The MSI Wind blows out of the gate with an Intel Atom processor

The Asus EeePC set the mark for these new compact laptop computers last year and many companies have since jumped on the bandwagon to take advantage of the popularity of the device, as discussed by Larry Dignan earlier. Today, the MSI Wind U100 Notebook was released in the U.S. and it looks like this device may trump the successor model to the original Asus EeePC, the EeePC 900, with its Intel Atom processor leading the way. Laptop Magazine gives the MSI Wind 4.5/5 in their full review.

The MSI Wind has a large 10-inch 1024x600 pixel display, 1.6 GHz Intel Atom processor, 1GB RAM (expandable to 2GB), 80GB hard drive running at 5400 rpm, integrated 1.3 megapixel webcam, integrated WiFi, integrated Bluetooth (option) and weighs in at 2.6 pounds with the 6 cell optional battery (3 cell included). The device also has a 4-in-1 memory card reader (SD, MMC, Memory Stick, and Memory Stick Pro), three USB ports, stereo speakers, headphone jack, VGA port, and ethernet jack. The Windows XP Home model is priced at US$499 and the SUSE Linux model will be available for US$399. It looks like it will be coming in different colors (black, white, and pink) so there will be a variety for those who want a bit of differentiation.

I have to admit I never heard the name MSI before, but after the launch of this device they may become quite popular. You can check out the full press release on the MSI Wind for more details.