CeBIT 2009: ASRock Debuts Nettop and Fully Fledged Laptop

Although most of you might be familiar with ASRock, due to its mid-range and entry-level motherboards, the company aims to expand its product lineup with the introduction of a series of personal computer systems. In addition to its latest Atom-powered 12-inch laptop, the motherboard maker has also showcased its new 15.6-inch MultiBook M15 and NetTop S330. Both systems are based on Intel processors, but the nettop is equipped with the same dual-core Atom 330 CPU that is featured in the manufacturer's netbook.

The ASRock nettop has been built on one of the company's motherboards, which means that it will enable users to take advantage of the Instant Boot technology the maker has developed. In addition, the NetTop 330 boasts the familiar, dual-core Atom 330 nettop processor, combined with 1GB of RAM (or a maximum of 4GB in dual-channel), Intel's DirectX 9-capable graphics and a 2.5-inch 160GB hard drive. Unlike most other similar products on the market, this one is also providing users with a built-in optical drive. This leaves its mark on the system's overall design, but ASRock believes customers will appreciate the extra feature.

With the 15.6-inch notebook, ASRock has decided to go for an Intel system with support for up to 4GB of memory, integrated Intel graphics, 2.5-inch SATA hard drives for up to 500GB of storage and wireless 802.11 b/g/n connectivity. The system has been dubbed MultiBook M15 and also comes equipped with a multi-touch trackpad, as the company's 12-inch portable system.

ASRock said that it planned to expand the product lineup with the addition of some new products in the near future. However, until we are to see some NVIDIA Ion-based nettops or laptops with a more attractive design, we will have to do with these recent products. According to ASRock, the price of both the nettop and the 15.6-inch laptop should be affordable to most users.

Live report by Traian Teglet from CeBIT 2009 Hanover, Germany.