MSI intros 12in Wind notebook-not-netbook

Netbook size, notebook chippage

By Tony Smith • Get more from this author

21st August 2009 10:17 GMT

MSI has formally introduced the latest addition to its Wind netbook series - only it's arguably not a netbook.

The Wind 12 U200 is powered by a 1.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo SU3500 processor rather than an Atom. As its name suggests, it has a 12.1in screen with a resolution of 1366 x 768, driven by a GMA 4500MHD graphics core in the laptop's GS45 chipset.

MSI's Wind U200: notebook not netbook

The machine comes with a couple of gigs of 667MHz DDR 2, 802.11n Wi-Fi, a four-in-one card reader, 1.3Mp webcam, three USB ports, Gigabit Ethernet and up to 320GB of Sata hard drive storage. It comes with Windows Vista Home Premium.

There's a version, the 210, that comes AMD chippery rather than Intel: the 1.6GHz Neo MV-40.

With its standard three-cell battery, the U200 weighs 1.4kg and measures 297 x 190 x 24.5-31mm, so, despite the notebook internals, it has a near-netbook form-factor.

Near-netbook form-factor

There's no word on a UK price, but the U200 has already gone on sale in Europe for €499 (£432/$713), so it's definitely at the top end of netbook pricing. ®

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