ASUS to intro $200 Eee PC

At an analyst meeting that predominantly dealt with sales, revenue and profit numbers for the quarter and the year, ASUS president Jerry Shen also announced the company aims to bring a $200 Eee PC model to market next year. A Friday report also reveals that Shen expects the 7- and 8.9-inch Eee PCs will be discountined and replaced by 10-inch models, although he doesn't give any timelines, so it is unknown but also unlikely that the $200 netbook will sport a 10-inch display. The move is part of the company's larger adjustment to the pricing structure and market positioning of its entry- and mid-range Eee PC range.

Earlier this month, an older ASUS netbook, the 8.9-inch Eee PC 900A, was spotted at Best Buy for under $300, the least expensive Eee PC to date.

Among all the numbers mentioned at the meeting, it was revealed sales of Windows XP systems loaded onto hard disk drives outnumber the Linux OS on solid state drives by a ratio of 7 to 3. It was also mentioned that Europe is the computer and related hardware manufacturer's strongest market, accounting for 53 percent of all third quarter revenues, while the Asia Pacific region accounted for 36 percent.

As for profits, ASUS has recently posted a 13 percent quarter-to-quarter increase, but a 14.2 percent drop for the year to date.

By Electronista Staff