ASUS is planning to merge the EEE PC and Notebook departments in order to increase the efficiency and decrease the management costs of the two departments. Although, ASUS has declined to comment on this claim.
[via digitimes]
Packard Bell Kills the Dot netbook
Packard Bell ‘dot’ netbook was launched in September, 2008 and should have gone for sale by January, 2009, but sadly, that did not happen. Packard Bell’s spokesperson has confirmed that the ‘dot’ netbook has reached the end of its life. Instead Packard Bell will move on and will launch a new model in the future, which is likely going to be the Acer Aspire One AOD150.
For those who don’t know, Packard Bell ‘dot’ netbook is basically a rebranded version of an Acer Aspire One.
[via SlashGear]
ASUS Eee 1002HA detailed review
What would you get if ASUS EEE S101 and EEE 1000H go to bed? An EEE 1002HA! The EEE 1002HA share the many of the hardware specifications of the EEE 1000H and sleek and svelte looks of the admiring EEE S101. Are we happy with what we get? Read the review to find out!
Design
The EEE 1002HA looks very much like the S101. Infact, if you put both of them together, it would be very hard for someone to actually differentiate between of them unless you observe them closely. That said, we will cover the differences between S101 and 1002HA later this review.
The EEE 1002HA is made from brushed plastic which gives it a ‘expensive’ look as compared to other netbooks in the market. On the right, you will find a USB 2.0 port, microphone and earphone jack.
On the left, you will find two USB 2.0 ports.
On the front of the device, you will find speaker grills.
On the back of the device, you will find Kensington lock, power in, LAN port, VGA out port and multi-card reader.
The cover holds two LEDs which show the charging status and power status. The power LED lights up when the EEE is on and blinks when the netbook is in standby mode. The charging LED is orange on AC power and green on battery power. The cover needs a special mention. It is glossy and looks very stylish and certainly makes it look different from the rest of the netbooks.
The pictures just do not do full justice to the looks of the 1002HA. It looks much more professional than the 1000H as it is not as curvy. Even the area around the trackpad gives you a feel of expensive device. Personally, I found it more attractive the S101.
Display
The display is 10-inch (not 10.2-inch) as compared to other EEEs. Does that make any difference? Well, I did not know about the fact the display in 1002HA is 0.2-inch smaller than the other 10+inch netbooks, until I saw the specification sheet.
So, how is the display? Display is adequately sharp and colorful. It has the usual netbook resolution (1024 x 600).The display is non-glossy just like other EEE PCs. Two microphones also sit just beneath the display.
Keyboard
The keyboard forms the most important aspect of any netbook. When it comes to any 10-inch+ netbooks, people expect great keyboards so that they are able to type-on long documents on-the-go. The keyboard in 1002HA is excellent. While typing, you don’t have to press the keys much. Infact, I had to use even less force as compared to my 1000H, which also has great keyboard.
Again, just like S101 and 1000H, it comes with a small right shift key. Although, this problem is rectified in the newer EEEs (like 1000HE), this so-called problem has never bothered me. I’m happy with the keys arrangement and can live with the small right shift key.
Trackpad
The trackpad is 100% identical to the one found in EEE S101. It is big and easy to use. I faced no problems using it. It supports the usual multi-touch gestures like two finger scroll, zoom-in and zoom-out functions. Unlike 1000H, which has separate left and right click buttons, it has a single bar just like old EEE 700-series.
Speakers
It has two speakers, both located on the front. They are not as strong as the ones found on the 1000H, but they do their job nicely. They are fine for skype and for casual listening to music that does not has too much of bass.
Memory
It comes with 160GB HDD and a gig of RAM. It also comes with 10GB of EEE storage (link)
Upgradability
Just like other HDD-based EEE PCs, ASUS has provided access to the HDD and RAM. Although, replacing the RAM is quite easy, but replacing the HDD can be a quite tricky. Here is the tutorial on how to swap HDD and RAM of the EEE 1002HA
Battery Life
The EEE 1002HA is equipped with 4200mAh lithium-polymer battery. The ASUS claims that it should provide around 5 hours of battery life. I do not think you are ever going to achieve those numbers, but since it is a lithium-polymer battery, its performance as compared to the standard lithium-ion battery is better (as expected). However, we were able to get a little more than 3 hours under heavy wifi use. Without wifi, you may be able to stretch those numbers to somewhere between 3-3.5 hours, but not more than that.
Also, since the battery is located beneath the unit, it would be very difficult for ASUS or for the third party companies to come up with extended battery. On the brighter side, the battery’s weight is not too much. So, it is more sensible to get another battery instead of waiting for some company to come up with extended battery.
Comparison with 1000H
Firstly, the screen of 1000H can be tilted way farther as compared to the 1002HA
Secondly, the 1002HA feels much smaller than 1000H. While the EEE 1000H feels a little bit on the bulky side, this is not the case with the EEE 1002HA. The reason is that the width of the 1000H is little bigger than the 1002HA. This is due to the fact that the battery is located beneath the hinge of the 1000H, whereas the battery of 1002HA is located on the bottom of the device.
How is it different from EEE S101?
- The keys in S101 had a unique crystal coating. This type of coating is missing in 1002HA
- The S101 is slimmer than the 1002HA. The reason is the use of SSD in S101 which is considerably slimmer than the regular laptop HDD found in 1002HA
How about some benchmarks?
First, CrystalDiskMark benchmark on the 1002HA:
Results of Crystaldiskmark on S101. S101’s SSD completely nails the HDD of 1002HA
Now, here are the results of Crystalmark on 1002HA:
..and of S101’s. As you can see, the scores are nearly identical except in the HDD department.
Final Thoughts
The EEE 1002HA is a great machine which takes the all the positives of the EEE S101 and EEE 1000H. The ASUS took the challenge to produce a regular HDD-based EEE with the slim looks of S101. Are we happy with the final outcome? Yes! The 1002HA is great in performance and brings seriously professional looks. On the battery life front, it may not break and records, but with careful usage, you should easily get 3.5 hours+ of battery life.
—
Pros:
- Shares the same sexy looks of the EEE S101
- HDD is way roomy as compared to small SSD of S101
- RAM and HDD easily upgradable
- Feels expensive
- Smaller than the 1000H
- Zippy performance with the XP
- 10GB EEE storage
Cons:
- Battery life is not great
- No extended battery options
- Small right shift key
Also read:
Review of EEE S101
Tutorial to upgrade RAM and HDD of EEE 1002HA
How To: Upgrade the Hard Disk and RAM of ASUS EEE 1002HA
Since the ASUS EEE 1002HA is a HDD based EEE PC, ASUS has given panels at the back of the unit to let the user upgrade them when required. However, upgrading the HDD is not that easy in 1002HA. I’ve written this tutorial to let the users easily upgrade the HDD and RAM.
First take the battery out. Now, first we will upgrade the RAM. Unscrew the screws of the RAM panel.
Carefully take the tape apart from the RAM module. Now, a little pull towards left will take the RAM module out. You will have to move the holders in opposite direction to take the RAM out. You can now slide in new RAM. Note that only upto 2GB RAM module is supported on the EEE 1002HA.
Now, lets us swap the HDD with new one.
Starting from the right edge, pull the HDD up.
You will find that the HDD is tied to a ribbon
Carefully, remove the connectors from the ribbon as shown in the following figure.
Now, you can swap it with a new 2.5-inch HDD. Just make sure you take off the rubber enclosure from the OEM HDD and put it on the new HDD. It will help it to reduce the impact of the bumps.
Note: you will have to go into BIOS first to make the unit recognize the newly installed RAM. To go into BIOS, keep pressing F2 as-soon-as the unit boots.
Microsoft reveals Notebook cooling pad – great for netbooks too?
We already know that Microsoft keeps coming out with some interesting accessories for the computers, but I’m sure no one ever thought that the Microsoft would ever enter the market of USB-powered Notebook accessories. According to Microsoft, this notebook cooling pad measures only 1.16-inch thick. Also, it will go on sale in July at an affordable price of $29.95. Looks like Microsoft is well aware of the recession.
This is going to be a great accessory for my EEE 1000H as it does sometimes becomes very warm when do some heavy photoshop work on it or when I play some CPU intensive games.
[via Engadget]
ASUS folding netbook concept based netbook to be launched this year!
Asus showed its folding netbook concept at CeBIT 2009. According the designers, they took the main idea from origami. Origami is a Japanese art of making objects by folding paper. When the netbook is closed, it looks like as if two pieces of paper are stacked upon each other. But, the real magic happens when you open it. The keyboard slides when you open the unit. This unique design allows room for the larger trackpad. Also, the keyboard also tilts up a little letting the user to type at much comfortable angle.
Here is even more interesting part. ASUS has got plans to launch this so-called concept netbook in the 3rd quarter this year!
[via techradar]
Clevo M810L netbook looks like a book?
Clevo is going to launch its own netbook this year, M810L. Although hardware-wise, it looks similar to the current netbooks, but due to its squarish chassis, it looks far different than the other netbooks you would come across so far. According to the theinquirer, it looks like a book. I did not believe them until I saw this photo. A book with a microphone and earphone jack in the front?
Specifications
- 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270
- 10.1-inch screen
- upto 2GB of RAM
- Wi-Fi
- 3G and Bluetooth
It is planned to be launched later this month.
[via liliputing]
Meet the Acer Aspire One D150’s brother – Acer Aspire One D110
A month back, we said that the Acer had plans to launch the SSD version of Acer Aspire One D150. It has now been made available at a French retailer and will cost you 299 euros. The SSD capacity is mere 16GB. Rest of the specifications have not undergone any change.
Continue reading “Meet the Acer Aspire One D150’s brother – Acer Aspire One D110”
Lenovo Ideapad S9e released in Japan
Lenovo has launched Ideapad S9e in Japan. It is quite similar to the Lenovo Ideadpad S10 which we reviewedfew days back except for the fact that it has 8.9-inch display compared to the 10.2-inch display found in S10. Another major difference is the battery capacity. While the S10 came with a 3-cell battery which barely lasted 2.5 hours, the S9e comes with extended battery, which claims to give you 6.5 hours. Here are some specs of it:
Linux looses even more netbook market share
The original EEE 700-series first came with Linux distro, Xandros. However, soon the company learned that the majority of the people want to run Windows OS on their netbooks. Currently, almost all the netbooks run Windows XP as their OS.
Personally, it is due to fact that people have developed a perception that Linux is only for hardcore geeks which is not true at all. However, we have to admit that the App Store (package manager) in Linux needs to be more friendly. Users often get confused when they are required to execute scripts, grant access etc.
[via liliputing]