The Kohjinsha is more expensive but it has some nice features like LED backlight, scroll buttons next to the display and more. It would be even cheaper without the microsoft tax.
Maybe you can make a real UMPC overview with Sony, Everex, OLPC and others including hardware support tests under Ubuntu, XP and VIsta.
The Asus eee is a very interesting beast. It is on my "wishlist".
I think the concept is perfect for people who mainly use a Desktop and sometimes needs a laptop for casual out of the office meeting or couch surfing/mailing.
From your review, I would suggest a few things to Asus:
- Have a memory slot for possible upgrade
- Have 1024 pixels width LCD panel (to match most applications/web sites).
- Have an SD card reader (To compensate for the SSD small size)
- Have at lease 2 USB port (Plug a mouse, MP3 player, external HDD)
There are plans for Asus to put a 1024x600 screen in th Eee PC. That will solve issues with programs that require an 800x600 res, especially under XP.
http://www.dailytech.com/ASUS+Prepares+Next+Genera...">http://www.dailytech.com/ASUS+Prepares+...+WiMAX+L... Just like a car, it's usually a good idea not to buy the first model year. Gives them time to iron out the kinks. Eee PC 2.0 looks promising, especially with WiMAX support built in.
My big wishlist for this system is still HDD space and battery life. I'm curious is 2.6h is the average or maximum. If it's the max, it's too short compared to some larger models. The MacBook for example gets about 4-5hr and I'm sure PC laptops with similar hardware are the same.
1024x600 sounds like a really odd aspect ratio.
1024x640 would be better -- it's a true 16:10 ratio.
Oh, and I still wonder why the heck ASUS decided to use a runs-at-full-speed-all-the-time (and thus power-wasting) Celeron instead of something like even an old Pentium M.
With the exception of the panel, all of your concerns are taken care of with the non-surf models. There are rumors of a new model in the march/april time frame, so time will tell if that gets addressed.
And the funny thing about the panel, is that a widescreen display would fit in, there is a lot of empty space on both side of the current model. Is there a company that makes a widescreen LCD panel of this size (small enough)?
Is there still anyway to upgrade the memory in the 2G model since it doesn't have an access memory panel? Can you open the back manually? Is there any slots?
I've seen several reports that the memory is indeed soldered on in the 2G, and also lacks the Mini PCIe socket. I haven't yet cracked it open myself. Some users are reporting the 4G Surf, though also lacking an access panel, *does* have socketed memory that can be upgraded (though disassembly is not for the faint of heart).
Some users in the eeeuser forums have also reported the 2G unit has a slower CPU than the 4G: an 800 MHz Celeron clocked at 571 MHz. I created an nLite install last night, and a Win XP install is on my to-do list.
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New City Vegas - Wednesday, January 23, 2008 - link
7 embedded video reviews - ASUS EEE PC (one in German)length: 2 to 25 minutes
http://lasvalley.com/mixx/asus-eee-review-video.ht...">http://lasvalley.com/mixx/asus-eee-review-video.ht...
laok - Sunday, January 6, 2008 - link
As customers, we need a little competition in the market.laok - Sunday, January 6, 2008 - link
As customers, we need a little competition in the market.Schugy - Friday, January 4, 2008 - link
The Kohjinsha is more expensive but it has some nice features like LED backlight, scroll buttons next to the display and more. It would be even cheaper without the microsoft tax.Maybe you can make a real UMPC overview with Sony, Everex, OLPC and others including hardware support tests under Ubuntu, XP and VIsta.
LEKO - Friday, January 4, 2008 - link
The Asus eee is a very interesting beast. It is on my "wishlist".I think the concept is perfect for people who mainly use a Desktop and sometimes needs a laptop for casual out of the office meeting or couch surfing/mailing.
From your review, I would suggest a few things to Asus:
- Have a memory slot for possible upgrade
- Have 1024 pixels width LCD panel (to match most applications/web sites).
- Have an SD card reader (To compensate for the SSD small size)
- Have at lease 2 USB port (Plug a mouse, MP3 player, external HDD)
For the rest, the concept is great!
mmntech - Friday, January 4, 2008 - link
There are plans for Asus to put a 1024x600 screen in th Eee PC. That will solve issues with programs that require an 800x600 res, especially under XP.http://www.dailytech.com/ASUS+Prepares+Next+Genera...">http://www.dailytech.com/ASUS+Prepares+...+WiMAX+L...
Just like a car, it's usually a good idea not to buy the first model year. Gives them time to iron out the kinks. Eee PC 2.0 looks promising, especially with WiMAX support built in.
My big wishlist for this system is still HDD space and battery life. I'm curious is 2.6h is the average or maximum. If it's the max, it's too short compared to some larger models. The MacBook for example gets about 4-5hr and I'm sure PC laptops with similar hardware are the same.
DanaGoyette - Saturday, January 5, 2008 - link
1024x600 sounds like a really odd aspect ratio.1024x640 would be better -- it's a true 16:10 ratio.
Oh, and I still wonder why the heck ASUS decided to use a runs-at-full-speed-all-the-time (and thus power-wasting) Celeron instead of something like even an old Pentium M.
betaluva - Friday, January 4, 2008 - link
for all your answers go to http://forum.eeeuser.com/">http://forum.eeeuser.com/ its a REALLY good eee siteLEKO - Friday, January 4, 2008 - link
Oups! Just noticed that the ASUS eee already supports external memory cards (like SD).elpresidente2075 - Friday, January 4, 2008 - link
With the exception of the panel, all of your concerns are taken care of with the non-surf models. There are rumors of a new model in the march/april time frame, so time will tell if that gets addressed.LEKO - Friday, January 4, 2008 - link
And the funny thing about the panel, is that a widescreen display would fit in, there is a lot of empty space on both side of the current model. Is there a company that makes a widescreen LCD panel of this size (small enough)?rqle - Friday, January 4, 2008 - link
Is there still anyway to upgrade the memory in the 2G model since it doesn't have an access memory panel? Can you open the back manually? Is there any slots?BladeVenom - Friday, January 4, 2008 - link
I heard it's soldered on in the 2G.Matt Campbell - Friday, January 4, 2008 - link
I've seen several reports that the memory is indeed soldered on in the 2G, and also lacks the Mini PCIe socket. I haven't yet cracked it open myself. Some users are reporting the 4G Surf, though also lacking an access panel, *does* have socketed memory that can be upgraded (though disassembly is not for the faint of heart).Some users in the eeeuser forums have also reported the 2G unit has a slower CPU than the 4G: an 800 MHz Celeron clocked at 571 MHz. I created an nLite install last night, and a Win XP install is on my to-do list.
http://forum.eeeuser.com/viewtopic.php?id=6170">http://forum.eeeuser.com/viewtopic.php?id=6170