Friday, October 30, 2009

ASUS' Android-based 'secret weapon' smartbook launching in Q1

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/30/asus-android-based-secret-weapon-smartbook-launching-in-q1/

We got our first glimpse at a computing future filled with low-cost, ARM-based ASUS smartbooks running Android on a 1GHz Snapdragon processor all the way back on June 1st. Since then, however, the pencil-spinning boys in Taiwan have been poo-pooing plans to launch such a device due to what ASUS called an uncertain market opportunity -- or was it pressure from Wintel, we never can tell? Then yesterday, ASUS' Jerry Shen pulled an about-face at an investor meeting in Taipei with talk of launching a $180 smartbook in Q1 of 2010. Bristling with confidence, Shen goes so far as to call it a "secret weapon" in a category offering potential for huge, Eee PC-like growth. Well, with the first big-name smartbooks just starting to ship, even a dozen or so sales could be considered statistically significant.

[Via Shanzai]

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ASUS' Android-based 'secret weapon' smartbook launching in Q1 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 02:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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