Asus EEE PC - Awesome or Abysmal ?

They're awesome machines. If I had the cash, I'd definitely buy one.
And for what she needs to do, it's ideal
 
cool. i'm just worried that the screen is gonna be too tiny. and that the resolution will not be so nice to view pictures on?
 
I reckon the ones with the 7" screens are a bit small. I had one and ended up selling it after a while. Also, the 2GB SDD on the entry level machine is quite restrictive. And the keyboard takes some getting used to but i guess its fine if you have small small hands :)
 
HenryJ said:
I reckon the ones with the 7" screens are a bit small. I had one and ended up selling it after a while. Also, the 2GB SDD on the entry level machine is quite restrictive. And the keyboard takes some getting used to but i guess its fine if you have small small hands :)
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hmm...true, but i guess that i will then need to consider a higher pricepoint :( for the 2 grand, is it good value for money? or am i better of spending another 2 or 3 grand on an entry level Dell
 
I'd say pretty unbeatable at that new low price -- though the reason for the drop is quite possibly because this bottom-of-the-range model has long been superseded elsewhere in the world by at least half a dozen other (but more expensive) versions. Not to mention the growing 'netbook' competition from pretty much every major manufacturer.

For what it is the basic EeePC is absolutely great -- as a second and ultraportable travel machine, for example. Just don't envisage working on it all day or as your main machine if you do lots of computing, as the screen and cramped keyboard will drive you nuts! You also get a flavour of Linux at that price and not XP, which again is fine if it does what you want. But like most users you should at least factor a flash drive (or memory card) into your budget if you want to do more than just the odd e-mail or letter.

You also need to be aware it does not take a PC-Card or PC Express modem for your 3G connectivity -- only a USB dongle. And of course no optical drive, so you need either a portable disc or flash drive or external HDD if you want to move data or applications across.

Bottom line: at just over R2K, what's not to like, as long as you are aware of its limitations! Go for it!
 
thanks for the feedback :-)

so how many USB drives does it come with? I could just buy my Wife an 8GB USB drive (they going cheap these days) and she will be sorted with about 10 GB worth of storage, right ?

Terencek said:
I'd say pretty unbeatable at that new low price -- though the reason for the drop is quite possibly because this bottom-of-the-range model has long been superseded elsewhere in the world by at least half a dozen other (but more expensive) versions. Not to mention the growing 'netbook' competition from pretty much every major manufacturer.

For what it is the basic EeePC is absolutely great -- as a second and ultraportable travel machine, for example. Just don't envisage working on it all day or as your main machine if you do lots of computing, as the screen and cramped keyboard will drive you nuts! You also get a flavour of Linux at that price and not XP, which again is fine if it does what you want. But like most users you should at least factor a flash drive (or memory card) into your budget if you want to do more than just the odd e-mail or letter.

You also need to be aware it does not take a PC-Card or PC Express modem for your 3G connectivity -- only a USB dongle. And of course no optical drive, so you need either a portable disc or flash drive or external HDD if you want to move data or applications across.

Bottom line: at just over R2K, what's not to like, as long as you are aware of its limitations! Go for it!
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Hiro ZA said:
I was thinking of getting a low-cost laptop for my Wife. basically, all she wants is to be able to get online, surf the net a bit and check emails.

whats the general opinion of the Asus EEE PC ? kalahari has one going for about 2 grand :

http://www.kalahari.net/electronics/Asus-EEE-PC-700-W-UMPC/36058/32645599.aspx
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Bring your wife and the eee-pc together - go to incredible connection or whatever. She'll either like it or not at first sight. Kinda like shoes, handbags, that sort of thing.
 
When getting the eee pc I recommend getting the ones with 1024 pixel wide screens as many websites are designed for 1024 pixels. My brother has a very low spec eee pc where this is a real nuisance and it doesn't play normal 350MB episode video smoothly.
 
trouble is, the higher i spec it the closer it gets to a proper full on notebook. at the 2 grand price point, there is really nothing else that can touch it
 
Garden Router said:
Bring your wife and the eee-pc together - go to incredible connection or whatever. She'll either like it or not at first sight. Kinda like shoes, handbags, that sort of thing.
Click to expand...

Thats actually a good idea. Let her have a test run. It's a good machine so if she likes it, you all set
 
Garden Router said:
Bring your wife and the eee-pc together - go to incredible connection or whatever. She'll either like it or not at first sight. Kinda like shoes, handbags, that sort of thing.
Click to expand...

actually, i wanted to surprise her with it as a gift :o she mentioned a few weeks ago about wanting a laptop for the purposes mentioned above. so i figured would be a nice surprise. so i'm in a bit of a catch 22 :( having said that...if she does not take a shine to it, i've gained myself a cool new toy without having to get grilled about wasting money! :D win-win ??
 
Get the 4gb version if you can - I installed Windows on it and works like a charm.

If only for surfing/notes then the installed Linux is perfect, but the additional space on 4gb might be useful later on.
 
i went for the 2GB version, and bought an 8GB SD card :-) so space should not be a problem. i'm gonna try out the std linux first, if i dont like it then will swap to XP. did u just use the normal XP (Service Pack2) from an external CD drive? do u think it will work if i copy a windows CD to a USB and install from this ? :-)
 
ok gents, i just received my EEE today :D on the plus side, its got a really nice intuitive interface and this build of lunix seem svery easy to use, ideal for the missus :D

on the down side, we are both a bit disappointed by the teeny tiny screen :( i knew it was gonna be small, but this thing kinda looks lost there between the speakers. i would have preferred smaller/no speaks, and a wider screen.
 
Hiro ZA said:
on the down side, we are both a bit disappointed by the teeny tiny screen :( i knew it was gonna be small, but this thing kinda looks lost there between the speakers. i would have preferred smaller/no speaks, and a wider screen.
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AKA eeePC 901 ;)
 
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