Verdict on ASUS Eee Mini Laptop

IN ABOUT September 2007, there appeared a feature article on the Infotech section of a leading broadsheet which really caught my attention. I can’t recall exactly now if it was the Philippine Daily Inquirer or The Philippine Star. It has to be one of them.

The feature story talked about a soon-to-be-released product by computer maker ASUS. The product was being positioned as a laptop for kids as young as 5-year olds. But when I read the prospective specs I got very excited. I immediately saw its potential for corporate/business use. As the CIO of a pioneering and highly innovative company offering Supply Chain solutions, it is my job to find cost effective IT tools that will support the business’ present and future operational requirements. Then and there I decided that the ASUS Eee Mini Notebook, although being prepared to enter the market for children, will be a viable alternative to the desktop PC in the office.

My criteria in arriving at this decision are quite simple and straightforward. My idea of a typical office computer is an appliance that can perform basic functions. First it should be able to run the most basic office productivity application ñ Microsoft Office and/or Open Office (as an Open Source and Free Software advocate I am quite biased toward Open Office). It should be able to connect to the Internet and run any of the common POP3 e-mail engines such as Outlook and/or Mozilla Firefox (again I am biased toward Firefox). It should have just enough memory and storage capacity to efficiently run the above mentioned applications. It should have at least two USB drives/slots. Finally, it should be priced in the vicinity of P25 thousand (maximum P30 thousand), currently the typical cost of an unbranded desktop.

The Long Wait

I’ve since religiously waited for the eventual market release of the ASUS Eee Mini Laptop, and was I glad when in early January 2008 I finally learned that my much awaited laptop model is already available for sale in some shops in Metro Manila.

I bought an ASUS Eee mini-laptop in January. Determined to fully test it to its limits, I decided to give up my current laptop at the time and be the Guinea pig for the ASUS Eee. It was a bold move considering that I am not exactly an ìordinary user.î My argument was (and still is), if the ASUS Eee laptop will work fine for a ìpower userî like me, it should be perfectly okay for typical office users. My definition of a typical office user is somebody who uses a computer to do the following basic functions:

Use office productivity tools (i.e., Microsoft Office of Open Office)
Send and receive e-mails
Browse Internet
Print documents

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Match-up: ASUS Eee vs. a regular desktop PC vs. a regular laptop PC

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†	Asus Eee	Typical Desktop	Entry-level Laptop
Price	18,000 – 20,000	25,000 ñ up	35,000 ñ up
Mobility	Yes	No	yes
Memory	512MB	1GB or higher	1GB or higher
Storage Capacity	4GB	40GB or higher	30GB or higher
Wireless connectivity (Wi-Fi)	Built-in	Needs Wi-Fi dongle	Built-in
LAN connectivity	Build-in modem	Built-in LAN modem	Built-in
USB slots	3	Usually 2	Usually 2
SD Card Slot	Yes	Usually none (must attach separate unit)	Usually included, especially among newer models
Webcam	Built-in	Usually none (must attach separate unit)	Usually not included (must install separate unit) except for high-end models
Video Out	Yes	Yes	Yes
OS	Pre-installed with Linux (Sandros); Supports Windows XP	Usually not included; Supports both Linux and Windows OS	Usually not included; Or pre-installed with Linux
Weight	Less than 1kg	Not to be carried around	Typically >2Kg, except for high-end models
Dimensions	Fits in a duffel bug† (about 10î x 6î)	Requires at least 1m x 1m space	Typically 14î x 10î
Workspace Requirements	Flexible	Requires permanent workspace (desktop or computer table)	Flexible

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Final Scorecard

Pros

Very mobile.

Very lightweight.
Durable (hey, it was made for kids)
Wireless mode.
Unbelievably cheap (cheaper than some cellphone models).

Cons

Very small HDD (4GB).
Small dimensions (small screen, small keyboard) may turn off some users (while some specifically look for these features)

If using Linux OS, there can be compatibility issues with some software applications and some hardware peripherals (but this is a Linux issue).
If using Windows XP, there may be some difficulty in finding Driver for certain specific models of hardware peripherals and auxiliary devices (e.g. Printers, scanners). My tech guys have not yet made the Webcam work using Windows (it was working perfectly when using Linux).

The Bottomline

It can do the four basic functions performed by regular computer users so what’s the problem? And for the cost of some mid-level cellphones, what else can you ask for?

The minimalist 4GB HDD, which is the ASUS Eee mini-laptop’s biggest deficiency, may actually be a non-issue. At least it is a non-issue to me. In fact, it may have been a blessing in disguise because it taught me to adapt to this supposed deficiency. It taught me to become independent of my laptop, which even increased my mobility by leaps and bounds.

Consider this: Because my ASUS Eee mini-laptop cannot store my files, I now have all my files in an 8GB flash drive, which I bought for P1,400 (branded). For some added measure of comfort I also have a USB-type 160GB SATA external HDD. I got it for a little less than P5,000, inclusive of its casing.

Even my e-mails (all 4 e-mail accounts: 2 corporate, 1 gmail, 1 Boy Scout) are now self-contained in my USB flash drive (but this is another topic for me to blog about)!

Bottomline: The ASUS Eee mini-laptop is a revolutionary development in modern day computing. I am quite pleased with myself for correctly predicting way back in September 2007 — when the mini-laptop was just being introduced and pre-positioned in the Philippine market ñ that it will become a viable business computer rather than as a computer for kids as it was originally packaged.

Interestingly, when I went tech-window-shopping a few days ago I noticed that there are now several other brands of mini-laptops. This is just getting better and better. More on this in one of my near-future blogs. #