Showing us that it can do better than the U120, MSI is displaying at its CeBIT booth the U123 netbook. Coming with the new 1.66 GHz Atom N280 CPU, the upcoming Wind model has a 10-inch screen, 1GB of RAM, GMA 950 integrated graphics, a 160GB hard drive and either a 6- or 9-cell battery. Also boasting 3G connectivity, the U123 is set to arrive next month in black, white, red and blue.

TechConnect Magazine - MSI Wind U123 netbook pictured

PortableMonkey.com reported seeing yet another Acer Aspire One, presumably a 10.1 incher.

Physically, it looks almost identical to the Diamond Black AOD150 10.1” model but the ports on the sides have been re-arranged with the card reader being placed on the right. The battery is also reported to be rounder. On the AOD150, it is flat and sloping down rather than bulging out. Other than these, the unit remains the same. Check out the pictures of the mystery Aspire One model.

MSI announced the x320 netbook in January (We heard that it will be on the shelves sometime in April). It looks very much like a MacBook Air. Graced with a magnificent 13.4  inch, 1366 x 768 display, the X320 is super thin and light, measuring less than an inch thick, and weighing about 2.9 pounds. But unlike the MacBook Air, the MSI X320 runs on an Intel Atom Z520 CPU which means two things: It won’t exactly be a speed demon, and it’ll be a lot cheaper than the Air.

How much cheaper? Laptop Magazine reports that the X320 will retail for between $700 and $900 USD.

What really made netbooks special is that in 2007 Asus built the first consumer oriented ultraportable laptop that didn’t cost more than a full sized laptop just because it was smaller. It used to be that if you wanted an ultraportable machine you would have to pay top dollar for it. And now thanks to Asus, Acer, HP, Dell, Lenovo, MSI, and a whole bunch of other companies (including the OLPC Foundation), that’s not the case anymore. You can buy a 7 to 10 inch laptop that provides decent if not spectacular performance for around $400, sometimes less.

Now here’s the thing. That still leaves a fairly large gap in the market for light weight computers. You can pay around $400 for a netbook. Or anywhere from $400 to $1200 or so for a full sized laptop that probably weighs 5 or 6 pounds or more. Or you can pay $1500 for a 3 pound notebook with a larger, higher resolution display and better graphics and processing power, not to mention an optical disc drive.

The MSI X320 helps fill a new niche: Sub-$1000 light weight, full sized computers. Sure, $700 is still a hefty chunk of money for some people. But if you care more about light weight than small size, I can see some folks paying extra for a larger display and a full sized keyboard.

You can find more information about the MSI X320 including more hands-0n photos and a video at the Laptop Magazine blog.

Last week, word started to leak that ASUS was planning an Eee PC Shell netbook. Sure enough, they’ve just unveiled it at CeBIT and it sports the 1008HA moniker. Like others in the Eee PC 1000-line, this device offers a 10-inch display. What makes it different is the slim figure, yet it sure looks similar to MSI’s X-Slim devices to me. jkk was at the introduction and provides the video first-look above. It sounds like the “shell” name comes from “seashell,” since the device has a pearlescent look to it. Maybe this means we’ll see a small clam-shell mobile device in this line, too?

SlashGear offers some of specs, although ASUS seems to have left some key info out at the moment. What is known: 1.3MP camera, 802.11b/g/n, optional 3.75G WWAN and/or WiMAX, 92 percent scaled keyboard, one-inch “slim,” and 1.1 kilograms in weight (about 2.4 pounds)

From JKontherun.com