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Out without a laptop and with more than an hour to kill before an appointment, been there before?
For the first time in many weeks, I found myself in that situation and I was miserable!
It was fortunate I had my Windows mobile smart-phone that allowed me to start writing this piece and set me thinking about the new Windows mobile OS (more of that another time).
Still, I was sorely missing the little laptops that had tucked themselves into my bag or slipped neatly onto a pile of papers in my hands as I rushed from place to place.
My most recent constant companion was the Asus Eee PC running on Windows XP.
The Eee PC 900 builds on the success of its first Ultra portable, which runs on Linux and offers consumers a 7-inch screen, at a very affordable price tag.
That little bundle saw Asus selling a million in just five months, so it's no surpise that the Eee PC 900 has hit the market, still under 1kg in weight but with an 8.9-inch widescreen and Windows OS (or Linux).
Despite the larger screen the overall size of the unit, it did not vary too much from the original UMPC. In fact, it was still smaller than an A4-sized Asus brochure folded in half!
I wasn't keen on the plastic finishing which coats the 900 in either black or white. It had me asking myself how soon the hinges would give way - based on a prior unhappy experience with another laptop (not Asus) which had to be retired after its plastic hinges broke.
Maybe it was part of the design, but the hinges on the unit I had seemed to be rather stiff. This caused the notebook to slam shut despite every effort not to have it close with a hard snap.
The keyboard had to fit the overall size of the 22.5cm wide device, so hitting the wrong keys will be common as users more familiar with larger keyboards will over-reach keys. Aside from that, it was not altogether uncomfortable or difficult to get used to.
This is especially compared to another wannabe which has its touchpad and corresponding right/left keys placed on either corners of the notebook! At least the only whinge about the Asus is that the right/left keys that sit under the touchpad, lie too close to the edge of the notebook. They also slope downwards making it difficult to click on them.
Altogether, the Eee PC 900 is really not that bad. It is just the thing to throw into the back seat or glove-box of the car, with rough handling easily compensated by the SSD storage of 12GB (4GB built-in + 8GB flash) for the Microsoft Windows OS Version or 20GB (4GB built-in +16GB flash) for Linux.
You’ll find the built-in 802.11b/g wireless connection will keep you happily occupied during all those odd in-between moments, just as it did for me without dropping off as I moved from café to clinic to car.
The memory card slots mean no extra add-ons to fiddle with or carry around, the 1.3megapixel web was handy, while the three USB ports were just enough to attach mouse, flash drive and still some more.
The speakers were adequate and the playback of video clips run from a flash drive was smooth with the Intel UMA display card.
The Asus Eee PC 900 may not have stunning looks, but if you want something affordable (it retails at S$798 with GST) that's easy to carry around and use, this is the mini for you.
In an ideal world, my mini of choice would have the finish and feel of the HP 2133 along with its battery-life, the touch-screen ability seen in the Everun and Fujitsu U1010 and the Asus Eee PC 900’s size, weight, ports and simple OS, as well as price. Thank goodness it doesn’t cost to dream.
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