World's cheapest laptop... sort of

 

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By Matthew Sparkes

Posted on 28 Jul 2008 at 11:19

Netbooks have reached new levels of affordability, just as long as you can get together with 99 friends to buy in bulk.

The Impulse NPX-9000 is listed on an online retail site at just £65, alongside claims to be the cheapest laptop in the world.

However, the specification is predictably rather low. A 400MHz MIPS processor, 128MB of RAM and a 1GB flash drive for storage is all you get for your money, and orders can only be taken in lumps of 100.

There is also no mention of delivery costs. Indeed the only information you are given is what port the container sails from, Shenzhen in China in this case.

In contrast, the very first Eee PC came equipped with a 900MHz Intel Celeron, 512MB of RAM and a 4GB flash drive. The Impulse's screen is the same size as the Eee's at 7in, but no mention is made of resolution. Customers also get no Wi-Fi, although an optional dongle is available.

Because the machine isn't up to running Windows XP, a version of Linux is used as the OS, coming equipped with Word and Excel viewers and third party editors, web browser, media player and paint package.

How long the Impulse will hold this rather dubious honour is unclear, however. The second generation XO laptop was unveiled earlier this year, sporting dual touchscreens and a target price of $100 by its release in 2010. The device is designed as an educational tool for developing countries and is expected to use only one watt of power while running.