ASUS has just partnered with Phoenix Technologies to get its hands on the latter’s HyperSpace web booting technology. The technology will be pre-installed on a number of devices including Eee PC netbooks and Omega Series notebooks. Netbooks will use the Dual version of HyperSpace, designed for Intel Atom and Celeron processors, while notebooks will use the Hybrid version which is designed for processors equal to or more powerful than the Intel Core Duo.
In some ways this is a good thing. HyperSpace can launch web applications very quickly, even before Windows boots. Phoenix also claims it’s incredibly efficient, extending battery life in the process. But the major problem with the pre-installation of HyperSpace is that the software is subscription-based. $39.95 per year for the netbook Dual version, and $59.95 per year for the notebook version of HyperSpace.
I would think that pre-installation means you’ll have no choice but to subscribe when you buy an ASUS Eee PC or Omega notebook. Kind of a sketchy way to bring in dollars, don’t you think?
By the way, if you want to know what you’ll be getting yourself into, you can try HyperSpace free for 21 days.
phoenix via jkontherun
