( 
)
Is this the right netbook for you? Maybe. Asus makes a bewildering array of models, ranging from 7" screens to 10: screens. The 901, with an 8.9" screen, is in the middle.
Pluses
Intel Atom processor. This processor is only a single core (although multithreaded) at 1.6 GHz, is not particularly fast, but it has very low power consumption, which helps battery life and lets the machine run cool, unlike some laptops which sound like jet engines because of their fans.
1 GB RAM expandable to 2 GB. Many netbooks can only expand to 1 or 1.5 GB. While 1 GB is actually fine for runing Linux, if you want to run XP (or Vista, or a hacked version of Mac OS X), the extra RAM expandability will help.
Good spftware built in, You can do office applications (Star Office or Google Docs), chat (including video chat), web browsing,, play audio and video, games, and more out of the box. Some Linux machines will use ONLY open source software, making you unable, for example, to play "commercial" formats like MP3 without some upgrading. The 901 is willing to use non-free software (Skype is one example).
802.11n wireless. The draft "n" standard is faster than the older b and g standards and has more range. Most netbooks are b and g only.
Bluetooth standard - it is optional on many similar systems.
Touchpad. Fitrst, there are two buttons and they are positioned normally, below the pad itself. Many other netbooks have buttons on the side, or only one button. More usefully, the touchpad uses two finger scrolling and other gestures, much like the Apple laptops do.
Battery life - the combination of a 6 cell battery and the Atom processor gives very long battery life. Tests vary, but even worse case tests - continuous video playback with wireless/Bluetooth on - show five hours of better, and light use would be much longer.
Solid state drive - no moving parts and increased reliability. There are acutually 2 SSDs, a 4 GB soldered to the motherboard containing the OS, and a 16 GB one which can be replaced with a larger one if needed. There is also an SD card slot which can be used to add storage without replacing the original drive.
Intel 950 graphics accelerator. This is by today's standards an old chip (it is the same one used on my rwo year old Macbook), but it is sufficient to do good video playback, Not so good for first person shooter games.
The webcam (1.3 megapixels) and mic (two for stereo) are better than on some competitors.
Minuses (and what other machines to buy to get around them)
Screen too small. Asus makes a 10" model, the 1000. This does not have a higher resolurtion, just a larger screen. There are other 10" netbooks, like the MSI Wind and HP MiniNote 2133.
Keyboard too small. Not a problem for me, as I have had much smaller (Toshiba Libretto). One option is to get one of the 10" models listed above, another is other 8'9" machines like the Acer Aspire One or Dell Mini Inspiron 9, whose keyboards are generally considered better, Another option, at least at home, is a USB or Bluetooth keyboard.
Weight - while it is light (2.4 lbs), there are certainly netbooks that are half a pound or so lighter. In general, to get lighter, you need to go with a netbook like the original EEE PC (700 series), where the lighter weight is due to a smaller screen and a smallet battery.
Not enough storage - The Asus 1000 has a 40 GB solid state disk model, and hard disk models of up to 160GB. Almost every manufacturer has hard disk models, usually in the 80-160 GB range. Audio and video can of course be stored on SD cards and USB thumb drives. Linux programs tend to be very small, so disk space ususlly isn't much of an issue.
Operating System too restrictive - the default Easy Mode IS easy, but very limited in capabilities. Some options are 1)Turning on full desktop mode - this keeps Xandros Linux, but opens up a more standard and powerful desktop. You can switch between both modes easily. 2)Switch to another Linux distribution - the variations of Ubuntu developed specifically for the EEE PC are the most common, or 3)Switch to Windows XP., The similar Windows XP model 901 has only 12 GB of storage vs. 20 GB, so buying the Linux version and installing XP avtually gives you a more powerful machine.
For me this was the right choice. I wanted small size, light weight, long battery life, and Linux, so it had everythign I needed. The mulitouch touchpad and wireless n were also plusers. Hopefully this guide will help you determine which is the right netbook for you.
Pluses
Intel Atom processor. This processor is only a single core (although multithreaded) at 1.6 GHz, is not particularly fast, but it has very low power consumption, which helps battery life and lets the machine run cool, unlike some laptops which sound like jet engines because of their fans.
1 GB RAM expandable to 2 GB. Many netbooks can only expand to 1 or 1.5 GB. While 1 GB is actually fine for runing Linux, if you want to run XP (or Vista, or a hacked version of Mac OS X), the extra RAM expandability will help.
Good spftware built in, You can do office applications (Star Office or Google Docs), chat (including video chat), web browsing,, play audio and video, games, and more out of the box. Some Linux machines will use ONLY open source software, making you unable, for example, to play "commercial" formats like MP3 without some upgrading. The 901 is willing to use non-free software (Skype is one example).
802.11n wireless. The draft "n" standard is faster than the older b and g standards and has more range. Most netbooks are b and g only.
Bluetooth standard - it is optional on many similar systems.
Touchpad. Fitrst, there are two buttons and they are positioned normally, below the pad itself. Many other netbooks have buttons on the side, or only one button. More usefully, the touchpad uses two finger scrolling and other gestures, much like the Apple laptops do.
Battery life - the combination of a 6 cell battery and the Atom processor gives very long battery life. Tests vary, but even worse case tests - continuous video playback with wireless/Bluetooth on - show five hours of better, and light use would be much longer.
Solid state drive - no moving parts and increased reliability. There are acutually 2 SSDs, a 4 GB soldered to the motherboard containing the OS, and a 16 GB one which can be replaced with a larger one if needed. There is also an SD card slot which can be used to add storage without replacing the original drive.
Intel 950 graphics accelerator. This is by today's standards an old chip (it is the same one used on my rwo year old Macbook), but it is sufficient to do good video playback, Not so good for first person shooter games.
The webcam (1.3 megapixels) and mic (two for stereo) are better than on some competitors.
Minuses (and what other machines to buy to get around them)
Screen too small. Asus makes a 10" model, the 1000. This does not have a higher resolurtion, just a larger screen. There are other 10" netbooks, like the MSI Wind and HP MiniNote 2133.
Keyboard too small. Not a problem for me, as I have had much smaller (Toshiba Libretto). One option is to get one of the 10" models listed above, another is other 8'9" machines like the Acer Aspire One or Dell Mini Inspiron 9, whose keyboards are generally considered better, Another option, at least at home, is a USB or Bluetooth keyboard.
Weight - while it is light (2.4 lbs), there are certainly netbooks that are half a pound or so lighter. In general, to get lighter, you need to go with a netbook like the original EEE PC (700 series), where the lighter weight is due to a smaller screen and a smallet battery.
Not enough storage - The Asus 1000 has a 40 GB solid state disk model, and hard disk models of up to 160GB. Almost every manufacturer has hard disk models, usually in the 80-160 GB range. Audio and video can of course be stored on SD cards and USB thumb drives. Linux programs tend to be very small, so disk space ususlly isn't much of an issue.
Operating System too restrictive - the default Easy Mode IS easy, but very limited in capabilities. Some options are 1)Turning on full desktop mode - this keeps Xandros Linux, but opens up a more standard and powerful desktop. You can switch between both modes easily. 2)Switch to another Linux distribution - the variations of Ubuntu developed specifically for the EEE PC are the most common, or 3)Switch to Windows XP., The similar Windows XP model 901 has only 12 GB of storage vs. 20 GB, so buying the Linux version and installing XP avtually gives you a more powerful machine.
For me this was the right choice. I wanted small size, light weight, long battery life, and Linux, so it had everythign I needed. The mulitouch touchpad and wireless n were also plusers. Hopefully this guide will help you determine which is the right netbook for you.
Guide created: 10/22/08 (updated 09/09/09)
Thank you for voting. If your vote meets our 
