Subnotebooks: Everex 9-inch CloudBook, Asus Eee
Anyone fed up with the Apple marketing machine or disappointed with the footprint of the MacBook Air might already be looking towards the tiny Sonys or the amazingly compact and cheap Asus Eee for true sling it in your coat pocket mobility. Over at Engadget more subnotebooks are being announced all the time. Has Apple got it wrong to go for the full-size keyboard on the Air? Acer has already announced its own line of 9-inch subnotebooks and this brand is perhaps better known on this side of the pond.
According to rumblings on the internet, the new Cloudbook from Everex that's worming its way into Wal-Marts across the US this weekend will be getting a big brother soon. If you believe what they say (they being Paul Kim, director of marketing at Everex), we can expect a 9-inch version of the Eee-competitor to make an appearance in June, boasting a larger keyboard, more memory, and possibly new "skins" (but please, no tattoos). The Linux-equipped computer will clock in around $500, and will be part of the Ubuntu-based gOS family. The company also has plans to introduce a variant of the smaller CloudBook called the DevBook, a $400-500 laptop aimed at developers with a touchscreen and swappable side-panel accessories, plus a $399 standard size 15.4-inch laptop, and a "mini" desktop with a dual-layer DVD drive, as well as DVI and S-Video outputs for $499. [Via Eee Site]Source: Engadget
Update: There's a great review article about the Everex Cloudbook on the Tech.co.uk site which similarly asks the question 'has Apple missed the trend here?' - or I wonder, does it see the iPhone as fulfilling this niche?