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        11.6-inch netbook has AMD processor

        Jonathan Angel | Date: Jul 8, 2009 | Comments: 1


        U.K. manufacturer Medion announced a netbook using a 1.5GHz AMD Sempron 210U processor. The Akoya Mini E1312 comes with integrated ATI Radeon Xpress 1250 graphics, an 11.6-inch display, both VGA and HDMI video outputs, a 160GB hard drive, and an optional nine-cell battery, the company says.



        (Click here for a larger view of Medion's Akoya)

        Only the second netbook we've seen using an AMD processor -- see later in this story for background -- the Akoya Mini uses the 1.5GHz Sempron 210U, a CPU that the chipmaker quietly released last year for embedded applications. (At the time, we wondered if this processor might be headed for netbooks, despite demurrers from AMD.) This is teamed with ATI's Radeon Xpress 1250 chipset, a combination of the company's RS600 northbridge and SB600 southbridge.

        According to ATI, the Radeon Xpress 1250 "handles Windows Vista's Aero interface with ease," suggesting that the Akoya Mini E1312 may well be more graphically adroit than netbooks using Intel's Atom N280 or CPUs, with their usual 945GSE (945GCSE northbridge and 82801GBM southbridge) chipset. Medion has fitted its new netbook with both VGA and HDMI ports, the latter offering digital A/V output.

        The Akoya Mini E1312 comes with 1GB of RAM -- maximum capacity not stated -- and a 160GB hard disk loaded with Windows XP, according to Medion. The device is also said to have a larger-than-usual 11.6-inch display, sporting a resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels.

        Other attributes are par for the course, including a 1.3-megapixel webcam, stereo speakers, three USB 2.0 ports, and an Ethernet port. Meanwhile, wireless capabilities include both 802.11b/g/n and Bluetooth 2.1, according to Medion.

        Medion says that the Akoya Mini E1312 ships with a six-cell lithium-ion battery as standard, and a nine-cell battery as an available option. Prospective battery life was not cited, leaving us to wonder about the power consumption of AMD's chipset compared to the more typical Intel alternative.

        Background

        Despite offering processors that have been used in low-end laptops for years, AMD has remained oddly aloof from the netbook fray, perhaps because arch-rival Intel has been promoting these mini-laptops so assiduously. Last year, the company's marketing chief, Nigel Desseau, said AMD would stand aside to see how the netbook market develops.


        Raon Digital's Everun Note
        (Click image for further information)
        Subsequently, Raon Digital released the Everun Note, a 7.87 x 4.64 x 1.08 inch device that, depending on how you look at it, is either a UMPC (ultra mobile PC) or, just possibly, one of the smallest netbooks on the market. The device uses AMD's Turion 64 X2 processor, a CPU originally designed for full-sized notebooks.


        HP's Pavillion dv2
        (Click image for further information)
        In January, meanwhile, AMD unveiled its Yukon chipset for "tweener" notebooks -- smaller, lighter, and lower-cost than traditional devices, but not as little as netbooks. Deployed first in the HP Pavilion dv2 pictured at left, the chipset comprises a solderable AMD Athlon Neo MV-40 running at 1.6GHz, plus either a discrete ATI Radeon HD3410 graphics card or integrated RS690E-based graphics, says AMD.


        Gateway LT3013u
        (Click image for further information)
        Last month, an AMD processor finally made it into an unequivocal netbook, Gateway's LT3013u (right). Similar to the Aspire One A0751h announced by Gateway parent company Acer in May, the LT3013u bypasses that model's 1.2GHz Intel Atom Z520 CPU and SCH US15W companion chip, in favor of an AMD Athlon L110 processor and integrated ATI graphics provided by an RS690E chipset.

        AMD still hasn't posted information regarding the L110 on its website, so we're unable to determine the relationship between it and the Sempron 210U. However, the L110 is a single-core, 64-bit CPU that is clocked at 1.2GHz, according to Gateway.

        Features and specifications listed by Medion for the Akoya Mini E1312 include:
        • Processor -- AMD Sempron BGA clocked at 1.5GHz
        • Memory -- 1GB of DDR2 RAM
        • Display -- 11.6-inch screen, with 1366 x 768 pixel resolution
        • Camera -- 1.3 megapixel webcam
        • Storage -- 160GB hard disk drive
        • Networking:
          • LAN -- 10/100 Ethernet
          • WLAN -- 802.11b/g
          • PAN -- Bluetooth 2.1
        • Other I/O:
          • 3 x USB
          • VGA output
          • HDI output
          • Audio -- mic in, headphone/line out
        • Expansion:
          • Memory card reader (SD/MMC/Memory Card formats)
        • Battery -- Six-cell (nine-cell optional) lithium-ion
        • Dimensions -- n/s
        • Weight -- n/s
        Further information

        The Akoya Mini E1312 will be available in Aldi discount stories in the U.K. starting next week, according to Medion. Pricing starts at approximately 340 U.K. Pounds (about $544).

        More information on the netbook may be found on the Medion website, here.


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