Rumors that Asus will launch an ultra-thin netbook codenamed ‘Shell’ in April started last month. Today the rumors almost came true when ASUS officially announced the Eee PC 1008HA (aka Shell) at CeBIT 2009 press conference. Now the problem with the new Eee PC 1008HA is that, it’s not ultra-thin, it’s ultra-light at 2.42 pounds but it’s 1-inch thick. The 1008HA is actually thicker that the whole MacBook lineup including the new 17-inch model.

The Eee PC 1008HA features an application bar called Eee Docking that provides one click access to Eee Sharing and Eee Arena services. The other features on the netbook are 92-percent keyboard, multitouch trackpad, mic, 1.3-megapixel webcam, Bluetooth, WiFi b/g/n, and optional 3G and WiMAX connectivity.

No word yet on exact shipping date or pricing.

[Via Slashgear]