Saturday, December 13, 2008

$100 Netbook With Mobile Broadband Subscription

According to InformationWeek (Antone Gonsalves December 12, 2008) from 14 December 2008, Radio Shack will offer an Aspire One laptop $US100, with a $US60 a month wireless broadband contract from AT&T. The netbook has a 3G wirless modem built in. The ACER has a 9 inch screen and could also be used for VoIP phone calls.

This is a similar arrangement to mobile phone contracts, with an intial purchase fee and then effectively paying the hardware off over two years. The ACER unit costs about $US500, so that works out at about $US17 a month. The broadband service is effectively costing $US43 a month. There are no details as to how much broadband you get, but this seems a little high for a wireless broadband plan in the USA. But the offer is likely to be popular as it is an easy way to get Internet access.

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