CNet Compares Eee PC Against the Competition

An anonymous reader writes "CNet has recently done a comparison of the Asus Eee PC against six bargain laptops that all fall under $1000. Included in the list is the Elonex One, OLPC, EasyNote XS and MSI Wind. "Since the Eee's launch, many of its rivals have begun to create similar alternatives — each designed to pilfer a piece of the budget ultraportable pie. Some are trying to beat the Eee on price, some on specs, but they're all tiny and they're all camped out in the bargain basement." Let the 'race to the bottom' begin."

Comments

I'm here too soon

[carpe.cervisiam]

I am far too lazy to read the article so I'll just come back in couple hours.

Re:I'm here too soon

[sm62704]

I'm not too lazy to read it, but I refuse to read C|Net. Two paragraphs per screen, and each screen is filled with so many blinking shiney flashing ads it takes forever for each page to load.

And under $1000? WTF? They're comparing a $999 laptop with a $250 laptop? Isn't that kind of like comparing a compact car with a mid sized car? One more reason to avoid C|Net like the plague.

It's sad, that used to be a pretty good site.

Re:I'm here too soon

[Constantine XVI]

...and each screen is filled with so many blinking shiney flashing ads it takes forever for each page to load... Your Firefox needs a dose of NoScript http://noscript.net/

Re:I'm here too soon

[sm62704]

I'm at work. Not only can I not have noscript here, I can't even use Firefox! )=

Re:I'm here too soon

[genji256]

Bored with making MacBooks for Steve Jobs, one day Asus decided to create its own stylish laptop and flog it on the cheap. The result was the Eee PC -- a Linux-based ultraportable notebook that wowed consumers, shocked rival manufacturers and is slowly but surely revolutionising an industry.

But Asus is no longer alone. Since the Eee's launch, many of its rivals have begun to create similar alternatives -- each designed to pilfer a piece of the budget ultraportable pie. Some are trying to beat the Eee on price, some on specs, but they're all tiny and they're all camped out in the bargain basement. They're all real products, and a few are already available, so we've included links to our full reviews for those.

Asus Eee PC 701, £220
The Eee has racked up hundreds of thousands of sales in a relatively short space of time. It's portable, attractive, versatile and has completely flipped the laptop world on its head with a stupidly low price point.

In exchange for a touch over £200, the Eee provides a Pentium M 900MHz CPU, 512MB of RAM, Wi-Fi, a 7-inch 800x480-pixel display, and enough Linux software to keep you busy for weeks. It's awesome value.

Okay, the hype overshadowed the fact that it's rather slow, sometimes unreliable and nearly impossible to type on if you had grown-up fingers, but these are minor details. In the long run it'll be recognised as one of the decade's most important pieces of tech design. Its rivals -- including the Eee PC 901 -- will have a very hard time topping it.

Elonex One (aka GeCube Genie), £99
Let's kick things off with the Elonex One, which many geeks will also know as the GeCube Genie Jr. It's designed for school children, but will no doubt attract a much wider demographic thanks to its ludicrously low price.

The One is an attractive little unit that weighs in at 900g. Elonex says it's designed to be kid-proof in that it's shock resistant, has no moving parts and is very reliable. The main components are housed behind the 7-inch 800x480-pixel display. You get a 300MHz LNX Code 8 Mobile CPU -- no, we've never heard of it either -- 128MB of DDR2 memory and 1GB of flash memory. An enhanced version of the laptop, called the One Plus, ships with 256MB of RAM and 2GB of storage.

What else do you get for fewer than 10,000 pennies? Well, 802.11b/g Wi-Fi is standard, as is wired 10/100 Ethernet, two USB2.0 ports, built-in speakers, and the keyboard's removable so you can use the One like a tablet PC. The display isn't touch-sensitive, so you'll have to use a 'mouse emulator' -- aka nipple -- round the back. The whole thing runs on the Linux Linos 2.6.21 operating system, which comes with a variety of productivity, media and education software.

The One is never going to be the fastest computer in the world, and we're sceptical that it'll be without its problems, but you really can't go wrong for £99. It's available in pink, green, silver, white or black, and will be released in July 2008. Pre-order yours from the Elonex Web site now for a £10 deposit.

Packard Bell EasyNote XS (aka VIA Nanobook), £399
Originally the Everex Cloudbook, this petite laptop now goes by many different names: 'EasyNote XS', 'VIA Nanobook', and courtesy of some potty-mouthed Cravers: 'horrible pile of turd'. That last bit is very unfair -- the XS is pretty accomplished.

It's tiny: just 230x171x29mm and it weighs 950g. It uses a 7-inch display with an 800x480-pixel native resolution, a 1.2GHz VIA C7-M CPU, 1GB of RAM and a 30GB 2.5-inch hard drive, which

Re:I'm here too soon

[flyingfsck]

What ads? I never see no ads and if you don't know how to get rid of ads then you need to hand in your Geek License.

Re:I'm here too soon

[k33l0r]

Ads? The interwebs have ads?

Re:I'm here too soon

[Thorwak]

But you're allowed to read and post on Slashdot, right? ;)

Re:I'm here too soon

[Anonymous Coward]

Or addblock plus....

Re:I'm here too soon

[tepples]

I'm at work. Not only can I not have noscript here, I can't even use Firefox! )= Do the computers in your break room have Opera, IE, or Safari? I think all four of them have an option to temporarily turn off scripting for all sites.

Re:I'm here too soon

[Anonymous Coward]

WTF? You're comparing comparing a $999 laptop with a $250 laptop with comparing a compact car with a mid-sized car? That's like comparing comparing apples with oranges with comparing watermelons with grapes!

Re:I'm here too soon

[bendodge]

It's also missing the Nokia N800. It certainly seems to fit the bill: a small computer, running Linux, WiFi, a tiny 256MB of internal flash, etc. And it's less than $250. It even uses a 800x480 touch screen (no keyboard), so I would rank it pretty highly against the Eee.

Re:I'm here too soon

[cHiphead]

Maybe you shouldn't be posting on slashdot then...

What kind of geek are you if you can't get around whatever GPO is in place to lock you out from something as simple as noscript or ff? There's always a way. (Try booting safe mode and using blank admin passwd, thats the first place to start ;))

Of course, if you are on Linux managed workstations instead of Windows, with a competent admin running the show, then you are probably screwed.

Cheers.

Re:I'm here too soon

[infinityxi]

I actually own a Nokia N800 and I love it for browsing the web (going on slashdot). I love the fact that you can link it up to your phone's data plan via bluetooth as it comes in handy when there are no viable wifi spots around. The only thing I would say is, the N800 isn't really suited for typing up documents or even doing a little coding. Sure you could buy a bluetooth keyboard but it ends up being more of a hassle. I'll probably be purchasing an EeePC in the coming month but i'll keep my N800 handy when for more handheld tasks.

Re:I'm here too soon

[wytcld]

sometimes unreliable and nearly impossible to type on if you had grown-up fingers

Been reliable for me. And I touch type on it just fine - with the fingers of a 6'6" guy.

Re:I'm here too soon

[sm62704]

I'm at work. On my lunch hour. It's not my computer and I don't have the right to install anything on it.

Re:I'm here too soon

[sm62704]

Thank you for posting that!

Re:I'm here too soon

[Clover_Kicker]

It's probably more a question of 'do I care enough about this to get fired' instead of 'duh, I can't figure out how to r00t my box'.

Re:I'm here too soon

[cyberwiz01]

There's always Portable Firefox as well.

Re:I'm here too soon

[MojoStan]

Also, after Nokia's recent $90 price drop, the N810's price ($390) is now "in the ballpark" of these cheap ultraportables (the N800 remains at around $230 for now). The N810 adds a slide-out thumb keyboard and GPS receiver to the N800, and several minor changes to the hardware.

Also, ECS has a sub-$500 Eee PC competitor coming, but it's probably too early in production to include in the CNET article. The ECS's key features: built-in HSDPA card, looks (from photos) slightly larger than Eee PC (but still ultraportable), MacBook-like keyboard. I think it "looks" better than the ultraportables in the CNET article, but I think I'd trust the MSI brand over ECS (or even ASUS).

Re:I'm here too soon

[bball99]

- tks for encapsulating this... you're my hero... otherwise having to dredge through the CNET web mess would have made my head explode and my mouse hand very tired...

- have a happy!

Re:I'm here too soon

[porl]

why the hell is this off topic?? my current job is really flexible towards what i use, but if it weren't i wouldn't be risking my job just to see cnet posts with less bling...

porl

Re:I'm here too soon

[Anonymous Coward]

I have a Nokia N800 and considered the Asus Eee. If I were traveling for work and could guarantee a remote connection back into my home server/desktop and only planned to use the system from a desk, then the Eee would have been a better solution. I also considered the WM5/6 PDAs.

I wanted wifi, skype, SIP client, normal web browsing (not limited by the hardware) GPS mapping, extraordinary battery life, hi res screen, an open system with tons of free software and a tiny footprint.

The N800 rocks. I picked up an iGo bluetooth keyboard and routinely ssh into my server from all parts of the world to transfer photos and movies for my family/friends to see. And to write my blog. The Mozilla-based browser rocks. It supports youtube, flash, javascript. Since you're running an ARM-based Linux device, hacking is encouraged.

Don't get too excited - the N800 isn't ready for your mom yet. Linux nerds only for now.
For $400, get the N810 with a built-in keyboard and GPS, but only 1 memory slot.
My N800 was $219 a few months ago. The N800 has 2 SDHC slots, I've already added 2x8GB SDHC to it. Let's see an iTouch/iPhone do that. In theory, 2x32GB should be supported with an OS patch.

The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[bit trollent]

It is obvious that there is room for a larger screen on the Eee PC that wouldn't make it any bigger. So if you want to beat the Eee PC, just make the exact same screen with a screen that is as big as it can be.

I should really charge a consulting fee.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Dude McDude]

The new 900 model has an 8.9" screen. http://www.asus.com/news_show.aspx?id=10302

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Anonymous Coward]

The newly announced models of the Eee do almost exactly that. 9in display as opposed to 7in prior.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[calebt3]

Maybe the screen is that small for battery conservation purposes?

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Kelbear]

The trick isn't just getting a larger screen on the unit, it's doing it without putting additional drain on the battery and additional burden on the pricetag.

Like many other incremental steps to today's technology, it's certainly possibly, even feasible, but nontrivial to implement. It'll take engineering, expense, and a new fab process and business relationships to mass-produce an appliance such as this.

Per the summary "Some are trying to beat the Eee on price, some on specs," and this would be an example of beating it on specs while likely yielding on the price war.

I believe there's plenty of room in the market for such competition since the EEE falls into a very small niche of quick-reference usage and ultra-portability. More an appliance than a personal computer, and as individual needs vary, people will buy the device best suited to the expected usage.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Lumpy]

I dont think it's too small it NEEDS 1024X768 at a minimum for screen resolution.

Physically small is ok. A substandard resolution is not ok.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Anonymous Coward]

There are various of theories why the screen is so small. Price (the released Eee is already more expensive than the initial target), power consumption, fear of cannibalizing their more expensive ultra-portables. My favorite rumor was that they had warehouses full of cheap 7" displays left due to the non-demand for UMPCs.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[dr_canak]

If you head over to the EEE user forums (google it), you'll find that someone has already worked up an application that allows the user to select from a wide variety of screen resolutions. The issue is the native size of the screen (which i believe is widescreen cause it's the same one used in portable DVD players). If you go with certain screen resolutions, the fonts become unreadable as they become squished or stretched. However, this application that was developed allows users to select a screen resolution that is the proper ratio to the actual screen size. So the readability is much improved, and you get more desktop realestate.

          I should mention this is for an XP install on the EEE only. I have no idea if someone has worked up a similar app for the stock linux install.

hth,
jeff

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[deniable]

That and they're using the cheaper 7'' screens from portable DVD players. Those things have had big price drops, so that helps the price tag on the eee.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Prof.Phreak]

I'd also go as far as making the keyboard 1" wider (making all buttons similarly slightly larger). The keyboard is bordering on being unusable.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[anss123]

There is a Linux solution using VNC. Not perfect but it works.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[vonhammer]

I have one and it's not the small screen (although as many have mentioned, the newer eeePCs will get a 9" screen). It's the small keyboard. That is the biggest problem. I have small hands and fingers and it's still too small for me. The right shift key is impossibly placed - resulting in either a down or right arrow press. Also the touch pad and space bar cause problems.

Many years ago, I bought an Apple Newton. I still have the keyboard and I stacked it on top of my eeePC to see the difference. The Newton's keyboard is a couple of inches wider and the keys are much larger (and fewer to be fair). But the Newton's keyboard was very easy to use, while the eeePC has a lousy keyboard. Fix that and you will have the eeePC killer.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Just Some Guy]

If you head over to the EEE user forums (google it), you'll find that someone has already worked up an application that allows the user to select from a wide variety of screen resolutions.

I'm sorry, but I lack the imagination to understand how that's supposed to improve the situation at all. Are your fonts too big? Use smaller fonts (and get to keep the subpixel antialiased goodness). Window decorations too big? Use smaller window decorations. I'm just not sure how telling an 800x480 LCD panel that it's actually a 1600x960 screen is going to do anything beyond making everything look awful.

My personal opinion is that 800x480 is mainly a poor resolution in theory, but not in practice. Yeah, it seems like the tiny screen would be a problem, but I stopped noticing it after a while. That's very much a subjective observation, though, like the small keyboard. If it bothers you, it doesn't matter how many other people are OK with it.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[LarsG]

The issue is the native size of the screen

And changing to a non-native resolution fixes this how?

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Anonymous Coward]

Speak for yourself, Youngeyes.
A higher resolution on a screen that small would be a complete waste to me.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Have Brain Will Rent]

I would settle for a dedicated scroll wheel that would pan the physical screen up/down a larger virtual screen. You can achieve pretty much the same thing now but a dedicated wheel would make it much easier and for me probably be the better choice than a large screen that sucked significantly more battery power than the current screen.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Have Brain Will Rent]

That depends on who you are - having average/large size hands for a male I would agree with you, otoh my girlfriend has no trouble at all with it.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[nedburns]

800x480 is pretty small, but like you I found my wife and I both quit noticing it after a little bit of use. I set up a USB hub, VGA cable, and audio on her desk so if she really wants to spend hours on the computer, she just plugs it in. Xandros detects the monitor size, keyboard, and mouse within seconds and from then on it's a 1024x768 screen.

This thing is impressive.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[dr_canak]

Actually,

I don't use that particular app or the new drivers. I use the native resolutions that are supported by the ASUS drivers and the ASUS resolution switching app. If i understand your comment, then I agree. Based on the posts I've read, there are certainly folks that, despite this app and the new drivers, found the screen really unusuable at higher resolutions and went back to the original drivers. But, there are also folks who are raving about it as if it's the next best thing to sliced bread. I merely pointed out that the laptop has the ability to display screen resolutions beyond what ASUS is bundling, and if people are so inclined, they can do that.

It seems as if the primary reason to do this is gaming. I can't begin to imagine gaming on this thing, but people are installing World of Warcraft and a number of first person shooters. Evidently, some of these programs refuse to install when they detect the native resolution of the ASUS. By using this homebrewed app, they are able to install and play the games they want, and evidently get some satisfaction, despite the small screen and small keyboard.

hth,
jeff

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Just Some Guy]

Ahhh, OK. That makes a lot more sense. Thanks for the followup.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[bjmoneyxxx]

There is a Linux solution using VNC. Not perfect but it works. Isn't that what linux does :P Sounds like my limited past linux experience, and what I've struggled with so far sticking with it on my eee, learning lots, not sure what for though. Even managed to mangle my laptop trying to "upgrade" to vista, MBR issues i think, how do you join that suit for vista capable systems before vista came out?

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[Anonymous Coward]

I know nobody on Slashdot reads TFA, but jeez. Page 6 of TFA shows and describes the 8.9" Eee PC, which is exactly what your "good idea" proposes.

Re:The Eee PC's Screen is too Small

[hey!]

So, how long before somebody tries the Nintendo DS trick, and gloms two cheap 7" screens together?

URGENT

[Mipoti Gusundar]

I am two years experience in ee pc. Please send codes.

Patch TUESDAY has come and gone !!

[Anonymous Coward]

Have you patched? It's past patch TUESDAY !!

DO it NOW or DON'T bother !!

The Elonex One???

[downix]

I love new laptops with new CPU's that nobody's ever heard about... don't you? Anyone know what a LNX Code 8 Mobile CPU is?

Re:The Elonex One???

[sm62704]

Anyone know what a LNX Code 8 Mobile CPU is?

Google knows.

Re:The Elonex One???

[arivanov]

I love the smell of MIPS early in the morning (most likely the non-patent-encumbered Chinese "Dragon" subvariety). Can't really see anything else being able to hit that price point.

Re:The Elonex One???

[Anonymous Coward]

Uhm, do you read what you post? Every single hit on that search were posts in webforms complaining that that Elonex hasn't released any information about it.

Re:The Elonex One???

[downix]

Checking, the current V-Dragon is a PowerPC licensed from IBM.

Re:The Elonex One???

[sm62704]

No, I didn't. Gees, Google is usually so helpful too =(

Re:The Elonex One???

[argiedot]

Perhaps the Loongson series is what the OP is talking about. They say it's MIPS-compatible.

Re:The Elonex One???

[Anonymous Coward]

Great, I googled it and got the orignal posters question

Re:The Elonex One???

[Anonymous Coward]

Uhm, do you read what you post? Every single hit on that search were posts in webforms complaining that that Elonex hasn't released any information about it.

And yet, if you click on the very first result returned you'll see it's also answered.

Big price diffrence there

[calebt3]

All fall under a $1000? What kind of standard is that? MY laptop was under $1000 when new, and similar laptops are now in the ~$750 range. Why get an underpowered ultraportable when a normal laptop costs just as much?

Re:Big price diffrence there

[stjobe]

Maybe if formfactor is more important than power?

Personally I love ultraportables (or palmtops, or subnotebooks or whatever the nome du jour is). For me, it's more important that the device is very portable than that it is equipped with a multi-GHz CPU and a top-of-the-line GPU.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Anonymous Coward]

Some people want ultraportables because of the size and weight. Ultraportable is a feature that raises costs.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Jeff DeMaagd]

Why get an underpowered ultraportable when a normal laptop costs just as much?

Maybe because "normal" notebooks are overpowered, overheating beasts? They aren't "laptops" because of that heat, they seem to feel like they burn through jeans when used for longer than 15 minutes on a lap, even on max power saving mode. I think that's a lot of why the marketing literature almost always calls them "notebooks".

Re:Big price diffrence there

[pipatron]

I'm very satisfied with my thinkpad x40 in that regard. I guess that's about as small as you can get while still having a keyboard you can use for hours, daily.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[vally_manea]

Nowhere in the TFA it says anything about under $1000, just in the summary. Oh and BTW: the EEE PC is ~$300, so no quite as expensive.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Mr. Slippery]

Why get an underpowered ultraportable when a normal laptop costs just as much?

Because it's ultraportable.

My real ultraportable is a Zaurus SLC3000. It will fit in my back pocket. I use it for writing, it can also be used for emergency SSH sessions and cramped web broswing. It's usually in my backpack, ready for when poetic inspiration strikes. That's ultraportable. (The only thing more portable is my Centro. The neat thing is, my Centro becomes a modem, my Zaurus runs a terminal, and bam! SSH or browsing from anywhere I can get a cell signal, with gear that fits in my pockets.)

My ultraportable-as-this-article-is-using-the-term is an old Sony Vaio SRX77 that I've fitted with a solid state harddrive, and installed Puppy Linux on. Good sized keyboard, adequate power, under three pounds and smaller than a standard looseleaf binder. I take it when I'm headed down to the cafe to sit and write or browse for a while. Not pocketsized, by easily portable.

My full sized laptop is heavy, big, and sucks battery. It's a full-featured beast that goes with me on long trips, to replace my desktop.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[cbart387]

I own a 'overpowered, overheating beast' of a laptop because _it is_ my only computer. I primarily use it like a desktop, but since I'm currently in college (and a comp sci major) I need something I can lug around when necessary to do work. My point is, different people have different needs. Your parent sounds like he/she has similar needs to me whereas you sound like you need something on the go. That is, assuming you're not playing devil's advocate. ;)

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Corporate Troll]

My full sized laptop is heavy, big, and sucks battery. It's a full-featured beast that goes with me on long trips, to replace my desktop.

That's exactly why you usually don't call them "laptop" or "notebook", but "desktop replacement".

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Anonymous Coward]

Trust me when I tell you this - your deep thoughts aren't so important that you should worry about getting every single one of them down. You are not Hemingway and will never be Hemingway. I tell you this as a friend but I tell you this anonymously because you don't take criticism well.

Give up the writing. Write nothing ever again.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Fatalis]

my Eee is unpleasantly hot when held on the lap too, though

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Mr. Slippery]

your deep thoughts aren't so important that you should worry about getting every single one of them down. You are not Hemingway and will never be Hemingway.

Who wants to be Hemingway? I'm a poet, not a novelist (at least so far), and a decent enough one to get invited to be the headliner at readings and to appear on a new CD. (Tracks 19 and 37, if anyone wants to have a listen to the CDBaby previews.) My Zaurus has just taken the place of the small notebooks I carried for years.

Nice troll attempt, though.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Mr. Slippery]

That's exactly why you usually don't call them "laptop" or "notebook", but "desktop replacement".

Actually, my full-featured laptop is much smaller than what most people refer to as a "desktop replacement". They even call it "ultra-portable" - I call that hogwash, it's over a pound heavier than my Vaio, thicker by a centimeter, and significantly larger in footprint.

I guess I've been spoiled by my old Vaio and have high standards of portability - some people would my new box a subnotebook, I call it a little bigger than I'd like.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[zuggy40]

In my experience larger laptops aren't really suited for much more then these ultra portables. I had a $750 Acer with AMD Turion x2, 2 GB RAM and 120 GB 4600 RPM HDD. With the exception of Photoshop, Illustrator and some code compiling there isn't anything I could do on it then I can do on my new eee 4g surf. Even the integrated graphics weren't good enough for any gaming.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Corporate Troll]

Yeah, that's indeed smaller than what most people refer to as desktop replacement. Let's just say that I interpreted your comment and you pretty much described the concept of desktop replacement. I couldn't know you have different standards ;-)

That said, I used to have a 12" iBook G3 600MHz and I wouldn't call it an ultraportable either. Really not something I'd like to lug around everywhere. It was my "desktop replacement" though... but only conceptually. As a "laptop" it was quite nice.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Corporate Troll]

I have a similar laptop (Fujitsu-Siemens Pa1510: Turion X2/2Gig RAM/120GB HD). Let me guess: ATI X1100 chipset? No way to play any games on it. It sucks donkeys balls. It now runs Ubuntu, but compiz etc, won't work either.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Anonymous Coward]

Oh my god! You're on a cd!!! Hemingway was never on a cd! YOU MUST BE BETTER THAN HEMINGWAY!!!

I listened to the preview. You fucking suck.

"Nice troll attempt, though."

Raised your ire enough to get you to reply, didn't I?

Re:Big price diffrence there

[dextromulous]

Why get an underpowered ultraportable when a normal laptop costs just as much?

Maybe because "normal" notebooks are overpowered, overheating beasts? They aren't "laptops" because of that heat, they seem to feel like they burn through jeans when used for longer than 15 minutes on a lap, even on max power saving mode. I think that's a lot of why the marketing literature almost always calls them "notebooks".

No need to think about that any more. In the fine print:

IBM prefers the terms "notebook" or "portable computer" rather than "laptop." Users are reminded not leave your computer, AC adapter, or accessories in contact with your lap or any part of your body for an extended period when the products are functioning or when the battery is charging.

Re:Big price diffrence there

[Anonymous Coward]

If the Zaurus had better keyboard support i'd use it.
I've got just about every type of ultraportable and eee is "the one"

- Linux and apt-get out of the box
- One button factory restore
- The smallest keyboard and display you'd want for extended sessions
- Very quiet and could fit in some jackets
- Touchpad for clicking/dragging/scrolling
- Plug in USB keyboard, USB mouse, external monitor and you've got a desktop
- Large user base for support

I get a kick from running on the battery when everyone's scrambling for outlets, and before it gets to 1/4 power they've all left.

P.S. The other anonymous who mentioned Hemingway has mental issues

Re:Big price diffrence there

[jhol13]

Good for you.

I have the EeePC and even that could be a bit smaller (thinner, lighter). I would have no use for anything bigger (or more expensive) - I would not carry it around.

Isn't it marvellous to have different choices.

WOW

[William Robinson]

a Linux-based ultraportable notebook that wowed consumers

Another WOW...but probably for a good product this time.

He is Ex-Apple...and must be well aware of how a good product smells like.

Re:WOW

[sm62704]

a Linux-based ultraportable notebook that wowed

Yeah, but what about flutter and harmonic distortion? ;)

Re:WOW

[William Robinson]

OOPS, forgot to mention, HCL in India also has launched a similar product last month. It looks cute, but I was not very happy with 2GB of flash.

It costs 12000 (less than 350 US$... Thought the TFA reports it 13990, The price tag I saw was Rs 12000 in their outlets.).

Re:WOW

[Fred_A]

And cowbells. Can't go wrong with cowbells.

Under $1000?

[Evro]

That's not exactly "bargain" space, Apple's Macbook is almost in that range, and last week I configured a Dell Vostro 1500 with a Core 2 Duo T7500 2.2 GHz, 3 GB ram, XP Home, a 256 MB GeForce 8600GT, and a 15" SXGA screen for $833.

Re:Under $1000?

[Abcd1234]

Is it an ultraportable? No? Then why'd you even bring it up?

Re:Under $1000?

[tokul]

last week I configured a Dell Vostro 1500

Your Vostro weights 6+ lb. Eee PC is 2 lb 1/2 oz

Re:Under $1000?

[Anonymous Coward]

Perhaps because a Vostro is actually featured in the article. Which you'd know if you'd read it...

Re:Under $1000?

[Abcd1234]

I did read it, and I think it's silly they brought it up in the article, too. 'course, it's a CNet article, so the fact it's poorly written is no big surprise.

Re:Under $1000?

[Anonymous Coward]

I don't get why people are buying these things. To use the trite old car analogy, its like buying a clunker with tires on three wheels, and even though it does move when you lean the right way, its still not really a useful item for day to day use without a lot of babying and reinstalls. People should pay the $1200 or so, and buy something that will properly function, like a MacBook.

The only laptops out there that are secure or useful at all are Apple's. You have an OS that is completely immune to any remote root attacks, completely immune to any type of malware, and MacOS has been this way since before the Internet went mainstream. Apple invented the laptop market with the early PowerBooks and the trackball, and everyone else has been feebly trying to catch up since.

Due to laptop theft, FileVault makes a laptop immune to local attacks, and OS X is known to be 100% secure versus remote attacks. Why buy anything less that might compromise your data?

Re:Under $1000?

[Anonymous Coward]

Funny, the authors of the article did include the Dell Vostro as one of the six "other" small laptops. Great minds think alike, or did ya' just RTFA?

Re:Under $1000?

[LynnwoodRooster]

Forgive him - he's one of those Slashdot'ers who actually exercises, and won't get winded carrying a 6 pound laptop 30 feet...

Old School

[hyades1]

I like my PDA with flip-open keyboard/Bluetooth for those rare occasions when a thumb drive and the ubiquity of freely-accessible PC's won't do.

PENIS PENIS HAHAHAHAHAHA PENIS LOL ROFLCOPTER

[Anonymous Coward]

Slashdot Compares EPeen Against Black Cock - Film At 11!

Re:PENIS PENIS HAHAHAHAHAHA PENIS LOL ROFLCOPTER

[Anonymous Coward]

Slashdot mods waste points on any AC post that mentions BLACK COCK - Film at 11!

Get one free on the table at the bank

[sammyo]

Just like pens, never buy a pen, just ignore the tacky logo. Actually I kinda like pens with a message from an industry I'll never have any associatiation.

At one point the coolest schwag was a thumb drive, maybe in a year or two a tacky branded wifi computer will be coolest.

Then we'll have flicker shots from 3rd world countries where kids hold up computers that match the corporate logo on their tee, zoom in on the high rez photo and see the spam script running on the free computer...

Re:Get one free on the table at the bank

[Dogtanian]

Just like pens, never buy a pen, just ignore the tacky logo. Well, chances are the bank's biros aren't particularly expensive ones- so if wherever you live is anything like the UK, you can probably buy some comparable ones in a pack of 30 or so for literally pennies each.

IMHO, free or not, it's not worth my time faffing about collecting individual pens at the bank (I doubt they'd let you grab the boxful) when I can get them in packs at negligible cost. If you're already there, fair enough, pick them up anyway, but really.... it's an awful lot of work for "free" otherwise :)

Very nice but not going to get one yet...

[91degrees]

I think I'll wait a year. By then these should be available for £150 or so and the mid-range ones will have dropped below £200. It will be interesting to see if anyone develops software for these that they're not designed for.

lazy

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm lazy and crazy.

Wow, talk about insightful

[Sockatume]

The article is, basically, a few specs and pictures from press releases lifted out and spread over 7 ad-filled pages. The same information could've been provided in a small table with some pictures next to it. No insight, no investigation, nothing that isn't public knowledge. They didn't even (as an example) do a google search for the phrase "Elonex One" which would've told them that it's a variation on a rather old unit which has been on sale in other markets for a while, so there are lots of hands-on reports (that way they could've commented on the need for a kickstand on that machine, and other useful tidbits). Heck, they reckon that the "VIA Nanobook" and "Easynote XS" are rebrandings of the "Cloudbook", without the vaguest notion of the real relationship between the machines. Just another bit of "news" accomplished by rewriting the press releases with as little thought as possible.

Re:Wow, talk about insightful

[Sockatume]

It doesn't actually qualify as a comparison, come to think of it. They list the different devices without ever actually comparing any of them to eachother.

Re:Wow, talk about insightful

[Constantine XVI]

...Heck, they reckon that the "VIA Nanobook" and "Easynote XS" are rebrandings of the "Cloudbook", without the vaguest notion of the real relationship between the machines. Just FYI, both the Easynote and Cloudbook are based off the Via Nanobook design.

Re:Wow, talk about insightful

[Sockatume]

That's my point exactly! The Nanobook is a reference design, not a commercial product, and the Easynote XS and Cloudbook are just two of the more conservative of the variations upon it. The article implied that all three are rebrandings of the original Cloudbook machine. That there are Nanobook variants with removable screen-side modules, touchpads in different places, and whatnot didn't seem worthy of a mention.

Re:Wow, talk about insightful

[Sockatume]

I should say, it's more of a reference design than a commercial product. I appreciate that VIA seem to want to release their own some time, although it doesn't exist yet.

Goatse

[Anonymous Coward]

Goatse in your face! Goatse up your ass!

You nerds love it.

Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[elrous0]

The assertion that Asus "flipped the laptop world on its head with a stupidly low price point" made in this article simply isn't true. Sub-$500 laptops have been around for some time now. And, for the money, the Asus really isn't even a particularly good deal. For $100 more, you can buy a laptop with an actual 60GB hard drive and much more muscular processor. The main advantage to the Eee isn't its price point, but the fact that it is very small (and the screen is perhaps too small as the parent points out), light, and durable (since it has a solid-state hard drive).

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[Lussarn]

Ultraportables was luxury before the EEE pc came along. Now everyone can own one. That is the main advantage. I've used computers for the last 25 years (and worked with them for 10 years) but I have never owned a laptop. To me they are just bulky, or very expensive if you want small. I'm very excited at these new computers and will buy me a EEE 900 when they are released. Small footprint, and very lightweight does it for me. CPU specs is of no importance for me on a laptop, as long as a webbrowser and the terminal is zippy I don't care.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[KillerBob]

Ultraportables was luxury before the EEE pc came along. Now everyone can own one. That is the main advantage. I've used computers for the last 25 years (and worked with them for 10 years) but I have never owned a laptop. To me they are just bulky, or very expensive if you want small. I'm very excited at these new computers and will buy me a EEE 900 when they are released. Small footprint, and very lightweight does it for me. CPU specs is of no importance for me on a laptop, as long as a webbrowser and the terminal is zippy I don't care.

Admittedly, you and I are in different markets. But I haven't used a desktop computer (barring my HTPC) in almost 2 years. In the long run, I see laptops as the replacement for desktop computing, and want a good balance between performance and portability. Ultraportable is all well and good, but not when it comes at the expense of useability, and to me that means having decent enough specs for applications like gaming. To that end, the Dell is the only one of those reviewed that I'd even consider buying. And in fact, did consider buying when it came time to buy my latest laptop. I'd rather spend that extra $300 and get something that I can actually use for more than just e-mail/surfing.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[Corporate Troll]

Utraportables are *companions* to desktops or desktop-replacements (that's what you describe). Utraportables are "just enough to do something on the move", but that's it. I mean this from a usability perspective, not from power since you can get powerful (but expensive) ultraportables.

You mention gaming, this means that the Dell is out of the question too by the way. (Integrated Graphics: forget it)

You are simply not the target demographic for an ultraportable. Cheap or not. I am, but I'm not shelling out 2000€ for an Ultraportable as they have been costing the last few years.

The Asus EEE is for me: small, usable for browsing, small text editing, etc, while I commute to work with the train. No way in hell, I'd lug around my 15.4" desktop replacement.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[ukemike]

I sometimes argue that the most powerful computer I ever had was my old HP200LX. It was a full blown dos computer that I could fit in a big pocket. It had lotus123 a nice, text editor, a really easy to use database program, a great rpn calculator, and any dos program that didn't require a color screen or fancy graphics. I used to play hack on the bus. It ran on AA batteries and I only had to change them about once per month. It had a meg of memory and I had a 2 meg pcmcia card. It was powerful because having it with me all of the time opened so many possibilities not because it had a blazing processor or a high res screen.

I'm planning on buying an Eee or something similar in the next year or so. I'm holding out for one with a cooler chip and more battery life.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[Corporate Troll]

I understand what you mean. I used to have (still have, but the flatcable to the screen is dead) an Atari Portfolio. Not as powerful as your HP, but damn, did I do a lot on it!

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[Anonymous Coward]

But I haven't used a desktop computer (barring my HTPC) in almost 2 years. In the long run, I see laptops as the replacement for desktop computing, and want a good balance between performance and portability.

The problem is that many tasks are just too much for any laptop. Sure, you can do video editing and compression, play games, and other high-end tasks on a laptop, but those things run so much smoother and better on a desktop that costs far less.

Then, if you do have a laptop that can do some of those things without being too annoying, you end up with one that either weighs too much or has a 1-hour battery life (or 2 hours if you aren't doing anything too strenuous).

And, if you start to fall into the "laptop as desktop", then you end up with the "buy a new machine every 18 months" problem instead of just upgrading a component or two.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[Znork]

In the long run, I see laptops as the replacement for desktop computing,

I dont. For the very same reasons you prefer the laptop to the EEE. Comparatively laptops have horrible price and performance. They mostly have quirky hardware, annoying keyboards and irritating mousepads. You cant cram enough memory into them, it's almost impossible to attach enough screens to them to obtain usable amounts of screen real-estate, and if you come up with something with decent specs they're barely movable anyway. And they all come pre-broken with expensive proprietary li-ion batteries with a usable lifespan of 18 months.

I'd rather spend less money in total and get both a decent desktop _and_ an EEE for the ultraportable part.

To each their own, but like the grandparent I have never found a laptop satisfactory in any aspect, while I have had some experience with ultraportables I've liked (while most recent examples have been far too expensive to serve the purpose. Until the EEE. Which I'll at least take a serious look at).

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[linzeal]

Yeah, maybe if you don't need a workstation to do work. Tell me when I can get a workable CAD laptop with 8 gigs or more of RAM, a real processor, a 24+ inch screen and I will still laugh at it because it lacks any sort of ability to do raid 5 physically. If I can't have redundancy AND performance it is useless to me. Yes, I also have 4 drives in a 1+0 but they are are not what I depend upon when the shit hits the fan.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[Dogtanian]

I used to have (still have, but the flatcable to the screen is dead) an Atari Portfolio. Not as powerful as your HP, but damn, did I do a lot on it! Did that include hacking ATMs? ;-)

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[asc99c]

Exactly my opinion also. We are just reaching the point when a properly useful ultra-portable can be had at a decent price. I looked longingly at the Sony TZ series but couldn't justify spending £2000. I've been seriously considering getting the old EEE, but in the end the screen resolution was a bit too low. The new one is just enough and I will also be buying one. I don't care if Walmart sell a similarly priced full size and full featured laptop - I've got one of those and that's not what I am after.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[WuphonsReach]

Mmm... I do the majority of my work on a laptop (Toshiba Tecras with 1400x1050 screens in the past, a Thinkpad T61 widescreen 1680x1050 now.) Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, a pair of 160GB HDs and a 1680x1050 screen go a long ways towards making this doable. My old machine was a 1.7GHz P4 with only 1GB RAM.

Is it portable? Yes. But it's not an ultralight. But at least I can pickup and go somewhere else to get work done without having to keep machines setup at each location.

Do I own a desktop? You bet. I have two to do heavy lifting (both have about 2TB of disk space for video editing or other work). And if I needed more then 4GB of RAM, then obviously a server/workstation motherboard with room for 32 or 64GB would be a better choice.

Or maybe I'd still use the laptop as my primary and just connect to the "beast" machine to run special jobs. Which would be even better because I could then disconnect and do other work while it churns.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[tylernt]

I hear you -- except for me, it was a Psion Series 3c. Big enough to edit text documents and spreadsheets (and play games), small enough to fit in a jacket pocket, and lasted forever on two AA batteries. With the advent of the smartphone and subsequent death of palmtops, I have yet to see anything that's the equivalent of the Psion.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[jhol13]

Actually even Netbeans is very usable on the 701. The startup is slow (it seems to try to connect to net and wait ~10s before giving up), it is slightly sluggish without "over"clocking (from 640 to 900), but usable.

But with 900MHz and after it has started it is quite usable even for debugging. The full screen mode helps a lot.
If I just could get rid of the bottom-most status bar :-)

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[really?]

Dugg for Terminator reference. Err ... oops, wrong site.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[Corporate Troll]

The T1 will have to kill you if I tell you. ;-) I do have the parallel port interface, which was used to transfer files between a "real PC" and the Portfolio. Whatever you think of it, the Portfolio rocked and I'd love to be able to repair it....

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[KillerBob]

You mention gaming, this means that the Dell is out of the question too by the way. (Integrated Graphics: forget it)

Funny... I do my gaming on a Dell Inspiron 1520... 256MB GeForce 8600GT in it. *shrugs* 15.4" 1680x1050 screen.

Re:Asus Eee hardly groundbreaking

[Corporate Troll]

Yeah, you say it yourself... "GeForce 8600GT". Integrated Graphics doesn't only mean they are integrated on the motherboard, it usually implies that it uses system RAM for the graphics card, and frankly: good luck with that. Your graphics card is not "integrated", it is a module on your motherboard that contains it's own VRAM. (Hey, in desktop PC's we call that indeed a "Graphics card", wow!) Yeah, on some laptops the graphics card is actually replaceable.

You do not have to believe me: wikipedia article

Too sketchy

[Arkaic]

I did read the first few reviews. They were pretty superficial, based on solely on vendor supplied info or early prototypes. They need to write another article when they get some actual hands on experience with all of the models listed.

EEE pc is less than a mobile

[192939495969798999]

The EEE pc only matters because it is less expensive than similarly-featured smartphones. A pc that costs more than a smartphone but is small doesn't have the same value to the consumer. Conversely, if fully-featured smartphones (i.e. pc-equivalent) come down in price, one could expect to see laptop sales dwindling.

Re:EEE pc is less than a mobile

[Anonymous Coward]

You can't touch type on a smartphone. Contrary to what you might assume, most of us were able to touch type on EeePC after about a week of ownership.

Re:EEE pc is less than a mobile

[Mr. Slippery]

Conversely, if fully-featured smartphones (i.e. pc-equivalent) come down in price, one could expect to see laptop sales dwindling.

Really? How do you intend to get a PC class keyboard and display into a smartphone?

I love my Centro. I love my Zaurus. And I love my little old Sony Vaio "ultraportable" notebook. They all hit different points in the tradeoff between keyboard and display size versus portability.

Re:EEE pc is less than a mobile

[Asic Eng]

Well on the EeePC I can run Linux-Applications in the same way I can on a conventional machine. It doesn't need to be adapted for a different input method or anything like that. For example I can take an application like hanzim (a tool for learning chinese characters with a tcl/tk GUI) and just use it, I can use the same office suite as I use on my main PC etc. Depends what you want to do, I guess - I wouldn't pay $300 for a smartphone, but I really like the EeePC.

Re:EEE pc is less than a mobile

[Culture20]

How do you intend to get a PC class keyboard and display into a smartphone?

Docking port. My old Ipaq 3975 has a sleeve that allows for VGA-out, and a foldable full size keyboard. That's with tech that's years old.

Just wait until you get a bluetoothy-style wireless docking port/monitor/dumb-terminal that uses whatever "new smartphone" that's sitting on its docking area as its CPU/RAM/Storage. Every CEO in the world will want one "new smartphone" and five docking stations. Once they're inexpensive enough, most home users would use these too. Unfortunately, they'd give information security departments fits, so no one in a corporation but the high muckety-mucks and salesmen will be able to use them for business. Unfortunately, laser-projection still seems to use too much energy, otherwise, it would be yet another way to have a large display in a small package.

Re:EEE pc is less than a mobile

[psychodelicacy]

Absolutely. My smartphone is great for checking email on the go or finding taxi firms, but there's no way I could use it for anything more extended. It certainly couldn't double as a word processor. In contrast, I can use my Eee for writing papers, programming - indeed, for pretty much anything other than graphics programs or gaming. Having little girly hands for using on the little girly keyboard helps, of course :)

Re:EEE pc is less than a mobile

[LynnwoodRooster]

I use the Eleksen Bluetooth roll-up keyboard. Full sized, pretty easy to use (not as fast as a full keyboard, but I'm as fast on it as I am on a friend's EeePC), and connects to my Samsun i760 SmartPhone via bluetooth.

I think the Eee hits a pretty small niche - not quite laptop status (too limited to be a main computer), and a bit bigger than a SmartPhone (bigger screen, bigger keyboard). Kind of like an oversized PDA.

Personally, I prefer my i760 and Eleksen for quick checks (i760 browses nicely over broadband wireless, whipping out the keyboard for longer e-mails is simple, and the combination is VERY small and lasts for 6+ hours of browsing/e-mail on a single charge), and a decent laptop to serve as my main computer.

EeePCs and the like really are targeted at a small niche; folks expecting it to take over the low-cost end of the laptop market are missing the point of a laptop - it's a replacement for a full blown computer, and usually serves as a person's main computer. The EeePC comes up short in that regard.

15" screen? misses the point of the article

[Animaether]

the article is about the 'ultraportable' notebook (whatever that means, I guess just "small notebook, bigger than a PDA") market. anything with a 15" screen need not apply, unless that screen folds in / rolls up into a smaller package.

Once you go to a smaller form factor (not just the screen - but the entire device), costs tend to go up for almost all of the components of the machine, as well as designing things so that they'll fit in there, without overheating problems / too much RF interference, etc.

Re:15" screen? misses the point of the article

[Anonymous Coward]

"the article is about the 'ultraportable' notebook (whatever that means)"

It means something the size of a notebook, instead of something the size of a laptop computer

(no idea why manufacturers started calling laptops "notebooks" when they were still as large and heavy as big hardback reference book - what kind of real notebook is comparable to a 14" or more iBook?)

Anyone have a real comparison?

[Raleel]

No really... I'm interested in seeing a real comparison between many of these boxes. Yes, I'm also too lazy to go do the research myself :)

history repeats?

[ch-chuck]

It reminds this old timer of the early 8-bit pc wars on the 1980's, when Atari/Commodore/Apple/TI/Sinclair and others were slugging it out. It was brutal - TI dumped their load and got out of the market - Atari was tanking big time - Timex/Sinclair eventually came out with a minimalist Z80/ROM BASIC box with a membrane keyboard for ultra cheap - then came the crash of 1983.

Re:history repeats?

[meringuoid]

Timex/Sinclair eventually came out with a minimalist Z80/ROM BASIC box with a membrane keyboard for ultra cheap - then came the crash of 1983.

In America, maybe, but Sinclair made an absolute killing with those machines in the UK. The ZX80 and ZX81 pretty much established the home computer market, and then the Spectrum turned up with colour graphics and became the standard machine for a generation of gamers and hackers. It was a long time before Nintendo managed to break that market; even as late as the 16-bit era, the Amiga was serious competition for the SNES and Mega Drive.

The interesting thing about that era was that these machines were largely incompatible with each other, but that didn't matter so much - they were cheap. Vastly cheaper than the contemporary IBM and Apple machines. Will the mass market accept compatibility troubles from a non-Microsoft machine, if it means they can have it for peanuts? Quite possibly.

Re:history repeats?

[Dogtanian]

Spectrum turned up with colour graphics and became the standard machine for a generation of gamers and hackers Yep; although the C64 was quite popular here, the Spectrum was the clear leader. Although (slower processor aside), the C64 was clearly the better machine, it was also more expensive.

The Spectrum probably did better for a couple of reasons- firstly, the C64 was sold in the US at an almost unsustainably low price (one reason it did so well there), but I don't think it was ever that cheap in the UK. Second, people in the UK (particularly back then) had less disposable income than those in the US.

You're right about Nintendo; one key difference between the UK and US was that the 8-bit consoles never dominated in the way that the NES did in the US; they did reasonable business, but the market remained home-computer driven (*) until the 16-bit Mega Drive (Genesis) and SNES arrived in the early 1990s and took over the low end gaming market.

(*) And even then, the NES wasn't the biggest-selling 8-bit console... it was outsold by the Sega Master System (considered a flop in the US and Japan) thanks to better marketing and (I'm guessing) Nintendo's indifference towards Europe.

it just works

[pgfault]

Cnet writes:
"Okay, the hype overshadowed the fact that it's rather slow, sometimes unreliable and nearly impossible to type on if you had grown-up fingers, but these are minor details."

Minor details, perhaps, but I disagree. 900MHz is adequate for web, and text processing. Unreliable? Hardly. Zero crashes on mine. The keyboard is quite usable, once you teach your right pinky not to hit the UpArrow when going for the '/' or Shift keys. The three drawbacks I see are:
1) It's rootable out of the box (samba) http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2008/Feb/0117.html
2) Asus didn't provide an easy way to obtain updates for the masses.
3) The fan runs continuously after about 10 minutes of use.

I installed eeeXubuntu along with compiz-fusion and now it's a great little machine.

For the money and it's size, it certainly gets the job done.

Re:it just works

[mysqlrocks]

Can you tell me a little bit more about your experience with eeeXubuntu? Does everything work? How hard was it to install and configure? Did you blow away the existing OS or install it to another drive? How easy is it to upgrade/patch? I'm considering getting an Eee PC when the 8.9" version comes out but I'm not crazy about the built-in Xandros OS. I was considering FreeBSD or PCBSD but it looks like there aren't drivers yet for all of the hardware so eeeXubuntu looks like the best bet.

Re:it just works

[Paul Carver]

Any idea how it compares to a Fujitsu P2120? I've had my P2120 for several years and have replaced both of its batteries so I still get about 8-10 hours of battery life on a charge but I am starting to get dissatisfied with the speed.

I just tried using Thunderbird again for email, but will probably revert back to using mutt over an ssh session because Thunderbird is so damn slow on this machine. Firefox is also a pig. I've got my P2120 maxed out with a half a gig of RAM but I still have to restart Firefox every week or so because it just grinds to a halt if I leave it running longer.

My suspicion is that the Eee PC is probably not significantly faster than the P2120 and might even be slower.

Re:it just works

[Kirth]

1) Like "an upgrade is available, please click to install"
2) Like "an upgrade is available, please click to install"
3) Fans? I'm missing those on my EeePC.

I really don't know what kind of EeePC you got.

Re:it just works

[Have Brain Will Rent]

I'd add that (according to gf anyhow)

4. the touchpad seems to be getting less and less sensitive as time goes by.

Re:it just works

[pgfault]

An excellent resource is for eeeXubuntu (and the Eee in general) is http://wiki.eeeuser.com/ubuntu:eeexubuntu:home.

While being a work in progress, the wiki for eeeXubuntu is quite good. My installation was slightly different because I wanted to try eeeXubuntu before I committed to putting it on the internal drive. I have a 4GB USB stick that I partitioned into 700MB+3300MB, and made vfat32 + ext3 partitions. Then I booted the CDROM as mentioned on the wiki and copied in the CD files to the first partition on the USB. Then I booted the Eee from the USB and installed onto the second partition of the USB. I had to do some grub work on the internal sda to get it to dual boot.

After about a week of using eeeXubuntu from the USB I decided to overwrite my internal drive. I made a single partition, made an ext3 fs, copied over the data, updated fstab, and ran grub. Rebooted, and it works great.

Like many, I swapped out the 512MB SO-DIMM for 2GB. They're pretty cheap these days. Not sure if the DIMM is creating more heat and causing the fan to run. Also, I don't hibernate it - shutdown/startup is reasonably quick.

As for the comments regarding updates, I honestly don't recall seeing notices that updates were available (yes, the network was up). I hope Samba is fixed.

In terms of the original article, I have to agree with the other posters. C-net has gone downhill. The Eee isn't in the same league as 14.1" or 15.4" notebooks for under $1k (US). I should mention that you can also score a refurbed Dell XPS M1330 for under $1k (no, I don't work for Dell - I was just considering it as an option).

I read stories but have never seen one.

[jellomizer]

I have been hearing people saying how the Eee PC will bring Linux to the personal user, How it is really popular... But I havent seen any evidence of this is Real Life. I see more people eyeing MacBooks and MacBook Pros, and Lenovo ThinkPads.

For my ultramoble computing I am happier with a Sub $500.00 iPhone (Even without Jail Break or the new custom software coming out) then with those other systems. It is small and Ultra-Ultra Portable it fits in my pocket. It is goog at web browsing, email, taking notes, Heck it works as phone too... And you get Wireless via 802.11g or Threw a Cell Service. Which gives me more connection to the internet then I had with any laptop without having to pay an additional $100 for.

Smartphones in general do a better job as ultra portibles then ultraportibles do.

Re:I read stories but have never seen one.

[IkeTo]

I've seen one during a ride on the train, the one just besides me pull out his Eee and start editing his homework during that 2 hour ride. I think there are quite a lot of things that those little PC-like devices do much better than a smartphone or even than a palm. This is especially true for those of us who are not addicted to listening to music or watching movies (even if they have to resort to tiny screens).

Re:I read stories but have never seen one.

[IANAAC]

Smartphones in general do a better job as ultra portibles then ultraportibles do.

For basic web browsing and email (not convinced of even note-taking) and entertainment purposes, yes I can agree with that statement.

But try and do any real work involving full document processing or spreadsheets, etc. and a smartphone doesn't cut it. Neither does a Nokia N800/N810/whatever is in the pipes. And that's where these devices are attractive: they weigh 2 pounds or under and are easily thrown into any bag. For people who travel often for business this works.

Re:I read stories but have never seen one.

[Corporate Troll]

I used to have a Highscreen Bluenote in 1994. That was what a full-size laptop was back then! I used to do use it on my 2h ride on the train to go to University each week.

It was pretty compact, probably still a bit larger than the EEE, and the screen was a 8" colour LCD at 800x600. You could work quite well on it (OS/2 ran on it wonderfully) One of the RAM modules went back, and back in those days laptop RAM was proprietary.

It sure was heavy and thick though.

So, why this post: to tell you, yes, I am toroughly convinced that the EEE PC is just right for train-travelling people wanting to type in an assignment or read some webpages/PDFs. Back in the time we all did (at least those that could afford it *grin*)

Re:I read stories but have never seen one.

[Asic Eng]

I have been hearing people saying how the Eee PC will bring Linux to the personal user, How it is really popular... But I havent seen any evidence of this is Real Life.

I'm not sure I understand your argument there. Are you comparing sales figures from e.g. Amazon and other companies (see e.g.: http://linux.slashdot.org/linux/07/12/29/1959244.shtml ) with anecdotal evidence observed amongst your acquaintances?

Re:I read stories but have never seen one.

[jellomizer]

I guess you don't do the same type of spreadsheets I do. I usually Max Out an entire Core (Excel doesn't work multi-core) on some of my calculation. Those Ultra Portibles wouldn't be useful for me. Because by the time my train ride as ended... It may have finished processing my sheet.
Even many word processing documents that I make often will get slugged on these ultraportible. When I give a document it is often filled with Highresolution Printing Press graphics.

Now I am not disagreing with your statements... I tend to push the stuff to as close of the breaking point I can and for average user they would just do basic stuff like that. But it is an issue of if they are doing Spreadsheets and Documents and they have those ultra cheap and portible laptops then they are probably a student and not using it for professional work. (As work needs 100% MS OFFICE compatiblity) and Office is a pig anyways.

Re:I read stories but have never seen one.

[LuisAnaya]

Must be an European train. I tried to use a laptop in the Acela (NJ to Washington DC) and got dizzy :-S. This was with a normal Dell laptop, I just can imagine doing my homework for 2 hours without a barf bag.

I guess I'm old.

Re:I read stories but have never seen one.

[IANAAC]

And you say smartphones do a better job (that WAS the point of your original post, correct?).

I can tell you that I use OO.org (2.3.1- with some useful add-ons) professionally (haven't been a student in decades) on an Eee when I travel, which is often enough that that's the reason I bought it, and don't have the problems you describe. I'm not talking about train rides, but regular business travel.

If you're using Word to process "Highresolution Printing Press" graphics, you're using the wrong tool. Seriously. Your comment on large Excel spreadsheets is certainly valid, but again, that's the program, not the process.

Re:I read stories but have never seen one.

[pgfault]

I have been hearing people saying how the Eee PC will bring Linux to the personal user, How it is really popular... But I havent seen any evidence of this is Real Life.

I'm as big a Linux enthusiast as many people on /., but the facts are the facts. Asus is or will soon be offering the Eee with a slightly stripped down version of XP. It was great the Asus rolled out the Eee with Linux first. Sure, Xandros leaves a bit to be desired, but for the average user it's not bad. The wireless configuration tool is still lacking in some areas (full WPA support, for example). Someone unafraid of the terminal window will be able to get wpa_supplicant working correctly, but the number of people in the masses who are willing/able to do this is small. There are probably other things that Xandros on the Eee could do better, but for a first cut by Asus, I have to give them credit and not beat them up too much. Is it a Window's killer? Not even close. However, one spoonful at a time...

For the comparable systems mentioned in the article, it doesn't take much to infer that OS licensing costs become appreciable at this hardware price point.

Dell vostro.

[leuk_he]

The dell price is lowered by a lot by the 60 pound delivery costs DELL charges. You do not see that amount until you continue in the ordering price. Something to keep in mind, because there is no option not to pay those costs. ever.

Re:Dell vostro.

[Anonymous Coward]

You do not see that amount until you continue in the ordering price.

I ordered a (UK) Dell about 1 week ago and the first price quoted that I saw for each model was the full price including VAT and delivery.

Try going to www.dell.co.uk and selecting 'home desktops'. You get things like this:
INSPIRON

Price From £269

Includes VAT & Shipping

Now if you're choosing from the business section, VAT and shipping are excluded; but I'd say that's normal practice.

Re:Dell vostro.

[KillerBob]

The dell price is lowered by a lot by the 60 pound delivery costs DELL charges. You do not see that amount until you continue in the ordering price. Something to keep in mind, because there is no option not to pay those costs. ever.

So buy from the Inspiron line of product, instead of the Vostro. 2 weeks ago my mum took delivery on an Inspiron 1525 that, taxes included, cost about $700 CAD. About 325 pounds, if my math is right. Delivery was free, and it had 2GB of DDR2, 120GB HDD, DVD-RW, 1.6GHz Core2 Duo.... And, oddly, she actually likes the Vista Home Premium it came with. *shrugs*

Re:Dell vostro.

[iainl]

Yes, $700 CAD when thrown through an exchange rate calculator works out at £325. But then you add on Magic UK Ripoff Taxes, and you'll find that a 1525 of that spec. is £428.99 on the Dell site. More expensive than anything in that lineup, and certainly a lot more than the £220 Eee.

This article is full of flaws

[Anonymous Coward]

First they say the Eee PC is slow. I have Windows XP installed on my Eee PC and it is just as responsive as Windows XP is on my quad core box. It plays postage stamp flash videos, HD videos, etc. exactly as my larger box does. Except it boots up much faster and generally loads everything faster due to the flash drive. What planet is this reviewer living on?

Next, they say that the 8.9" Eee will have 800x480 resolution. It will not. It will have 1024x600 resolution. Get your facts right before writing an article like this.

Finally, they say the Eee is unreliable. Any computer is as unreliable as the software is. If you use reliable software, you won't have any reliability problems with it. You can drop your Eee, give it to your baby to smash on the floor, and it will come out in one piece and still work.

The only thing they have correct is that the Eee is a huge invention. Not necessarily the price, but the form factor of a 9" laptop is amazing. I have carried mine all over the world with me, and you cannot beat the size/weight. You get used to typing on it.

I also own an OLPC, but it is too heavy to lug around normally. I disagree with the looks - everyone I have shown mine to loves it. Hardcore Linux fans (i.e. Slashdot) will love it. Personally, I don't like the distro on it, but you do have the ability to install other ones on it.

Packard Bell?

[alcmaeon]

Am I the only one who had to do a double-take on this one? Then I £ sign.

Goofy MSRP vs Retail Gimmicks

[N8F8]

Under $1K huh? I'll translate. I got a decked out Dell lappy for $600. What they really mean is a $350 notebook.

From a new owner

[dr_canak]

I purchased the ASUS EEE 4G from newegg about 6 weeks ago. There are several models to choose from, and some idiosyncracies from one model to the next. The 4G has an accessible door on the underside which allows the user to upgrade the RAM module (stock 512MB). In addition to the 4G, I purchased

- an 8Gb SDHC card
- 1 GB RAM module
- XP Home (OEM)
- DVD/CD burner
- Small Laptop Bag
- 4GB USB stick
- 1 set of samsung portable speakers (from WOOT!)

So i'm in for around $700.00 when all was said and done.

What I like:
- Ultra portable and lightweight.
- Very good battery life (around 2.5-3 hours under heavy load). This can be increased by switching off the built in webcam, switching off the wireless internet (assuming you're not browsing), reducing screen brightness, and reducing fan speed
- Ability to overclock. Someone hacked up an app that allows the user to control cpu and fan speed
- Change screen resolutions. Someone hacked up an app allowing the user to select a number of non-native screen resolutions to improve readability and desktop realestate.
- Boot up time. Mine boots XP in around 60 secs, which includes about 10 background apps (antispyware, antivirus, overclock app, screen res app, virtual desktop app, battery monitor etc...). Some people have reported an NLITE'd install of XP booting in under 30 secs.

What I don't like:
- the keyboard is small and awkward. Touchtyping is damn near impossible. Better to use some variant of 4 finger touch typing
- the stock linux install. I've used linux extensively in the past, but just don't use it enough on the desktop to achieve a high degree of familiarity. I used it for the first week, then just decided to switch to XP.
- I would imagine this thing is the opposite of "ruggedized." It feels perfectly fine, but I would hate to drop it from more than a foot. I would imagine it would be in pieces. It doesn't exactly feel sturdy.
- The need to buy a bunch of extra stuff to really make it shine. Right out of the box it's useful, but with the added purchases above, it really becomes a very decent travel laptop replacement. But those added purchases essentially doubled the price of the stock ASUS. I did enough research to know that very few folks are really using a stock machine only.
- The stock speakers are just too soft to overcome any ambient noise.
- Getting XP installed without an external CDROM can be a real challenge.

Going to this website (http://forum.eeeuser.com/) will tell you more than you ever wanted to know about what people are doing with these things, and how to do it.

hth,
jeff

Re:From a new owner

[Anonymous Coward]

the stock linux install. I've used linux extensively in the past, but just don't use it enough on the desktop to achieve a high degree of familiarity. I used it for the first week, then just decided to switch to XP.

Moron.

Re:From a new owner

[Chemicalscum]

I agree!

Re:From a new owner

[MrAngryForNoReason]

- I would imagine this thing is the opposite of "ruggedized." It feels perfectly fine, but I would hate to drop it from more than a foot. I would imagine it would be in pieces. It doesn't exactly feel sturdy.

Anecdotal evidence only but a friend of mine has an Eee and inadvertantly launched it across a classroom by tripping over the power cable, it survived without a scratch after flying off a high desk onto a hard floor.

I can imagine that short of treading on it or getting it wet there isn't anything you could do within normal usage that would be more likely to damage it.

Re:From a new owner

[legirons]

"What I like:
- Boot up time. Mine boots XP in around 60 secs, which includes about 10 background apps (antispyware, antivirus, overclock app, screen res app, virtual desktop app, battery monitor etc...). Some people have reported an NLITE'd install of XP booting in under 30 secs."

This thing boots-up in 20 seconds (being one of its main features), and you just paid hundreds of dollars extra [on XP] to triple the boot time?!?

Re:From a new owner

[Skuldo]

I asume you have used the shitty Xandros distro? It really is terrible.

Re:From a new owner

[Skuldo]

XP Home is $89.99, don't exaggerate. He has it badly configured and full of unnecessary apps.

Re:From a new owner

[legirons]

XP Home is $89.99, don't exaggerate

So include the cost of antispyware + antivirus then...

Re:From a new owner

[dr_canak]

Unnecessary is a matter of opinion I suppose,

and I agree that some of the apps I'm loading (WinFlip, a better battery monitor, and a couple extra's) certainly wouldn't be high on other persons list of necessary apps. But they work fine for me. And as I pointed out, persons with a stipped down NLite installs are getting much quicker boot times. Of courese, NLited installs come with headaches of their own.

My setup is not poorly configured. I've done all the optimization I can, given the apps I choose to run. The only thing I haven't done is setup a RAM drive, but I'm not sure that would really effect boot time per se. And I don't feel like dealing with the loss of info associated with the use of a RAM drive. I certainly can live with a 1 minute boot time. It pretty much beats anything else I have or use on a daily basis.

To the other poster, my antivirus and antispam are freebeeies off the web, so you are right. My XP home was around $89.00. Certainly not triple the cost. And worth the cost and added boot time given some of the apps I *need* to run given my job and responsibilities.

jeff

Re:From a new owner

[Skuldo]

I don't see why you need these apps loading at startup? Windows Firewall and responsible browsing with a patched copy of windows is all is needed. The only program I have loading at startup on my nLited is the 800x600/480 switcher and the ACPI controls, I get less than 30 seconds.

'Tis an ill wind that blows no minds...

[MsGeek]

MSI Wind, £225
If there's one laptop that could seriously end the Eee's reign, it's the MSI Wind. We believe it could be the perfect blend of portability and usability, due to the fact it's slightly larger than an Eee PC, with a bigger keyboard and a choice of screen sizes.

Eight- and 10-inch versions are available, as are Silverthorne CPUs ranging from 1GHz to 1.5GHz. You even get a choice of hard drive types: there are solid-state models for anyone prone to dropping things, and 2.5-inch models for anyone who wants to store lots of multimedia files.

Best of all, the entry-level Wind is set to cost just 299 (£225), or 699 (£530) for the high-end model. Like all good uber-portables, it's available in a variety of colours including blue, silver and pink.

That sounds like the cream of the crop. MSI is a fairly quality manufacturer, and they are offering multiple configurations. The Cloudbook was promising up until I got my hands on one, however, and UGH! You can't get around that funky micro trackpad on one side and clicking buttons on another, and the damn thing gets hotter than my MacBook when crunching video. And that wasn't under any load at all.

Really, what people need to compare the Eee and its progeny to is not full-sized laptops but PDAs. The Eee, the Wind, the OLPC, etc. are more like overgrown Palms than mini notebooks. If you look at them that way, suddenly their uses present themselves. If you expect full-sized laptop performance, particularly desktop replacement laptop performance, from one of these, you are in for a rude awakening.

Re:'Tis an ill wind that blows no minds...

[psychodelicacy]

"Really, what people need to compare the Eee and its progeny to is not full-sized laptops but PDAs."

I kinda agree with you. Though the pda is a slightly different proposition in that it works like having a paper diary/notebook in your pocket - you can just take it out and add things without worrying about boot time or loading the right program. Still, my Eee cost less than my pda did, and if I had to lose one of them it would be the pda, hands down.

World of Whatcrack?

[tepples]

a Linux-based ultraportable notebook that wowed

Yeah, but what about flutter and harmonic distortion? ;)
How much do the MMORPGs "FLuTTeR" and "HaRMoNiC DiSToRTioN" cost per month to play? Are they more expensive than WoW? Do they need a beefier PC? Or can they scale down to run on a subnotebook like these?

You don't say?

[PPCAvenger]

From the press release that was linked to:

"Although petite in size, this high performance miniature computer truly performs and comes with a durable, shock-proof solid-state design - making it easy for housewives, office ladies and student alike to carry and connect to the Internet."

So what you're saying is that women are as weak, frail, clumsy and careless as children.

  Who comes up with this stuff?

Re:You don't say?

[MorpheousMarty]

To be fair they say housewives and office ladies need a durable, shock-proof solid state design as much as students, not children. Thinking back to my college buddies I'm sure this implies that women are alcoholics, not weak or frail (definitely clumsy and careless though).

Re:You don't say?

[Anonymous Coward]

someone who speaks the truth?

I must say, it's most refreshing to be here on /. where you can make statements like that without fear of getting your head bitten off, with there being no weak, frail, clumsy and careless as children people for miles around.




baiting: endless fun

The article is fascinating...

[Anonymous Coward]

I saw little (if any) favoritism towards Windows-based machines. For once, they compared the notebooks on the basis of hardware alone. The IT press is finally admitting that you don't need ANY particular OS to use commodity apps in the ultramobile world. Also notice how the only time Vista was mentioned at all, it was to discuss the price of an XP downgrade. For all the advertising money MS pumps into IT publications, I expected much more Redmond "flavor" to the article.

I don't understand

[thePowerOfGrayskull]

Prices for these usable machines seem to start at ~150USD. I don't understand, then, why I /still/ can't find a sub-100USD thin client device with VGA out, understands X11, WiFi and has USB inputs for keyboard/mouse. These seem to start at $250, with $400-500 being more common -- especially among those that can connect to an X11 server. Given that they surely can't be cheaper to make than a fully functional mini-laptop with HDD, why the hell don't they exist?

Re:I don't understand

[thePowerOfGrayskull]

Say it with me... preview. I wrote:

Given that they surely can't be cheaper And meant to say:

Given that they surely must be cheaper

Re:I don't understand

[afidel]

Scales of economy, there are a hell of a lot more notebooks made then thin clients. Also when the alternative to running an X11 thin client is running a full blown Unix workstation the cost justification for even a relatively expensive thin term is easy.

Re:I don't understand

[thePowerOfGrayskull]

True that. Still... I'm watching the company I work for pay for thousands and thousands of WYSE terminals at $300 a pop, and I have to assume that here isn't the only place doing this.

Under $1000 WTF ?

[steelseth]

Considering you can get the Lenovo v200 at that price tag, this article is a joke. The MSI wind looks promising for 300 EUR but until the release we just don't know what 300 EUR will get you. Where does the Vostro fit in ???

Re:From a old owner

[xzvf]

I've had mine since December and it has stood up to the rigors of travel. I've added a usb mouse and a bluetooth dongle and upgraded the OS to Ubuntu (I don't see the fascination with putting XP on it). Tough keyboard for extended typing, but a good investment overall to compliment my main work laptop when traveling. I use it walking around data centers for console access.

Just bought one

[British]

I went on a business trip to Taipei, and bought one on the last day. It's the 4g model with webcam(whichever one that is). After changing it from Chinese to English in 1 minute, I was up & away. The only downside is it can't see my wireless network, but it now sees wireless networks my mainstream laptop can't see around my house. While it can't do everything a laptop can, it is great for taking to the coffee shop for a quick web or email fix.

Voice Command is hilarious. You can amuse your non computer-savy friends by saying "COMPUTER WEB" and it fires up Firefox. Love the crude computer voice it blares out. Just wish it had the "computer" sound from Star Trek:TNG for the added futurism.

I am surprisingly LIKING the hacked-up Linux they used on this. It's even easier to use than Ubuntu. Their simple frontend GUI is actually pleasant to use. I was surprised to login to my linux samba server and have it work on the first try. Just wish I could find the place to change my EEE's computer name/workgroup.

Their wireless connectivity thing is better than Windows, listing connectivity percentages and such, and a text window output of the progress of connecting to the AP. Wish Windows was more like that.

While the keyboard takes getting used to, I like the Function key bindings to various functions(speaker, wireless, etc) to the top row. I have some typing experience on tiny keyboards on its spiritial successor, the Zeos Pocket PC, made 18 years prior. The zeos' keyboard is a bit more "keyboardish"(ie more travel to the keys), but the ASUS one is just fine.

I wonder if some marketing guy had a Zeos pocket pc and thought "hey, let's make an updated version of this!".

It cost me almost NT12000 and to me, is worth every penny. Just wish the bag was a bit bigger to hold the power supply.

Re:Just bought one

[ZERO1ZERO]

Never used one yet, but if it's anything like normal linux, the samba config will be in /etc/samba/smb.conf

Edit this file with a text editor and change the workgroup value.

Running on 3 AAA batteries? Yep.

[SockPuppet_9_5]

If all you need is a fully sized keyboard that you use for writing only, then the original Alphasmart is for you.

One of the versions (the "Dana") is what my wife has written the larger part of her last three or four manuscripts on. Runs on 3 rechargeable AAA batteries, and it's instant on, instant save, instant off. The originals were used in schools, but the company was bought by Palm, and the new versions became too expensive for kids.

Re:Running on 3 AAA batteries? Yep.

[sammyo]

Alphasmarts are great for input only. Kinda like the cat editor, you know cat >important_file.c ... Very cool if one needs to type for hours, oh say, mind dump on a long plane ride, but really, uploading to the phone for editing would be easier than the Asmart one line 'screen'.

Monthly cost of a "smart phone" kills the deal

[walterbyrd]

At least for me. What does an Apple iPhone cost? $150 a month?

With an EeePC, I can go to a hotspot and get an internet connection.

What's the goal? Cheap OR small?

[gelfling]

I bought a Lenovo N100 3000 0768 with a bag with a 3 year depot repair and warranty with Lojack with XP with tax and shipping for $998.00.

Not the smallest, cheapest, fastest or lightest machine out there but probably one of the lowest 3 year TCO's around.

Re:What's the goal? Cheap OR small?

[Rogue Haggis Landing]

Do the Lenovo-branded laptops really carry with them expectations of reliability in the same ballpark as the Thinkpads? It's not a rhetorical question; I don't know either way, but I've not heard that they do.

More to the general point, cheap and small aren't the major division in laptops. I see five: speed, size, cost, reliability/ruggedness, and battery life. I think that most laptops are going to be judged on the first three: price, size, and speed. At the moment, a laptop can hope to be be entirely successful in two of these three areas, but not all three, or it can be adequate in all three. The consumer then has to decide on his priorities.

For me, it's price and size. That's why my "laptop" is a Nokia 770 with a folding bluetooth keyboard!

Re:What's the goal? Cheap OR small?

[gelfling]

I think they do, yes. In fact Lenovo is less likely to churn out 3 million different subvariants of each model which I believe lends to them a standardization and reliability not apparent with some of the Thinkpads. For instance in our corporate setting we have LOTS of hardware problems with T41, T60, T61 models and replacement parts are not only hard to find but hard to figure out which part model FRU you need.

In my own humble opinion I cannot understand what the panache of Thinkpads is anymore relative to Lenovo models. I can understand the appeal of the higher end TP's geared more towards executives, but we don't get those anyway. To their credit, after more than a year of using a TP trackpoint, I would rather use it and find trackpads a pain.

Re:What's the goal? Cheap OR small?

[himurabattousai]

Most people don't know that Lenovo has (almost) always built ThinkPads. IBM probably paid a huge chunk of money to make sure that the laptops built under their brand were good machines. All that happened to have ThinkPads sold under the Lenovo brand was that the rights to use the name were sold to the company that had (almost) always built the machines that wore that name. Therefore, yes, Lenovo ThinkPads do carry the same expectations by those who know as did the IBM ThinkPads. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if the quality improved because Lenovo can't hide behind someone else's brand now.

More photos

[barl0w2]

At CES they had an EeePC next to a Dell 1330 and so I snapped a few photos.

http://flickr.com/photos/barl0w/2180093376/

Keyboard felt OK - something that I could get use to, but I'm waiting for the 9" screen to be released.

Race to the bottom?

[Jimithing DMB]

Sure, the Eee PC is an extremely cheap laptop but at the same time there are all kinds of other laptops on the market. For instance, as the article points out, Asus itself makes the MacBook Pro. In between those extremes there are all sorts of other laptops on the market.

And so what? The Eee PC is specifically designed to be a cheap commodity item made of other cheap commodity items with no significant value add. And there's no real race to the bottom because the commoditization of one thing makes adding value easier up the chain. We are only just starting to see the beginning of what can be done with the Eee. Geeks will pick up 10 of them and do something with them in their garage.

One thing that might come out of this though is that the laptops just above its price range will have to add significant functionality in order to sell. As I understand it, they do. A lot of people are pointing out that for $100 more you can get significantly higher specs although with the tradeoff of a heavier laptop. This is good though as it sets the bar higher for the higher-end equipment. For instance, no one is going to confuse a MacBook Air for an Eee PC even though they have the common theme of being small.

Well I bought Vista Ultimate retail...

[anss123]

...and it works fine, but I don't really miss Vista when sitting on a XP box. DWM manager is nice and all, but Vista's supposedly improved search is plain annoying. Searches that find stuff on an XP box often yields nothing on Vista; even IE7's history search function is a step backwards and is now no better than Firefox.

Missing out on Vista is no great loss. As for Linux, it's free so I got no complaints :p

Re:Well I bought Vista Ultimate retail...

[tcolberg]

Yeah, what I can't believe is that for all the touting MSFT did for their improved search, when I tried it I was terribly disappointed. I was trying to open an .nfo on my sister's new Vista laptop. I right clicked to find the "Open with..." menu so I could open the file in notepad.exe, but the menu wasn't there. Rather than going through the file tree to the Windows folder, I thought I'd be clever to click on the search field right there in the top of the window and use that new fangled search to find "notepad.exe". So I type it in and wait, and wait, and after a minute and a half, Vista tells me that "notepad.exe" does not exist. After 15 secs of going through the tree manually, I did my task and sorrowfully lament that I didn't have the option to order that laptop for her without Vista.

In other words, a fallapart knockoff...

[sethstorm]

And so what? The Eee PC is specifically designed to be a cheap commodity item made of other cheap commodity items with no significant value add. And there's no real race to the bottom because the commoditization of one thing makes adding value easier up the chain. We are only just starting to see the beginning of what can be done with the Eee. Killing technologies like S-IPS(get one with it, you won't want to switch back to TN) doesn't help. Neither does it help when the options upward just add gloss and no quality(See Dell, Asus, HP, Toshiba, pre/post-merger Lenovo, Sony, Fujitsu). Service that has dropped dramatically for practically all but one brand, is strike three.

One thing that might come out of this though is that the laptops just above its price range will have to add significant functionality in order to sell. As I understand it, they do. No thanks, but eroding the quality up top is what these are doing. They aren't adding anything at all, but subtracting it.

Re:There's no "or" about it.

[sethstorm]

It hasn't. See the lack of IPS being thrown out for an example of the blunders.

Am I missing something here?

[nategri]

I am getting so goddamned sick of all these laptop reviewers including the OLPC in their budget-laptop rundowns like I can just run over to Best Buy or jump on newegg and grab one. The only time it was even remotely possible to get one was a few months ago with their give-one get-one program. And even if that program was going on now it /still/ doesnt make any sense to talk about them like theyre made for normal consumers and directly competing with products like the Asus eee.

Seriously, why XP??

[Nicolas MONNET]

Not flamebait, but I have to ask, why spend $100 or so for less reliability and for RAM usage? Is there anything you can do with XP but can't do with whichever version of Linux?

Re:Seriously, why XP??

[dr_canak]

Well,

the most important app i needed was SPSS, which i use extensively for work and courses I teach. I checked into Wine, but SPSS is not yet supported under Wine, in any reasonable way. I guess I could have done some sort of dual boot thing, but there was really no reason to go through the hassle. XP works fine as it is. I also do enough document sharing with MSOffice, that the occasional problems i encounter with OpenOffice (which I do use on the laptop I'm currently typing this from), just gets to be a pain at times.

later,
jeff

Ever heard of DPI? (or PPI, whatever)

[Anonymous Coward]

With a seven inch screen and 800x480 resolution your looking at about 134dpi.

For a tiny screen like that it's actually very high resolution. Any limitation your going to have with applications on this sort of screen is due directly to it's size. Upping the resolution isn't going to get you much unless you like _very_ _tiny_ _fonts_.

So if you want a bigger screen with 'higher' resolution then your going to have to get a physically larger device.

Re:From a old owner

[statusbar]

The interesting thing is that pretty soon microsoft won't even sell you an XP disk anymore. see the petitions at www.savexp.com and www.savexp.ca - So microsoft is positioning themselves out of the market for these devices since they aren't even close to the minimum requirements for Vista! Their alternative to remain being an option for consumers is to keep XP alive!

I am typing this on a 4G eeepc with 2g ram and eeeXubuntu on a 8 gig SD card and I love it (emacs, vim, netbeans, eclipse, snavigator-ng, wxglade, etc).

My fingers are used to the keyboard - all other keyboards feel like I'm playing with Duplo.

Best of all, at this price the computer is disposable. My files are encrypted with encfs so even if someone steals it I DON'T CARE. I'd hate for my Mac laptop to get stolen, I paid much more for it!

--jeffk++

OT: can't see network

[SHiFTY1000]

You might want to try changing the channel on your router, sometimes the wireless chips don't see certain cahnnels very well. Also you might need to downgrade your security to WPA only, some wireless chipsets STILL don't support WPA2, unbelieveably...

500 Frickin bucks will do it!

[markass530]

I have always been a hardcore anti-laptop pro desktop type guy.. that being said, I was in iraq. had been for 8 months, and I was getting desperate, in June of 07, I bought for $500 bucks, a refurbished, Dual Core, 1.6GHZ, 1GB Ram, 120GB HD, ATI 1200 Graphics, 15.4" Laptop, IT arrived with one keyboard key half on, which I promptly removed. One of the best purchases I have ever made. It get's the job done, upgradeable, and best of all, if the fucking thing breaks, It's only $500 out, not several grand, I still don't get why people drop several G's on lap's! (FYI, purchased from Tigerdirect).

Convertible ultraportables/subnotebooks

[jensend]

If they would just add touch/stylus input and a swivel hinge, I'd be really eager to buy one. Ever since the Sharp Zaurus clamshells with the swivel screens, I've thought that the convertible subnotebook was an idea which should catch on- but this kind of machine has been too expensive or too underpowered or too big or had too short of battery life to really compete well with both PDAs and larger laptops. With the newest generation of low-power processors and the lower prices for ultraportables which machines like the Eee are occasioning, I think the idea's time has come.

Evidence? Here is your evidence.

[jotaeleemeese]

dabs.com is one of the major Internet retailers in the UK, see what they have to say:

--- "dabs.com Customer Services Team" wrote:

> Date: Thu, 13 Mar 2008 04:00:35 -0700 (PDT)
> From: "dabs.com Customer Services Team"
>
> To:
> Subject: RE: General Customer Services Enquiry
> (#xxxxxxxxxxx-xxxx)
>
> Dear Customer,
>
> We are expecting stock on 05/05/08, however this cannot be
> guaranteed. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience
> this may cause.
>
> Regards
>
>
> Customer Services
> dabs.com Plc
>

>
> -----Original Message-----
> From:
> Sent: 12-Mar-2008 14:42:52
> Subject: General Customer Services Enquiry
>
> Customer Name:
> Customer Email Address:
> Sales order number: xxxxxxx
>
> Tell me about this problem:
> I would like to know how much longer I have to wait for this
> order to be fulfilled.
>
>
> It will be almost 2 months since I ordered this item.
>
>

That is 5 months lead time. For a Linux laptop (for people unwise enough to put XP, at the very least they are going to realize that Windows is not free).

You can also see http://eeestock.cpjackson.co.uk/ which checks stocks in major UK net retailers. The only black 4GB Eee PC available is by a dodgy seller in Amazon....