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Asus Budget Ultraportable Notebook Sold Sans OS

Posted by timothy on from the utterly-completely-impossible dept.

EconolineCrush writes "Tired of paying the Windows tax on notebooks? Asus's Eee PC 1201T budget ultraportable comes without a traditional operating system and sells for only $380. The 12-inch system has promising specifications, sporting an Athlon Neo processor, Radeon HD 3200 graphics, Bluetooth, and 802.11n Wi-Fi. It weighs just 3.2lbs with a 6-cell battery and can even handle light gaming duties. However, battery life in Ubuntu is considerably shorter than it is under Windows. Are there any better options for would-be laptop Linux users?"

4 of 263 comments (clear)

  1. Re:$380? by dward90 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    "Netbook" probably means exactly what you think. "Notebook," however, which is what TFA is about, is a different term.

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    My other sig is clever.
  2. I want a small power supply, not a good battery. by leuk_he · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I don't understand why there are no laptops with a small power supply and (barely..) no battery.
    95% of my laptop work is close to a socket and to a wifi internet connection. The trouble is that most laptops i used until now do not have a small power adapter. You still have to lug a considerabele power supply.

    Battery is useful, but i could live without, and it would shave a small amount of the price and weight. And with a modularised design it could just be an other option.

  3. Re:When will netbooks... by Narishma · · Score: 4, Interesting

    It's a limit imposed by Microsoft. Or at least that was the case when netbooks came with Windows XP, now that they use Windows 7 I don't know if it's still the same. Basically there was a list of specifications the netbook should not exceed if the manufacturer wanted to get Windows at a reduced price. The ones I remember are 1 GB of RAM max and no more than a single CPU core. I think the hard disk capacity and the screen size were limited too.

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    Mada mada dane.
  4. Freedos in Thailand by Santzes · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Here in Thailand, or at least in Chiang Mai, most of the computers and laptops I've seen come with FreeDOS preinstalled. If you don't want to install an OS yourself (and don''t prefer Freedos ;) you can just leave the new computer to the shop and pick it up with a OS of your choice a few hours later for a dollar or two extra install fee + price of the OS.