Windows 7 Netbooks Find a Home on AT&T's 3G Network

AT&T announces that it is making its 3G wireless service available for two new Windows 7 netbooks.

By Shane O'Neill
Mon, November 16, 2009

Building on the growing trend of mobile broadband companies selling netbooks, AT&T announced today that for the first time it will make its 3G wireless network service available for Windows 7 netbooks.

AT&T is highlighting the Samsung Go and Acer Aspire One netbooks. Both will be available in stores and online here later this month.

The netbooks will come pre-installed with Windows 7 and will be the first Windows 7 machines to have built-in access to AT&T's 3G service and its Wi-Fi network, which the company says has more than 20,000 hot spots nationwide.

Slideshow: Windows 7 in Pictures: The Coolest New Hardware

Both netbooks have 10-inch screens and weigh less than 3 pounds, and will run Windows 7 Starter version. Despite recent consumer complaints about the restrictions and lack of features in Windows 7 Starter, the majority of netbooks sold on Amazon.com are shipping with the Windows 7 Starter version.

[ For complete coverage on Microsoft's new Windows 7 operating system -- including hands-on reviews, video tutorials and advice on enterprise rollouts -- see CIO.com's Windows 7 Bible. ]

The price is the same for both netbooks: $199 after a mail-in rebate via an AT&T promotion card. The $199 pricing requires the purchase of a new two-year AT&T DataConnect plan, which includes a 200MB option for $35 per month or a 5GB plan for $60 per month.

The netbooks also come with AT&T Communication Manager (ACM) 7.0 preloaded. ACM is a feature that helps users manage their usage and connections. It automatically connects users to AT&T Hot Spots when available and the program is activated. The recently revamped ACM is designed to be compatible with Windows 7.

AT&T and Verizon are currently the only telecom providers in the U.S. that are bundling netbooks with data plans. Both companies began selling netbooks at a discount this year as a way to combat the slowdown of smartphone sales during a recession.

Microsoft says that the AT&T netbooks are just the beginning, and more telecom providers will soon be offering subsidized plans for Windows 7 netbooks. In a post on the Windows 7 blog, the company forecasts that more than 50 telecom providers worldwide will deploy Windows 7 netbooks by 2010.

Microsoft spokeperson and blogger Brandon LeBlanc writes: "In the same way that Windows XP made Wi-Fi mainstream for the first time, Windows 7 has the potential to do the same to 3G and at the same time redefine what people come to expect from their PCs while they're on the go."

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