Asustek Retracts, Puts Qualcomm Android Eee PC on Ice
June 1 Qualcomm presented its new superflat Eee PC with Snapdragon chipset and Xandros or Android to the public. But the enthusiasm waned shortly thereafter.
The Eee PC wasn't yet market ready, said Jonathan Tsang, vice chairman of Asutek, at the sidelines of a press conference at Computex Teipei, according to an ComputerWorld. Tsang added, "For the time being this project is not a priority because our engineering resources are limited."
This might be believable under circumstances, but it gets better: Asustek chairman Jonney Shih himself apologized at the press conference that the Android notebook was even displayed at Qualcomm's booth, as Gizmodo reports. "I think this is a company decision so far [that] we would not like to show this device."
It begs the question, to whom is he apologizing? Perhaps to the vice president of their OEM Microsoft, Steven Guggenheim, who stood with him onstage, or to Intel's vice president Sean Maloney? Both were there to strengthen further collaboration with Asustek. But, at least for Microsoft, a Linux netbook in the works has not been high on its list.
As presented, the Qualcomm Eee PC not only looks fantastic, but would come at a markedly better price than the Intel model from Windows, the Eee PC chip is fanless and it plays back 720p videos flawlessly. Microsoft naturally wouldn't want a competitor to ruin its Christmas season and most likely pulled the emergency brake. Acer Inc. should be happy with that, according to Reuters: the world's number three PC brand has already announced an Android netbook for the third quarter of 2009.
Issue 272/2023
Buy this issue as a PDF
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you've found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Armbian 23.05 is Now Available
Based on Debian 12, the latest version of the ARM/RISC-V distribution is now available to download and install.
-
Linux Mint Finally Receiving Support for Gestures
If you use the Linux Mint Cinnamon desktop, you'll be thrilled to know that 21.2 is getting support for gestures on touchscreen devices and touchpads.
-
An All-Snap Version of Ubuntu is In The Works
Along with the standard deb version of the open-source operating system, Canonical will release an-all snap version.
-
Mageia 9 Beta 2 Ready for Testing
The latest beta of the popular Mageia distribution now includes the latest kernel and plenty of updated applications.
-
KDE Plasma 6 Looks to Bring Basic HDR Support
The KWin piece of KDE Plasma now has HDR support and color management geared for the 6.0 release.
-
Bodhi Linux 7.0 Beta Ready for Testing
The latest iteration of the Bohdi Linux distribution is now available for those who want to experience what's in store and for testing purposes.
-
Changes Coming to Ubuntu PPA Usage
The way you manage Personal Package Archives will be changing with the release of Ubuntu 23.10.
-
AlmaLinux 9.2 Now Available for Download
AlmaLinux has been released and provides a free alternative to upstream Red Hat Enterprise Linux.
-
An Immutable Version of Fedora Is Under Consideration
For anyone who's a fan of using immutable versions of Linux, the Fedora team is currently considering adding a new spin called Fedora Onyx.
-
New Release of Br OS Includes ChatGPT Integration
Br OS 23.04 is now available and is geared specifically toward web content creation.