Samsung netbook ready for launch

Intel's Atom chip has been ditched in favour of Via Nano in Samsung's second, bigger, more costly netbook

By Colin Barker, Contributor Feb. 6, 2009 at 9:23 a.m. PT

1 of 3 Colin Barker/ZDNET

Samsung is aiming to release its second netbook on Monday, the company has said. The NC20 will follow on from the NC10, which was launched in September last year.

Like the first laptop, the NC20 will run Windows XP. It has a 130GB hard drive, Bluetooth 2.0 +EDR for basic communications plus Ethernet connection and 802.11b/g Wi-Fi, an integrated camera (1.3 megapixel), a card reader and a six-cell battery.

2 of 3 Colin Barker/ZDNET

There are two main differences between the two designs. The NC20 has a bigger screen, measuring 12.1 inches, to the NC10's 10.2 inches.

The other significant change is to the laptop's main processor. The NC10 is based on a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom. With the NC20, Samsung has switched to a 1.3GHz Via Nano processor and a VX800 chipset. The internal memory remains at 1GB, while the video adaptor has changed from Intel's GMA 950 to a Via Chrome9.