Riding high over press wire was some gizmo news indicating Intel has introduced the next in line for the memorable Classmate PC. And though the new unit - dare we call it Eduwise Jr? - is a tad larger than its predecessor, it at least makes up for its added weight with improved hardware specifications.

This little tidbit comes to us from the revelations happening at the Intel Developer Forum in Shanghai, where Intel has also announced the launching of a new strategic investment and software certification service - though these are not exactly for targeted for the new version of "netbooks."

The second generation Classmate PC increases visual space with an additional 2 inches to the viewable area, and the 9-inch LCD screen is backed by a robust platform centered around a Celeron M core. It's not yet an Atom, we know, but Intel promises the next to sport one.

The second Eduwise also carries the first's 802.11b and .11g wireless capabilities, though now with a 30 GB internal hard drive, integrated webcam, and 512 MB DDR2 RAM, it's likely to run more software than it's early counterpart could.

Intel hasn't stated when or where the units will be made available, but they have said that the unit will enter the World Ahead Program (something like the OLPC) as soon as it's ready. So for netbook owners around the world, we'll have to settle for our Eee PCs and X01s for temporary comfort. More updates as we get them.