MSI Announces WindPad 110W With New AMD Z-01
by Dustin Sklavos on July 7, 2011 4:26 PM ESTThe tablet market is expanding every bit as rapidly as netbooks did when they first arrived, and then some. MSI has announced their entry into the market today, and it's a very different breed of tablet compared to the largely Android-based units available. The new WindPad 110W has a heck of a lot going on under the hood, including some new kit from AMD.
Unlike the Android-based tablets that have been multiplying in the market, the WindPad 110W is running a full-on Windows 7 Home Premium installation, and a peek under the hood reveals a beastly amount of hardware for a tablet.
At the center of the 110W is the AMD Z-01 APU, a 1GHz dual-core processor with a TDP of just 5.9 watts. Essentially a lower-clocked, much lower-power version of the E-350 we're so fond of, the Z-01 brings with it Radeon HD 6250 graphics with 80 stream processors clocked at 276MHz. Strapped to the single-channel memory controller is 4GB of DDR3, which should be more than enough for what the WindPad is intended for.
The rest of the 110W is no slouch either, with a 32GB SSD integrated, 802.11b/g/n networking, and Bluetooth 3.0 support. The 10" screen is an IPS panel with a 1280x800 resolution. External connectivity is handled by a mini-HDMI port, an SD card reader, and a single USB 2.0 port. If there's one place where the WindPad falters compared to other tablets, though, it's the integrated cameras: both the front-facing and rear-facing cameras are only 1.3 megapixel, miles behind the rest of the pack.
MSI ships it with a two-cell, 4200mAh battery, a Trusted Platform Module, and personalized software for ease of use with touch control. That's important since Windows 7's touch-based controls still leave something to be desired. At 1.87 lbs. it's not too heavy but will definitely be noticeable.
Presales are starting now at Newegg and Amazon, for a reasonable MSRP of $599.
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crispbp04 - Thursday, July 7, 2011 - link
I have my pre-order in at newegg... taking a gamble!Gigantopithecus - Thursday, July 7, 2011 - link
The sub-par cameras are not big cons in my opinion as 1.3 megapixel resolution is sufficient for video chatting and I'm not going to be taking pictures with a tablet.However, both Amazon and Newegg give its weight at 3.3 pounds. That's nearly two pounds heavier than an iPad 2, and a dealbreaker to me. The article says it weighs 1.87 pounds. Clarification...?
crenshaw1979 - Thursday, July 7, 2011 - link
Shipping weightGigantopithecus - Thursday, July 7, 2011 - link
From Newegg:Physical spec
Dimensions
10.66" x 7.20" x 0.61"
Weight
3.3 lbs
...Are those the dimensions of the box it ships in, too? :P
From Amazon:
Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
cscpianoman - Thursday, July 7, 2011 - link
From MSI's own website: 1.87lbs.http://www.msimobile.com/level3_productpage.aspx?c...
GaMEChld - Friday, July 8, 2011 - link
And for what it's worth, I'd take MSI's word over the newegg spec sheet. I love newegg to death, but it is not unheard of for them to have an inaccuracy on a spec sheet.Spacecomber - Thursday, July 7, 2011 - link
After windows 7 is installed, how much hard drive space is left? Will this be enough for this device?sammsiam - Thursday, July 7, 2011 - link
No. I have a desktop w/ 30GB SSD. Windows 7 installed fine & only took <1/3rd of the space. 1 yr later & Windows 7 now occupies >20GB with most of the space dedicated to the dreaded winsxs folder. The latest service pack won't install because i'm down to <100MB free space.Cashmoney995 - Friday, July 8, 2011 - link
I was thinking the same thing. I always loved having a small C:\ drive and Windows 7 initially leaves you to believe its going to be slick and small. Microsoft definitely needs to do something about the winsxs folder, while I know it prevents driver hell, there has to be some reasonable way to get it to a manageable state.duploxxx - Friday, July 8, 2011 - link
My 1,5Y old netbook with win7 premium has 11GB windows space used.Laptop with win7 Ultimate 19GB windows space used.
depends on what you install on the platform.... I am sure the MSI guys are clever enough to deactivate and uninstall the garbage.