Asus Eee PC 900

Review of Asus Eee PC 900 Laptop computer.

As some of my Ciao acquaintances are aware I am currently travelling in the UK with my partner. We are both writers, a long term hobby, which has now become our income as freelancers. A laptop computer has been our trusty companion for some time, however as there are occasions when we both need to be using the machine, we decided to purchase a second laptop to make life a little easier. There ...
...The laptop we purchased the ASUS Eee PC 900 had the 'What Laptop' magazine gold award, having rated 8 out of a possible 10 in the May 2008 issue test reports section. It was purchased from PC World in Newcastle upon Tyne for £199.99.

**The laptop**

The Asus Eee PC 900 is classed as a entry level ultra mobile laptop and around the same size of a hard back novel, it most certainly is ultra mobile! It weighs a minuscule ... more

Review of Asus Eee PC 900 Laptop computer.

As some of my Ciao acquaintances are aware I am currently travelling in the UK with my partner. We are both writers, a long term hobby, which has now become our income as freelancers. A laptop computer has been our trusty companion for some time, however as there are occasions when we both need to be using the machine, we decided to purchase a second laptop to make life a little easier. There is nothing more irritating than needing the computer only to find the other one is hogging the thing!

We researched various machines and decided that as our main laptop is fine for Internet access by means of a usb 3g modem 'dongle', the second machine did not have to be anything too fancy as it would primarily be used for word processing. We tend to use an external hard drive to store our work so the new laptop did not need a massive hard drive.

The world of computers fascinates me, but I am the first to admit that I am no expert and with this in mind, researched the Internet and magazines like no tomorrow! I have read literally dozens of test reports, some useful, some mind boggling. Ciao did not have a review so I have decided to write one!

The laptop we purchased the ASUS Eee PC 900 had the 'What Laptop' magazine gold award, having rated 8 out of a possible 10 in the May 2008 issue test reports section. It was purchased from PC World in Newcastle upon Tyne for £199.99.

**The laptop**

The Asus Eee PC 900 is classed as a entry level ultra mobile laptop and around the same size of a hard back novel, it most certainly is ultra mobile! It weighs a minuscule 940g and the overall dimensions are approximately 225mm lengthwise x141mm wide x 36mm thick. It looks like a standard laptop that got shrunk in the wash!
The screen is a 7" TFT, which uses LED technology making it brighter and more energy efficient than the usual laptop screen. The screen is set inside a large bezel flanked by speakers, this means there is room for a fair sized 'qwerty' keyboard, much larger than on similar 7" models.
The laptop comes in white or black, colour was no real issue for me so I was not too bothered that the shop only had white in stock. The main manufacturing material is as you might expect for such a light weight machine, plastic, it is sturdy and robust.
The Asus Eee PC 900 is available from PC World shops and online and from the online retailer, Laptops direct, www.laptopsdirect.co.uk , plus various other suppliers. Prices seem to be around £190.00- £225.00.

** Hard drive, Processor, Memory, Controls and Components **

Hard Drive
The hard drive is a 2 GB Solid State Drive (SSD), there are no moving parts which of course helps the robust nature of the laptop. The SSD does limit the amount of files that can be stored, but as I have said, this isn't an issue for our usage of the computer.

Processor.
Intel 900MHz Celeron M 353

Memory
512mb DDR2 SDRAM

Controls,components etc

From the front.

SSD indicator which blinks when data is being written or read from the disk drive.
Power indicator
Battery charge indicator to show status of the battery.
Wireless indicator. Lights when the wireless LAN is enabled .
Touch pad and buttons which are the mouse for this type of computer.
Qwerty keyboard with palm supports
Power switch, this only works when the display panel is opened.

From the right side.

Memory card slot, reads SD/MMC cards from digital cameras, MP3 players, PDAs and mobile phones
2x USB ports for attaching various devices, such as keyboards, cameras, storage devices.
15 pin monitor port, enables you to attach a full sized monitor if required.
'Kensington' Lock port, allows the laptop to be secured by means of 'Kensington' compatible security products.

From the left side.

Lan port, for a standard Ethernet cable to connect to a local network.
Modem port, for a standard telephone cable
USB port
Microphone jack, for connecting to Skype applications, voice recordings or simple audio recording.
Headphone output jack (1/8"), this connects the Eee PC audio outlet to your headphones, automatically disabling the built n speakers.

From the rear

Battery pack, this is automatically charged when connected to mains power.
Mains power input.

Graphics adapter - Intel GMA 900

Battery life is quoted as 192 minutes, but of course, as with all laptops this will vary dependent on what you use the machine for.

**Operating system**

The Asus Eee PC 900 operated on a Linux variant, Asus Xandros. It fires up very quickly into an icon driven interface. The interface consists of six tabs arranged across the screen, these break down into the main functions of the laptop, work, play, Internet, settings, favourites and learn. It is easy to navigate, each tab opens into a further selection of icons relevant to the subject.
The laptop can be switched to Windows should users wish and a Windows Installation guide is included in the box, although NOT the Windows service pack discs, these have to be obtained separately from Microsoft. I found the operating system slightly strange at first, but it is actually simplicity itself to use once you are used to it.

We have used the laptop to access the 'net, although this wasn't our main purpose in buying it. It accepted our mobile broadband USB device with no problem and we were online in seconds. Of course with such a small screen you probably wouldn't want to do any great amount of surfing, but for checking emails and light Internet use, it is fine.

The system is pre-loaded with a huge range of tools from a full Open Office word suite, tools for getting online, power utilities and media tools. The browser pre loaded is Mozilla Firefox, my personal favourite browser. A wireless connection or mobile USB connection is require for accessing the Internet, the necessary ports are inbuilt to accept your Ethernet cable. The laptop can be used as a movie and music player and the sound quality is excellent. As it does not have a CD/DVD drive, the music or movies would need to be run from a USB memory stick or a separate CD/DVD drive added via USB.

**In the Box**

The laptop (obviously)
Power cable.
Battery pack.
Full User guide.
Quick Use guide.
Warranty card, (24 months guarantee for laptop, six months guarantee for battery.)
Windows Installation guide.
Battery information leaflet
1 x recovery CD
1 x support CD

Advantages

The laptop is very portable and easy to use. It does everything I need for a second laptop. It is very sleek looking and was set up and running in minutes. For everyday use the Asus Eee PC 900 can be attached to a full sized monitor and keyboard should you wish. The price is very competitive and the test reports I read on this model rated it extremely highly. It is small but perfectly put together and for a basic ultra compact machine, it is in my opinion very hard to beat.

Disadvantages

I feel rather disloyal to my lovely little laptop by listing it's failings but, in the interests of Ciao readers, here goes!

No CD/DVD drive, bluetooth connection, no modem so an existing wireless network is required.
The laptop does not come with a carry case, bundled software, firewall or infrared. Limited memory, small processor, no dual core here I'm afraid! Smaller than standard keyboard maybe irritating to anyone with large fingers. Recovery and support cds supplied not much good without a separate cd/dvd drive.

**Conclusion**

I love this laptop! It is perfect for my needs and in such a small package. Living the way my partner and I do in the confined areas of boats and caravans, this laptop suits us very well. I would recommend it to anyone wanting a budget ultra portable laptop.
Thank you for reading.

C brittle1906 May 2008 

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