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If you go to http://asus.co.uk/ it redirects you to uk.asus.com.

Oh ffs, Asus UK is probably a wholly owned subsidiary with just a few employees. Lets look at your evidence:
* Different company name
* A typo
* cheap registrar, hosted server
All of those are explained by Asus UK being a small company operating mostly on their own -- just like most sales offices around the world.

Let's take an occam's razor look at this. Which one is more probable:

1. Asus UK, a small sales company have a website for their own promotions (see e.g. http://www.asus.co.uk/seashell/sys/) but they direct the front page to asus.com because, well, it makes sense.

2. A nefarious person decides to create a website mimicking asus with no way to make money from it (notice how there are no ads or "Buy now" links). He also throws away 99% of his traffic by directing the front page to asus.com

Honestly, do you have any reason to pick #2 based on the evidence we have?

Actually, this page on asus.co.uk links to itsbetterwithwindows.com, although I can't find any such links on asus.com.

Oh, yeah. I see, on a web page that details the technical specifications of their "Bettery packs".

Actually the fact that it's only on one localized page of ASUS makes it even more probable that :
- it's the action of one single manager or one small team who though they new better than the rest of the company
- or the UK website got hacked as part of an attempt to pull a practical joke.

Really? If I go directly to www.asus.co.uk, I am redirected to uk.asus.com. Would this not mean that they are affiliated?

http://www.asus.co.uk/ is not Asus UK website. Check out http://uk.asus.com./ Also check whois info for both.

For asus.com:

Registrar: NETWORK SOLUTIONS, LLC.
Whois Server: whois.networksolutions.com
Referral URL: http://www.networksolutions.com/
Status: clientTransferProhibited

Expiration Date: 2011-10-24
Creation Date: 1995-10-25
Last Update Date: 2007-03-29

Name Servers:
        dns3.asus.com
        dns7.asus.com

For asus.co.uk:

Domain name:
                asus.co.uk

        Registrant:
                Asustek Computer Inc

        Trading as:
                Asus

        Registrant type:
                UK Individual

        Registrant's address:
                The registrant is a non-trading individual who has opted to have their
                address omitted from the WHOIS service.

        Registrar:
                1 & 1 Internet AG [Tag = SCHLUND]
                URL: http://registrar.1und1.info/

        Relevant dates:
                Registered on: 23-May-1997
                Renewal date: 23-May-2011
                Last updated: 22-May-2009

        Registration status:
                Renewal request being processed.

        Name servers:
                ns59.1and1.co.uk
                ns60.1and1.co.uk

Furthermore, if you look around the fake site, you'll see that it redirects to uk.asus.com for all URLs that you feed to it (thus creating the illusion that it is indeed an official Asus site), except for that one URL which opens the webpage linking to the site in TFA.

Well you shouldn't have a knee-jerk re-action like you said, but the site is real.

As it was said numerous times above, ASUS's UK site links to it:
http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1008HA/features.html

Yep, Asus had absolutely nothing to do with the creation of this website and that's why they link to it from their own site.

http://www.asus.co.uk/ is not the web site of Asus UK. The latter is http://uk.asus.com./ Site that you've linked to is set up to redirect to the official Asus site for any URL, except for the one that you've linked to - it is clearly a hoax to promote the linked site.

The site does seem rather amateur. A link to the the site at http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1008HA/features.html points to Asus UK's involvement. There is however no such reference on the international version at http://eeepc.asus.com/global/product1008ha.html

www.asus.co.uk redirects directly to uk.asus.com, but if you go to for example http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1000HE/, you will arrive at a marketing page designed to cater to British buyers

A scam/phishing/joke site often redirects to the proper site. Every other URL redirecting, and http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1000HE/ not (a website not found at www.asus.com), is a trademark of a site emulating a proper one. Either all or no traffic would be redirected.

www.asus.co.uk redirects directly to uk.asus.com, but if you go to for example http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1000HE/, you will arrive at a marketing page designed to cater to British buyers

A scam/phishing/joke site often redirects to the proper site. Every other URL redirecting, and http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1000HE/ not (a website not found at www.asus.com), is a trademark of a site emulating a proper one. Either all or no traffic would be redirected.

Fake marketing page

Fake UK Asus website you linked to

Real UK Asus website

exactly. further investigation leads to http://www.rdcpro.com/, the "Developer's Home on The Web", apparently owned and operated by the same guy, mike sharp.

to say the least, the legitimacy of this site should be taken with a grain of salt.

there are no links back to either Asus or Microsoft, no "About Us" page, no contact page, no Copyright/Trademark notices, nothing. there's absolutely nothing official about this page, whatsoever.

on the other hand, it is directly linked from asus.co.uk, about 2/3 down the page.

how very confusing. and yet, since asus seems to have no oversight or actual control of itself, maybe this is all legit, sort of.

Something is still very weird.
http://www.asus.co.uk/ redirects to uk.asus.com.
And searching for the 1008ha never links to the page you mentioned.
The itsbetterwithwindows.com site has no disclaimers or anything. There is no indication this site is in any way endorsed by either Asus or MS.
I got a feeling someone is going to get into some real trouble for this.

I would put my guess at 95% that this is a Microsoft run and funded site with little to do with Asus other than get their permission.

I'm not so sure - check out the link in the product page for the Asus Seashell.

Oddly, my work proxy blocks the betterwithwindows site as "suspicious"

www.asus.co.uk redirects directly to uk.asus.com, but if you go to for example http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1000HE/, you will arrive at a marketing page designed to cater to British buyers. So it almost looks like some yahoo in British marketing decided to do this without be told to. "Taking initiative", I believe it's called...

It's genuine, alright. Both the ad I was talking about and this website.
Yes it's a horrible looking site, but it is linked from Asus' own website. So it's legit in my eyes.

From ASUS's website:
http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1008HA/features.html
"It's better with Windows

The Eee PC 1008HA comes pre-loaded with Microsoft Windows XP Home and Microsoft Works. With Windows XP, you can be sure that your Eee PC will be compatible with your existing Windows applications and devices. Windows XP is also easy to use and delivers a dependable experience that Microsoft and a worldwide community of partners stand behind. Visit www.ItsBetterwithWindows.com to find out more."

And this slogan on their site:
"ASUS recommends Windows for everyday computing "

Money has changed hands here. Big money.

I appreciate your observations regarding the domain registration for this site, but the site is directly linked from the ASUS website.

So there is no question of this being a fake site.

Except that site links to www.asus.co.uk Asus's real UK website is uk.asus.com

The page is linked from: http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1008HA/features.html , seems official enough for me.

As others have pointed out:

http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1008HA/features.html

Absent some furious backpedaling, my next purchase WON'T be anything from ASUS. By all means market Windows positively but MS can do their own trash talking. I'm going to take this to mean they mean to go in an explicitly Linux unfriendly direction to get back scratches from MS.

Almost as naive as the people who actually believe that this site was created by Microsoft and Asus.

It's better with Windows®

The Eee PCâ 1008HA comes pre-loaded with Microsoft Windows XP Home and Microsoft Works. With Windows® XP, you can be sure that your Eee PCâ will be compatible with your existing Windows applications and devices. Windows® XP is also easy to use and delivers a dependable experience that Microsoft and a worldwide community of partners stand behind. Visit www.ItsBetterwithWindows.com  to find out more.

http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1008HA/features.html

Yep, Asus had absolutely nothing to do with the creation of this website and that's why they link to it from their own site. FAIL.

There is no way that this website [itsbetterwithwindows.com] is endorsed by Asus/Microsoft.

Then why does Asus have a link to it on their site?

Asus does

I appreciate your observations regarding the domain registration for this site, but the site is directly linked from the ASUS website .
So there is no question of this being a fake site.

Also, there is nothing on ASUS's website to indicate that they had anything to do with this.

Actually, this page on asus.co.uk links to itsbetterwithwindows.com, although I can't find any such links on asus.com.
need4mospd deserves the credit for finding that link.

The link to the site is on the Asus website.

http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1008HA/features.html

It's on the Asus website in the UK.

nothing to do with Microsoft or ASUS whatsoever.

As others have pointed out, if it's nothing to do with ASUS, why do they link to it?

Except it's linked from the Asus website in the UK.

It doesn't seem legitimate to me...

Yeah, cause Asus would be linking to the site if it wasn't legitimate, right?

The Eee PCâ 1008HA comes pre-loaded with Microsoft Windows XP Home and Microsoft Works. With Windows® XP, you can be sure that your Eee PCâ will be compatible with your existing Windows applications and devices. Windows® XP is also easy to use and delivers a dependable experience that Microsoft and a worldwide community of partners stand behind. Visit www.ItsBetterwithWindows.com  to find out more.

http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1008HA/features.html

The Eee PCâ 1008HA comes pre-loaded with Microsoft Windows XP Home and Microsoft Works. With Windows® XP, you can be sure that your Eee PCâ will be compatible with your existing Windows applications and devices. Windows® XP is also easy to use and delivers a dependable experience that Microsoft and a worldwide community of partners stand behind. Visit www.ItsBetterwithWindows.com  to find out more.

It's linked from Asus's own website.

"It's better with Windows®

The Eee PC(TM) 1008HA comes pre-loaded with Microsoft Windows XP Home and Microsoft Works. With Windows® XP, you can be sure that your Eee PC(TM) will be compatible with your existing Windows applications and devices. Windows® XP is also easy to use and delivers a dependable experience that Microsoft and a worldwide community of partners stand behind. Visit www.ItsBetterwithWindows.com to find out more."

I agree. This is from 123 Fake St.

Fail.

I can't imagine why it would be sponsored by Asus but they certainly link to it: http://www.asus.co.uk/eeepc/1008HA/features.html