Asustek plans to launch a new version of the Eee PC with a 10-inch screen, a top executive said Monday.

The company's CEO made the statement at the launch of the new Eee PC 900 with an 8.9-inch screen, in Taiwan. The original Eee PC 701 carries a 7-inch screen.

"The
feedback we've received from users has been great. Many have asked us
for bigger screens and better usability. That's what made us start
developing the Eee PC 900," said Jerry Shen, CEO of Asustek, during a
news conference in Taipei. People are asking for bigger keypads and
more software as well, issues the company continues to work on.

An
Eee PC with a 10-inch screen could be out later this year, and it will
be the biggest screen an Eee PC will ever get, Shen said. The company
defines anything with a 12-inch screen or larger a classic notebook PC,
not an Eee PC.

Asustek believes that screen size makes a difference in sales.

The
new Eee PC 900 with the 8.9-inch screen will likely account for 50
percent of overall Eee PC shipments by June, and 60 percent or more of
shipments sometime in the second half of the year, said Shen.

He
declined to set a firm date for release of a new Eee PC with a 10-inch
screen, and would not talk about possible prices. But a 10-inch screen
could make a new Eee PC model much more expensive than the 8.9-inch
model. Once screen sizes reach 12-inches, they are nearing mainstream
sizes, where mass production reduces the price-per-unit. But a 10-inch
screen is still a specialty, and therefore more expensive screen size.

The Eee PC 900 went on sale Monday in Taiwan for NT$15,988 (US$528).