Taiwan's Asustek, Acer launch low-priced mini laptops

Two major Taiwan computer sellers launched low-priced mini laptops at Asia's biggest computer show on Tuesday, both forecasting the shipment of millions of units this year.

Asustek Computer Inc announced improvements to its successful "Eee PC" family at the opening of the five-day exhibition better known as Taipei Computex.

"We've made some adjustments following the suggestions of users over the past year," Asustek chief executive officer Jerry Shen told reporters, referring to specifications including 9-10 inch screens, compared with the 7-inch screen of the previous versions.

The new products, the company called "Eee PC" 901/1000, run on Wi-Fi 802.11n, an enhanced Internet service, meaning a high-definition 30-minute film can be downloaded within a minute, the company said.

The new "Eee PC" family members, which are priced between 560-660 US dollars, have up to 2GB of memory and 40GB of storage.

They are also powered by a battery with a lifespan of up to 7.8 hours and also less susceptible to shock damage, the company said.

Meanwhile, Taiwan's leading computer vendor Acer Inc. also launched its first low-priced mini laptop "Aspire one" -- the company's first portable Internet device.

"This product will enable users to enjoy a true mobile and wireless experience anywhere," Jim Wong, senior corporate vice president and president of IT products global operations, told reporters.

A confident Acer President Gianfranco Lanci said "Aspire one" is due to hit the market before the end of June, carrying prices of 399-499 US dollars, and forecast a shipment of up to seven million units this year.

"We're a bigger brandname vendor than Asustek," Wong said.

Asustek sold at least 350,000 Eee PCs in the two months after it hit the market. The company sold 650,000 units in the three months to March this year and is estimated to sell up to five million this year, predicted Jane Tseng of the Topology Research Institute, a private think-tank in Taipei.

"Aspire one has something that Eee Pc doesn't have," Wong said, alluding to its Linpus Linux Lite operating system, which Acer said has reduced the start-up and shut-down times to a minimum.

© 2008 AFP

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