I bought this little Eee PC 900HA back in February of 2009, and have been using it heavily for onlne schooling since then. Today, some three years later, I'm using it to write this review. It is a very durable, reliable, and fast machine. Let's take a closer look.
Operating System: The Eee PC 900HA comes preloaded with Windows XP Home Edition, which is now an older system (but more than adequate for what this netbook is designed for). Windows XP cannot use the newest version of Internet Explorer or Windows Live Essentials, because naturally Microsoft, which made Windows XP and this software, wants you to get the newest version of Windows to use the newest programs. The older versions XP can use still work fine and are fully compatible with the newer versions.
Processor: The Intel Atom N270 is a 1.6GHz mobile CPU with Hyperthreading support, ideal for running applications in Windows XP. I've been surprised at how fast it actually runs for being a little lightweight, energy-efficient chip.
RAM: The Eee PC 900HA comes with 1GB of DDR2 RAM, which is plenty to start with, but it seems to be standard operating procedure to replace it with a 2GB RAM stick and max out the RAM capacity; you can usually get one for less than $30. I bought such an upgrade from Amazon right along with my Eee PC 900HA in the same order. Anyone that uses this little computer for much more than checking E-Mail would do well to buy the upgrade; you won't regret it, since it will allow the Eee PC to function at its full potential. Also keep in mind that the video memory is a shared portion of this memory. To say it in three words: buy the upgrade.
Hard Drive: The Eee PC 900HA comes with a hard drive divided into two partitions: one 60GB partition with Windows installed on it and one empty 80GB. It's advertized as a 160 GB hard drive, but there's actually a total of only 140 GB of usable space. It's still more than sufficient. Also, the 10 GB of online Eee Storage is something you may use for a year for free, but beyond that you will have to pay for the storage space. I never used it, but I learned that much from the terms of use. If you have a use for that, it can be a very convenient way to store files online so you can access them from any computer that has Internet access.
Graphics: This Intel GMA graphics card has 128MB of shared system memory. It even sports a VGA-out so you can plug in another monitor when you need the extra screen space and when you have the desk space for another monitor (since you won't be carrying another monitor everywhere you take the netbook). That is good for movies. For ordinary use, however, the built-on 1024x600 screen is adequate and very bright and colorful with adjustable brightness controls to save battery power.
Network connectivity: The Eee PC 900HA has IEEE 802.11b/g, but it's not modern enough to include n. The connection speeds can reach up to 54 Mbps. I have been impressed with the signal strength; I can access my wireless home network consistently with 'Excellent' or 'Good' signal strength from anywhere on our 1/2 acre lot. Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11g is rated at a 300 foot range, and this easily achieves that. Of course this machine includes wired Ethernet as well.
Human interface devices: The keyboard is small; I don't deny that, but that's to be expected in such a small and portable computer. It's 95% the size of a desktop keyboard, and works just as well as long as you can type on a small keyboard. I have very large hands and it works fine for me. Also the touchpad normally works greatly, but sometimes when I first turn the Eee PC on and try to move the cursor, it flies around on the screen (once the PC has been on for a few minutes it stops that and works perfectly fine); it has a special function that allows you to click by tapping one finger, right-click by tapping three fingers, or scroll by sliding two fingers on it. Of course it has the click buttons too, in case you'd rather use those.
Webcam: The Eee PC 900HA features a 0.3MP webcam. It actually has a great framerate if you're in the sunlight, but the dimmer the environment is, the slower the framerate will be on the camera because it has to compensate by brightening up its own picture.
Battery life: The Eee PC 900HA boasts 5 hours of battery life. I keep Wi-Fi on all the time and usually keep the brightness all the way down and I usually get 3.5 - 4 hours out of it. The Super Hybrid Engine software helps save battery power by switching performance modes automatically when plugging in and unplugging.
Preinstalled software: The Eee PC 900HA comes with Microsoft Works 9, the Microsoft Office 2007 PowerPoint Viewer (just the viewer, not the whole program), Intervideo WinDVD, Windows Live Esentials, Eee Storage, Super Hybrid Engine, and, in some cases, Norton Antivirus (mine did not come with the antivirus software, but my brother bought the exact same model shortly after I bought mine and his came with Norton).
I actively use Microsoft Office 2010, Inernet Explorer 8, and Windows Live Mail and Messenger on this netbook, and the performance running these applications is more than satisfactory. It is even possible to do some gaming on this machine, as long as you stick with the less demanding games, and, well, pay attention to the system requirements.
To sum it up, the Eee PC 900HA is an older machine, but if you want a very affordable and reliable machine for doing basic computing tasks, this is still just as good a choice as it was years ago. If you're shopping for used netbooks, since it's hard to find this model new now, this is the way to go. Just remember the limits of the older operating system, and buy accordingly.
Update: 05/09/13
So I've had my Eee PC 900HA for over four years now, and I still use it actively for the less demanding tasks. I installed Windows 8 on its other partition, so now I can choose at boot which version of Windows I want to use. It starts up, shuts down, hibernates, and resumes from hibernation faster than XP. So if you others who have this netbook want to keep using it safely after Microsoft stops releasing security updates for Windows XP in April 2014, feel free to install Windows 8 on it, but be informed that you will have to make a few mods to the Windows 8 registry in order to use the 1024x768 resolution required for using the new apps, and even then everything on the screen will look squished while you're using that resolution. It does not bother me (but then I don't really use those new apps much either), and it costs less than a new Windows 8 computer.
Asus makes good products!
Update: 03/03/14
So I've had this little Eee PC for over five years, and it has developed some issues. The battery won't charge above 75%, which can be remedied with a replacement battery. Furthermore, the hard drive seems to have problems, as Chkdsk.exe finds errors on the hard disk about every time I run it, and claims to fix them, but they are always back sooner or later. Certain activities also now trigger a problem that causes the screen to black out and the PC to lock up completely so I have to power it off manually. Furthermore, sometimes now it freezes when I plug it into AC power while it's turned on, so I have to power off. The screen in this case sticks however it is, instead of blacking out, until power-off.
If I leave it either plugged in or unplugged the whole time I use it, I can use the netbook for casual purposes, but if I'm working on anything serious in which it would be tragic if I lost my progress, I use one of my other computers. The Eee PC 900HA survived a long time before it developed problems, especially considering how heavily I have used it and have left it on for hours on end. Even the best products don't last forever, but Asus products sure last a long time. On average, notebook PC's are said to have a lifespan of 4 years and have usually undergone at least one repair during that time. This one has never been in for repairs and has survived five years, and its current problems are fixable with user-replaceable parts, so I would say it has exceeded reasonable expectations, and would always recommend Asus notebooks and netbooks for power users.
| Standing screen display size | 8.9 Inches |
|---|---|
| Screen Resolution | 1024 x 600 |
| Max Screen Resolution | 1024 x 600 Pixels |
| Processor | 1.6 GHz intel_atom |
| RAM | 1 GB DDR3 |
| Hard Drive | 160 GB mechanical_hard_drive |
| Graphics Coprocessor | Integrated Graphics |
| Chipset Brand | Intel |
| Card Description | Integrated |
| Wireless Type | 802.11b, 802.11b/g |
| Number of USB 2.0 Ports | 3 |
| Average Battery Life (in hours) | 5.3 Hours |
