first netbook, quite a disappointment
i purchased this netbook for my wife, but it turns out to be somewhat disappointing. first of all, it is a bit difficult to open it up. the screen and the keyboard folds like a clam shell and there is not even a locking device. the lack of such a device also makes it difficult to open because one needs to have thin fingers and long (and strong) fingernails to pull apart the screen from the keyboard.
Yet a bigger problem is with its touch pad, specifically the button (note the singular form). it has only one bar instead of the conventional two mouse buttons, so one has to push at either end of the bar, which is a bit awkward. also the bar is quite tight and requires some to press. very uncomfortable.
another problem is with the small keyboard. maybe this is what i should expect from a small netbook. the layout of the keyboard is too small for my hands and i keep hitting the wrong keys. also the touch pad is a bit sensitive, and the heat from my palm often moves the cursor to some other place, and i have to disable the touch pad when i type. it is quite inconvenient.
some of the applications that come with the computer are what i call junkware, and i had to spend quite a bit of time to remove them since they were pre-installed. also we found out that windows 7 starter edition doesn't allow us to change the desktop background, so we are stuck with the default background, unless i upgrade it to some other edition. this is probably true to almost all netbooks, and i just want to share with someone new to netbooks.
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A terrific, functional portable for all kinds.
Don't kid yourself: this is not a "cheap" alternative to a laptop computer available at five times the cost. Nor is it a desktop replacement. Instead, this is a device for people who are willing to accept performance trade-offs in a laptop that is eminently totable and has (for my purposes) very long battery life. If you understand this going in, you'll be extremely pleased with this computer!
A few notes. The display on this computer is as good as they say; crisp, bright, and fairly economical draining the battery. The WiFi performance, especially in patchy spots, is as good as any proper laptop I've used. The sound quality of the audio I/O (even through a decent pair of headphones) does the job, but isn't great. The keyboard/mouse are quite usable, but it did take me a week to get used to it; the Acer line of netbooks seems to have a nicer keyboard, at least. The battery life, yow! This guy running full-bore (display at 80% brightness, max processor and WiFi performance, etc.) gives more than 8 hours of uninterrupted use. More conservative settings will easily yield 9 or more hours uptime on a charge, and you'll get close to the advertised 14 hours if the system idles with the display off (but with WiFi running). The bluetooth capability has proven useful for making Skype calls with my wireless earpiece. I've found that the utility of the system is enhanced when paired with an inexpensive graphics tablet (e.g, Wacom Bamboo Pen Tablet). And despite the hand-wringing about Windows 7 vs XP in other reviews, unless you're relying on old software, you'll be glad you sprung for Windows 7. (And I'm as stunned as anyone:) Microsoft actually did a decent enough job with 7, and the "Starter" version included with this laptop has proven able enough for my purposes without a RAM upgrade.
Despite the fact that I purchased this computer primarily for travel use, it's become a fixture in my study, where even a larger laptop would be too cumbersome and noisy. And yet, I'm able to tote it into the field when I need to for processing nocturnal bird vocalizations using CLO Raven Pro. (Long batterty life really pays off for fieldwork.) Quite a system. Nice job, ASUS!
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