April 13th, 2009
MSI details Wind U123 netbook, announces gaming laptop
At CTIA Wireless earlier this month, I got a first look at MSI’s latest netbook, the Wind U123, along with some new laptops. Now MSI has posted details on the new models.
MSI currently sells two 10-inch netbooks, the Wind U100 for consumers and the Wind U120, which has a more business-like look. Both start at $430. The U123 is a new design–also geared toward business users–based on a 10.2-inch LED-backlit display with a resolution of 1024×600. It measures 10.2×7.1×1.3 inches and weighs about 2.2 pounds. Like Lenovo’s IdeaPads, the U123 now has face recognition software for security.
The base U123 model has a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N280 processor, 1GB of memory, 80GB hard drive, 802.11b/g/n and a three-cell battery. Upgrades include a larger hard drive (120- or 160GB) and a six-cell battery. The U123H has an HSDPSA wireless broadband modem and the U123T has a TV tuner, but the otherwise these models have identical specs. All three models come in white, gray, blue or red.
MSI also announced, at the opposite extreme, a 14.1-inch gaming laptop. The distinguishing features of the GX403 are a turbo button that boosts the clock speed of the processor (when on AC power) and a switch that switches the power settings among five different modes optimized for gaming, movies, presentations, office productivity apps and maximum battery life. (Confusingly MSI also refers to the maximum battery life setting as a “turbo” mode.) Last week Acer announced a new Timeline notebook series with a similar Acer Smart Power button for changing the system’s power settings.
The GX403 will have Intel Core 2 Duo processors, 4GB of memory, Nvidia GeForce GT 130M graphics with 256MB or memory, a 160GB (upgradable to as much as 500GB) and a DVD drive. MSI will also offer a Blu-ray option on this model. No word yet on pricing or availability.
John Morris is a former executive editor at CNET Networks and senior editor at PC Magazine. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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