Pictures of a MacBook nano based on the MSI U100 netbook have surfaced on the web. The 1.6GHz Atom-based machine sports a 10" display, 2GB DDR 2 RAM, a 320GB hard drive, and weighs just 2.2 lbs.

Had someone told us this was an actual netbook coming from Cupertino, we probably wouldn't have rushed to dismiss the allegation. Still, the fact of the matter is that an MSI is still an MSI, even with a beautifully crafted, custom made shell with a backlit Apple logo and everything.

The pictures appeared on Flickr this week, and were spotted by various eagle-eyed tech-based sites. Mickphoto's picture set tries to show the MacBook nano as the real thing, all boxed and sealed up neatly and tidily. The box even contains all the software needed to run Windows XP Pro or Mac OS X 10.5.5. At least two models have been created, according to the photos – a white MacBook nano and a black model. Both have the neat Apple logo on the back, as well as the name MacBook Nano stamped on the front of the display, in a very Apple-like way.According to Gizmodo, specs include:

- MSI U100 MacBook Nano
- Windows XP Pro + Mac OS X 10.5.5
- Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz
- 2G DDRII
- 10" WSVGA LED (1024x600)
- 320GB SATA
- 1kg
- MMC/SD/MS 4

VIA, one of the leading manufacturers of power efficient x86 processor platforms, has announced today the VIA EPIA N700 Nano-ITX board, designed for compact, industrial PC and embedded automation devices.

According to softpedia, The platform comes with a 1.5GHz VIA C7 or 500MHz VIA Eden processor and is the company's first Nano-ITX board to feature the latest VIA VX800 media system processor. Furthermore, the compact and user friendly VIA EPNA N700 uses additional onboard ports to enable an easy and perfectly balanced system design.The model also features two SATA ports, a Gigabit Lan port, a COM port, two USB 2.0 ports and VGA port. There is also support for COM, LVDS and IDE, through onboard pin-headers. The VX800 IGP chipset has been designed to provide the system with DirectX 9-graphics support, through the integrated VIA Chrome 9 graphics core.

The platform is basically the lowest profile Nano-ITX board ever, but it provides a decent number of connectors and features for designing low heat, compact systems, while the VIA VX800 chipset provides support for up to 2GB of DDR 667 system memory.

"The VIA EPIA N700 Nano-ITX board has been specially developed to excel in space constrained environments while offering an extensive feature set based around the VIA VX800," said Daniel Wu, vice president, VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. "Through listening carefully to customers, we're confident that we've made the VIA EPIA N700 as user friendly as possible."

Pricing information has not been made public yet, but the board is currently offered to developers and will be made available through authorized distributors by mid-September.

VIA has seen an impressive amount of media attention these past weeks, mainly due to the competition between its NANO processor and Intel's Atom, on the blossoming netbook market.