When you're number two, you've always got a humble eye and a gun pointed at number one. Just look at Apple and those "
Get a Mac" ads. Now in true Pepsi-challenge fashion, ASUS is trying to convince consumers that its
Eee PC 1000He is vastly superior to Acer -- the
number one seller of netbooks -- and its
Aspire One D150. On the surface, the two laptops appear to be identical in that they share the same N280 processor, 10-inch display, and 1GB of DDR2 memory. Of course, same specs result in an equivalent application performance as seen in the reviews. But if you look closer (as ASUS hopes), you'll see that the 1000He features a larger keyboard and touchpad, faster 802.11n WiFi, and more robust 8,700mAH battery and power management compared to the 5,800mAH jobbie found on the Aspire One. ASUS takes the comparisons much deeper though, right on down to the size of the power bricks to prove its point. Ok ASUS, you win... too bad better products don't always translate to market dominance.
P.S. Picture of the competing transformers after the break because we know you're wondering.
posted March 5th 2009 6:05AM
Phew, great review, I was just thinking about getting an Acer Aspire. Thanks for the heads up.
TechFilipino
Amazon has the black and blue version for $375:
http://todaysepicdeal.wordpress.com/2009/02/04/asus-eee-pc-1000he-10-netbook-36499/
I agree, cool little review. ASUS, you just totally changed my mind from the Aspire to the Eee PC, given that it costs the same or less of course. :P
Why has no one mentioned the Axprie Oxe joke in that ad?
Asus is at it again with their damn crowns symbolizing the best product... man these ads are really weird.
Agree. I'm also not a big fan of scientifically analysing products to try and mathematically determine which is the "best", or naming specific products you're competing against. It's just bad form IMO, and it treats prospective customers like idiots who can't connect the dots themselves.
JUPIIII
I was worried for a minute there, but phew -- measured my index finger -- it's within tolerances :-)
Mark
111.36% larger? Lol
I think they're using some of that "fuzzy math"
You know, the kind where you can blatantly lie about your slightly larger keyboard being more than twice the size of its competitors.
Was working that through my head a minute then...111% larger...that is a HUGE keyboard...oh wait...its wrong. Way to self-fail at showing others mini-fail.
I dunno about you guys, but when something is 100% the size of something, it's the SAME size. All this is saying is that it's about 11 percent larger than that.
I dunno about you, konshuss, but when something's 50% larger, it's larger, not half the size. When it's 100% larger, it's twice the size.
Although I [i]think[/i] maybe those aren't to be read as one sentence? It's 111.36% (5 significant figures FTW!), which is "larger than AspiXre One keyboard"? Given the extensive grasp of English capitalization and punctuation shown in these ads, I'm sure it should be obvious...
Which would make it just over 503mm wide -- wow! :-)
Omg I love the WIN! flashes and golden crowns pasted across these adverts. I actually burst out laughing at the library when I saw Asus was doing these 'adorably bitchy' ads again!
Smaller adaptor make you easy to carry!
WIN
Gotta love the math. Their keyboard is 11% bigger than the Aspire's, not 111%. But in general, I like Asus, so I'll suck it up and deal. Gimme!
Well, its 111% of the size of the Acer, just not 111% larger...
If only GN40 was included in the 1000HE, I'd buy one today.
Any ideas when will it arrive?
It'll be in the variant of the Eee that has an optical drive, I forget what it's called. Alternatively the Aspire One will be getting it in a couple of months.
I love all the wins plastered across it. A bit pathetic but adorable.
I like how they screwed with the aspect ratio on the pic of the Aspire One keyboard to make a 16mm difference in width and a 0.5mm difference in key pitch seem huge. Douchebags. "Confidential", ksheah, right. I'm not about to buy a netbook from a company that runs a smear campaign against its competitors.
true dat! i didn't even notice that... damn advertising :(
at left they scale a finger-width to 18-20mm... per the listed specs, the acer keyboard should be less than one finger-width shorter, but they made it at least 3! haha
I have the new aspire with Japanese support and the keyboard is really small... also the finish of the top of the laptop scratches really easily. Besides that... the aspire is so small that it feels just like a book in my backpack. I wouldn't trade it for anything at the moment.
Runs smooth too.
Omg, that smaller adaptor makes you easy to carry! WIN
Somebody set us up the bomb.
They need to find a better advertisement sales group. Once they do they're pretty much unstoppable.
Engadget I know what you were thinking... But just to let you know just because OS X is sexy and beautiful(shallow bitch) does not make it better than Windows. But you know what Windows Vista is more beautiful than OS X and don't forget Windows 7. So yeah I undertand you guys have wet dreams with Steve and his products (which are great), but don't think they are better. I know you never listen to me but I just wanted to remind you.
I'm sorry. What? This has nothing to do with the article and has no relevance to the truth either. Different OSs suit different people. So quit being an immature whiner.
We can't listen to you. Blog posts don't make any sounds.
*enables text-to-speech* there we go. You sound so depressed...
what happenned to their ''mature touch'' product class? I miss it... brought back memories of our buxom maid Mrs Radcliffe and those hot summers of sexual discovery back in the 80s
Most people I know who are interested in the Aspire One aren't the type of people who can speed type anyway. They want a cute, lightweight computer that works for internet and email. The AO is $300 or less. If the EEE PC wants to compete, they need to be $300 or less also. (It's my understanding that the EEE PC is around $400 or so).
Most people, whether they want an Aspire One or not, can't speed type. ;)
Seriously though, other than the original EEE 7" keyboard, which was TOO small, most other netbook keyboards are actually pretty usable. After getting used to the Aspire One for a few days, I was finding that I was getting around 40-45 WPM, or 70% of my speed on my work machine.
As for the Asus ads, they're so tacky you gotta love them. There's something so late 1980s 'back half of computer mag' about the whole aesthetic.
@ Rykin:
It's my understanding that you haven't made an attempt at pricing EEE's. A quick trip to Amazon reveals several eee's below $300, and a good deal more for about $310 - $315.
And i can't believe how many ppl in the US see Acer as a better brand than Asus - they obviously dont realize that alot of high-end products feature Asus Mobos and manufacturing. Acer on the other hand..... a well established cheap-ish brand.....
@ Phenoum: True on the Asus rep compared to Acer. At the same time, the Aspire One is a great deal for a netbook. I picked up the 7" EEE when it came out (the 900MHz), and replaced it with the Aspire after two minutes with a hands on.
It's a great little netbook and I would recommend either. They're certainly cheaper than the Lenovo/HP/Dell options with the same specs. Sure the HP is nice, but whenever I looked into the pricing, it commanded a 40%+ premium over Acer with similar specs.
That being said, I'll be upgrading to the Asus T91 when it hits North America. I've wanted a convertible netbook since, well, before the first EEE shipped.
...and ours goes up to 11!
Why dont you just make 11 = 10 on the dial?
well, ....because its 1 more.
( i know i could be better with the paraphrasing but you get the gist.)
Someone should come out with a keyboard that has an '11' key. What the heck, have a '10' key too.
But does the EEE's display flake out after 4 months like mine did? I'll happily stick with my original Aspire One, with dual monitor support, etc.
These ads are... pathetic. It looks like Asus outsourced this project to a highschool computer 101 class, spending the day learning PowerPoint.
Want a smaller adaptor! Make me easy to carry! *WIN*
I just took out my ruler and measured the portion of my finger that actually contacts the keys. It is about 12 mm...maybe less...on my biggest finger. My fingers are not particularly small. I know of no one who types with the knuckles.
So, I present my largest finger pointing upward an alone to Asus.
I hate it when Asus does this. Awards itself crowns, plasters FASHIONABLE over its own keyboard, BECAUSE IF THEY SAY IT IS TRUE IT MUST BE TRUE, and generally acts like a self-serving dick (wut).
This is one of the reason why I'll never buy an Asus-branded computer (that is, an Eee anything). And wtf is up with the Eee name? I think of a wailing midget every time I see it. I think that's the point.
Gr.
LOL at the smiley faces.
What's with the x instead of s? I thought it was okay for companies to include other companies' names in advertisements as long as they were truthful. ...Oh. Wait. I see.
"smaller size make you easy to carry- WIN"
use of English language - *FAIL*
At least it has a super hybird engine, though....
I think the non-extruding battery is the WIN
I just got my black 1000HE from Amazon. IMO its the best netbook(well depends on your definition of netbook) for the price. I love the keyboard and the screen. The only quirk I have with it is that the top lid picks up fingerprints like a mofo, but they even give you a wipe to clean the prints off.
Too bad ASUS went to the chicklet keys. I'd much rather have standard concave keys like the previous versions. I wish Lenovo would step up their Netbook, spec-wise.