ASUS, Intel tie up to launch ‘Eee Box’

The Eee Box is a mini desktop PC with huge possibilities. With a slim, svelte design, the world’s smallest desktop PC allows for an array of space saving options. Plus, it’s so easy to use. Its simple intuitive interface is simple to learn.

Fulfilling the needs of users who require a stylish, low-power computer with a minimal footprint, ASUS, producer of the world renowned Eee PC, releases the new Eee Box. Replacing today’s bulky and boring PCs, users can refresh their working environment with a compact, elegant solution. With a range of exciting novelties, the Eee Box offers amazing journeys where users learn, work and play – all in line with the Eee PC’s main tenet of easy use.

The other toy Asus brought to look at is their upcoming Eee Box, which will launch mid-July in the US. Running on a 1.6GHz Atom processor, it comes in Windows XP and Linux versions, both of which are blissfully cheap: $269 for the base 1GB RAM, 80GB storage Linux model, $299 for XP. Memory and storage are configurable, running from 512MB to 2GB, and 80GB to 250GB, respectively. 802.11n is standard, and it has a pleasant number of ports—serious potential as a TV streamer box (as commenters have pointed out, lack of optical drive and HDMI out is definitely limiting here). We didn’t get to see it in action, but it’s definitely a cute, well-built package for the money.

Product specifications:

Name and Model: Eee Box B202

OS: Linux System/ Hardware Compatible with Windows XP

Processor: Intel Atom N270 (1.6 GHz, FSB 533)

Memory: DDRII 512 MB / 1 GB / 2 GB (see US configs below)

Storage: 80 GB / 120 GB / 160 GB / 250 GB (see US configs below)

Chipset: 945GSE + ICH7M

VGA: On-board Intel GMA 950, 1600 x 1200 maximum resolution

Networking: 10/100/1000 Mbps LAN, 802.11n WLAN, Bluetooth optional

SD/MMC/MS slot: SD, SDHC, Mini SD, (Micro SD through adapter) ; MMC, MMC plus, MMC4.x, RS MMC, RSMMC4.x (MMC mobile through adapter);MS,MS PRO

Audio: Azalia ALC888 Audio Chip

Front Ports:

USB x 2
Card Reader x 1
Headphone-out jack (WO/SPDIF) x 1
MIC x 1

Rear Ports:

USB 2.0 x 2
Gigabit LAN x 1
DVI out x 1
Line-Out (L/R) with S/PDIF x 1
WiFi antenna

Accessories:

19Vdc, 4.74A, 65W power adaptor
Mouse (optional)
Keyboard (optional)
VESA mount (optional)
WiFi antenna
Stand

Dimensions:

8.5″ x 7″ x 1″

Net Weight:

2.2 lbs.

Gross Weight:

6.6 lbs.

US Configurations and MSRP:

$269 1GB memory + 80GB HDD Linux edition
$299 1GB memory + 80GB HDD XP edition
$299 2GB memory + 160GB HDD Linux edition

Availability:

For the US, expect to hit the market Mid July.

About Intel Atom processor:

Intel® Atom™ processor

The Intel Atom processor is Intel’s smallest processor, built with the world’s smallest transistors and manufactured on Intel’s industry-leading 45nm Hi-k Metal Gate technology. The Intel Atom processor was purpose-built for simple, affordable, netbooks and nettops.

Intel Atom processor-based netbooks and nettops offer both an easy-to-use mobile device with simple interfaces and targeted performance for a good online experience. They are rugged and compact in design, and offer the freedom and flexibility of wireless connectivity.

Great for Internet, these devices are an affordable option for education, photo and video viewing, social networking, voice over IP, e-mail, messaging, browsing, and numerous other Internet activities and basic applications.

As Intel’s smallest and lowest power processor², the Intel® Atom™ processor enables the latest Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs), and another new category of devices for the internet called netbooks and nettops.

Newly designed from the ground up, 45nm Intel Atom processors pack an astounding 47 million transistors on a single chip measuring less than 26mm, making them Intel’s smallest and lowest power processors. All this while delivering the power and performance you need for full Internet capabilities.

Intel’s smallest chip. Built with the world’s smallest transistors:

“This is our smallest processor built with the world’s smallest transistors. The Intel® Atom™ processor is based on an entirely new design, built for low power and designed specifically for a new wave of Mobile Internet Devices and simple, low-cost PC’s. This small wonder is a fundamental new shift in design, small yet powerful enough to enable a big Internet experience on these new devices. We believe it will unleash new innovation across the industry.”

– Intel Executive Vice President Sean Maloney