Posted on Monday, February 16 2009 @ 18:21 CET by Thomas De Maesschalck
Intel tires to prevent netbook makers to use the Atom in systems with a display larger than 10.2", but according to
DigiTimes these restrictions will be ignored by Lenovo as the upcoming IdeaPad S20 will be a 12" netbook with the Intel Atom N280 processor. The consequence of this is Lenovo will lose out on preferential pricing for the N280 chip, which will increase costs by around $10.
As a consequence for breaking the restrictions, Lenovo will lose out on preferential pricing for the N280 processor, and would end up having to buy at Intel's officially announced price, which is around US$10 higher than typical quotes to vendors of Lenovo's size, the sources noted.
The sources commented that Lenovo hopes the decision will help boost its netbook sales by avoiding the fierce competition in the 10-inch segment.
The IdeaPad S20 netbook with an Atom N280 processor and GN40 chipset, and Windows XP will be priced at around NT$20,000 (US$586), the sources detailed.
