Asus Eee PC 900

Asus Eee PC 900
Budget model has bigger screen, higher price than predecessor




THE ASUS EEE PC 900 offers a larger screen and more storage space than its predecessor, the Eee PC 4G, but you'll have to pay more for a few of the same trade-offs.
At first blush, the Eee PC 900 looks identical to the 4G. It features the same pearly white plastic case, and, at 8.9x6.7x1.3 inches and 2.2 pounds, the chassis is only marginally larger and a few ounces heavier. To accommodate the bigger 8.9-inch screen, Asus moved the two speaker grilles, which framed the display o the 7-inch mode, to the front edge of the Eee PC 900.The company also boosted the screen resolution from 800x480 to 1,024x600, and the Eee PC 900 features a larger touch pad that supports gesture controls. Unfortunately, Asus stuck the laptop with the same cramped 8-inch keyboard we saw on the 4G.
The Eee PC 900 is available in Windows XP and Xandros Linux flavors (our evaluation unit featured the latter), and both models have 1GB of RAM and more onboard storage: The $599 XP version has 12GB solid-state drive (SSD), while the $549 Linux version gets a 20GB SSD. Processing power is still limited to the same 900MHz Celeron processor, another component we hoped Asus would pump up. Still, for basic Web surfing and productivity work, the Eee PC's underpowered CPU delivers just enough oomph-as long as you keep your expectations in check.
As for battery life, we eked out 3 hours and 30 minutes while writing using OpenOffice.org (with Wi-Fi and the speaker disabled).

source: Computer Shopper August 2008.
www.asus.com.tw