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ASUS Eee PC 900 8.9-Inch Netbook (Intel Mobile Processor, 1 GB RAM, 12 GB Solid State Drive, XP Home, 4 Cell Battery) Pearl White | List Price: $549.99
Discount Price: $349.99
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Brand: Asus
Binding: Personal Computers
Features: - Compact notebook for students and road warriors with full QWERTY keyboard, 8.9-inch screen, and integrated webcam
- Powered by 900 MHz Intel Mobile CPU
- 12 GB solid-state flash memory drive; 1 GB RAM; 10/100 Fast Ethernet; 54g Wi-Fi (802.11b/g)
- Over 40 built-in applications for learn, work and play; up to 3.5-hour battery life
- Connectivity: three USB 2.0; VGA output; microphone and headphone; Secure Digital card reader
Why XP in the smaller partition? [Posted on 2008-09-28]
This product is unbelievably fast, has excellent handling, perfect wi-fi, camera is nice, sound is excellent. It has it all. The nasty snag is that Windows XP is installed in a *4Gb partition*. If I know that beforehand I would had reconsidered my choice of buying it. After a few installs and Windows Update the C:\ drive becomes full and you can't do anything else. Reading lots of posts across the internet I became aware of several tweaks that works: transferring user files do D:\, which has 8Gb, switching program files folder to D:\, uninstalling everything and installing onto D:\ and so on and on and on. In this tedious process I eventually ended up doing some mistakes and had to use the DVD to get the Eee back to its original state - and start it all over again. I was really disappointed by the fact that it wasn't advertised anywhere that the 12Gb flash drive is actually TWO drives - with the smaller one containing the space-greedy Windows XP...
Comes with its own cover [Posted on 2008-11-22]
My main purpose for adding this review to the many good reviews already here, is to point out that a good, slightly padded, fitted cover is included with the ASUS Eee PC 900 8.9-Inch Netbook. The included cover is perfect for protecting the netbook from knocks and scratches while traveling. If I had known this, I wouldn't have wasted my money on the Kroo neoprene cover, shown as an accessory for this netbook!
My only criticism of my netbook is that the right/left click buttons on the mousepad are a little stiff, but the mousepad can be tapped to left click. I've bought a cheap, small mouse for the occasions that I am using the netbook for an extended time. I bought this netbook as an alternative to taking my full-size, laptop with me when I travel, mainly so that I can keep in touch with my family by email, IM and video chats, and it's perfect for that purpose.
Cute as Can Be . . . But Is It Really Useful? [Posted on 2008-12-05]
My answer? It just depends, depends on what you want it to do. I wanted it as a note-taking tool for trips, not as a movie-watching or game playing machine. And I certainly did not plan to use it for statistical analyses (which I always do at home). So here's my take on the ASUS ee pc.
PROS:
I bought this mini-laptop to use when I'm away out and about. It weighs just over two pounds and can fit into a large purse, so it's much more convenient for travel than my seven-pound laptop.
Networking is a breeze. It automatically linked into my home network, and it also picked up free networks at a couple of our local fast food shops.
Screen is as bright as it should be to compensate for the smaller image size, and there's a webcam built into the top edge of the cover . . . perfect when you need a quick shot of yourself or something in the library.
Surfing the web is easy and super-fast, much faster than I had expected from a tiny machine. Downloads take no longer than they do on my everyday laptop.
CONS:
The keyboard is smaller than I'm used to, so typing on it will take some getting used to. So far, I'm making a lot of mistakes! My hands are small, so I would expect this to be a much greater problem for someone with very large hands.
Memory is solid state and is provided on two separate drives. This might be a non-issue (I understood going in that the machine had only 12 GB) except for the fact that the manufacturer crammed everything having to do with Windows on the smaller of the two drives. Program files should be loaded onto the larger D drive rather than the tiny C drive where Windows' files reside. I've spent hours removing space hogs from the C drive. Some were not reinstalled on D because I won't use them on the road.
I don't know why I didn't notice before buying that this mini-laptop didn't have an optical drive, but I didn't. And it doesn't! What it does have is a slot for an SDHC card. My 8 GB card is getting a big workout because I'm using it for programs I need to install.
Conclusion:
I bought this mini-laptop to use on the road for writing and note-taking. I've eliminated some software and moved others so I no longer have a too-full C drive. All in all, I'm pleased with my mini. However, you should select it only if you understand its limitations. It is not equivalent to a full-size laptop.
Four stars!
Poor hard drive design ruins an otherwise promising mini [Posted on 2008-12-09]
I received my Eee PC yesterday and am considering returning it already. As many had mentioned, the 12 GB hard drive (actually flash memory) is two drives, with the smaller being less than 4 GB. This is the one that contains Win XP! I installed Microsoft LiveOneCare (for virus, back-up, etc.) and Firefox and my C drive was full! I uninstalled several things, like Skype and some other preinstalled programs and still did not have room to install itunes! I went to repartition the hard drive or merge the two drives and this is not possible, since they are two separate flash drives in the laptop. Horrible planning on Asus' part.
I called tech support and they told me I should try to pick programs that I could install on the D drive instead of the C. What?!?! How many times do you actually have a choice of directories? Can I install SP3 on the D drive?!?! No! Unbelievable. I am trying to find a reason to not waste more of my time going around ASUS' lack of poor storage design, but at this point, I'm a bit angry and frustrated from the amount of time I've already spent on a new laptop that should not have started with this ignorant problem.
If you plan on installing or upgrading any software, beware! It probably won't fit. Do not save anything, like me, and you will still run out of space. Ugh!
Awesome! [Posted on 2009-01-02]
Great little laptop! Love Amazon! got this during the customers vote, and it has performed to my expectation.
I really like this laptop, and the fact that it has xp on it! but you must make a number of software modifications and increase the ram to make it actually run smoothly. check eee pc forums for this.
its really easy to carry it around with you and the integrated sd card slot, camera, and mic are great! the machine runs quite and has a very fast bootup and return from standby. comes with a nice black carry case!
cons: typing is a bit hard, you need to get used to it, the touch pad is a bit sensitive, the unit heats up quickly under load, fans a kinda loud. there is latch to lock for the screen. needs lengthly junk removal and software install to get it moving nicely.
its partitioned hard drive is a pain! 4gb for operating system, 8gb for other files, make sure you run the asus utilities to get programs onto your d partition and leave the c partition for the os and updates.
you should get one, its a great surfing computer, attach a usb gps unit and you have an awesome unit for your car!
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