While Apple Inc. keeps the tech media world guessing about a rumored netbook from the company or larger-size iPod Touch, a new model that leverages the open source platform Android from Internet search and ad leader Google Inc. recently made its debut.

 

Officials at China’s SkyTone, a low-cost netbook developer that’s better known for making Skype headsets, are demonstrating their Alpha 680 model online. It isn’t clear how much it costs, but it looks cheap.

 

As TMCnet has reported, netbooks typically sell for about $400 and have emerged as a bright spot in the struggling electronics industry – though companies such as Microsoft Corp. and Lenovo have seen earnings dips and have been forced to lay off thousands of workers, partly because of the devices’ increasing popularity.

 

According to Seth H. Weintraub of ComputerWorld.com, the Alpha 680 likely would sell for $100 to $200.

 

“While this device is going to be extremely cheap, it does have some redeeming qualities,” Weintraub writes. “It looks to have a flip around touch screen and a gaming pad built in. And this thing does have Wifi, Ethernet, 3G, USB Ports and an SD card slot in a $100-ish package.”

 

Here’s an image of the new device, Google Android’s (News - Alert) first-ever netbook:

 

 

Here is a snapshot of its specifications (from SkyTone):

 

 

It’s interesting that much of the speculation surrounding netbook development, whether this example or rumors of an Apple (News - Alert) netbook, takes us from U.S. companies based in northern California, halfway across the world, to China.

 

Last week, Chinese-language news site the Commercial Times reported that Foxconn, a China-based subsidiary of the Hon Hai Precision Industry Company Ltd, is among the candidates to help develop a netbook from Apple. What makes the new Foxconn rumors sound familiar is that – as TMCnet reported – rumors emerged recently that another Chinese company, Wintek Corporation, told the Commercial Times that they were “working with Apple to develop some new products, but it said it does not know what applications the new products are for.”

 

For Weintraub, the device likely is worth the $100-plus it likely will fetch, though it’s a surprisingly blah offering.

 

“I’d like to see a better processor, more RAM and more local storage,” he said. “I guess the SD card slot is means enough to put in 32GB more Flash storage if desired. And as long as this thing runs a browser over WiFi (News - Alert), it is hard to complain about a $100 device. Worst case scenario, you can give it to a child to play with.”