Posted 05/05/09 at 10:41:38 AM by Paul Lilly

Prior to today, the only way to get your hands on the MSI Wind U123 was through pre-order, and while that's still the case at Amazon, a handful of other retailers are showing the new netbook in stock and ready to ship. So far, only the red and blue models are available.

In case you'd forgotten and/or haven't yet memorized the specs on just about every netbook ever released, the 10.2-inch Wind U123 will come configured with an Intel Atom N280 processor (1.66GHz, 512KB L2 cache, 667MHz frontside bus), 1024 x 600 LED backlit display, 1GB of DDR2-533 memory, Intel GMA950 integrated graphics, a 160GB hard drive, Windows XP Home, and a 6-cell battery.

Frosty Computers so far is the only one offering customization options, which includes a bevy of hard drive and SSD options, a 2GB RAM upgrade, Wireless-n upgrade, additional OS options, and a handful of other configurations.

Prices range from $350 to $380 for the standard model.

Amazon (Pre-order)
J&R (Pre-order)
Newegg
Frosty Computers
BuyDig
ExcaliberPC

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Posted 04/01/09 at 06:16:50 PM by Andy Salisbury

It wasn’t long ago that MSI announced their X-Slim notebooks, but we’ve finally got some solid information as to what will be under the hood, along with some additional information on the latest generation of Wind netbooks.

The new generation of MSI Wind U123 netbooks will sport a 10.2-inch screen, a 1.66GHz Atom N280 CPU, 1GB DDR2 RAM, a 160GB HDD, a built-in TV tuner and the choice between a 6 and 9-cell battery.

As for the X-Slims, the X340 (which will start at about $1,000) will be one of the first machines to feature Intel’s new CULV platform (which is reported to only use one-sixth the power of a regular mobile CPU), and will come with a 13.4-inch 1366x768 screen, Intel GMA4500MHD graphics, up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM, a 320GB HDD and 802.11b/g/n.

As for the X320, it’ll come with a notably less powerful 1.6GHz Atom Z530 processor, the same size screen, Intel GMA500 graphics, up to 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a 250GB HDD and along with the 802.11b/g/n wireless, will have an optional 3G/WiMAX module.

No specifics yet on pricing for any of these machines, but given MSI’s past there’s a good chance that it’ll be reasonable.

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