Customer Reviews

Asus Eee PC 1005HA-PU1X-BU 10.1-Inch Intel Atom Netbook Computer (Royal Blue)

5 star:		(285)
4 star:		(143)
3 star:		(54)
2 star:		(42)
1 star:		(119)

 

 

There are three US versions of the Asus 1005HA:

- Best Buy offers the 1005HA-B for $299 (plus tax). It features the N270 (1.6GHz 533FSB) cpu, glossy display, 3-Cell 23Wh Li-ion Battery (4 hrs), and a 1.3MP webcam. Excluded are the Bluetooth module, 10GB online Eee storage, and netbook sleeve. This is obviously the "Basic" model. I was able to demo this unit at Best Buy on June 27th, and IMO you are giving up quite a bit for the ~$60 savings over the 'P' model. Not to mention that as of now Asus will not sell you a spare 3 or 6-cell Li-Ion battery.

- The 1005HA-V is in the middle of the bunch and the only one with a matte display. Those that frequently work outdoors or despise reflections will appreciate the matted display. It also features a N270 cpu, 6-cell 48Wh Li-ion Battery (8.5 hrs), 0.3MP webcam (according to Amazon specs, but it may in fact be 1.3MP), no Bluetooth, and absent again is the netbook sleeve.

- So in a nutshell (or would that be seashell?) the 1005HA-P offers the faster N280 cpu, glossy display, 1.3MP webcam, 6-Cell 63Wh Li-ion Battery with a whopping 10.5 hrs run time, Bluetooth v2.1, and a black netbook sleeve. Realistic battery numbers are between 8.5-9hrs. of battery life if you're using wifi & doing email/word processing/YouTube/web surfing.

The glossy LED display offers excellent color and contrast when used indoors. I was also pleasantly surprised with the excellent horizontal viewing angles. Keep in mind that once you get in a room full of light or step outdoors screen reflections could become annoying. I've used mine outside on a sunny day, and the screen is still very much legible. In fact it was much more detailed than the matte screen on my Dell D600.

All three units come with the Digital Array Mic which consists of two powerful microphones. Ambient background noises are eliminated, as well as reduced echoes for clearer voice recording. What's more, with only direct sound (within 60°) recorded, you'll obtain better voice capture. I've tested the mic with Skype, and it's loud and clear once you fine tune using the Realtek HD Audio manager. All models also include a WiFi 802.11 b/g/n adapter and 160GB 5400RPM hard drive. My 1005HA-P contains a Hitachi HTS543216L9SA00 hard drive and Atheros AR9285 wifi card. Atheros chipsets are known for excellent range and are typically less prone to connection drops. I'd like to point out that the AR9285 is only capable of 150Mbps.

All three variations of the 1005HA ship with 1GB DDR2 800MHz memory. The good news is that you can remove the memory door on the bottom of the chassis and swap it out for a 2GB DDR2 200-pin SODIMM in under 2 minutes. Anytime you install new memory I'd recommend running a Prime95 "Blend" torture test for 12-24 hrs to make sure your system is stable. The Eee Super Hybrid Engine utility lets users overclock or underclock their Eee PC's to boost performance or provide better battery life depending on their immediate requirements. In Super Performance mode CPU-Z shows the bus speed to increase up to 169.9MHz which translates into roughly 1.7GHz. One way to quickly change modes is to press Fn + spacebar.

One word of advice is to be really careful about which anti-malware software you install since it will degrade performance both on and off the internet on these netbooks. Whatever you elect to install I would highly recommend you benchmark the performance both before and after. In regards to free anti-viruses that run light I would tip my hat to Antivir (nag screen can be disabled by searching Google) and Panda Cloud. For pay versions Norton 2010 & NOD32 should be considered.

One minor annoyance is that the display will not tilt back as far as some people may like. The glossy chassis is also a fingerprint magnet. A few other things I'd like to point out is that you must push the micro-sized right angle end of the ac adapter until it snaps in place or the battery may not charge. In addition the ac adapter does get quite hot while it is actively charging the battery, which Asus clearly mentions in the user manual, so one should not be alarmed over the heat output. The final quirk is that the hard drive is split into two 80GB (before formatting) partitions. Fortunately this can be resolved by using Easeus Partition Master Home which is a free utility.

Overall I am extremely satisfied with the 1005HA-P, and it is arguably the finest 10" netbook on the market. Keep in mind that if you want a White or Pink shell you'll be limited to the 'B' or 'V' models. Asus has already released the two aforementioned colors in Europe & Asia, so hopefully by the end of 2009 we'll get them as an option on the 'P' model. Be sure to check out the Amazon community forum for this product located towards the bottom of this page if you require additional enlightenment. You'll find a lot of tips, tricks, and general FAQ's.

I honestly don't know where to start with this review of the ASUS Eee PC 1005HA-PU1X-BU netbook that I bought. I have read all 152 previous reviews on Amazon.com and a whole bunch of others that I found on computer oriented Internet sites. The four and five star ratings far outnumbered the negative ones, but it was the couple of dozen unenthusiastic reviews that scared the heck out of me. I delayed ordering the computer because of the horror stories of bad batteries, faulty chargers and blue screen crashes.

Eventually, I noticed that most of these critical reviews referred to the battery or to the charging brick and most of those were describing what could have easily been mistakes made by the owners of the machine. They didn't attach the power cord properly or the charging time was too short and some didn't seem to understand how to determine when the battery was fully charged. Some complainers faulted the battery life, but didn't take into account what was running or turned on when using the computer. The battery is drained more quickly when the computer is operating with all rockets running. In other words, when I subtracted the operator associated problems or misconceptions from the difficulty with the Asus hardware there were only a few legitimate complaints about the machine. In reading reviews of other machines it was obvious that they had their share of detractors too. One gripe I can verify is how the Asus Eee PC lid is a fingerprint magnet. It really is.

I researched about all of the netbooks on the market today (Acer, HP, Toshiba, Dell, Samsung and of course the Asus Eee PC line. Having purchased one of the first Eee mini-laptops (the 7 inch 701 with a Linux operating system) when they first came out I have been impressed with the quality and dependability of the Asus product. I suppose that is one reason why I kept gravitating to the ASUS Eee PC 1005HA-PU1X-BU as I explored the reviews for other brands--in spite of the warnings about unworkable battery chargers and inoperative batteries I bought the Asus Eee PC.

Frankly after exploring the field, I concluded that most of the netbooks for sale today are not all that much different in features, price or even quality. They all have built-in cameras, 10.1 inch screens, Windows XP operating systems, a plethora of USB ports, a card reader, WiFi and most have a few color choices. The main difference is probably the ten hour battery that is unique and ships with the ASUS Eee PC 1005HA-PU1X-BU. All of the other netbooks had three or six hour batteries on board. I wanted the netbook to use on long airplane flights so the long life battery was a real plus for me. I also liked the idea of being able to restore the computer with an fn-key instead of relying on a CD to come out of hiding in case of big trouble. The Asus Eee PC is sleek and that big battery doesn't stick out on the back edge like the other netbook high capacity batteries do. The `P' model of the Asus Eee PC has Bluetooth built in and a nice cushy zippered sleeve to protect it while traveling.

I have been using my Asus Eee PC 1005HA just as it came out of the box--no memory upgrade, no Windows 7 and no additional software. I find it just about perfect the way it is. You should understand that this is not a full featured laptop squeezed into a smaller and manageable size. The keyboards are 92% the size of those found on a standard computer and the machines run a little hot. Those 10.1 inch screens are a bit cramped if several toolbars have been turned on. The main thing you might miss on the netbooks is a CD/DVD drive. There ain't one. However, an external CD/DVD drive can be purchased for about $65. Anyhow, a netbook is meant to be a small back to basics mini-computer for word processing, e-mail, Web surfing and other fundamental computing, but don't expect to play a lot of high end games or edit photographs on it. Once you see a netbook in your future, the ASUS Eee PC 1005HA-PU1X-BU is worth a look.

OK, here is my feeling about the ASUS Eee PC 1005HA-PU1X-BU after two weeks of use: I like it a lot; the battery and charger problems I feared so much have not materialized. I am satisfied with my choice and recommend the machine over all of the others I researched. If something really bad happens to my new Asus Eee PC as I use it longer, I will edit this review and let you know about it. I am still a little worried about that battery thing.

P.S. I used a thin coating of guitar polish/wax buffed onto the lid and the finger print problem was diminished considerably.

FOLLOW-UP:

I thought it is about time to update my earlier review of the Asus Eee PC 1005HA netbook. I may have left you with some question about the battery and charging system--I am sorry about that. I no longer have any qualms about batteries or chargers. After almost two months of using my new Eee PC 1005HA I can report no problem with the battery, bringing the battery to a full charge (realistically about 9 ½ hours) or the charging brick itself. Flawless is a word that comes to mind.

While I am at it, I might as well report complete satisfaction with the Eee PC 1005HA build. It is a well made netbook and everything fits and works. It is sleek and solid. It is a little bit on the heavy side, but I don't have a problem with that. The keyboard is large enough to accommodate touch typing with ease. The machine boots up quickly. It has plenty of memory (1 GB) on board for how I use it--e-mail, web surfing and word processing with the Microsoft WORKS program which is included.

The Windows XP operating system has functioned perfectly. I set up my home network WiFi connection with the netbook easily, quickly and effectively. The Bluetooth feature worked very well too. Some of the Asus special on screen controls, update and expand features built into the machine have not been all that useful and some border on being advertisements for buying Asus stuff. Those things are not obtrusive and can be easily ignored.

I have added the ASUS USB 2.0 8x DVD Writer External Optical Drive to my little machine, but have not really used it very much. I got it just in case I wanted to add some software to my netbook or perhaps store some data on disks. Frankly, making that rather spendy purchase for "just in case" reasons is probably rather silly, but I did it anyhow.

The Asus Eee PC 1005HA remains a fingerprint magnet in spite of my occasional clean up with guitar polish. I guess having to live with some smudges on the shiny lid is not a big deal.

I still recommend the Asus Eee PC 1005HA after using it for awhile. I am convinced that this netbook is the best one on the market today.

Update some more:

I just solved the fingerprint problem that exists with the ASUS Eee PC 1005HA shiny surface lid. And at the same time, added a layer of protection for the machine.

I bought and installed an mCover® CLEAR Hard Shell Sleeve Carrying Case for the Asus Eee PC 1005 Series Netbook. I acquired the mCover hard shell from Amazon.com for about $15 as protection for my netbook while traveling. When I got the shell attached (a simple process) I immediately noticed the lid no longer picked up fingerprints. The plastic shell simply does not show prints and the appearance of the netbook is not changed very much. It is just like adding a second skin.

Update even more:

My face is really red today. The mCover shell I bragged about turned out to be a loser--not a winner. The bottom half of the shell became impossible to install and usless when one of the attachment tabs broke off. I am very sorry about recommending that plastic sleeve. I still have the top part of the mCover on my Eee PC, but the bottom section went in the trash. By the way, my ASUS Eee PC 1005HA-PU1X-BU Netbook is still the best there is. I continue to like it a lot.

Bought this netbook for our upcoming trip to Europe, immediately tried to install Windows 7 RC on it, worked PERFECTLY. I highly recommend buying the 2GB RAM upgrade (I went with the Amazon recommended 2GB 667mhz crucial module), best $20 you'll ever spend. All drivers installed fine on Win7, Aero is enabled, everything is very snappy. Can't wait to take this thing on the road.

I just got my unit yesterday and spent a lot of time enjoying its sleek functionality. The only thing that did not work was the input microphones. After spending time with Asus' customer service department, they confirmed my suspicion that it was a hardware issue. My choices were to send the unit to them for repair or replacement, (their choice,) or to call Amazon. I was so pleased with Amazon's answer to the problem. I used the automated phone call system. The moment I clicked the "Call me" button, my phone rang, and I was immediately connected to someone who resolved the issue by sending out a new unit and a prepaid mailing label to return my defective unit. That's how it should be done, and I highly recommend making purchases from Amazon for that reason.

After 4 days with no hiccups I feel confident enough that I got a good one. So I removed the stickers (and the residual glue with cooking oil) and I thought I'd give you my .02 on this little baby. First thing I did was let it charge to a green light before I turned it on. Went through XP setup, Turned off and uninstalled Parental Control so it wouldn't lock up when I plugged in my USB external drive, Uninstalled the office trial and any other bloatware I found, Did a windows update, Turned off all the Fu Fu appearance stuff (choose windows classic, no fading menus, ect.) Made sure there wasn't any crap in startup (msconfig) Turned off a few services I don't need. Installed Media Player Classic and FFDShow codec pack (for vob, xvid, divx playback) Winamp for MP3s and Shoutcast Radio, and Firefox. I also installed OpenOfficeOrg, Zone Alarm and AVG Anti-virus. Haven't even run Windows Media Player or IE. I used Easeus partition manager to shrink C: to 25 gigs (XP, Programs) and expand D: to 118 gigs (75 movies, 5000 MP3s, 25 or so TV shows).
OK, so this little baby screams, Absolutely as fast as my desktop in browsing, media playback. Watching a movie in MPC showed CPU usage at 15% to 20% in task manager. I tested WiFi on a few open signals in my neighborhood and it works fine. My Jabra bluetooth headset works great with Skype, I've gotten 6 hours on my battery watching movies, listening to music (down to 2 hours left) before plugging it back in. This is the coolest machine I've ever had.
My next project is to use M-Router software on my main computer to give Bluetooth wireless internet access to the EEPC since I don't have Wi Fi at home.
Thanks,
J

I gifted this model to my girlfriend for her birthday yesterday, and was really impressed by this netbook - but by the end of the day, the indicator light on the AC adapter wouldn't turn on, nor would the "charging" indicator on the netbook. I contacted Amazon today, and they told me the item is "under review" due to similar unsatisfactory customer experiences. I'll contact ASUS in a bit to get their take on the situation, but this experience is NOT instilling confidence in this product - I'm concerned that, even if they replace the AC adaptor (and it works), I might run into the same problem after my returns grace period has expired with Amazon. I'm probably going to return it for a full refund, regardless. It's a shame, it seemed like such a great little gadget!

UPDATE: While Asus was not very helpful, Amazon immediately shipped out a replacement via FedEx Overnight. I've had it for a few days now, and haven't had any issues with charging (fingers crossed).

My previous netbook was an Acer Aspire, which by comparison was crap. I think the one I got was probably a fluke, but I had problems with it from day 1. Not so with ny Asus. This computer is very nice. It is fast booting up, it is fast in ordinary operations, and performs most functions flawlessly. The only thing I would change, and will, is the amount of memory. My personal belief is that there is no such thing as too much memory. At times, some functions would be faster with 2 gigs, instead of the 1 gig that comes with this computer. If the extra hundred dollars isn't a problem,this is the machine to buy. For whatever reaon, this computer seems to be faster accessing and loading web pages, and downloading e-mail as well. That is a definite plus. I am spoiled, having been on cable internet for almost 10 years, This Asus computer is the perfect compliment to cable internet. Two other things that make this a superior computer are battery life, and the LED backlighting for the screen. The backlighting is definitely a factor in the longer battery charge life, but it also makes for a very nice bright picture. When I leave the house, I leave my computer on standby all day, and use it many hours throughout the day. I've never gotten down as low as 10% remaining charge. For the average user the battery charge life will be a plesant surprise. I am very happy with my Asus, and expect to be using it a long time. ****UDATE: I have now had my Asus long enough to have a better overall impression of the machine's qualities. While a bit slower than my desktop with it's dual-core 64 processors, and 4 gigs of RAM, it is more than adequate for most purposes for which I use it. I've added the 2-gig memory module, which was a snap, and that has had 2 results: faster overall performance, and shorter charge life on the battery. All things considered, I think the extra RAM is worth the shortened charge life. At home I now have my Asus connected to my desktop's keyboard and monitor. Why? Oklahoma summers are hot, and my desktop would heat my room up an extra 4 or more degrees. To lessen the heat, and save on high energy bills, my Asus is doing most everything that I ordinarily would do with my desktop. About the only time I use the desktop during the hot weather is when I want to burn a movie, or write software to a USB-drive for installation on this Asus machine. Bottom line: I have no regrets about having bought this machine, and I can easily recommend it to anyone else. It is a solid little machine!

The Asus Eee PC 1005 HA-P is the best available netbook right now. Why? Read on. I have had many mini-computers, from the original Poquet PC to the Zeos Contenda, and most recently the Dell 700m. When I recently started looking into purchasing a netbook, I was impressed with the battery life of the Asus Eee PC 1000HE. However, since I do a lot of word processing, the keyboard and the touchpad buttons were a real concern. When I found out about the Dell Mini 10v coming out, I ordered one with upgrades to a six cell battery and larger hard drive. To make a long story short, the track pad buttons (inside the track pad, no less) are a nightmare and the battery protruding on the bottom is an ugly compromise. Add the high running temperature to the poorer than expected battery life, and the Dell went back.

Then Amazon posted a note on the 1000HE description that a replacement computer was coming with a link to a page for the 1005HA-P. The 1008HA was not a consideration because of the non-removable battery and significantly shorter battery life. I received the 1005HA-P on July 2. The form factor of the 1005HA as a clam shell works quite well for me. While the shiny black case is beautiful it does pick up fingerprints; however, a quick wipe with a soft cloth takes care of it. I like the solid feel and the soft protective sleeve that comes with it. The ways the screen opens (down and behind the netbook) enables a smaller footprint when the case is closed, although it limits how far back the screen will tilt. The keyboard has a responsive feel and the larger keys (than the 1000HE or my Dell 700m) along with the oversize right shift key are a real plus. Word processing is smooth and fast. I especially like the button in the upper left that disables the track pad - quite helpful to avoid unintended cursor movement. The smaller arrow keys on the bottom right are a reasonable compromise, and I like the track pad with the raised dots (unlike some other reviewers).

The Wi-Fi range was better on the Dell but acceptable on the Asus. I definitely have not experienced the problems another reviewer mentioned about the Wi-Fi. I have used it on many different routers with no problem. It runs MS Office 2007 without a hitch. Surfing the net is a breeze, but I did have one "blue screen of death" when dealing with one demanding internet site. I have experienced no other serious problems in the month since I have had it.

Battery life? I would say it is not all that far from the advertised 10+ hours, depending on your settings. The Atom 280 processor seems faster than my Dell 700m or Mini 10v (although this is purely subjective), and I do plan to upgrade the memory to 2 gigs, thankfully quite easy with the small removable door on the bottom. The bottom of the computer does get a little warm after long use, but nothing like the heat of the Dell Mini. I have not experienced the problems with the battery charger mentioned by other reviewers either. It charges quickly and shuts off when finished. I have hooked it up to a portable DVD drive and it loaded programs with no problem.

Over all, this computer is all that I was looking for in a netbook. The light weight, the battery life, the keyboard, the non-protruding removable battery, the bright screen, the track pad disable button and general ease of use makes it hard to beat. I find it extremely satisfying to use. Yes, I did have an airplane trip in the last couple of days, and was thankful for the small size when the person in front of me reclined their seat back all the way for the whole flight. I could not have continued using a larger laptop. Taking the machine through airport security is so much easier than doing the same with a full size notebook or even the 700m.

For those who are looking for a netbook for general use and internet surfing I don't believe you can find a better one out there.

Addendum: After six months using this netbook, I still find it meets my needs quite well. I did install the extra memory and the 2 gigs does seem to make it run a bit faster, but it is less of a difference than I anticipated. Battery life continues to hold up and the keyboard is a true godsend with its full size keys. I notice Consumer Reports rated the computer very high as well. The only downside I have discovered is the track pad. It can a be bit quirky depending on how you adjust the settings. I recommend minimizing the size of the scroll zones on the right and bottom, other wise you find the screen suddenly scrolling when you did not want it to do so. Also the pinch/expand feature with two fingers can be a mixed blessing. In most cases it does exactly what you want: zoom in or zoom out of a screen (very helpful on the small screen of a netbook), but on occasion it will zoom when you don't want or expect it to because of an inadvertent gesture or touch by a thumb, etc. I disabled it for a while but have re-enabled it because I truly missed the feature of easy zooming. The occasional blue screen of death unfortunately has not gone away; Microsoft attributes it to an errant driver, but I have not been able to isolate what driver is the cause. I would still give this ASUS 5 stars, but of course the market continues to come out with new models all the time. I have heard mixed reviews of the Windows 7 starter edition that comes with some models, so I would recommend sticking with good old XP. XP SP3 works quite well on this computer, so why mess with what works?

Before buying this, I saw that several reviewers mentioned that this netbook stopped charging after a few days. However, there were so many glowing reviews, I figured the chance of getting one of these lemons was low. Bad, bad mistake.

Well, this netbook charged at first. And other than the fact that it stopped working after a few days, and would not re-charge, I loved it! It's making me so sad to send it back, but it's dead, apparently with the same cause of death as many of the other lemon-reviewers' netbooks: the AC charger just stopped charging the battery. No amount of unplugging, replugging, letting it rest, whatever, would bring it back to life.

The most frustrating part is that the darn thing charged up fine at first, so it worked for a few days, long enough for me to waste several hours setting it up just how I needed it. It lived just long enough so I could get it all set up for my semester to begin (five days from now)...and then it died.

So, more wasted time tomorrow, packing it up and sending it back, and then I'll start all over, shopping for a new netbook. This was my first ASUS, and after this experience, it will probably be my last. At least Amazon's return process for defective electronics is easy.

OMG! The battery life on this thing really is *that* good. I'm delighted. It's a huge improvement over my old, full-size laptop in many ways, and the few things that are less than ideal aren't such a big deal. I love how truly portable it is (even the power cord and adapter are svelte)--it's nice to know I can travel with it by just tucking it into my totebag and be able to use it even if I don't have a place to plug it in. But to be honest I actually spend more time just shuttling it about from room to room when I'm at home, and it suits that purpose perfectly (especially now that I don't *have* to drag the power cord around with it all the time).

Pros:
-Excellent battery life
-Tiny and light (the slightly smaller than standard keyboard is no problem for me to use--and I'm a touch typist--the keys themselves are a good size and feel good.)
-Very sharp, clear image, even with brightness turned down low to get the most from the battery
-Excellent User's Manual booklet walks you through starting up and many of the features that you might otherwise ask "what the heck is that and how do I use it" about.
-Boots up extremely fast when "Boot Booster" is enabled. I used to leave my old laptop on more than I really needed to (using up excess energy) because I hated how long it took to boot up. Not a problem any longer.
-Easy to upgrade memory (not sure why Asus doesn't sell a version that comes with 2gb pre-installed, though).

Cons:
-The built in speakers are inadequate volume-wise if you use your computer to play audio when you are listening from a few feet away (it's fine when you are sitting right at the computer). Also, the tinny quality, while not that big a deal for some kinds of audio at lower volumes, can produce very uncomfortable sounds at higher volumes. I solved both problems by buying a JLab B-Flex USB speaker--the only thing I could find that lets me move the computer around the house without any hassle, with the speaker still attached.

-Touchpad has a tendency to become oversensitive when it's humid. The first couple of times I thought it was my fault--I noticed some water near the computer and assumed there'd been a spill; I'd been eating potato chips and my fingers were greasy--otherwise, for about a week and a half, there were no problems. But then weird stuff started happening for no apparent reason. Suddenly it would go into uncontrolled zoom-gesturing mode, then the pointer would just jump all over the place and it was impossible to regain control. I did change touchpad settings a few days ago--turned off the gesturing (because it's not anything I have a use for) and adjusted the sensitivity. Since then it's been fine, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will stay that way.

Very minor con:
-Glossy finish means lots of visible fingerprints (as everyone else has mentioned)