ASUS Promises WiMAX-Enabled Eee PC 1000HG

The big news from ASUS during this year's Mobile World Congress was undoubtedly its partnership with Garmin on two Nuvifones. But hidden from the spotlight was this gem -- news of a forthcoming Eee PC that would handle Windows 7 and feature integrated WiMAX. The company is scheduled to actually demonstrate a pair of 3.5G, Win7-based netbooks at the Barcelona show, with both the Eee PC 1003HA and the Eee PC T91 being chosen as guinea pigs.

For the purposes of the demo, the latest build of Windows 7 Beta will be installed, and if those model numbers caught you off guard, here's the details on those. The 1003HA features a 10-inch LED-backlit display, 160GB of hard drive space, an additional 10GB of online Eee Storage and can only be purchased through undisclosed telecommunications carriers. The T91 features a rotatable touchscreen and a suite of touch-optimized programs that enable users to browse through photos, create digital scrapbooks, scribble handwritten desktop memos, etc. Both machines are loaded with Huawei's EM7770, which is hailed as one of the world's first 3.5G embedded modules developed for Windows 7.

For those unable to see the tests in person, you should know that ASUS will be bringing a WiMAX and WiFi-equipped Eee PC to market soon, and it will be called the Eee PC 1000HG. The machine will offer IEEE 802.16e, WAVE2 and Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n support in the 2.4GHz~2.7GHz and 5.1GHz~5.8GHz bands, meaning that you should be able to get connected just about anywhere you go. ASUS has yet to reveal a price, release date or any other specifications, but we'll hopefully know more within the next few months.
Tags:  Asus, Netbook, Eee PC, WiMAX