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Second generation Wind to appear at CeBit 2009

by on21 October 2008

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U120 in December, U90 3.5G telco bundles expected


We already
talked about MSI's new Wind U120, here, and we've learned a few more details about the upcoming machine as well as future Wind products.

MSI will announce the U120 in November, but we believe it will hit the shelves sometime in December, probably just in time for the holiday season. According to Digitimes, the 120GB version with XP should end up priced at $550, at least in Taiwan. An SSD version will follow a bit later.

Apart from the U120, MSI is working on a 12-inch version of the Wind, although details are still sketchy. A cheap 12-inch netbook sounds like a pretty tempting offer, if MSI manages to keep the price down. At the moment its top specced Wind SKUs sell for €400+, while it's cheapest 12-inch notebooks sell for just over €500. Obviously the pricing of this product series leaves very little breathing space for a 12-inch netbook.

MSI also signed a deal with Taiwanese Vibo Telecom to offer its 8.9-inch Wind U90 bundled with Vibo's 3.5G services. We're guessing this won't be the only MSI telco deal, as other vendors proved similar schemes can be very successful and MSI is already talking to several European telecoms.

The company expects to sell 500,000 to 600,000 Winds this year, depending on the success of its telecom deals. Unlike Asus, MSI has no plans to offer a touchscreen netbook any time soon.

MSI is expected to unveil the second generation of Wind netbooks at CeBit 2009.

More here.
Last modified on 22 October 2008
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