The Asus EEE PC packs adult features into a playful laptop at a kid's price. Is this the next big thing in ultraportables?
Review summary of the Asus EEE PC:
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 If Internet buzz is any indication, there is certainly a market for the Asus EEE PC, but we're just not it. We're not biased against its small stature, we just think that some of the cut corners, like the low screen resolution and the flimsy keys, make the machine almost unusable for us. And some of the design choices, like the strange trackpad button and the speakers that flank the small screen, make things more difficult than they're worth. The Linux OS is as simple as can be, and the machine is surprisingly fast considering the hardware specs, so all is not lost. But this is probably a better choice for young students and hackers than for business travelers looking for something between a smartphone and a 15-inch laptop. Ultimately, the best thing about the EEE PC is the price. Release: November 2007. Price: $300.
Pros: Cute, small and light. Quick and capable, with a simple interface. Plenty of ports and connectivity options.
Cons: Tiny keyboard, tiny trackpad. Screen looks even smaller than it is. Low resolution makes browsing and multi-tasking difficult.
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Full Asus EEE PC Review:
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The EEE PC has generated more hype than most products in recent memory, and has been credited, though not by us, with changing the face of the ultraportable market. In reviewing the device, we had to look at it from two angles. First, we thought of it as a road-warrior's second, or perhaps third computer. Something ultraportable to replace a desktop or a larger laptop. Second, we looked at the EEE PC as a starter machine for novices. With its small keys and simple but sturdy Linux OS, not to mention its $400 price, the EEE PC is certainly a prospect for Junior's first laptop.
Design - Mediocre
From a distance, the EEE PC looks like a full-sized laptop, miniaturized. Our review unit came in an attractive white, and in person we were surprised at how small and light it actually was. Opening the lid, we were taken aback by the huge border around the screen, which makes it look even smaller than seven inches, but still we were struck by the adorable keyboard and trackpad. Then we tried to use the thing.
We'll detail our frustrations in the sections below, but needless to say, beyond the aesthetic beauty of the machine, function certainly does not follow form. As a mini-laptop with big aspirations, there was hardly a task we found that wasn't made more difficult by the diminutive design, flimsy plastic and questionable proportions of the EEE PC.
We will give Asus credit for an easy Linux build. The version of Xandros Linux that comes with the machine was speedy and very easy to use. Icons were large and clear, and settings were easy to navigate. If anything, the interface may have been too simple, but that was precisely the point. Of course, the tiny screen made navigating multiple open windows more confusing than it should have been. Also, installing additional programs is still a task best left to the more advanced user. But for a customer simply interested in the basics, including Web browsing, e-mail, messaging and basic Office tools, these were all easy to find.
Input - Mediocre
The keyboard and trackpad on the EEE PC are not only tiny, they include some design choices that make them even more difficult to use. On the keyboard, the tiny keys meant that we often missed our mark with annoying results. We pressed the arrow key went we meant to shift. We pressed Delete when we meant to Backspace. The keys themselves felt flimsy and cheap, which they probably are, considering the machine's price tag. But this meant that typing wasn't very comfortable, and often our keystrokes wouldn't register if we didn't type carefully and deliberately.
Unfortunately, the trackpad is even worse. It was too small for even our dainty fingers, which made it difficult to use, but also meant that moving the cursor from one side of the screen to the other took an inordinate number of swipes. The trackpad button tries to be clever, hiding two buttons under a single metallic bar. Press on the left side, and you left-click; press on the right side, and you right-click. But press anywhere near the center, and nothing happens. In fact, some times we had to batter the button even when we were pressing on its poles.
Display - Mediocre
Nothing is more disappointing about the EEE PC than the screen. Closed, the machine looks like a normal, albeit tiny laptop, so we expected a properly proportioned screen. Instead, when we opened the EEE PC we found a tiny display, boxed in by speakers on either side and a wide bezel at the top and bottom. The effect is startling, and it looks as though Asus could have crammed another two or three inches of screen in there.
At that size, of course the resolution was disappointingly low, at 800 by 480 pixels. That may be impressive on a handheld of mobile internet device, but for a laptop it is hardly usable. At that small size, not only do Web pages require loads of scrolling, but most YouTube videos wouldn't even fit on the screen, and the full screen mode didn't seem to work with the device's FireFox browser. Flickr loaded properly, but images didn't fit well on the screen, and when we entered Flickr's Organize mode, the layout was disturbed by the low resolution.
For Office programs an productivity tools, the screen size was actually okay, and text looked good and legible. But for Web browsing, the experience was seriously hampered, and even the simple Linux interface itself suffered, as the bottom of the screen quickly became overloaded with a confusing jumble of window tabs and status indicators. Also, we often found windows opened too far above the top or bottom of the screen, and so window close buttons and occasionally low-placed menu items would be cut off, forcing us to rearrange windows. This meant lots of precision clicking and dragging, which on this trackpad was not a good thing.
Connectivity - Good
One of the more impressive aspects of the EEE PC is its connectivity options. The machine sports three USB ports, a VGA output, audio in/out and Ethernet. It also features a combo SD card / Memory Stick reader. We had no trouble with our peripherals, and setting up our aging Brother laser printer was even easier on the EEE PC than it was on our Mac or Windows machines. Connecting to our Draft-N router didn't work every time, even though it sits less than ten feet from our desk. About a third of the time, the EEE PC didn't see our network in its first look (though it happily hopped on our neighbor's), but then came back with 100% signal after a refresh. Never a problem that required serious intervention.
Performance - Very good
Nothing about the specs give a clue to how good the performance of the EEE PC will be, but we were quite impressed in our hands-on tests. The machine just didn't seem to slow down. We opened as many apps as we could, with multiple windows, and the EEE PC still tore through complicated Web pages and loaded streaming videos with ease. Networking speeds were usually impressive, though the device doesn't take advantage of our network's 802.11n capabilities.
To test the 4GB SSD drive, we started by copying a 350MB DiVX ("Dr. Who," if you must know) file from a USB stick. This took about 22 seconds, which seemed quite speedy. The media player handled the .avi container without any problems, but playback wasn't as good as we'd hoped. The screen looked good, bright with vibrant colors. But the video on playback had noticable compression issues, large blocks and lines that would flash on the screen. It was still entirely watchable, but we wouldn't choose the EEE PC to replace a portable media player with a much larger hard drive.
Battery - Very good
We spent close to three hours surfing the Web, watching some video files and playing the frustrating Penguin Race game before the battery died on us. That seems like plenty of time, considering some full size ultraportable laptops can't manage two hours doing the same. We didn't test the EEE PC running an external USB DVD drive, but obviously powering that bus will drain the battery quicker.
Accessories - Very good
Our EEE PC review unit didn't come with much, and that was a good thing. It did include a Bluetooth wireless mouse which worked well and paired quickly with the device. It also came with one of the smaller power cords we've seen on a laptop. Our USB hub has a larger power brick than the EEE PC, which is great for portability. Otherwise, we had no trouble using the EEE PC with Logitech and Microsoft mice, an HP photo printer and a Brother laser printer, and all the external storage we had on hand.
Niche - Good
This is easily the most contentious category, because it's hard to pin down exactly who the EEE PC would be good for. We can't recommend it for business travelers, even as a second laptop. The low screen resolution made casual browsing and Web-based e-mail much more difficult to use, and the tiny keys made typing a Word document a real hassle. If price is your concern and you don't want to settle for an ultra-cheap laptop, we'd find something used for $400 - $500 before we'd take the EEE PC on a business trip.
For kids and young students, however, the EEE PC might be a much better fit. Tiny fingers might not mind the small keyboard and trackpad as much as we did, and every user can certainly appreciate the simplicity and inherent speed of the user interface. Plus, it's quite a capable machine for simple tasks, and the Linux underpinnings means this is a machine that a curious user could expand and grow.
Price and availability
The Asus EEE PC is available now in configurations ranging from a $300 model with 2GB of storage to a $500 model with 8GB of storage.
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