Asus Eee PC 1201PN (single-core CPU, ION) now shipping in US

The Asus Eee PC 1201PN ION-powered netbook is now shipping at Amazon.com. As of writing both the Black (1201PN-PU17-BK) and Red (1201PN-PU17-RD) models are in stock for $484. The Silver model, however, is still at pre-order for the same price.

As a quick recap, the Eee PC 1201PN comes with a 12.1-inch (1366 x 768) display and is powered by a 1.66Ghz N450 Atom processor and next-generation ION. It is believed that this model does not come with Nvidia’s Optimus technology, although we’ll have to wait for official confirmation of this. Other specs include 2GB RAM, 250GB HDD (5400RPM), HDMI, W7 Home Premium, Wi-Fi (b/g/n) and a 0.3MP webcam.

Via Netbooked.

Asus Eee PC 1201PN with next-gen ION benched

The Asus Eee PC 1201PN will be the company’s first netbook with next-generation ION when it launches shortly. It uses the same chassis as most other 12-inch netbooks in the Eee PC 1201 range, but differs from its current ION netbook (1201N) by offering a single-core N450 Atom processor as opposed to the dual-core 1.6GHz Atom 330.

For those wondering how the Eee PC 1201PN will perform then NotebookCheck has the answers. They’ve taken an exhaustive look at the performance of ION 2 and used the Eee PC 1201PN to do the benchmarks. Read more

Archos 13 notebook packs dual-core Atom processor

We don’t normally cover devices greater than 12-inches here at NbC, but we’re making an exception for the Archos A13PS. It piqued our interest as it’s one of the very few notebooks of that size that will be powered by a dual-core D510 Atom processor.

Now I’m not entirely sure why Archos opted for the Atom solution here instead of looking at Intel ULV processors. The only thing I can think of is that maybe the company wanted good graphics and battery life and may be looking to include next-gen ION in the package. Other details are thin on the ground apart form the fact it will come with Windows 7 Home Premium and is likely to have a 13.3-inch display. Read more

Gigabyte M1000N netbook comes with 10” HD display and next-gen ION

We have already heard that Gigabyte is launching a Pine Trail update to its Booktop M1022 netbook called the M1000. We are receiving word on the different models under the M1000 series, the flagship of which will be the M1000N that comes with a flush glass display with 1366 x 768 resolution.

This particular model will also come with next-generation ION graphics, most likely the 8-core version since it is a 10-inch netbook. As it is a Booktop model, it will include a docking station that has a HDMI port and DVD drive. It will also come with a 6-cell battery with a price point estimated at €450 – €500. Read more

Asus Eee PC 1201PN ION netbook benched

The last time we saw some benchmark numbers for Nvidia’s next-gen ION, it seemed to suggest that the performance wasn’t up to the original. Following the official new ION announcement this morning, we now know that two ION versions are hitting netbooks. An 8-core version for 10-inch netbooks and 16-core version for 12-inch ones.

It is safe to say that the Asus Eee PC 1201PN will sport 16-core ION and Notebook Italia has managed to conduct a benchmark to give us an idea as to where performance sits. Using the 3DMark06 benchmark, they managed to record a score of 2,013. This compares to a score of around 1,580 3DMarks for the Asus Eee PC 1201N. Read more

Next generation Nvidia ION official: All you need to know

After months of speculation, Nvidia has finally released details on the next generation of Nvidia ION graphics. There have been various rumours up until now including whether the new ION is a chipset or discrete solution, performance leaks and talk of two ION solutions. As with any kind of leak, the reality is that some of these rumours have been spot on whilst others have been off the mark.

We are big fans of Nvidia’s original ION chipset, believing it makes a massive difference to a netbooks overall proposition. The ability to play flawless 1080p video, HD Flash as well as enabling casual gaming is a real game changer for those who demand a multimedia solution. In our view, next generation Nvidia ION builds on this further. Click through for full details on the new ION. Read more

Asus Eee PC 1201PN: 12.1-inch Pine Trail netbook with next-gen ION

It was only a matter of time, but Asus will launch a Pine Trail update to its popular dual-core ION Eee PC 1201N netbook. The Asus Eee PC 1201PN has been spotted at CeBIT but will not be a dual core machine, it will sport a 1.66GHz N450 Atom processor and come with next generation Nvidia ION graphics.

Design wise, the Eee PC 1201N looks exactly the same as all of the other Eee PC 1201 ranges from Asus (1201HA, 1201N, 1201T, 1201 and 1201NL). It is from the Seashell range and comes with a 12.1-inch (1366 x 768) display, chiclet keyboard and dimpled touchpad. Read more

Nvidia Optimus tech demoed on Acer Aspire One 532G ION netbook

The Acer Aspire One 532G is the world’s first 10-inch netbook to be armed with next generation Nvidia ION graphics. It was announced last week at the MWC show in Barcelona and we managed to get hands on with the device at a press event in London earlier this week.

The AAO 532G is expected to launch in late April/early May and will come in two configurations. The 1GB RAM/160GB HDD combo will cost £349, whilst a 2GB RAM/320GB HDD combo will cost £399. These prices are not set in stone and depending on exchange rates may end up costing another £30 more. However, Acer is keen not to price the higher end SKU above £400 if they can help it. Read more

Two versions of ‘next-generation ION’ due

There are still many question marks over how Nvidia’s next-generation ION will shape up. We reported recently that benchmarks for ION 2 might signal that performance may lag or be worse off than the original ION, something refuted by Nvidia. Now we are hearing from Fudzilla that Nvidia may in fact launch two ION chips, the slower one of which was benchmarked on the Acer Aspire One 532g netbook at MWC in Barcelona last week.

The slower ION will have less shaders than the current ION, whilst the faster version will have more and should be more powerful than the current ION chipset. They go on to say that Nvidia will not brand these chips ION 2 and will instead continue to brand it ION. Read more

Nvidia ION 2 benched; performance lags original ION?

The Acer Aspire One 532G emerged as the first officially announced Nvidia ION 2 netbook earlier this week. This is despite still knowing very little about the “next generation ION” apart from the evidence suggesting it will be a discrete GPU part, possibly the GeForce GT218.

The 10-inch AAO 532G netbook was on show at MWC in Barcelona this week and NetbookNews managed to do some sneaky testing to see how ‘next-gen’ the new ION really is. They conducted the 3DMark03 graphics benchmark test on the netbook and initial results don’t look too promising for those hoping ION 2 would be a leap in performance over the original. Read more

Latest Chrome OS build adds ION hardware acceleration

Google’s Chrome OS is still months away from an official release, however, there is already a large group of underground developers trying to keep things fresh. The latest release from Hexxeh called Flow is interesting as, amongst other things, it includes Nvidia GPU support i.e. full ION hardware acceleration.

This means 720p and 1080p YouTube HD video content should be no problem for those on ION-powered netbooks using this latest build. Other features include user-customisable menus, automatic updates, battery life improvements, webcam support and various other bug fixes. You can download the release from here.

Via Engadget.

Modern Warfare 2 on the Samsung N510 netbook [Video]

Netbooks aren’t meant for gaming, or so the saying goes. Nvidia has other ideas with its ION chipset that means you should be able to play even recent games as long as you don’t mind sacrificing settings and resolution. To give you an idea of how well an ION netbook can play games, we have a quick video demo of one of the current best-sellers, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 playing on the 11.6-inch Samsung N510.

It is being played at a resolution of 800 x 600 with the lowest settings. We managed to score between 20 to 30fps on average with the occasional drop below that. I’ve tried it quite a few times and it is actually reasonably playable. Obviously it’s not as smooth as my quad-core PC, but for those times when my desktop isn’t around, it gives you a quick gaming fix. Check out the video of my demo playing the game (badly) below as well as a couple of extra videos looking at HD YouTube Flash and 1080p video content. We have also updated our Samsung N510 review with these videos. Read more

Jolicloud announces Pine Trail 1080p video support

Jolicloud has already demonstrated 1080p HD video on netbooks running on Intel’s Diamondville processors (N270 & N280), but now it has also announced 1080p support of Intel’s new Pine Trail processors (N450 Atom). No external decoder (like the Broadcom Crystal HD) is needed and most codecs should work. Liliputing says that only 1080p H.264 content will not work.

This new update is expected to go live in the next couple of weeks and will also bring with it support for Nvidia ION, Intel GMA 500 graphics as well as the VIA C7-M. Until then, check out a demo of 1080p video content playing through Jolicloud on a Samsung N210 netbook. Read more

Broadcom’s HD media accelerator benched against Nvidia ION

Those looking to enjoy high-definition video content on their netbooks currently have two main choices. The first is to seek out an Nvidia ION-powered netbook and the second is to get one installed with Broadcom’s Crystal HD media accelerator card for $30.

The guys over at Laptop Mag did some tests comparing a Dell Mini 10 netbook with Broadcom Crystal HD card against the HP Mini 311 armed with the Nvidia ION chipset. Read more

Nvidia ION 2 to be GeForce G310 discrete GPU?

If there was one disappointment at CES, it was a lack of information (or products) using the Nvidia ION 2 GPU. Nvidia used CES to mainly talk about its Tegra 2 chipset, however it wasn’t only ION 2 that got left to the wayside, even its upcoming Fermi line of desktop cards were barely mentioned.

Anyway, whilst much rumour and speculation continues over what form the ION 2 will take, Pierre over at Blogeee came across some promotional material that may give some insights. An upcoming Asus EeeTop ET2010PNT will be using “Nvidia GeForce G310 ION2 graphics with hardware decoding” according to the marketing blurb. Read more

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