While it may be true that today’s broadband technology is making hardware advantages not that “advantageous” (this broadband UK service for instance is found to make computers with lower specs to perform as well as its upgraded brethrens), having a snazzy looking, top of the line gear is still drool-worthy. MSI Wind is one of the few laptops that justify the benefits of having a powerful system.

It’s hard to one-up one’s rivals when the price of an ultramobile PC must fall within the $500 range to compete. But the MSI Wind has done just that, taking on the ASUS EeePC 900. The Wind doesn’t go out of its way to stand out from the crowd, but it’s still a toptier UMPC. The Wind comes complete with the Intel Atom platform, Windows XP Home Edition, and a very good user experience. The HP 2133 Mini-Note PC still has the upper hand in configuration options.

The Wind’s 10-inch screen is practival for both Web surfing and word processing. Its keyboard isn’t full size (92%), but it’s still bigger than the ASUS EeePC 900’s (84%). The mouse buttons, one the other hand, are tiny and narrow. As for internal components, MSI, for the most part, put in the right ones: an 80GB hard drive, three USB posts, a 4-in-1 media card reader (SD, MS, MS Pro, MMC), VGA-out, an Ethernet port, and a 1.3-megapixel webcam, as well as Bluetooth and 802.11g WiFi.

The Wind’s 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor is more energy efficient and a much better performer than HP Mini-Note’s VIA C7-M - and it won’t heat up your lap. Its video-encoding score of 5 minutes was almost twice as fast as the HP’s (9 minutes). And the 1GB of memory is more than enough to run Windows XP. Although the Atom processor packs a punch, the small 24-Wh battery yielded only 2 hours 24 minutes on Mobilemark2007 bettery life test.

Unfortunately, even standouts like the Wind can’t help suffering from UMPCs’ innate limitations, such as a relatively underpowered processor and limited features. Any UMPC will almost certainly serve as a second laptop rather than a primary one.

MSI Wind U90 Specification:
- Intel® Atom™ N270 Processor
- Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition
- Intel® 945GSE+ICH7M
- 512MB/1GB (DDR2 667)
- 8.9″ 1024×600 LCD Panel
- HD Audio, Stereo speakers
- 80GB SATA
- 1.3M / 0.3M
- 4-in-1 Card Reader, SD/MMC/MS/MSpro
- Built-in 10/100 LAN
- Built-in 802.11b/g WLAN Card / Bluetooth Supported (Bluetooth is optional)
- 260(L) X 180(D) X 19-31.5(H)mm, 1.0KG with 3 cell battery

MSI Wind U100 Specification:
- Intel® Atom™ N270 Processor
- Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition
- Intel® 945GSE+ICH7M
- 512MB/1GB (DDR2 667)
- 10” 1024×600 LCD Panel
- HD Audio, Stereo speakers
- 80GB SATA
- 1.3M / 0.3M
- 4-in-1 Card Reader, SD/MMC/MS/MSpro
- Built-in 10/100 LAN
- Built-in 802.11b/g WLAN Card / Bluetooth Supported (Bluetooth is optional)
- 260(L) X 180(D) X 19-31.5(H)mm, 1.0KG with 3 cell battery

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