ASUS New Eee PC XP 16GB: Faster SSD, Better Battery

More speedy ASUS hardware now, with the Eee PC 901 getting a performance boost thanks to a new SSD and improved battery.  Currently on sale in France, the Eee PC 901 XP 16GB (model code BK051X) has a new embedded SSD controller and uses a faster, single volume 16GB drive.  It also has a new Panasonic battery which, despite only having 3-cells, still manages to pack 8700mAh compared to the normal 3-cell 6600mAh Eee PC battery.

The improved storage arrangement means up to 50MB/sec write speeds and 87MB/sec read speeds, comfortably besting other SSD netbooks.  As for battery life, it's already being predicted to give 7 to 8hrs normal use (i.e. with wireless switched on).

No word on whether this new Eee PC is a France-only product, but it seems hard to believe that ASUS would develop something so impressive and then limit it to just one market.  Nor is it clear whether ASUS will leave it as Windows XP only, or offer a Linux version.

[via jkkmobile]