Could the Eee PC be under threat from the Everex Cloudbook? Here’s what you get for under $400-
OS: gOS V2 Rocket (oh that’ll be ripped out for XP by the 1337)
RAM: 512MB DDR2 533MHz SDRAM (1GB Max)
CPU: 1.2 GHz VIA C7-M
Screen: 7-inch 800 x 480 pixels
Storage: 30GB hard drive(!) 4200 RPM. More details at Mike Cane 2008.
EEE PC 
Aka Packard Bell Easynote XS20. I’d say Asus’ communication around the eee is horrible, but that leave no suitable word for Packard Bell.
This is just the beginning. Everyone’s predicting that the Eee’s success will generate a lot of competition in the ultraportable market in 2008.
It might be a “threat,” but early adopters always face the risk of seeing their new toy eclipsed by better and cheaper products. Competition is a good thing.
Maybe as early as next Tuesday there will be a more expensive ultra-portable with a full OS …….. from Cupertino ……….
It won’t be a big threat to the Eee PC. I can see three problems with this UMPC already.
1 – the touchpad and webcam placement is unsuitable
2 – the display is not centered and still too small
Why would they place the display on the left and the webcam and touchpad on the right? Examine any laptop and you see the same design; Webcam at the top in the center above a centralized screen and a touchpad in front of the keyboard. This is the most ergonomic design. You may be able to get away with an an 800×480 off-center screen but the placement of the webcam and touchpad is unforgiveable. I can’t wait to read the reviews.
By the way, both the Eee PC and this machine need a decent (1024×600) 8 or 9 inch screen for decent web surfing. Fortunately, ASUS has taken heed and will introduce larger screened models in Spring 2008.
Regarding the MAC UMPC, it will probably be like the ipod touch and iphone; flashy with a great user interface but overpriced.
My next UMPC will be the second generation Eee PC with a 8.9 inch screen, WIMAX, and Menlow CPU with a 5 hour battery life (I’m guessing on the battery life). If I want a flashy interface, I’ll install BERYL which will run rings around VISTA or OSX on limited spec machines like this. For software compatibility, I’ll install WINE to run XP apps. Lastly, there is no better music player on any OS than AMAROK (Music Manager on the Eee PC). I think Linux will come into its own on laptops like this.
Sorry about the second error. Should be: I can see two problems with this UMPC.
Your points are totally valid for well informed shoppers. But for $400, I think a large part of the target audience for these machines is impulse buyers. And I think a lot of people who don’t take the time to figure out hwy 4GB of SSD might be more useful than 30GB of hard drive space will just assume the Cloudbook is the better machine because its processor has a higher clock speed and you get way more storage.
I’m happy with my Eee PC, but I can see Everex selling a lot of these computers.
Ummm. eee pc – looks great! – this ‘cloudbook’ is not as pretty as the white ones in the sky to say the least. It is an ugly thing and that would put me off even without the ridiculous touchpad placement!
The lee7 will install Linux! Only the noobs will install XP 😛