Floodgates open on EeePC sales

by William Maher on Jan 14, 2008

Just announced: More retailers, and new black version of the world’s hottest mini-notebook.

Nine major retailers have the go-ahead to start selling the popular $499 EeePC notebook in Australia, including a new black version.

The new stock of EeePC go onsale today. The stockists are:
- Betta Electrical
- David Jones
- Good Guys
- Harvey Norman
- JB Hi-Fi
- Myer
- Officeworks
- Retravision
- WOW Sight & Sound

The EeePC was an unlikely smash hit last year, gaining huge attention for breaking the $500 price barrier for a machine less than 1Kg. Up till now the laptop has been on sale in Myer only, and sold out within days of launch in December last year. Check out our review of the EeePc 701 here.

“So far approximately 80% of stock has been sold through major Australian retailers and we are trying to get as much allocation as possible from our headquarters to ensure there is stock on shelves,” said Ted Chen, Managing Director of ASUS Australia.

Originally intended for schoolchildren, IT enthusiasts have found the EeePC a cheap alternative to expensive ultraportable notebooks for portable Web access. Despite a low power Celeron M CPU, the machine is also capable of playing DivX movie files.

Meanwhile the wait is on for news of a new version of the EeePC, with current rumours hinting at a bigger screen and possibly WiMax wireless. ASUS has not made any announcements yet regarding an EeePC upgrade.