Canadian company Datawind announced three new UK-bound products tonight: two new incarnations of its PocketSurfer handheld internet browser and also the UbiSurfer netbook. The UbiSurfer costs £159.99; it’s a Linux-powered netbook with a Vodafone embedded SIM, WiFi connectivity, a 7-inch screen and a four-hour battery life. The purchase price includes a year of internet browsing (30 hours per month) with each subsequent year costing just £29.99.
The UbiSurfer should arrive next month, heading first for the company’s existing distribution channels (including Maplin and Ideal TV home shopping). It connects via GPRS and uses Datawind's compression technology to cut page loading times to a few seconds (although streamed multimedia isn't available). There’ll be a full report on the launch in next week’s edition of The Fonecast.
We interviewed Datawind’s CEO early last month; you can hear the podcast by clicking here.