Asus Linux Eee PC 900, May 12
p2pnet news | Products:- With the One Laptop Per Child as a kind of precursor, portables are getting cheaper almost by the hour and as that happens, decent computers are becoming affordable, bringing them within reach of almost everyone, with all that implies.
Enter the Asus Eee PC 900 which, says NotebookReview, slated to hit US store shelves on May 12.
It comes in Linux and Windows XP —- not Vistula, note —- versions, says the story, going on:
“The Eee PC 900 has already been released in both Europe and Asia, the U.S. is left as the second fiddle in this release party.”
Basic specs are:
- Display: 8.9″ 1024 x 600
- Color: Pearl White, Black
- CPU: Intel Mobile CPU
- Chipset: Intel Mobile Chipset
- Memory: DDR II 1GB
- Graphics: Intel UMA
- Storage:
- Linux sku:20GB (4GB on board + 16GB flash module)
- XP sku:12GB (4GB on board + 8GB flash module)
- Web Cam: 1.3 M
- Dimension: 8.86″(W) x 6.69″(D) x .79″mm~1.33″(H)
- Weight (kg): 2.18 lbs
The Eee PC 900, “bumps up against the price of a budget 15.4″ screen notebook,” but it’s, “still far lower in price than other ultraportables out there, which typically start at around $1,000,” says the story, adding:
“Of course, some sacrifices are made such as with the build quality and keyboard quality to get the price down, but reviews so far from Europe and Asia indicate the Eee PC 900 is worth a look and should be equally as popular as its smaller brother, the 7-inch screen Eee PC 701.”
NotebookReview – Asus Sets Eee PC 900 U.S. Launch for May 12th, April 19, 2008
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April 19th, 2008 at 4:02 pm
ASUS never got it! At £169 the 701 was an “Internet Terminal”. At £329 the 900 is just another budget laptop.
April 19th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Some folks just want an “Internet Terminal”.
I just bought an Asus gaming laptop, and it’s a tank. It’s large, heavy, but it will play games with the graphics settings wide open. It’s alot more robust than most average users would want, and I really can’t see myself using it on a flight or anything. It cooks at nearly 200 degrees when under full load, and a full battery only lasts about an hour and a half playing something like Half-Life 2.
It is, however, more portable than my desktop.
I find this Eee PC very intriguing.
April 20th, 2008 at 8:03 am
I’m surprised nobody has come out with a replacement for the XO. At less than $200 for the OLPC project to build, it should be able to be priced only a bit above that for regular retail.
It’s far more rugged than the ASUS, has the mesh networking and separate networking processor, has the duel mode screen to be able to be used in lighting conditions where back-lit screens are unreadable, and ships with an OS that tries to be minimal and thus easier on battery life (heading towards tickless kernel — and has hardware that wakes up and interrupts CPU rather than ever requiring the CPU poll). Running the resource intensive GUI of either Xandros or XP seems like a very bad idea.
I like the fact I can put my XO into e-Book mode and read a PDF file where I can treat it like a book for the day (IE: leave it on, and have the battery last the day rather than only an hour or two).
The OLPC project hopes to eventually be able to focus on their educational project (One Per Child learning philosophy) and educational software, and not have to produce hardware. Will the marketplace eventually meet that demand? Thus far I wouldn’t trade my XO for any of the other offerings, and none that claim to compete with the OLPC project (Like the Intel Classmate) come close.
April 21st, 2008 at 6:19 pm
What type of low tech low budget crap is?!! no this not accecptable noe even for an entry level PC unless your just looking for a terminal.
April 21st, 2008 at 8:52 pm
With a bigger SSD these things would be totally badass. As it is, you’re pretty limited on capacity but just stuff a $15 USB flash drive in there and BAM! Instant upgrade! Linux rocks.