ASUS' upscale Eee PC 1002HA spotted

ASUS is planning yet another 10-inch netbook that takes the Eee PC further up the ranks, according to a German leak. The 1002HA appears to be a restyling of ASUS' one-time flagship the 1001HA that borrows design cues from the S101: the curved and pseudo-brushed metal external shell, front-mounted speakers and more compact shape recall the higher-end system. A switch from a six-cell to a two-cell battery is also said to drop the weight from 3.2 pounds to 2.6 while contributing to a smaller overall size.

Like most of ASUS' highest-end netbooks, the 1002HA should come with a 1.6GHz Atom for its processor as well as 1GB of RAM and a 160GB hard drive. Its expansion is also the same as before but shunts all connections except for the USB ports to the back of the system to make for more effective use of space.

A release date hasn't surfaced for the new Eee PC, though alleged sources behind the leak place the cost of the system at €449 ($559) in its single, dark gray configuration. The pricing most likely translates to a $549 price should the system reach the US like most ASUS netbooks.