They will be promoted and distributed by Orange who will likely slash the prices on the Mini 1000 if customers agree to sign up for long-term mobile plans.

HP’s range will initially be offered by Orange in the UK, Belgium, Switzerland, Austria, and Portugal, with eventual plans to offer the services in all countries where Orange currently operates.

Source: Liliputing

HP is saying that its netbooks — and hopefully the other brands follow — will offer three versions of Microsoft’s upcoming OS. Those are the two primary editions — Professional and Home Premium editions — along with the dreaded Starter Edition designed for netbooks.

The Starter Edition seems almost redundant given that many have already tried the full beta version on their netbooks to great effect, something they couldn’t accomplish with the much maligned Vista OS.

According to Kyle Thornton, category manager for business notebook PCs at HP, they have also been testing the beta version of Windows 7 Ultimate Edition — this option aimed at gamers and hardcore PC users — on netbooks, so its possible HP may offer four versions with upcoming netbooks, which would be great.

Source: Computer World

In another sign that Linux’s star my be fading, HP has decided to drop Linux as an operating system for its latest range of netbooks in the UK. Computer Weekly is reporting that while Linux is being offered as an option for HP’s new Mini 1000 netbook series in the United States and other countries, the UK is getting Windows-only machines.

HP said XP was chosen to address the needs of the UK market and more worryingly for Linux fans, the company said that Linux won’t be offered in various other European markets either.

The features that make it a business-friendly netbook include a keyboard with a 92% size compared to a full-size one, a 6-cell battery with lasting power of up to eight hours, and a 10.1-inch LED display with a widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio. The sleek and shiny aluminum case also gives it an aura of class and wouldn’t look out of place on a businessman’s lap.

More standard netbook features are, of course, the 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor and a 160GB hard drive. Exactly what the Atom’s processing speed is or how much RAM the Mini 2140 will have in it are unknown right now. The netbook also has the handy 3D DriveGuard feature that protects it by sensing shocks and shutting down the hard drive.

The HP Mini 2140 is expected to be available later this month with a retail price of $499.95.

Current Atom platform restrictions limit netbook panel size to 10.2-inches, so HP’s plea to Intel, whose Atom processor remains dominant (for now), could again push forward the trend of netbooks getting bigger and bigger.

Given HP’s brand image and high volumes, sources believe there is a very good chance they will be able to get the restrictions uplifted.

The Mini 1000, which hasn’t even been out long, has already grabbed plenty of attention for being an affordable netbook that runs very well, and just days ago saw a special Vivienne Tan Edition and mobile broadband option added.

The basic 8.9-inch Mini 1000 comes packed with a 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor, 1GB of RAM, an 8GB SSD, a 3-cell battery, and Windows XP.

For an extra $300 on the usual HP Mini 1000 it isn’t cheap, but its undeniably great eye candy with a unique flowery design that spans across the entire model, including the case. This release is largely the same specs-wise as its more mundane counterpart with its Intel 1.6GHz Atom CPU, 1GB of RAM, and a 10.2-inch screen, but comes with a 16GB solid state disk with a +$25 upgrade option for an extra 60GB.

You can also add an integrated 3G modem, with HP now officially offering this feature to buyers in the United States. Although very pricey compared to most broadband modems, such as the $125 one available for the Dell Inspiron Mini 9, it offers access to AT&T or Verizon’s wireless broadband networks.

Source: Lilputing

The Eee PC 901 price is dropping from NT$16,900 to NT$12,900, which works out to be roughly US$420, a drop of around US$130. The Intel Celeron M processor-based Eee PC 900 has already been phased out of the market in Taiwan, but prices for the Celeron M-based Eee PC 1000HD (down to US$450) and both the Eee PC 904 and 1000H (price cuts of about US$30) have been lowered.

HP has dropped the price of its 2133 Mini-note unit by around US$60, while the cost of Acer’s Aspire model has been cut by about half of that. Whether these price cuts are permanent or temporary for inventory clearance isn’t clear, but now might be a good time to invest in a brand new netbook if you’re in Taiwan.

HP released its first netbook last Spring, but the new Mini 1000 uses Intel Corp’s Atom processor and more importantly for the average consumer, is significantly cheaper than its previous attempt at US$400. According to the report, analysts believe that the move to price it so low could signal the beginning of price wars in the netbook market. Hey, I don’t think any of us will be complaining about this.

HP’s Carlos Montalvo said that the new Mini 1000 is superior to the “second- and third-tier offerings” from competitors, which he daringly labelled as “over-optimized” for what you get, and which he believes lack HP’s consistency and overall quality.

The Mini 1000 will start at US$399 for a version running Microsoft Windows XP, with a fully loaded model available for US$549. Oh, and they haven’t forgotten Linux users, as a Linux version will be available for US$379, and finally a special edition designed by fashion designer Vivienne Tam will be on sale at US$699.