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The Eee PC grows up -- and so does its price.  (Source: ASUS)
ASUS pushes the Eee PC 900 into uncharted waters with a higher price tag.

When ASUS launched the original Eee PC 701 4G in late 2007, the notebook was praised for its relatively low price, respectable performance for an inexpensive notebook due to its internal solid-state drive (SSD), and compact dimensions/weight. ASUS announced its second generation model in early March along with a few notable upgrades to its screen and storage capacity.

Unfortunately, those upgrades come at a price that pushes the Eee PC 900 squarely into an even higher price bracket. When the Eee PC 900 launches on May 12 in the United States, it will be priced at $549 for both Linux and Windows XP versions.

The Linux version of the Eee PC will come with a 4GB SSD + an additional 16GB internal flash module for a total of 20GB of storage space. The Windows XP model -- due to the licensing fees associated with Windows -- will only feature an internal flash module of 8GB leaving it with just 12GB of total storage space.

The other notable upgrades for the second generation Eee PC include the larger, 8.9" 1024x600 display, 1GB of DDR2 memory, Multi-Touch trackpad, and the inclusion of a 1.3 MP webcam (up from 0.3 MP). Otherwise, the Eee PC still includes an undersized keyboard, three USB 2.0 ports, a VGA port, and an Intel Celeron-M processor which can run at 630 MHz or 900 MHz.

It should be interesting to see if the Eee PC can manage to maintain the momentum of its predecessor given the higher price. It's true that the higher price affords a better user experience, but it may also push potential consumers to look at larger 15.4" alternatives in its price range.

However, for those that are strictly looking for an ultra-portable machine, the Eee PC 900 makes quite a statement as do competing offerings like the HP 2133 Mini-Note PC and the Everex CloudBook Max.

For a more in-depth look at the Eee PC 900, you can check out reviews from bit-tech, CNET, Trusted Reviews and Tech Radar.

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Here
By nvalhalla on 4/19/2008 9:02:30 AM , Rating: 5
-That's too much money, I can get a Dell for $550

-No, you don't understand! It's small s it's worth more. Sony has a $2000 UMPC.

-Go Linux!

-Go XP, Vista sucks!

-This is too weak, I need native quad core for my winamp player.

-Call me when it can play Crysis.

Any I forgot?




RE: Here
By Brandon Hill (blog) on 4/19/2008 9:05:51 AM , Rating: 3
-I'm not buying a Fisher Price notebook; just look at the the thing!
-No optical drive, no sale.
-I can get a 6.5-lb Core 2 Duo, 15.4" notebook with Windows Vista Home Premium and a 160GB HDD for that price.
-ASUS sucks, there's motherboards are crap and I wouldn't buy anything else made by them.


RE: Here
By Flunk on 4/19/2008 11:24:52 AM , Rating: 2
I'm not carrying around a big fat 15inch notebook. Might as well just buy a desktop.


RE: Here
By daftrok on 4/19/2008 5:11:10 PM , Rating: 5
Oh no I can't possibly find a place to fit a 14" x 10" x 1.5" laptop that weighs a whopping 6 lbs. I mean I'd much rather get a 30 lb desktop that's NOT portable.

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/compute...


RE: Here
By Samus on 4/20/2008 12:11:04 AM , Rating: 2
IBM X40's are less than $400 used.

With that in mind, anyone who's bought one of these, whether it be the cheap models or the expensive models, has been Assusraped.


RE: Here
By GaryJohnson on 4/20/2008 10:35:27 PM , Rating: 2
How times have changed. Not so long ago, a link to a Compaq branded product on DT would have seen you tarred and feathered.


RE: Here
By Mattd4AX3 on 4/20/2008 12:06:38 AM , Rating: 2
Gee, I think I need to put Brandon on my "haters" list.


RE: Here
By Samus on 4/21/2008 2:57:39 AM , Rating: 2
Ja bro, hez mad h8r.


RE: Here
By munim on 4/19/2008 9:27:16 AM , Rating: 2
- $100 increase per inch of screen space?!! Puhlease!!
- Awww they took out the modem that wasn't really there?!! No way


RE: Here
By BladeVenom on 4/19/2008 9:28:00 AM , Rating: 5
You want complaints? Here's mine. I wanted to spend an extra $20 on a bigger screen, not an extra $200 on a bigger flash drive.


RE: Here
By ImSpartacus on 4/19/2008 12:45:51 PM , Rating: 3
I don't see why they don't put like two SD slots on the thing so you can throw an 8-16 GB SD card on there and be done with it. Then they can skip the internal flash all together (not the SSD though). SD's would be more convenient anyway.


RE: Here
By daftrok on 4/19/2008 3:36:19 PM , Rating: 5
Convenient yes but if you ran XP on SD cards you would pull your hair out.


RE: Here
By Screwballl on 4/19/2008 11:01:33 AM , Rating: 1
-I can get a used laptop with twice the specs for half the price


RE: Here
By pukemon on 4/19/2008 11:15:19 AM , Rating: 5
- I'm gonna wait until the Atom version comes out

Actually, come to think of it, that's a legit response. Hrmmm...


RE: Here
By Brandon Hill (blog) on 4/19/2008 11:29:54 AM , Rating: 4
Considering that the 900 gets worse battery life, that's a VERY legit response.


RE: Here
By DeepBlue1975 on 4/19/2008 1:39:06 PM , Rating: 2
I'm amongst those who say that :D

But maybe I'll get this one anyway. I thought the 20gb or 12gb space was exclusively provided by an SSD, not that it comprised an "internal card you don't have to plug from outside". That's cheating!

For the extra price (the new screen costs them less than $30 extra) I would have wanted a single 16 or 20gb SSD, not just a "partitioned space" including a probably run of the mill flash drive you can get for much less all alone.

Dell says they'll be making one of these in the same price range?
HP says they'll use ATOM by the end of the year?

I think I'll wait for those "true competitors" (the cloudbook isn't in my opinion, the 1st gen of the HP neither because of its crappy via CPU) to evaluate which one fits me better.


RE: Here
By shabby on 4/19/2008 1:41:21 PM , Rating: 2
The atom version will be priced at $999 ;)


RE: Here
By djc208 on 4/19/2008 11:28:56 AM , Rating: 2
- Chevy eeE PC ...bla, bla, bla,.. compared to the Lexus MacBook Air ...bla, bla, bla... and it only costs an extra $1450 bla, bla, bla .... for people willing to pay for quality, ...bla, bla, bla...


RE: Here
By ImSpartacus on 4/19/2008 2:48:38 PM , Rating: 2
Well you pretty much covered everything. We might as well lock the comments on this article.


RE: Here
By SiliconAddict on 4/20/2008 2:19:44 AM , Rating: 2
Go ahead and buy your $550 Dell notebook. When I visit your house to replace the motherboard, or the LCD because of a bad inverter or a host of other problems because the hardware in that $550 laptop is shit...I will laugh.
This is the one thing the average dipshit consumer still hasn't gotten. A $550 Dell is cutting corners trying to make it perform like a good laptop. The end result is a laptop who's quality ranks up there with a laptop pulled out of the local dump. An Eee PC is using parts designed around a $550 laptop. The hardware is meh but the corners being cut aren't anywhere near these "normal" budget PC's and as such the likelihood of getting shit is WAY less.


RE: Here
By Davelo on 4/20/2008 2:25:35 AM , Rating: 2
Yep. My friend just got a Dell XPS with 2 gb of ram, Nvidia graphics and a big screen for $600. Why has this website been pushing this wee pc so much?


RE: Here
By tanishalfelven on 4/20/08, Rating: -1