Orange are pushing several packages and phones at the minute. They have the BlackBerry Bold exclusive to the network (the first 3G BlackBerry as far as we’re aware) and we’ve just revealed that the Samsung Omnia i900 is now selling on Orange too. However, following our earlier revelation that Orange are to offer up laptops with their packages we can confirm that the Asus Eee PC 900 will indeed be offered with an Icon 225 broadband dongle as of today.
The Eee PC 900 has a 8.9″ display, 1.3 megapixel webcam, 16Gb memory and gives 2.5 hours of battery life whilst weighing less than a kilo. To get this, and have mobile internet on Orange courtesy of the dongle, you have to sign up to a 24 month contract. You’ll pay £25 and get a 3Gb usage allowance with 100 text messages included. These can be sent from the laptop itself.
We’ve mentioned all this before, however it’s now all official. Whilst the press release states that it’ll be ready today, we’re expecting the kit to land in Orange shops on Monday August 18th. We’re not clear as yet about which Operating System will be installed on the Orange Eee PC (Linux or Windows). Orange are doing a big press release to announce most of this on Monday, but unfortunately they didn’t invite us. Come on Orange, we used to be so close.. 😉
Read on for the press release..
Links – Previous story – Eee PC @ orange.co.uk – Press Release
ORANGE’S FIRST CONNECTED LAPTOP OFFER IN ORANGE SHOPS FROM TOMORROW
• Orange’s ‘connected’ product line launches with makers of the ultra portable Eee PC, Asus
• £25 per month consumer offer available in Orange shops, online and through telesales
London – 15th August 2008: Orange today announced that the first laptop in its ‘connected’ range will be available from tomorrow, 16th August. The move follows June’s strategic announcement in which the company pledged to “evolve” the communications market by offering new ways for customers to connect with the people and things that matter most to them.
Available from Orange shops, consumers will be able to purchase a package consisting of Orange’s ‘Internet Everywhere’ mobile broadband service and dongle and an Asus laptop for just £25 a month. The Asus laptop offers the ultimate portable experience with its 8.9″ compact design and weighing just 0.99kg allowing consumers to walk out of store and connect to the Internet. The offer will also be available via telesales and the Orange web site at www.orange.co.uk/shop.
Francois Mahieu, Director of Devices, Orange UK said: “It is Orange’s aim to be at the forefront of serving today’s 21st century customers, so we’re pleased to bring to market our first connected laptop offer with Asus. This launch is just the start, over time we will be expanding our offering even further with more suppliers who are at the forefront of laptop technology.”
With the largest integrated mobile data network in the UK, this is the first package in Orange’s connected laptop product line, with the company planning to evolve its offering over time to include fixed line broadband and an increased laptop range.
Price: £25 per month
Laptop: ASUS Eee PC 900 16G
USB Modem: Option ICON 225
Internet Everywhere tariff:
– UK data allowance 3GB UK
– UK 100 texts from laptop
– 24 month contract