Hands-On With the MSI Wind U120, Specs Now Official
November 20th, 2008 by Joanna Stern
Yesterday, the MSI Wind U120, that we have been hearing about for a few months now, popped up at an MSI event in Taiwan. Those who don’t read Chinese are in luck since MSI was nice enough to send us a pre-production unit of the system, which is due to hit U.S. shelves in mid-December.
A few weeks ago, MSI’s Andy Tung told us, the MSI WInd U120 will differ from the original Wind in that it will be aimed more at the business segment. With a different industrial design, the Wind U120 will offer integrated mobile broadband in a choice of either WiMax or HSDPA flavors. Our pre-production unit didn’t have these features and MSI is currently finalizing what the specs for their U.S. SKUs.
Update: Since we first posted this hands-on, MSI has issued a press release with final specs.
|
MSI U120 NETBOOK |
|
|
CPU |
Intel® Atom™ Processor 1.6GHZ |
|
Chipset |
945GSE + ICH7-M |
|
Graphic |
Intel GMA950 |
|
Memory |
DDR2 6673 MHz 1G On Board |
|
Display |
10” (1024 x 600) LCD, LED Back-lit saving |
|
HDD |
160 GB (2.5” SATA) |
|
Card Reader |
4 in 1 (SD/MMC/MS/XD) |
|
I/O |
D-Sub x1, USB 2.0 x 3, Mic In, Headphone, RJ45 |
|
Battery |
6-Cell |
|
Wireless |
8.02.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth V2.0EDR |
|
Webcam |
1.3 M |
|
Sound |
2 Speakers |
|
Dimension |
10.23” x 7.08” x 0.38” ~ 1.29” |
|
Weight |
~ 3 lbs (w / 6-Cell Battery) |
We have gotten a solid look at the hardware of our pre-production Wind, which only makes us more excited to see the final unit in a few weeks. See our impressions and the first video of the Wind U120 below.
2/1/08: See our full review of the MSI Wind U120 here ($374.99).
Updated Design
The Wind U120’s design is a fresh look for Wind fans, but isn’t quite as snazzy or slim as the HP Mini 1000 ($349.00) or the Eee PC S101. Nevertheless it is sleeker than the original and forgoes its rounded edges for a squarer shape with cleaner lines that’s reminiscent of Samsung NC10. A white glossy lid covers the outside of the netbook and when opened is offset by a black glossy screen bezel; the white on black coloring of our unit reminds us Adidas Samba sneakers. Though we can’t say the design hits the ThinkPad mark that MSI mentioned to us, it is definitely a step up from the original’s more consumer look and is a netbook that we wouldn’t mind carrying around.
Same Keyboard, Improved Trackpad
We were big fans of the MSI Wind U100’s keyboard. The U100 was, after all, the first netbook with a 10-inch screen which made the chassis big enough for an almost full sized keyboard. MSI hasn’t made any noticeable changes to the keyboard on the Wind U120. The white matte keys offer good feedback.
One of our complaints about the first Wind was its single bar mouse button. MSI improved the buttons on the U120 by including dedicated right and left mouse buttons with a silver coating. The buttons are comfortable, but do make a loud clicking sound.
10.1-Inch Display
The Wind U120 has a 10-inch matte display with a 1024 x 600 resolution. As on the orginal Wind, images appear bright and crisp. Colors popped when we watched a clip of the Daily Show.
Above the display is a 1.3-megapixel webcam that took really clean shots of us with the preloaded EasyFace Manager, MSI’s proprietary facial recognition software. We aren’t positive this feature will be bundled with final systems but we were able to enroll our face and log in to the system with our mug.
Basic Performance
We cannot talk much about performance at this point since our unit is pre-production and doesn’t have all the final components. However, a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 processor and 1GB of RAM power its Windows XP Home operating system.Given that the U120 has the typical netbook specs, it performed just as we would expect, opening and closing programs at a decent rate and managing Web browsing in Firefox 3 and writing a document in Microsoft Word 2007.
The netbook should be available with SSD options but our version had a 5,400 rpm 160GB Western Digital Scorpio Blue hard drive. We don’t know for sure whether MSI will continue to use the Scorpio Blue in production models, but we hope so as this is the same make and model that helped the Lenovo S10 ace our file transfer test ($299.97).
We won’t test battery life until we get the final unit but the system we have now sports a 6-cell battery. The Wind U120 should also sport wireless 802.11 b/g/n connectivity. When we connected to our office network pages loaded quickly.
Early Verdict
Our first look at the MSI Wind U120 has us excited for what MSI is promising in the final production unit. Until recently the MSI Wind was our favoriate netbook, but then the Samsung NC10 arrived on the scene with a stronger battery life and an even sleeker chassis. Will the Wind U120 rival our current category favorite?
If MSI works in some pretty neat features into this netbook, including advanced mobile broadband connectivity and a solid state disk drive, it could very well reclaim its position as our favorite 10-inch netbook. If you are waiting for that perfect netbook, you may just want to hold off until the U120 is ready for its debut.
Our Related Content
- Netbook Madness Game 7: Dell Inspiron Mini 9 vs. MSI Wind U120
- MSI Wind U123 Coming In April
- 10-inch Netbooks Fight For Dominance
From Other Sites
- MSI to launch WiMAX capable netbooks in India (Liliputing)
- Deal of the Day: MSI Wind U120 for $310 (Liliputing)
- MSI Wind U120 now available in charcoal/gray (Liliputing)
Related Deals
- Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t 10.1" tablet netbook with capacitive touchscreen display, Intel Atom N470 1.83GHz processor, 2GB RAM, 250GB hard drive, and 802.11b/g/n.
- Gateway EC5409u 15.6 Laptop, Intel Pentium SU4100 1.3GHz, 4GB, 320GB HDD, HDMI Port, Webcam, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit in Blue Brushed Aluminum.
- HP ProBook 4710s FN088UT 17.3-Inch Core 2 Duo 2.8GHz Laptop $1,099.99 (via LogicBUY)
- Toshiba Mini NB205-N330BL N280 Netbook (blue) $349.99 (via LogicBUY)
- ASUS UL30A-X4 Core 2 Duo 1.3Ghz 13.3-inch Ultra-light Laptop $649.99 (via LogicBUY)
20 Responses to “Hands-On With the MSI Wind U120, Specs Now Official”
Leave a Reply
Featured Sponsors |
|||
|
|
|
|
|
November 20th, 2008 at 9:09 pm
Sorry, but as a 2nd version this should be better. Yes it looks relatively nice, but these things should be moving a little by now. Don’t these guys feel the competitive pressure?
Right shift key wrong on the 2nd gen? No acceptable. Move the cursor keys down a row and leave the right shift key full size. Others have already done this. Come on! (Yes, I know this is still better than lots of netbooks…)
USB ports on the front? These should be in the back like everybody else. At least one of them…
November 20th, 2008 at 10:00 pm
thank you for this info.
November 21st, 2008 at 1:45 am
I think the sentence “That damn Shift key is still to the right of the Up arrow though!” was supposed to be in the Asus 1002HA-review, not here. Since on the included picture of the U120 you can clearly see a big Shift key on the left side of the Up arrow.
November 21st, 2008 at 4:12 am
You are talking about the right shift key right from the Up arrow but the picture that is shows does show the opposite.
November 21st, 2008 at 10:41 am
Robin: You are totally right. Changed. Thanks!
November 21st, 2008 at 11:00 am
The issue with the up arrow key position is that it cramps the keys to the left. The comma, period and slash keys are smaller than standard, which significantly reduces the usability of an otherwise good keyboard. In fact, it’s a deal breaker for me. I would switch to the Samsung NC10 for that one reason.
It should be dead easy to move the up arrow key out of the way: after all, you have to reconfigure the keyboard for different languages.
November 21st, 2008 at 11:32 am
So I have a quandary. I am on a 1-2 month trajectory for buying a netbook.
I follow your excellent reviews closely.
Samsung NC10
HP MINI 1000 (assuming a decent 6 cell will be available for it)
MSI Wind u120
If you can only pick one, which one is it?
Any other contenders
November 21st, 2008 at 3:35 pm
Thank you!!! Can you tell anything about the touchpad, which was a shame in U100. Does it have a full scroll feature?
November 21st, 2008 at 9:21 pm
I am a MSI Wind U100 ower, honestly, I love it.
The U120 looks pretty good, I think I will give it a try.
Samsung NC10
HP MINI 1000 (assuming a decent 6 cell will be available for it)
MSI Wind u120
I tried the Samsung NC10 & HP before (friends of mine have it). Not as good as I expected. (Not even close to my U100)
So, I think the U120 should be a better choice
November 22nd, 2008 at 11:30 am
Why should I upgrade my new U100?
Same screen
Same space in HD
Same wireless
Same battery
Same keyboard
It is a hair heavier
Same #USBs
Same media card reader
Same processor+speed
Same memory
No new software
Same DVD/CD (as in none….an included matched external would be nice)
…
It does have an upgraded mouse clicker, …WooHooo! A new clicker!
There is absolutely nothing new/better offered in the u120 over the u100. Nothing.
November 24th, 2008 at 12:46 am
i like this post. some good information.
November 24th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
I am closely looking at the developments of the MSI U120 for deployment to our technical staff either as a main laptop or a secondary laptop for travel or diagnostic use. Definitely, what would push me to full deployment as the standard laptop for corporate use to replace all current laptops is the bigger screen that will occupy the entire width of the cover eliminating the bezel itself. Maybe 12″ perhaps, without increasing the size of the entire case. A bigger touchpad with a corresponding size increase in the clicker would also push it to be a more polished product worthy of corporate consideration. Maintaining the current price point will justify it as the new computer standard relevant to current business conditions.
November 24th, 2008 at 10:25 pm
Actually there are a few things that are different on the U120. Rather than an HD there is an SSD option which provides you with more security. There is also a 3.5G capability…..plus the clicker
November 30th, 2008 at 11:14 pm
The best thing about the U120’s release is it made the U100 cheaper. The internal 3G is a very slight advantage but most ISPs provide a dongle. I think the glossy U100 looks better than the matte finish on the U120 but it’s just personal taste. Given the big discounts people are offering on the U100 now, I certainly wouldn’t pay an extra ~$150 for some very slight conveniences.
December 10th, 2008 at 6:52 pm
The U120 will have 3G right? I suppose that one reason to upgrade….that and SSD..
December 10th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
sorry already mentioned…
December 10th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
What about 3.5G and SSD?
*oh wait already been said*
January 28th, 2009 at 6:00 pm
I think MSI U120 could be my next netbook. btw, nice review.
February 1st, 2009 at 3:06 pm
The U120 review at Newegg indicates it cannot be easily upgraded to 2GB RAM like the U-100
March 23rd, 2009 at 4:49 am
Yeah, Let me know how much it?