Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Tuesday, 13 May 2008 07:44
Opinion and Analysis
Page 2 of 3
Well, the only remaining problem the Asus Eee PC 900 faces is not the small increase in additional cost, but the keyboard which remains exactly the same size as the Eee PC 701.
The keyboard really was designed for children, which is one of the reasons why the Eee PC was originally targeted – and still is promoted - as an educational computer.
The fact that it became a retail, consumer “hit” was something that originally took Asus by surprise – they hadn’t expected it would be so successful with everyday people, and that success has come despite the keyboard being cramped compared with a regular laptop computer.
But that success was quickly recognised by Asus who wasted no time in bringing the Asus Eee 900 to market, with more models no doubt in planning for release next year.
Yes, the smaller keyboard is something you certainly get used to using after a while, but you wouldn’t want to be writing a novel on the keyboard – you’d get yourself an external keyboard, be it USB or wireless – when using the Eee 900 for long periods of time, especially when at home or in the office.
Out and about, you probably won’t be typing out novels or supremely long documents, so the smaller sized keyboard is hardly a deal breaker, but it does stand out as something that Asus will need to rectify in future models.
This is where the Eee 900’s biggest upcoming competitor does have an advantage. That competitor is HP’s 2133 Mini-Note PC, with a keyboard that’s 92% the size of regular keyboards, promising a vastly improved typing experience, with the entire machine reported as designed around the keyboard “first”, rather than being squeezed in afterwards.
While 30% more expensive at AUD $899 than the AUD $599 Eee PC 900 with XP, it comes with Vista Business, an 8.9-inch screen with an even nicer 1280x768 resolution, the same 1GB of memory, a 1.2Ghz Via C7-M processor and a 120GB hard drive running at 5400RPM – much faster than the 80GB hard drive running at 4200 RPM as found in Apple’s much more expensive MacBook Air.
The AUD $999 model, while $100 more expensive, bumps up the processor speed to a 1.6Ghz processor, the memory up to 2GB and gives you a 160GB hard drive, but that makes it 40% more expensive than the $599 Eee PC. You could almost buy two Asus Eee 900 PCs for the price of one HP, so price will still clearly be a major differentiator for Asus and will ensure the Eee series remains highly popular in the retail marketplace, but the HP certainly is attractive, too, with higher specs to boot.
But what about cheaper and more affordable versions of the HP 2133 Mini-Note PC? Surely they are a threat not only to Asus but anyone else eyeing the cheap PC space. Please read onto page 3.
