Two weeks with an Eee
Discussion
I know a lot on here have been toying with the idea of buying an Eee, indeed, I've posted to a couple of Eee threads.
Well, I've had one for 2 weeks now, and used it in anger whilst working away last week, as an alternative to taking my MacBook with me - so I thought I'd post my experiences.
One of the first things I did after buying was to wipe the SSD and install XP, using one of the guides from the Eee forums. I didn't bother with an nLite install, as it was too complex, but stripped it back during and after installation.
The standard install took up around 1.2GB of my 4GB internal drive.
I've installed the hacked video drivers and a hacked version of the Asus Tray software, allowing me to scale 800x600 and 1024x768 to the 800x480 screen. Works very well for viewing graphic intensive web pages.
Irritating things about it - the small keyboard and trackpad. Good things - battery life can be hugely extended by powering down the wifi when you're close to an access point, dimming the screen and throttling the CPU back. I saw well over 2 hours use, with only 50% battery used. Also incredibly small and light, so takes up little room in my kit bag.
I've used it in hotel bars, motorway service stations and hotel rooms. Where I haven't had wifi access, I've used a bluetooth dongle to connect via 3G or GPRS to my K800i on Web n Walk. I've even used connection sharing to 'fool' my company laptop into thinking it's hooked up to a wired net connection.
Browsing PH has been great on it, as has email with Outlook Express. I use a combination of Firefox and Opera for browsing and Pidgin for messaging, all of which are installed on an SD card using the Portable Apps suite - which also gives me MS Office compatibility via Open Office.
Sticking in a 1MB SO-DIMM has made a huge difference to performance and has allowed me to turn off paging / virtual memory. Both saving battery life and speeding up the machine.
Overall, I'm really impressed. It has cut a good few KGs from my laptop bag, I can watch downloaded TV on it (grab stuff from UK Nova over the weekend to watch in hotels) and I haven't yet found myself wishing I had my MacBook with me (my iPod is Windows format, so I installed iTunes and listen to my iPod through it, too).
Next week, I'll get to try out my USB 'freeview' stick with it, too....
If you've been thinking about it, just buy one. They're an amazing bit of kit for not very much money - and are a great full-sized laptop replacement for people working 'on the road' all week.
The only thing I haven't tried yet is using Skype to save on phone calls to Mrs 75 in the evenings - but her much more expensive Toshiba doesn't have a webcam or microphone.
Well, I've had one for 2 weeks now, and used it in anger whilst working away last week, as an alternative to taking my MacBook with me - so I thought I'd post my experiences.
One of the first things I did after buying was to wipe the SSD and install XP, using one of the guides from the Eee forums. I didn't bother with an nLite install, as it was too complex, but stripped it back during and after installation.
The standard install took up around 1.2GB of my 4GB internal drive.
I've installed the hacked video drivers and a hacked version of the Asus Tray software, allowing me to scale 800x600 and 1024x768 to the 800x480 screen. Works very well for viewing graphic intensive web pages.
Irritating things about it - the small keyboard and trackpad. Good things - battery life can be hugely extended by powering down the wifi when you're close to an access point, dimming the screen and throttling the CPU back. I saw well over 2 hours use, with only 50% battery used. Also incredibly small and light, so takes up little room in my kit bag.
I've used it in hotel bars, motorway service stations and hotel rooms. Where I haven't had wifi access, I've used a bluetooth dongle to connect via 3G or GPRS to my K800i on Web n Walk. I've even used connection sharing to 'fool' my company laptop into thinking it's hooked up to a wired net connection.
Browsing PH has been great on it, as has email with Outlook Express. I use a combination of Firefox and Opera for browsing and Pidgin for messaging, all of which are installed on an SD card using the Portable Apps suite - which also gives me MS Office compatibility via Open Office.
Sticking in a 1MB SO-DIMM has made a huge difference to performance and has allowed me to turn off paging / virtual memory. Both saving battery life and speeding up the machine.
Overall, I'm really impressed. It has cut a good few KGs from my laptop bag, I can watch downloaded TV on it (grab stuff from UK Nova over the weekend to watch in hotels) and I haven't yet found myself wishing I had my MacBook with me (my iPod is Windows format, so I installed iTunes and listen to my iPod through it, too).
Next week, I'll get to try out my USB 'freeview' stick with it, too....
If you've been thinking about it, just buy one. They're an amazing bit of kit for not very much money - and are a great full-sized laptop replacement for people working 'on the road' all week.
The only thing I haven't tried yet is using Skype to save on phone calls to Mrs 75 in the evenings - but her much more expensive Toshiba doesn't have a webcam or microphone.
Edited by 75_Steve on Sunday 24th February 10:02
Great post Steve.
I am contemplating putting XP on mine, in fact I'm planning to do this over the next two weeks whilst stuck in a hotel in Romania.
You're doing exactly what I want to do with my eee, so I may have some questions for you as I go .... if you don't mind.
Can I ask one immediate question though, why did you only put a 1GB stick of memory in?
I know the eee as delivered with it's Xandros based OS can only "see" a maximum of 1GB (you can get round this though), but Win XP doesn't have this restriction.
Simon
I am contemplating putting XP on mine, in fact I'm planning to do this over the next two weeks whilst stuck in a hotel in Romania.
You're doing exactly what I want to do with my eee, so I may have some questions for you as I go .... if you don't mind.
Can I ask one immediate question though, why did you only put a 1GB stick of memory in?
I know the eee as delivered with it's Xandros based OS can only "see" a maximum of 1GB (you can get round this though), but Win XP doesn't have this restriction.
Simon
sgrimshaw said:
Can I ask one immediate question though, why did you only put a 1GB stick of memory in?
I know the eee as delivered with it's Xandros based OS can only "see" a maximum of 1GB (you can get round this though), but Win XP doesn't have this restriction.
Simon
It was a cost thing. 1GB sticks are stupidly cheap these days, 2GB was more than twice the price, and I really didn't see the point. XP isn't *that* memory hungry that it really needs 2GB.I know the eee as delivered with it's Xandros based OS can only "see" a maximum of 1GB (you can get round this though), but Win XP doesn't have this restriction.
Simon
I was splashing out on quite a lot of 'bits' at the time - a new phone (unlocked, not with a contract), memory for the phone (Sonly M2 sticks are bloody expensive) and the USB tuner. Cost was stacking up, so I made the decision that I'd only got with 1GB in the end.
Edited by 75_Steve on Sunday 24th February 09:50
75_Steve said:
Sony M2 sticks are bloody expensive
Play are doing 2gb M2 cards for £11 delivered 
Thanks for the review, I was thinking of getting an eee for similar use to you, but wanted to confirm it could play avi and divx encoded films, as it doesn't have a doovde drive built in...
mcflurry said:
75_Steve said:
Sony M2 sticks are bloody expensive
Play are doing 2gb M2 cards for £11 delivered Thanks for the review, I was thinking of getting an eee for similar use to you, but wanted to confirm it could play avi and divx encoded films, as it doesn't have a doovde drive built in...
Unless
(a) you're particularly geeky and have the urges that the o/p has to do all that
(b) you really must have something that small and are happy to live with its various limitations
why not just buy a laptop?
Dell are doing a brand new full size machine with the following spec..
AMD Sempron 3600+
120GB HDD
1024MB RAM
DVD Rewriter
Wireless
15.4 inch widescreen
Windows XP
for £270 delivered. E-value code 305-N0210007, drop the warranty down to a year.
THe EEE is going to be costing you close to that anyway.
(a) you're particularly geeky and have the urges that the o/p has to do all that
(b) you really must have something that small and are happy to live with its various limitations
why not just buy a laptop?
Dell are doing a brand new full size machine with the following spec..
AMD Sempron 3600+
120GB HDD
1024MB RAM
DVD Rewriter
Wireless
15.4 inch widescreen
Windows XP
for £270 delivered. E-value code 305-N0210007, drop the warranty down to a year.
THe EEE is going to be costing you close to that anyway.
Edited by pgilc1 on Sunday 24th February 11:46
pgilc1 said:
Unless
(a) you're particularly geeky and have the urges that the o/p has to do all that
(b) you really must have something that small and are happy to live with its various limitations
why not just buy a laptop?
Point (b) has answered your own question there.....(a) you're particularly geeky and have the urges that the o/p has to do all that
(b) you really must have something that small and are happy to live with its various limitations
why not just buy a laptop?
I have a company T42 Thinkpad, but it's locked down and I can't do much with it, and I have a MacBook, but carrying both around is a pain.
Hence the Eee.
Yes, the total spend will be in the region of 300 quid, but, it's a hell of a lot of power in a very small package for your money.
I can't wait for the rumoured Eee desktop machines, as one of those will be a fantastic and low-cost replacement for my Shuttle media box.
75_Steve said:
pgilc1 said:
Unless
(a) you're particularly geeky and have the urges that the o/p has to do all that
(b) you really must have something that small and are happy to live with its various limitations
why not just buy a laptop?
Point (b) has answered your own question there.....(a) you're particularly geeky and have the urges that the o/p has to do all that
(b) you really must have something that small and are happy to live with its various limitations
why not just buy a laptop?
I have a company T42 Thinkpad, but it's locked down and I can't do much with it, and I have a MacBook, but carrying both around is a pain.
Hence the Eee.
Yes, the total spend will be in the region of 300 quid, but, it's a hell of a lot of power in a very small package for your money.
I can't wait for the rumoured Eee desktop machines, as one of those will be a fantastic and low-cost replacement for my Shuttle media box.
There seems to be this idea that an EEE is a laptop 'alternative' - not necessarily in this thread, but on other threads i've read. It looks good in the pictures, it gets good reviews, but its nigh on the price of a laptop which has a bigger screen, dvd writer, full size keyboard, more hard disk space, etc.
Plus its not a hell of a lot of power - its still running a low spec processor, limited storage space, small keyboard and screen. A laptop can do all those things that you're saying the EEE can do, without having to resort to 'hacked' / 'illegal' software to do so, plus you can watch DVDs, burn CDs, store everything you need on it.
Edited by pgilc1 on Sunday 24th February 12:39
pgilc1 said:
Wasnt so much of a question, as a statement.
There seems to be this idea that an EEE is a laptop 'alternative' - not necessarily in this thread, but on other threads i've read. It looks good in the pictures, it gets good reviews, but its nigh on the price of a laptop which has a bigger screen, dvd writer, full size keyboard, more hard disk space, etc.
Plus its not a hell of a lot of power - its still running a low spec processor, limited storage space, small keyboard and screen. A laptop can do all those things that you're saying the EEE can do, without having to resort to 'hacked' / 'illegal' software to do so, plus you can watch DVDs, burn CDs, store everything you need on it.
Nothing illegal about anything I've installed on mine. Yes, there are some minor driver hacks, but that's no big deal, they're freely available for download from the Eee forums.There seems to be this idea that an EEE is a laptop 'alternative' - not necessarily in this thread, but on other threads i've read. It looks good in the pictures, it gets good reviews, but its nigh on the price of a laptop which has a bigger screen, dvd writer, full size keyboard, more hard disk space, etc.
Plus its not a hell of a lot of power - its still running a low spec processor, limited storage space, small keyboard and screen. A laptop can do all those things that you're saying the EEE can do, without having to resort to 'hacked' / 'illegal' software to do so, plus you can watch DVDs, burn CDs, store everything you need on it.
It is a lot of power for the size, though - it's not much bigger than some PDAs, in fact, it's smaller and lighter than my A5 page to a day diary.
I think it would be easier for you to say 'I don't understand what an Eee is, or what it can do' before posting such complete b
ks.It's like telling someone that they don't want a laptop, because they could get a more powerful desktop for the same money - they reside in different marketplaces, however, there is a cross-over of use.
A full size laptop is bigger and significantly heavier - and how often have you sat in a hotel room or bar thinking 'damn, I wish I could burn a DVD'.
As a device to browse the web / check email / watch downloaded TV shows / ripped DVDs, use instant messaging or even VOIP / Video calling, the Eee is ideal - which is why Asus can't keep up with demand for them.
CommanderJameson said:
75_Steve said:
Yes, the total spend will be in the region of 300 quid
Does that include XP or have you opted for Windows XP Arr Matey Edition?CommanderJameson said:
75_Steve said:
Yes, the total spend will be in the region of 300 quid
Does that include XP or have you opted for Windows XP Arr Matey Edition?Rough costings:
Eee - £220
2GB SD Card - £10
USB Tuner - £20
1GB RAM - £15
COA - £20
BT Dongle - £10
Around £295 and all legit.
As has been pointed out, I could have bought a 'full size' laptop for that kind of money - but I already have one, which is too big and heavy most of the time.
75_Steve said:
CommanderJameson said:
75_Steve said:
Yes, the total spend will be in the region of 300 quid
Does that include XP or have you opted for Windows XP Arr Matey Edition?Rough costings:
Eee - £220
2GB SD Card - £10
USB Tuner - £20
1GB RAM - £15
COA - £20
BT Dongle - £10
Around £295 and all legit.
As has been pointed out, I could have bought a 'full size' laptop for that kind of money - but I already have one, which is too big and heavy most of the time.
75_Steve said:
Nothing illegal about anything I've installed on mine. Yes, there are some minor driver hacks, but that's no big deal, they're freely available for download from the Eee forums.
It is a lot of power for the size, though - it's not much bigger than some PDAs, in fact, it's smaller and lighter than my A5 page to a day diary.
I think it would be easier for you to say 'I don't understand what an Eee is, or what it can do' before posting such complete bks.
It's like telling someone that they don't want a laptop, because they could get a more powerful desktop for the same money - they reside in different marketplaces, however, there is a cross-over of use.
A full size laptop is bigger and significantly heavier - and how often have you sat in a hotel room or bar thinking 'damn, I wish I could burn a DVD'.
As a device to browse the web / check email / watch downloaded TV shows / ripped DVDs, use instant messaging or even VOIP / Video calling, the Eee is ideal - which is why Asus can't keep up with demand for them.
I do fully understand what an EEE is and what it can do. You seem to be a position that not many home users will be though.It is a lot of power for the size, though - it's not much bigger than some PDAs, in fact, it's smaller and lighter than my A5 page to a day diary.
I think it would be easier for you to say 'I don't understand what an Eee is, or what it can do' before posting such complete b
ks.It's like telling someone that they don't want a laptop, because they could get a more powerful desktop for the same money - they reside in different marketplaces, however, there is a cross-over of use.
A full size laptop is bigger and significantly heavier - and how often have you sat in a hotel room or bar thinking 'damn, I wish I could burn a DVD'.
As a device to browse the web / check email / watch downloaded TV shows / ripped DVDs, use instant messaging or even VOIP / Video calling, the Eee is ideal - which is why Asus can't keep up with demand for them.
(a) you have a company laptop - locked down though in fairness
(b) an ibook
(c) an EEE
You can therefore chose which best suits you for your particular requirement. And if that be the EEE more often because you're travelling for business then cool.
You seem to be getting very defensive and abusive over something that suits your needs, but not necessarily the needs of the bulk of people, who unfortunately may not realise that until its too late.
I think the EEE is too restrictive for the bulk of people who use a laptop pretty much for the following.
(a) surfing
(b) some word processing
(c) the kids homeworks
(d) itunes
(e) burning off a CD
(f) watching movies
I think the screen is too small for general use, the keyboard is too small, and its storage capabilitie are weak.
Is it a great gadget? Yes
Is is a one stop shop solution to most peoples computing needs? No
I stand by my original statement - 'unless you absolutely need something this small, you can buy a much better laptop for probably less money'
zaktoo said:
CommanderJameson said:
"COA"? Wat eez theez?
Certificate of Authenticity, I'd guess... I'm going to rip out my Alfa's V6 and stick an Opel OHV in its place in protest to Steve's installing XP where once a Linux frolicked happily...
zaktoo said:
CommanderJameson said:
"COA"? Wat eez theez?
Certificate of Authenticity, I'd guess... I'm going to rip out my Alfa's V6 and stick an Opel OHV in its place in protest to Steve's installing XP where once a Linux frolicked happily...
75_Steve said:
CommanderJameson said:
75_Steve said:
Yes, the total spend will be in the region of 300 quid
Does that include XP or have you opted for Windows XP Arr Matey Edition?Rough costings:
Eee - £220
2GB SD Card - £10
USB Tuner - £20
1GB RAM - £15
COA - £20
BT Dongle - £10
Around £295 and all legit.
As has been pointed out, I could have bought a 'full size' laptop for that kind of money - but I already have one, which is too big and heavy most of the time.
Even if it did, how many people are in the fortunate position of having one handy, so it should be factored in to the cost.
pgilc1 said:
zaktoo said:
CommanderJameson said:
"COA"? Wat eez theez?
Certificate of Authenticity, I'd guess... I'm going to rip out my Alfa's V6 and stick an Opel OHV in its place in protest to Steve's installing XP where once a Linux frolicked happily...
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