It’s alive, it’s Alive, IT’S ALIVE! The CrunchPad gets some new details

It’s become a throw-away joke on Twitter. “Hey @Arrington, where’s the CrunchPad?” Recent speculation holds that the device was officially kaput. Then again, it was also voted one of the “ten most brilliant products of 2009″ by Popular Mechanics. Rumors buzz around the CrunchPad like so many bees, but thanks to the keen listening of Chippy from UMPCPortal.com we finally have some new information about this elusive beast.

According to today’s Gilmore Gang vidcast (starting around the 39 minute mark) Arrington spills some details on the CrunchPad. First, it will have a 12 inch screen, be an “internet only” machine, run an Intel Atom processor and cost between $300 and $400. As we suspected, most of the delays have been caused by fine tuning the independent OS and web browser that utilizes internet connected web based operation. Basically all of your programs are accessed through the CrunchPad’s connection to an online server. The upside is that the CrunchPad uses its limited resources to speed up your surfing process. The bad site is if you have no internet connection you have a slab paperweight.

Another bit of suggestive wording might mean you’ll be seeing ads on the CrunchPad when surfing around. In order to keep the price low — and out of the price range and competition of the upcoming Apple Tablet — they may sell sponsorships on CrunchPad programs. We’re told that more information will be coming shortly, but we won’t hold our breath. We’ve heard that particular yarn before.

Check out the rest of Chippy’s excellent detective work at UMPCPortal.com.