Customer Reviews

ASUS Eee Pc 4G (7-inch Screen, 800 MHz Intel Celeron Processor, 512 MB RAM, 4 GB Solid-State Drive, Linux Preloaded) Blush Pink

5 star:		(101)
4 star:		(40)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The three-star review shouldn't detract from this unit's appeal -- it's a well-made and reasonably-priced unit and does exactly what the vendor claims it will do. This is a rare enough thing these days. But potential buyers need to be aware of the limitations as well of the benefits of this device in order to make a good buying decision.

1. Keyboard. The keyboard is tiny and probably impossible for adults with normal-sized hands to touch-type on. This means that the eeePC is impractical as a portable writing machine. You can use it to jot down notes and such, but you'll be driven bonkers in fairly short order by the cramped layout and small keys. (I hasten to add that Asus was constrained by the size of the device, and did as good a job as could be expected given the form factor).

2. Screen. The screen is small (7 inches) but crisp and very legible. The 800x480 display is good enough for media (this unit makes a great PMP), but less good for writing or taking notes. The LED backlighting is sufficient for all but bright sunlight, and easier on the battery. Asus chose to place the unit's speakers on either side of the screen; I think they would have been better-advised to implement a larger screen instead.

3. Touchpad. The touchpad is small, but works well. But like the keyboard, you'll find it a trial if you have big hands. I recommend carrying an external USB mouse if you plan to do a lot of interacting with the device.

4. Connectivity. The eeePC has a splendid array of connection options: a 10/100 ethernet port, 3 USB2 ports, an SD card slot, and jacks for headphones and a microphone. The WiFi link worked just fine with my WPA-encrypted access point (WEP also works).

5. Software. Asus did a great job in making a very friendly and simple front-end to the default Xandros Linux installation. I'm a long-time Linux user and had anticipated putting my own Linux distribution on the machine, but in the end I found myself liking the Asus install so much that I stuck with it. Asus did a good job in streamlining the interface to work well on the smaller screen. The video player worked for nearly everything I threw at it except for H264-encoded videos (although you can implement this capability with a little tinkering); WMV (non-DRM'd), XviD, Divx, MPG, they all played fine. The audio player is likewise very nice -- it plays MP3, Ogg, FLAC, and un-DRM'd AAC files just fine.

6. Battery. The battery is pretty good for a device of this size; I was able to get a bit over three hours on a full charge, even with fairly heavy use of the video player.

This device only gets three stars instead of four because of the smallish screen and cramped keyboard, but Asus has done a commendable job given the limitations imposed by the small size. And given the capabilities of the device, the price is excellent. If you're comfortable with technology and are willing to spend a bit of time learning to use Linux, you'll probably enjoy this device very much.

I bought this after seeing the black version available. It is great that Asus did not bump up the premium price for the black (Apple I hope you are listening). I am very happy with this purchase. I avoided the pearl white because I was afraid of getting it scuffed up being white and all.

This is a very user friendly laptop (Targeted after all for your children and older adults). I was never a huge Linux fan but the version that they installed here is at par with xp, even surpasses it because of the tabbed interface that is similar to Firefox. You do not even need to read the manual or be an expert on Linux to figure the thing out. It is a great starter laptop, and at the same time a great secondary laptop for the road warrior or student.

The EEE PC features are ultra mobile, sleek, and loaded with useful programs. I was going to switch the OS to XP but after playing around with the Linux OS, I was impressed with the features it has. I bought this mainly as a portable internet device and for a bit of word processing. I also note that the unit is very light, about 2 lbs. 3 oz and the boot time is exceedingly fast since it has a solid state drive. I actually rated this 4 1/2 stars. The gripes I have are expected, the keyboard is cramped and takes a bit of getting used to and you have to have an external dvd/cd drive to update to xp. The monitor though at a lower 800 x 600 resolution, is surprisingly bright and crisp. So far the storage is at 4 gig, so you have about 1.5 gig left over. This can be solved by adding a high capacity SD card, right now I believe they have up to 16 gig capacity for sale (I installed 4 gig). Love the fact that wireless G is built in. I haven't used the webcam yet but so far I am very impressed with the total package.

Highly recommended to adults and kids. Great little laptop for all ages. Truly a complete and very Excellent, Exciting, and Extraordinary PC!

Update: Wireless connectivity works great. I was able to use it with great ease at Sky Harbor Airport at Arizona, battery life last about 2 1/2 hours (running media files a lot though) but the small A/C plug comes in handy, it weighs 6 oz. So total carry weight with the unit is 2 lbs. 9 oz. Was able to use web cam, it does a decent job, I don't plan to use it as much so it is not an issue for me. I love the fact that many people commented on how small the laptop is.

Warranty update: You can now upgrade the ram to 1 gig or 2 gig without voiding the warranty. Visit the Asus EEE pc site for more info.

I was a bit apprehensive about the OS, since I have never had a linux machine, but it is super easy to use and very intuitive. Whew.

It took me a while to get used to the keyboard, but I have adapted quickly. I wouldn't use such a small keyboard for work, but for casual web surfing, reading docs, and editing/reviewing docs (my main uses of the machine) it is fine.

I downloaded several free ebooks and am using my Eee as a reader during my commute on the train every day. I had considered buying a dedicated reader, but decided on this instead so I could have a web surfing device in my purse, too.

I've had a laptop for years, and never take it anywhere. For work I insisted that I not have to haul a laptop back and forth every day, because they are such a pain, but this one is so small and light that I take it just about everywhere.

Last night I was waiting for someone, in my car, in a shopping center parking lot, and I took out the Eee and the wireless found several available signals at nearby coffee shops. The closest was about 100 ft away. Pretty good.

The wireless works great and connects fast. I love the fast boot time. I'm not thrilled with the touchpad, but then I've never seen one that I like, so take that for what it's worth.

Amazon told me that it would arrive after Xmas, but it arrived on Dec 4. (I ordered it on Nov 28.)

In short, I love this thing, because I can download forums, xwords, or articles to read on the train, and I don't have to carry around a big ole heavy laptop. Worth every penny.

Yes, the eeepc comes shipped with Linux, but also with some very simple instructions for replacing Linux with Windows/XP if you have a licensed copy Windows available to install, which I did.

I thought I might end up with a conversation piece. I started off simply. by installing Windows XP/Pro as per Asus's instructions. Then, I installed Firefox, then Thunderbird. Oh, what the heck...I installed Office 2003, Cool Edit 2000, and kept on going Everything works like a charm! The eeepc is light and easy to transport. It's got built-in WiFi and can do anything any other laptop can do. It has a built-in SD card reader than appears as a disk drive. This allows you to install an SD card to be used as additional disk storage. I put a 4GB card in mine and installed many of my programs there. I am now starting to think of this as my new full fledged laptop.

The eeepc does not come with a DVD/RW, internal or external, but any external USB unit can be used, which is how I installed XP. Many installation CDs can be copied to a 1GB USB drive (flash drive/thumb drive) by using another computer and the USB drive used to install the programs on the eeepc. I've done that, too!

There is some debate about whether XP/Home is compatible with the eeepc. Consensus seems to be that the critical factor is Service Pack 2 rather than the type of XP. I have no first hand knowledge of XP/Home, since I installed XP/Pro with SP2.

There are some small disadvantages to the eeepc. Keeping in mind that my overall rating is 5 stars, here they are:

(1) The screen is 800x480, an odd size. It can be set to 800x600, but that requires some auto-scrolling to get to the top and bottom of the screen. All in all the 800x480 isn't bad, though.

(2) 4GB isn't a lot of space for a primary partition. A typical XP/Pro installation will run about 2+GB. Some users have reported installing XP in less than 1GB, although it's not entirely clear which pieces they've left out. By the time you add the programs that don't run well from a secondary drive, there's a good chance that, even if the drive is not full, there won't be enough space to allow the computer to hibernate, which requires as much disk storage as the computer has memory. An 8GB version is reported to be available early next year, which will alleviate the problem for many.

(3) There are no Caps Lock, Num Lock, or Scroll Lock indicators. However there is an excellent freeware utility available on the Web that places indicator lights in the system tray.

I love this computer...and it IS a computer. All it lacks is an optical drive but when you're on the road, you don't really need it. It has everything I need. I purchased an 8GB SDHC card to store my data. That gives me 12GB, more than enough room to store my photos when I'm on the road. My very first notebook about 10 years ago had a whopping (at the time) 4GB hard drive. Anyway, this is the notebook I'll take on the road with me. I recommend the EeePC to anyone. I use it daily and the more I use it, the more accustomed I become to its size. It boots up and shuts down very very quickly. The display is crisp and bright. I have no problem typing or viewing the display. The camera worked great right out of the box. I really do love this little computer. It's not only cute but highly functional and useful and portable as well. Well worth the price.

What I want to add is that I found the Perfect bag for my EeePC. It's actually a bag that I got with a 7" digital photo frame/DVD player and it fits the EeePC perfectly! Makes a great notebook bag: holds the EeePC securely, has room for the AC adapter, an external 2.5" hard disk, digital camera, and few other necessities. It's as though the bag was made for the EeePC. I ordered the bag from AvTechSolutions.com for about $25 because I want to keep the bag I already have for the photo frame & the accessories that came with it.

This is an ultra-portable laptop with Linux and wireless Internet access.

* Can mount Windows SMB shares.
* Plays DivX, MP3 and YouTube videos. The Firefox already had a MPlayer plugin.
* You can install and run RealPlayer for Linux on it if you want. There are web sites that show you how to add Windows audio and video codecs so you can play WMV or other Windows format audio/video files.
* Mine already had Java 5.0.
* The location of the Right shift key needs some getting used to. Keys are quite small and I can't keep typing on it for an excessively long time.
* Was able to login to using my Skype account and make VoIP calls right out of the box. There are green and pink jacks for the headphones and mic.
* Dictionary was set to Chinese language by default but you can set it display English.
* The E-book reader is able to display Plucker format e-books from Project Gutenberg.
* It displays PDFs using Adobe Acrobat Reader and the displayed text is quite readable especially in Full Screen mode.
* Setting up wireless internet connection was very easy.
* You can plug in a USB stick and it gets automounted. A "Flash disk" window automatically comes up with the contents of the drive.
* The E-Book icon gets lost after you do a Software Update but there are web sites that show you how to put it back.
* Ctrl-Alt-T launches an xterm. Running konqueror gives you a bunch of useful utilities.
* GNU Emacs and MIT scheme both are not installed but they can be installed if you need them and they do run well on it. Read about adding Xandros repositories and pinning repositories first before attempting to install software using apt-get.
Check out the unofficial EeeUser wiki site for photos and a lot of useful info.
* It is possible to NFS mount shared filesystems. Just add nfs entries to /etc/fstab and they'll be mounted when the wifi interface comes up. You'll probably want to unmount them manually though before shutting down the eeepc: sudo umount -t nfs -a.

Back story
==========================================
I'm a cautious consumer of electronics. Unfortunately, some items (like this one) were not in any physical stores near me, and I didn't know anyone who had one. So even though I really wanted to buy an Eee, I hesitated and read as many reviews as I could. I read all the Amazon reviews and all the NewEgg reviews. I watched YouTube videos about the Eee. I read professional reviews and blog entries.

One thing I always wonder when reading positive and negative reviews is how exaggerated the positives are and how much the negatives matter (are they deal-breakers?). Unfortunately, one can't know until one tries it.

Finally, I took the plunge, and I don't regret doing so.

There are cons (life is pain, Highness). Anyone who tells you differently is selling something.
==========================================
* The placement of the right Shift key and the numeral 1 key is non-standard relative to the other keys, and that takes getting used to. Even though it didn't take me hours to adjust to the small keyboard, even after hours of use, I still sometimes hit the Up arrow instead of the right Shift key.

* The screen dimmer (lower brightness) key is too close to the key that turns the wireless on and off.

* The Control key and the mouse buttons are hard to press... or, rather, you have to press down on them rather hard in order to get them to respond.

* The keys in general feel pretty cheapy-plasticy compared to the solid build of the rest of the Eee.

* Security is terrible. No matter what username you think you're picking, the OS understands it as "user," and you can assume administrative privileges (using sudo) without password authentication, which essentially means you're running as root, which every Linux user knows is a no-no.

* As others have noted, if you connect through Wireless Networks, you will have to enter your key every time you connect. The trick to automatically connecting is to connect through Networks. How anyone would know this intuitively is beyond me.

* Battery life isn't stellar, but it isn't pitiful either.

Those are the cons. The pros really outshine them.
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* It's visually wow-ing. Even though the mouse button was a turnoff to her, my wife (a Mac lover) loved the look of it at first glance. I did, too. No matter how many pictures you see of it next to Nestle bars, larger laptops, large hands, or other objects, you will still be surprised at just how small and cute it is once you see it in person. Some people have described it as being the size of a hardcover book, but if it is, it's the size of a small hardcover book. (Think Sarah Vowell instead of Stephen King.)

* It gets right down to business. Even though it comes with a manual, you don't have to read it. Just plug in the battery, and while charging, hit the power button, answer a few questions, and within seconds you'll be up and running. The simple default interface is very easy to get used to, whether your previous computer experience is with Mac, Windows, or Linux.

* 800x480 is actually usable. I thought I'd have to do a lot of side-scrolling and squinting, but all the webpages I've visited have fit on the screen just fine. No one is going to say, "Hey, that screen's huge!" but it was a genuine concern of mine that the screen size would be unusable, and it is quite usable.

* The sound isn't bad. I'm not an audiophile, but I can tell tinny laptop speakers when I hear them, and these are not tinny. To most normal people, the sound quality should suffice.

* Things just work. Maybe this isn't a big deal to you Windows and Mac users who have always bought preinstalled operating systems, but to a Linux user who has had to download, install, configure, and troubleshoot every Linux installation I've done over the past three years, just having all this ready to go without tweaking was an amazing experience. Webcam worked (didn't have to enable it in the BIOS - must have been a problem Asus fixed from earlier releases), wireless worked, Flash worked, suspend worked. It all worked. I'm still allowed to tweak as I see fit (such is the right of every Linux user).

* Despite Asus' public statements that the sticker's message wasn't their policy, previous versions of the 4 GB non-surf Eee apparently had some sticker over the RAM door saying that removing the sticker voided the warranty, but mine didn't have that sticker, so that issue seems to have been resolved, so I upgraded to 1 GB of RAM, and the upgrade process was very smooth.

Bottom line
==========================================
I got it for the portability of it and the functionality of it. If you need a large keyboard, a DVD burner, a large screen, a killer graphics card, and a fast processor, then you need a regular laptop. If you need a portable and cute web appliance, you need an Eee PC.

I bought it for my daughter's gift, but surprisingly it's perfect for my business travel. Why? It's very, very fast. Thanks to Linux OS, starting up takes just only 10-15 seconds, shutting down takes only a second! Firefox web browser is great, it's much better than IE in terms of stability. OpenOffice is comparable to Microsoft office, so you can read and write Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. OWA (Outlook Web Access) works well, so you can access to office mailbox. Skype also works well, so you can easily do video conference. For kids, there are many pre-installed educational software, it's easy to use and fun. Easy to bring, durable, and super value. I can't believe it's only $399! It enough for me. iPhone? there's no keyboard. MacBook Air? it's super expensive. Windows PC? so many problems (slow, freeze, security issue.) I believe ASUS Eee PC is REVOLUTION. I don't need Apple, Microsoft, and Dell. PC eco-system is changing. Try it. Believe me.

This was my first laptop and I couldn't be happier. I didn't need some expensive bulky machine, because if I needed to do some sort of critical, powerful task I would use a desktop. The eeepc meets and exceeds my needs. It comes installed with an impressive amount of software. There is something for everyone, whether it be a media/music player, office software, games, or a web related program. There are also many applications installed that do not show up under any of the tabs but can be accessed by typing there names in a terminal(ctrl + alt + t).

It is incredibly light-weight, and looks very nice. It has a very nice build, and is durable. I wouldn't say that it looks cheaply built at all, which considering the low price is quite the achievement. Also, you can look at 100's of pictures, but without using it hands on you can not picture how small this laptop is. It has a full keyboard, which takes a little time to get used to. The most annoying key is the right shift key. It is one over to the right of where it normally is, so you will constantly find yourself hitting the up arrow key.

Considering the amount of software included and the small form factor, this laptop is a steal for this price. There is no "bloat-ware" installed, and everything is fully functional, no office 30 day trials, etc.

The default operating system is a customized Xandros distribution. It's debian based and is very easy to use. I am a linux user, however, the way the OS is set up anyone can use this machine, regardless of whether you are a windows user or not. Everything is simply categorized under different tabs and doesn't take long to get used to. For the linux users, you can still do all the fun things in the terminal, and activate advanced mode, which is basically a KDE desktop. Or you can install other flavors of linux on the machine(this I haven't attempted, but many others have successfully done).

Also as a side note, many people had been complaining about the yellow sticker on the bottom of the machine stating that if it was removed it would void the warranty. Unfortunately it covered where the ram goes, so you couldn't upgrade w/o voiding your limited warranty. However, this has been resolved and Asus's official stance, is that this will no longer void your warranty(http://usa.asus.com/news_show.aspx?id=9223).

I can not give anything but praise for this machine, and would highly recommend it to others looking for an affordable, portable laptop.

I have had this about a month now and love it. As everyone says it gets attention anywhere you go, if that is important to you. The mobility factor is my #1 reason for liking it; if you carry a laptop now mostly to check e-mail one the run and aren't spending hours typing on it, it is light and perfect. I am fine with the keyboard size and no CD/DVD drive. The wireless range for hotspots is better than any laptop I've owned before, great for the traveler & finding hotspots.

I also carry a wireless mouse and roll up flexible keyboard on the road but find 80% of the time for brief e-mail replies I don't use them. Yes its small, and internal storage just ok, but I also carry an external USB 160 g drive to address that. There is lots of help on the internet at the [...] community - they have instructions on how to open the existing Xandros O.S. to the full desktop, how to add more opensource software safely, & help with standard solutions to the common issues. I'd recommend visiting that site to see the comments before purchasing if you are concerned. Also, about any operating system imaginable has been loaded on this if you decide you want to switch, but I'd highly recommend sticking with the stock Linux distro and giving it a good shot; most of the time when you have problems an answer is available at eee-User. Some Windows programs will never wotk on it, though for my intended use that doesn't matter.

Things I have been able to do recently include accessing my home Windows network and trading files, hooking a Sony hard drive cam-corder to it through one USB port and making a backup of movies directly to the 160 g external drive (great backup option while on vacation), copying SD card pictures to the external 160 g drive, remotely accessing/controlling a Windows computer through it using [...] free software. My kids borrow it to watch streaming videos usnig the headphone jacks quite frequently/I need to track them down to get it back quite often. They love it.

At home I just plug in a USB keyboard, wireless mouse & full size LCD monitor and use it just like a full size desktop. I have an external USB DVD drive if needed but so far I haven't used it. I also bought 2G of RAM for < $[...] with shipping, but the stock OS only recognizes 1G (XP & other distros will see the 2G) and frankly the stock 512 was so fast that I haven't noticed a real difference. This is a pretty powerful little machine !

This version (of Linux (Xandros) is not leading edge or the most secure (still feel safer than using XP in the open), but it has proven stable and good enough for what I'm using this for. I turn of the SMB file sharing program when out in public to be safe. It boots up in about 25-30 seconds, then off in about 10 seconds; great for when you are on the go at an airport/other hotspot. Surfing is quick, and it doesn't get slower over time as Windows computers are prone to do. That alone is a great selling point for me. There are no known Linux viruses in the wild and that isn't just because the OS isn't widely used as some try to say - linux is designed to be more secure from the ground up& why most internet servers run with some version of Linux.

I've got a new VISTA computer that I haven't turned on in 2 months running 2G RAM, but it is not as fast than this on 512. I'm actually having fewer problems with Linux ccompatibility than expected and ironically better luck than I was with VISTA. I figured if I was going to have to go through another learning curve anyway, why not try open source ? Wow, has it improved dramatically over the last 5 years. So, if you are open minded this might be a good time to give it a shot. The folks at ASUS have hit the target for my use, and I'm sure I'll buy another one when the larger screen is available. It has been perfect for my needs.