For audio enthusiasts who work with on a computer, nothing could be worse than a system that generates so much noise it competes with the work you are trying to do. To solve this problem, two companies have joined forces and combined a Crusoe-based notebook with a DVD/CD player stereo and speaker system. The whole setup has been titled Avenue, and represents a PC designed for music. The project itself is a collaboration of Iiyama and Kenwood. Iiyama have contributed the 'Avenue Notebook', and Kenwood has supplied the 'Avenue Audio' component.

The TM5800 800MHz Crusoe powered IIyama notebook employes a 12.1" XGA TFT display at 1024x768 resolution and is small enough to fit in a B5 envelope. The notebook has a hairline finished aluminum body and features 128MB of memory, a 20GB hard drive, an 8MB RAGE Mobility M1 graphics chipset, a host of connectivity options (PCMCIA, (2x) USB2.0/IEEE1394, VGA out, S-Video, and audio jack) and weighs a mere 1.6kg. This is the same notebook which Gericom will be selling to European consumer shortly we are told. Since the notebook uses no fan for cooling it allows the individuals to enjoy their music fully.

It seems there were quiet a few people at the Transmeta Sea Grille event interested in selling this unit to North American shoppers, so hopefully the two companies involved will set up and "avenue" for purchasing it.