Acer's next iteration of the Aspire One netbook will be getting several new hardware options, the company recently confirmed. Coming stock with a 160GB HDD and Windows XP, Acer has announced that the units will be configurable in those aspects, though they have not revealed any timeframe on when either of those options will be available. On the hardware side, the option for an SSD is a boon to people who see these devices as ultra-mobiles as opposed to trimmed-down laptops. The only size option will be 16GB, with no mention if changing to the small SSD will cause a change in price as well.

On the software side, Acer will pre-configure and sell the Aspire One with a choice of XP or a Linux distribution called Linpus, whether it will be the “Lite” or the “Desktop” edition isn't specified. These alternative options will not be available at launch, which is due in February. Even if they are delayed, they are welcome, as the initial product announcement indicated that no such options would be made available.