AT&T launching new netbooks, cheaper data plan

AT&T Mobility is adding two new netbooks to its growing array of non-smartphone data devices, and is reducing the price of its low-end monthly data plan by $5.

The carrier said that later this month it will launch the Samsung Go netbook as well as the Acer Aspire One. Both devices will run on  Windows 7 and will be $199 with a two-year data plan from AT&T and after a mail-in rebate. AT&T is also cutting the price of its monthly 200 MB data plan to $35 down from $40 per month. However, it is maintaining the price of its $60 per month plan, which offers users 5 GB of data.

The two netbooks are similar in terms of features. The Samsung Go has a 160 GB hard drive, 1GB of memory, high definition audio, a 1.3-megapixel webcam and an LED backlit display. The Acer Aspire One has a 160 GB hard drive, 1GB of memory, high definition audio support, two built-in speakers, a video conferencing feature and a built-in webcam.

AT&T's decision to reduce the price on its lower-tier data plan comes in the wake of T-Mobile USA's announcement last week of a new laptop stick and two new data rate plans that offer subscribers 200 MB of data for $29.99 per month or 5GB of data for $49.99 per month. AT&T has steadily been branching out its support for netbooks, e-readers and other data-driven devices. Last week, Qualcomm announced that AT&T would provide wireless connectivity to the first smartbook, which will be made by Lenovo and use Qualcomm's Snapdragon processor.

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