
Gross Weight: 6.6 lbs.

US Configurations and MSRP:
$269 1GB memory + 80GB HDD Linux edition
$299 1GB memory + 80GB HDD XP edition
$299 2GB memory + 160GB HDD Linux edition

Availability: For the US, we're expecting to hit the market Mid July. For French-speaking Canada, a French Linux version will be available the following month.

[Asus]

First Details on the Asus Eee Box

Mark Wilson — Thu, 29 May 2008 08:40:00 EDT

Asustek has dropped some details on that Eee Desktop PC EP20 we've seen floating around. First off, it has a more catchy name—the Asus Eee Box.

Expected for a global launch this July in both Linux and Windows XP versions, the cheapest model will start at about $330 and pack an 80GB hard drive (maxing out at 250GB). Standards for the line will include 802.11n Wi-Fi, 4 USB ports, and a slot for various flash memory cards. There's no word on the processor at this time, or whether or not the Eee Box will be packing an Atom like its mobile sibling. [PCWorld]