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The 42″ E-TV will ask only a US$200 premium over competing LCD HDTVs.(Source: Yen Ting Chen, Digitimes, January 2008)E-DT, E-TV, and E-Monitor coming in 2008 - touchscreen Eee put on hold

ASUS’s Eee PC sub-notebook, often nicknamed “The Little Laptop That Could”, is set to become the parent to a massive family in 2008. Not only will the second-generation Eee sport a larger 8.9″ screen, but the “Eee” branding is set to expand to desktops, all-in-one units, and even LCD HDTVs.

The desktop variant, the E-DT, is scheduled forlaunch in April or May 2008. The first generation will have a Celeron processor –likely the majority of the internal components will be shared with the current Eee PC, while later generations will use the low-wattage Intel Diamondville processors. The target price for the E-DT is $199, but those who have followed the history of the Eee PC know that this was the initial target price for the Eee PC which still sells at $299 for the cheapest model.

The all-in-one E-Monitor will be an integrated unit similar to the Apple iMac or Dell XPS One, with a 19″ to 21″ monitor and built-in TV tuner. No specifications were given for the resolution of the LCD, but the components of the PC will be shared with the E-DT. The target price for the E-Monitor was stated atUS$499 — a good deal below the competing models listed previously — and is set for a September2008 launch.

Rounding out the quirky collection of offspring is the E-TV, a 42″ LCD HDTV with what amounts to an integrated E-DT module. Pricing was set at “$200 more than competing LCD TVs” — no baseline was given, but it is scheduled to launch alongside the E-Monitor in September 2008.

In addition to all the positive news about new members of the Eee PC lineup, there was a sad note. Asustek president Jerry Shen stated that “[Asustek's] market research has determined that touch screen is not a highly demanded feature for Eee PC customers” and has put plans for a touchscreen Eee on hold.

The hope of a super-cheap tablet no doubt held the attention of many enthusiastic fans, but those hopes have been dashed for the moment.

dailytech.com