Micro Star International has just announced its new Wind product aimed at competing with ASUS' desktop Eee Box, a nettop designed on the same platform as the highly successful Eee PC low-power, low-cost portable PC. Simply and predictably dubbed MSI Windbox, the new Intel Atom-powered computer system from MSI comes to complete the company's range of low cost, low-power and low-profile system lineup. Windbox provides some design modifications over its competitor, the Eee Box, as it is meant to be installed on the ESA mount on the back of a flat-panel monitor.

Intel's highly acclaimed Atom processor has succeeded in taking over a significant part of the PC market, as it has been featured in most of today's netbook systems designed by various PC makers worldwide. The CPU could rule the market if the new nettop systems turned as successful as all the netbook ones available.

Although there were few to no rumors of a fresh product designed by MSI to compete with ASUS' Eee BOX, the Taiwanese company has managed to surprise everyone by presenting Windbox, which is slated to become available in the first quarter of 2009, with a price tag of $258.

On the specifications side, the new Windbox from MSI will be capable of providing the computing power of a 1.6GHz N270 Intel Atom processor, which combined with 1GB or 2GB of RAM memory and either a 160GB or a 250GB hard drive, should deliver the basic computing experience. Additional details include a Wi-Fi b/g module and a Gigabit Ethernet network connection. Also, users will be able to benefit from the system's three USB 2.0 ports, VGA output and Windows XP Home operating system.

The entire system weighs just 500g and thanks to its VESA mounting, it will fit just nicely behind your VESA-compatible LCD displays.