Customer Reviews

Eeepc 8G Black - Linux

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

An interesting product at the low end of the "netbook" category. Very compact and lightweight. This computer would easily slip into any briefcase or a large purse. Comes with a neoprene sleeve. Charger is about the size of a cell phone, so much, much easier to transport the netbook and charger than a fully sized laptop.

The keyboard is a bit challenging. Smaller than a full sized laptop, but much larger than an iPhone or Blackberry. With some practice, its reasonable to touch type on this keyboard, and I have fairly large hands. I wouldn't want to type a long paper, but for e-mail and routine web surfing its adequate. On my iPhone, I write terse responses to e-mails. With this netbook, I write the same sort of responses as on my laptop or desktop.

The screen is more troublesome. At 800x480, the height is too small for some web sites. Between the menus and toolbars, and then web site headers, there's almost no room left for any real content. The solution is to switch to 800x600 desktop resolution. This means you have to bump against the top and bottom to move the view up and down. In many cases, though, you end up moving the menus or web site cruft off the top, and you can see the content. Again, I wouldn't want to do major word processing or spreadsheets, but for online work, its not bad.

I bumped this machine up to 2GB memory. For the most part, sites like You Tube work OK. A little jerky sometimes, and the CPU is pretty busy. But, again, given the small size, its an acceptable tradeoff.

Battery life was a bit less than expected. I managed a little over two hours of web surfing with a wireless connection before it started giving warnings. I was using the preloaded Windows XP.

Worked fine hooked up to an external monitor, and drove the monitor at much higher resolution.

If you can spring for an extra $150-200, consider the higher end versions. The physical size is about the same, but the faster Atom processors and the larger screen and higher screen resolution are worth it.

Read all the online reviews, this little PC does what it does very well. It is small so you cannot complain about the small screen and the cramped keyboard, both of which are perfectly serviceable, BTW. I had never used Linux before and I had this thing sorted out in less than 5 minutes. I have not found a wireless LAN that it will not connect to, but I am still looking. And it really cooks along when plugged into a 100 Mbps Ethernet. This is the perfect portable PC, it even fits into the glove box of a Trabant, if that means anything to you. It is probably the only usable PC on the planet you can say that about. Everyone who has seen it loves it. [..]

I gave this computer as a Christmas present and didn't see my daughter for two days after she opened it. It is an excellent learning computer for kids. My only problem is the inability to provide a safer surfing experience. Overall, an good product.

Very desirable laptop in very small package. If you are looking for something to browse the web, get and send your email, and write letters, this will do it. The installed operating system is OK for people new to computers, but for more experienced users will want to install a better version of linux such as Ubuntu.

Not much to say about this product except it is perfect for travel. Small, lightweight and connects very easy to the internet. If your need is to be able to get online for e-mail, etc. when on a trip then this can not be beat. No disk drives, not a lot of processing power but if you need that then lug the heavy bulky laptop around. This is a netbook and perfect for its intent.

UPDATE: Simply Broke on my third trip to Europe. This thing sure did not last long and I now would not recommend any of these mini computers from this company. This is a toy not a computer.

I purchased the Linux version of the 701sd as a compact writing machine and traveling emailer. I expected to have some configuration issues with the hardware, but everything worked right out of the box. I was connected with my network with in minutes.
The stock interface seems childish, but then it is marketed to people who have never used anything but windoze, and it can be used right away by anyone.There are other Linux versions that can be placed on the 701, but I am not switching yet, it just works too well.
The screen is a bit small but clear and bright, and I use the +/- on firefox to make web pages fit. All other programs are easily viewed.
The keyboard is small but usable.I have been using window CE deices for awhile and it is bigger than those units.
I have found that it makes for a great camera down loader and photo viewer out in the field. The ssd drive is supposed to be crash proof, so your photos will be safe until you get to a desktop,and the Gimp image editing software works well on it.
I upgraded the memory to 2 Gigs of ram and added an 8 Gig SD card to store my documents.
I think this is a great unit for the price, it's features and usability are far beyond what the 701 cost. Battery life is around 3.5 hours of heavy use. Plus the little unit is tough. I carry it in a motorcycle tank bag and life on the road is hard on gadgets.
The only downside I see is web browsing on the small screen. If that is an issue, consider a 900 or 901.
Don't be afraid of the linux version, it is faster and more stable than windows , and comes with all you need to be creative and productive.

Written on an Asus 701SD