Asus Eee PC 900 hits the US on May 12th
By Paul Miller 
posted Apr 19th 2008 11:40AM
posted Apr 19th 2008 11:40AM
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
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I'll wait until the Atom version is released.
...and until it's cheaper than the HP MiniNote. If the EeePC is going to have a Fisher-Price keyboard, it should sell at Fisher-Price prices. $449, at the most. With Atom.
Unless someone needs it now, better to wait until we see the Atom vs. Isiah (HP MiniNote?).
I think Asus is about to find out how price-sensitive the popularity of their eeePC is.
There is no way I would pay $549 for that.
The eee pc continues to have some serious limitations that virtually everyone was willing to overlook at $299-$399.
rip!
off!
By a real laptop people. Don't listen to me but.... "...would you be taking the barbie doll aswell with your toy."
WOW in UK it costs £250. Which is $500 in American. Why the $50 increase. ASUS becoming greedy???
JA
Plus in UK, tax is already included in price.
at 17.2 percent.
Where? All stores I see sell it for 329 pounds and more.
Actually VAT is 17.5%. If you're going to import it then you have to pay customs on top.
it's 329 pounds in the UK which is $657 in USD
I'll wait until it can run Doom and Crysis simultaneously while being rickrolled.
Fail.
@ WiiFTW
I think you need to be Rick Rolled
why exactly did the person giving a failign grade to the doom comment get low ranked?
IT'S A MAD HOUSE IN HERE!
Shits and giggles bro, shits and giggles!.
Of couse it can run doom a million times over same with Doom 2 but what you should be saying will it play Doom 3 ?
for that asking price I want GPS and atom. reasonable or not, that's when I'll jump on board this whole UMPC thing.
without touchscreen and swivel screen this price is too much!
even with GPS, aret there mapping software on Linux as good as MS streets and trips??
at this price, its way overpriced man. i would get it at $400.
Under (almost) no circumstances will you find Windows software without a linux equivalent. Also, my friend has a current-gen Eee, and it took me and him about 1/2 an hour and $40 dollars to add bluetooth and GPS to it (not including the tools we used or the wire, stuff like that) we went back into it later with his dad (who is more experienced with working on computers) and upgraded the processor, added more RAM and more USB ports (internally)
we also swapped in a better wireless card and stuck a memory stick inside
It wasn't very hard, all of the instructions are easily to find online, going on that experience, start with USB ports, for practicality, Bluetooth was easiest, then the memory stick, the processor upgrade was the most difficult, as the soldering was tricky, the wireless card and the memory were the most worth it.
anyone can tell me what happened to the HTC shift giver away?
cheaper than the uk, in the UK it costs £329 (or $658) recomended retail price
cheaper than the uk, in the UK it costs £329 (or $658) recomended retail price
That's not very cheap at all. Not far away from what HP ask for 12 inch laptop. Call me when it cost $349.
Now they are just pricing themselves out the market. At the $200-300 price range they are a nice toy that is very cool. Now at the $500-600 point they put themselves right back to standard laptop prices - no matter how UM they might be.
The whole thing that got people excited was the small form factor and very low price.
Do I want a larger screen - yes, memory - yes. But not more than the original price range. I know they have to make money, but .....
I agree. The thing about a portable device is, you're going to beat the crap out of it. It's likely to get dropped, or wet, or just messed up from daily wear, and you're going to have to replace it. So it has to be cheap enough that you can afford to replace it when that happens.
$500 is really too high for me. $300 is more likely to be my upper ceiling, and $200 is more like what I want to pay.
I agree with the release of this EEE so close to the release of the atom processor and it's significantly higher price, calling the ASUS EEE PC 900 "hotly anticipated" is highly questionable. I would only pay that much for it if it had touchscreen tablet option. I would definitely hold out and see what the competition does and watch the price for this drop like a rock.
I would sure as hell call it "Hotly Anticipated", it is the successor to the ultra-portable that sells every six seconds, also, I am dying for one.
wow that is too high a price.
i'll wait for the price to go down or for competitors to release cheaper options.
oh, and for atom.
UP AND ATOM!
atom? gimme isaiah!
It's NOT a significant increase in price. The eeePC 8G is $499. For $50 more you get
a larger SSD, a larger multi-touch trackpad, an optional windows xp license and a higher-resolution larger screen without a hideous bezel.
I don't care about the increased storage space, personally. An SDHC card can take care of that. I care about the improved screen. I certainly wouldn't pay $549 for this when the new HP MiniNote is $50 cheaper, with a better keyboard, and an even better (1280x768) screen.
And that wonderful, wonderful VIA chipset. I'll take the 900mhZ Celeron M please. The Eee is superior in many ways.
@ Mike Cerm
I don't think you know how much VIA processors blow, especially compared to Intel. Hell, even a Sempron could blow a top-of-the-line VIA out of the water.
Glad I didn't sell my 7" 4G yet.
I agree. Price too high. I'll hold on to my Eee PC 7
So when it hits Japan ?
How long should I wait?
＿＿＿_
／ ＼
／ _ノ ヽ､_ ＼ Does ASUS hate Japan?
／ oﾟ⌒ ⌒ﾟo ＼
| （__人__） |
＼ ｀ ⌒´ ／
Asus doesn't hate Japan.....just the numerous anime characters that come out of it.
Is that a set of balls in the middle of that face?
Is it even a face?
Japan has loads of cool tech stuff that the rest of the world doesn't get, i guess you win some you lose some wherever you are..
I want to get this, but I don't have the money... yet
but right after i rob that bank..mwahahha...
Tempted. Very tempted.
will the old eee's have a price drop then now that the new ones will be coming out? that would be thriftlicious!
Probably not. Since these are priced so much higher, they're probably going to keep the old ones at the same price (unless they discontinue them all together).
Man, while I understand that ASUS is just making up for the fact that the US dollar keeps sinking, this is still way too expensive. I was expecting there to be a $399 9" model, not a $550 one.
=( I've been waiting so long for this notebook and now I don't even want it anymore. Whatever happened to the $199 notebook concept ASUS? Grr.
Because it was unrealistic in the first place? Do all of you realize how much a normal 7" - 9" laptop costs? Well over $1000, for a decent one. This is a wonderful bargain.
@Matt
These are not normal laptops and should not be compared in any way, shape, or form. If you're planning on getting your day to day work done on one, I hope you reconsider. I own the 7" version and it's merely a fun gadget to carry around everywhere just to search the web, skype, etc. Of course, I installed BT3 on it and now use it as a hacktop. But I would never replace a decent notebook with it.
This is expensive considering I can get a dell 1420 for $499
LoL! May 12th is my birthday! What a gift!
Honestly, at the price, Im going for an HP 2133 with Linux and the 120gb HDD.
Its got a better resolution, and it has higher specs.
I guess the one downside is that the battery life is a little lower, but Ill find a way to deal with that.
Don't get fooled by the processor specs, the VIA is a really bad processor, especially compared to the Celeron in the Eee.
16GB. Very nice.
$349 ... DONE
$549? .. KEEP DREAMING ASUS.
sheesh, they went from selling nice little cheap lappys to regular priced portable lappys.
here's more info on the eee pc competitor, the MSI Wind
http://gizmodo.com/381769/msi-wind-notebook-to-come-in-89-and-10+inch-flavors
7 hour battery life looks pretty tempting if it holds out...
lol on my birthday
ASUS needs to increase the screen's vertical resolution to at least 768 pixels.
But... then... wouldn't it be 4:3, and not 16:9?
That or you're going to force rectangular pixels.
No offense to notebookreview.com but I think I'll wait until I hear something official from ASUS before I begin complaining.
The price is ridiculous. I'd rather get a Jisus laptop with the almighty loongson CPU for
Okay, okay, there will be endless discussions about the speed of the processor (like most will notice on a subnotebook...) but at $549, ASUS has priced itself as that of the HP 2133 (KX869AT) - almost certainly guaranteeing comparison between the products.
Initially, potential users of the EeePC 700 4G were seen to compare this device with 'real' notebooks out there, but were reminded by many that the device wasn't meant to be a notebook replacement - and at $399, one would have been hard pressed to find one (especially in a small form factor) anyway.
Now the ASUS 900 has to be compared with the HP product - and it doesn't look good. From body shell to keyboard to available Linux OS (and its Support) to onboard storage the HP surpasses the rather weedy specs of the 900.
ASUS had, essentially, 100% market share and now seems to be simply handing it over - while pricing themselves out of all competition. Crazy.
If ASUS has any saving grace (at least in Canada) - I was speaking to a HP Rep visiting a local Best Buy today and queried the 2133, and he said it was his understanding that HP is still debating whether to ship the product here. Sounds like neither HP or Best Buy are dead keen about offering an inexpensive subnotebook in 'competition' with their other more expensive products. As it is, Best Buy doesn't sell the ASUS eeePC here, but there are enough other computer stores that do to cover that lapse.
So ASUS may have the Canadian market all to itself for awhile yet.
(Oh,and a sight digression - I was into my local Apple Store yesterday and I and a couple of clerks were having a good laugh about the Air. Then I pulled my EeePC out of my bag. By the time it had booted, I had quite a number of the staff and customers around me - it does look vaguely Apple'ish - and may have sold many on the 4G in lieu of the stuff in the store. Sorry, Stevo...)
Okay, okay, there will be endless discussions about the speed of the processor (like most will notice on a subnotebook...) but at $549, ASUS has priced itself as that of the HP 2133 (KX869AT) - almost certainly guaranteeing comparison between the products.
Initially, potential users of the EeePC 700 4G were seen to compare this device with 'real' notebooks out there, but were reminded by many that the device wasn't meant to be a notebook replacement - and at $399, one would have been hard pressed to find one (especially in a small form factor) anyway.
Now the ASUS 900 has to be compared with the HP product - and it doesn't look good. From body shell to keyboard to available Linux OS (and its Support) to onboard storage the HP surpasses the rather weedy specs of the 900.
ASUS had, essentially, 100% market share and now seems to be simply handing it over - while pricing themselves out of all competition. Crazy.
If ASUS has any saving grace (at least in Canada) - I was speaking to a HP Rep visiting a local Best Buy today and queried the 2133, and he said it was his understanding that HP is still debating whether to ship the product here. Sounds like neither HP or Best Buy are dead keen about offering an inexpensive subnotebook in 'competition' with their other more expensive products. As it is, Best Buy doesn't sell the ASUS eeePC here, but there are enough other computer stores that do to cover that lapse.
So ASUS may have the Canadian market all to itself for awhile yet.
(Oh,and a slight digression - I was into my local Apple Store yesterday and I and a couple of clerks were having a good laugh about the Air. Then I pulled my EeePC out of my bag. By the time it had booted, I had quite a number of the staff and customers around me - it does look vaguely Apple'ish - and may have sold many on the 4G in lieu of the stuff in the store. Sorry, Stevo...)
the only reason I'd get an Eee over an HP 2133 at this price point, is because I wouldn't feel as bad if the Eee's case got all beat up.
That's like saying you would marry an ugly woman so you wouldn't care when she got old. Because you never really desired her in the first place.
well I'm not going to get either right now...but for me that's really the only thing that the Eee has over the 2133, IMO.
I really can't see what the big deal is about this laptop, Apart from the price, But even that's not that cheap now.
The big deal for me is the weight. I'm tired of carrying a 6lb laptop with 2 books. I goto school in a very hilly school so weight is such a big deal for me :(.
Count me out, when it ships with Atom, i will jump, but thats to high for such little battery life. I will wait for the Eee with Atom, or the MSI wind
So what made this $250 retail laptop double in price?
I might have paid 250 but 500 plus?
No way
So, uh, with the Mini Note being $500 ($550 for what I think is the most economical and reasonable one, I guess) and this 900 still using essentially the same processor as its predecessor...
That's really taken all the bite out of the EEE for me. I see virtually no reason to get this 900. The $300-$400 700 series still pack a price punch, especially if you put the effort into customizing them a little. But, not this one.
I might be wrong, but seems like the Celeron would be faster than the Atom, although Atom would have longer battery life. Anyone know any better?
It's all a question of efficiency. You could have an atom processor at the same clock speed/performance as a celeron but have much nicer power consumption. Plus, the atom stands to be cheaper and capable of faster speeds.
Someone should tell the Sony CEO that the "race to the bottom" has been officially cancelled.
Still not seeing anything on the market which is meeting my realtively modest requirements. It really starts with battery life, doesn't it? Maybe ATOM will save that.
Maybe not.
Nobody has seemed to mention the issues already brought up about the mini note. Apparently the fan is pretty loud and it runs really hot. I don't know about others, but that is a deal breaker for me. The eee still represents a better option.
My friend has an earlier model of this, and I agree that $499 would excite more people, but it's still a rad machine. Of course there's a niche market for such a machine. For example, traveling Europe while working on an online graduate degree. That would be a machine to take on such a trip.
I wonder if this can do emulation very well :-) Also, I assume it could be powered by quite a small solar array
Fifty($50) Dollars!!! Its only $50 Dollars. Gonna spend that in a couple
minutes on dinner and a drink. GOTTA LIVE!!! Go on people live a little.
This will not sell.
I'm sorry; maybe it's totally mean and judgmental of me to say this, but...
Why the fuck would such a "fisher-price" laptop be so hotly anticipated? For $700 ($150 more), one could actually get a fully-featured laptop with decent battery life & performance that you can install any goddamn OS you like on. This thing (the 900) doesn't have the upgrades necessary to differentiate it from its predecessor to justify being a new model. Even then, it's so damn small I doubt many would be able to read on that screen without sending themselves to a premature date with LensCrafters.
I agree, a battery life of around two hours, even though it has no moving parts inside, christ, I think Eee PC mania is on borrowed time.
I've commented about this before, but I'll say it again:
Why don't these laptops include a GPU capable of 30 fps WVGA h.264 playback? The cost can't be that significant... many phones, PDAs, and PMPs can do it.
Price way too high! What do they think their selling,, oil???
I'll hold on to my Eee PC 7
may 12th my ass! i'm searching online retail and still i don't see any!
There will be some as#^!?*^ that'll buy the new Eee's at these prices. Probably the same people that stood in line for the i-phones..