December 31 - 1:00am EST   Users may find Intel's mobile CPU in more notebooks if market leader Hewlett-Packard has its way: a new report says that HP is in negotiations with Intel to expand the use of Intel's latest mobile processor. Current restrictions limit the use of Atom series processors only in netbook PCs with up to 10.2-inch panels and HP hopes convince chip giant Intel to allow it to use Atom in new mini-note PC models with larger screen sizes. Taiwan-based notebook makers told Digitimes that HP's high-profile brand may help it succeed in convincing Intel to allow the use of the new mobile CPU in more HP mini-notebooks. [full story]

November 13 - 10:10pm EST   AMD announced several new projects that will compete with Intel's Atom processor late next year, according to ExtremeTech. The company expects to add the Caspian and Conesus processors sometime next year. Both products are intended for use in mini-notebooks or netbooks, featuring the same 45-nm architecture of the new Shanghai processor announced earlier this week. Dual-cores will be featured in both, along with DDR-2 memory support. [full story]

October 29 - 12:05am EDT   Days after a posting a picture of the device on its website, HP is rolling out not one but three consumer netbooks in the Mini 1000 series. Users can choose between 8.9- or 10.2-inch 1024x600 LED-backlit displays, 8GB or 16GB SSDs or a conventional 60GB hard drive. All models ship with built-in Wi-Fi, and 3G versions are expected in December. The 1000 marks a sharp break from the Mini-Note 2133's VIA C7M processor and instead uses a 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor with between 512MB and 2GB of RAM; the combination lets HP keep the price down while still providing headroom for better performance. [full story]

October 26 - 11:05pm EDT   HP today dropped a hint as to its future netbook direction through its shopping home page by posting a teaser graphic for the Mini-Note 1000. An ordinary version of the Vivienne Tam Edition, the system should have the same 10-inch display as the designer netbook but with a more conventional black exterior. Despite the larger size than the 8.9-inch Mini-Note 2133, the system should also be lighter at less than 2.3 pounds and will still measure less than one inch thick. [full story]

October 23 - 12:25pm EDT   HP's Vivienne Tam netbook concept is turning into a production model, the company and Glam have confirmed through a teaser page for the mini PC. Now due to ship in December, the Vivienne Tam Edition is already known to be larger than the Mini-Note and will carry a 10-inch screen along with its designer outer cover; new in the teaser is word that the system will use an Intel Atom processor rather than the VIA C7-M which has been the Mini-Note's sole choice since it was introduced earlier in the year. [full story]

October 15 - 12:20pm EDT   HP is aggressively discounting its Mini-Note PCs in what may be an attempt to clear stock for upgrades, a new promo would suggest. The VIA-based netbook, which officially launched at $499, is now selling for as little as $399 in its basic configuration of a 1GHz C7-M, 512MB of memory, and a 4GB flash drive pre-loaded with SuSE Linux; other discounts are more dramatic and range up to a $779 model (normally $1,064) with a 1.6GHz chip, 2GB of memory, a 120GB hard drive and Windows Vista Business. [full story]

October 15 - 8:35am EDT   HP could be trying to cement its position in notebooks by shutting at least one competitor out of supply deals, according to a controversial claim by southeast Asian industry sources. The American PC maker is allegedly demanding that its contract manufacturers refuse orders from ASUS and is said to be punishing those that take the latter's orders by reducing its own orders at these companies, hurting their overall business. The threat is supposedly prompted by ASUS' goal of becoming the fourth-largest notebook builder worldwide, which may eat into HP's estimated lead in worldwide PC sales. [full story]

September 10 - 4:20pm EDT   Hewlett Packard and fashion designer Vivienne Tam unveiled the newest product they collaborated on this past Tuesday at the New York Fashion Week. Believed to be based on the 8.9-inch Mini-Note HP 2133, the HP Vivienne Tam Special Edition notebook sports a 10-inch screen, and while other specs are slim, they are likely shared with the more traditional Mini-Note. The peony flower design seen in the photos extends under the keyboard, while a storage sleeve protects the outside surface from scratches while the ‘digital accessory’ is carried like a clutch. The world-renowned designer also helped design the notebook’s accessories and packaging. [full story]

September 3 - 2:35pm EDT   Microsoft has backed off some of its restrictions on Windows XP to allow netbooks with larger hard drives to support the older operating system, according to claims from companies in the business. Although the Redmond, Washington-based software firm has so far insisted that systems with hard drives larger than 80GB carry Windows Vista in a bid to drive companies to the newer operating system, it has now allegedly doubled that limit to 160GB, expanding the types of PCs that qualify for the older software. [full story]

August 15 - 11:30am EDT   HP has ordered batches of VIA's Nano processors for upcoming computers that may include its netbooks, claim some within the PC business. The faster, more efficient mobile processors are allegedly already shipping to HP and would be the second processor line from VIA to reach the American company after the C7-M, which so far has only been used in the Mini-Note 2133 and was initially thought to be a stopgap until HP could use Intel's Atom processor. [full story]

August 7 - 9:15am EDT   HP plans to significantly expand its Mini-Note line in the fall along with a switch in processors, one new leak claims. Although an expansion has already been rumored, the new tip is more specific and alleges that a larger 10-inch model will ship with an Intel Atom processor rather than the VIA C7-M used in the 8.9-inch version. The system will purportedly ship with a solid-state drive and an unusual 1024x576 screen resolution rather than the 1024x600 of the current system. [full story]

July 25 - 8:35am EDT   HP is developing a lower-cost version of its Mini-Note portable, the company has admitted this week. The company's Australian Market Development head Jerel Chong says there will be a "lower cost" device similar to the current model (known as the 2133) but which "won’t be as durable" as the existing system and is primarily meant for retail, where the Mini-Note is generally unavailable and would often compete against lower-priced offering such as ASUS' base Eee PC models or the Acer Aspire one. [full story]

June 13 - 12:30am EDT   Dell's foray into the mini-notebook market has been dubbed the new "Dell E" series, which will include two different screen configurations: the 8.9-inch model is designed to take on the Asus Eee 900, and the 12.1-inch "E Slim" may be a rival to the MacBook Air and Lenovo X300 (and its successors), according to Engadget. Defining a new product category called the "Mobile Internet Device" for 30 minutes of web experience (vs. 3 min on an Smartphone: "iPhone" pictured), Dell says the new [full story]

June 2 - 8:55am EDT   Sony could be the next major PC builder to leap into the micro notebook field, an inadvertent leak at the WiMAX Expo has shown. An 8.9-inch notebook made by Quanta and based on VIA's OpenBook reference platform reportedly lists Sony as the manufacturer, suggesting the PC is a prototype of a future production model for the Japanese company. A Quanta official asked about the computer declines to confirm the Sony origins. [full story]

May 28 - 7:10pm EDT   Dell CEO Michael Dell recently offered a glimpse of his company's highly-rumored ultra-portable at the All Things Digital executive conference in California. Dell was carrying a sleeved laptop, opening the cover to reveal a bright candy-apple red shell crowning a miniature portable akin to the Asus Eee PC and HP Mini-Note. He was sparing with details, but images reveal three USB ports, a card reader, VGA output, and Ethernet connections, with the system running an unknown version of Windows. [full story]