Pictures of Asustek's Atom-based Eee PC 901 appear online

A French blog has posted pictures of what looks to be Asustek Computer's Eee PC 901, an upcoming version of the low-cost computer that is likely based on Intel's Atom processor .

The pictures on Blogeee.net show a computer that looks similar to the current Eee PC. But the new design, assuming the pictures are accurate, show a revamped design that is sleeker and more stylish than the original. The computer is expected to be announced at the Computex exhibition next month, where Intel will formally roll out the Atom processor, formerly called Diamondville.

An Asustek spokesman in Taipei could not immediately be reached by phone and e-mail.

Based on the pictures, the most obvious design changes are the smooth, rounded edges on the Eee PC 901, particularly noticeable around the laptop's hinge and when viewed from the side. Other changes include a row of chrome-colored buttons above the keyboard, and a redesigned trackpad. The new trackpad design is surrounded by chrome-colored accents and the mouse button appears to be separated into two parts, instead of the single piece used on the Eee PC 900.

Interestingly, the pictures on Blogeee.net did not have an Asustek logo, like the Eee PC 900. The Asus logo below the screen and on back of the lid have been replaced by an Eee PC logo.

The blog didn't offer technical details on the Eee PC 901 beyond showing the laptop's 9-inch screen and a 1.3-megapixel camera, which is also found on the Eee PC 900. If the Eee PC 901 is based on the Atom processor, the specifications are probably close to Intel's Concord River reference design.

Concord River systems are based on a 1.6GHz Atom N270 processor and an Intel 945GSE chipset, according to Intel documents obtained from a computer maker in Taiwan. System specifications also include 512MB or more of DDR2 memory and 4GB or more of solid-state storage.

The Eee PC 900 ships with a 900MHz Celeron M processor, 1GB of DDR2 memory and 12GB or 20GB, depending on the operating system. The laptop comes with either Windows XP or Linux.