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Asus Eee PC 900 from Orange for £25 per month

A number of operator’s have been offering up laptops when they take up a broadband account. Orange has been offering this deal for a while as well, but they are now to offer the Asus Eee PC 900 laptops.

The Carphone Warehouse have been offering the Webbok, but Orange have gone for the Eee PC option and this might be a great move from the UK mobile network as they know how popular Asus Eee PC laptops are.

This new deal is available from today; the offer is called “Internet Everywhere” which is their mobile broadband service. What you get is an Asus Eee PC 900 16GB laptop as well as a dongle for just £25 per month.

For those users who sign up will get the plug-in option icon 225 modem, there is a UK download data limit of 3GB per month. This deal could prove very popular for Orange, one they hope will be better than the Webbok option from The Carphone Warehouse.

Orange have also hinted that this could be the first deal of many like this, but will they keep offering Eee PCs or will they go for another option. That could be all down to how popular the Eee PC 900 deal goes.

Source – Pocket Lint

Other Asus News

ASUS Eee PC 900A: just like the 901

ASUS seem to be going a little over the top now, they are flooding the market with a range of different Eee PC’s but with not much difference. You only have to look at their latest offering, the ASUS Eee PC 900A. This laptop is much the same as the 901, with just a couple of small changes.

The 900A uses the same case as the 901, but has no Bluetooth and a rubbish .3 megapixel webcam.

All other specs are the same, down to the 1.6GHz Atom CPU, 8 or 16GB SSD and 1GB of RAM.

I do have to wonder why ASUS are trying to flood the market with a range of Eee PC’s, most of which are all the same inside, with just little changes.

The ASUS Eee PC 900A costs €299 ($465), not sure if it is worth it or not, only time will tell.

Source

Jointech JL7100: $99 for Eee PC rip-off

There has been an Eee PC rip-off in the past the Kira 100, but that was around $475. It just seemed pointless at spending that kind of money on a knockoff.

However; there is now a new Asus Eee PC rip-off on the market and it will only cost you $99 USD.

The Jointech JL7100 comes with 7-inch 800 x 480 resolution display.

There are still a few downsides to this UMPC though; firstly it only uses the WinCE 5.0 instead of the standard operating system. There is just 64MB of internal storage, so you will need to connect an external hard drive to this ultra mobile PC.

There is more disappointing news from the Jointech JL7100, the UMPC has just 64MB of RAM.

Looks like Asus has nothing to worry about with this cheap rip-off then

Source

Asus Eee PC 1000: UMPC gets reviewed

When it comes to UMPC’s the Asus Eee PC is king, but when rivals announces a new Ultra Mobile PC that threatens their crown. That is when Asus digs their heals in and announces a new model.

So now Asus have announced the Eee PC 1000, this UMPC is much the same as the 901. It has the same styling as the 8.9-inch model, it comes with the same six-cell battery along with the same styling around the screen, the Asus Eee PC 1000 also has the same glossy finish.

The most noticeable difference is that the 1000 comes with a 10- screen, which now supports 1024 x 600-pixel resolution. The quality of the 10-inch screen is sharp, perfect for surfing the net.

It seems as if Asus might have shot themselves in the foot with the Eee PC 1000, the design is now bigger, which means that it is also heavier, it looks as though the idea of portability is slipping through their fingers.

Do not let that put you of though the Eee PC does perform well, the battery last for at least 5 hours, perfect for using it everyday while out and about.

For a full review head over to Pocket Lint

MSI Wind low-cost laptop: nicer experience than Asus Eee PC

If you find that the Asus Eee PC is a little on the small side, then you might want to consider the MSI Wind low-cost laptop. The thing is many people have said that the keyboard and touchpad are a bit on the small side, but that is where the MSI wind addresses those problems. There has always been one problem surrounding low-cost laptops, sometimes they have a cheap design with a low price, or they are priced so high that they are almost the same as a standard laptop.

According to PC World, Many people consider these low-cost laptops like the MSI Wind to a standard laptop, well when the price is similar what do you expect. However; in most cases these low-cost laptops are aimed at people who want a smaller, lighter laptop so that they are able to surf the Internet while on the move.

Key to MSI’s Wind is battery-life and performance, and it does look as though this model ticks both boxes. The first MSI Wind comes in a series of different colours, Windows XP comes pre-installed and things are kept running thanks to the 1.6GHz Intel Atom microprocessor. The MSI Wind also comes with 1GB of DRAM and an 80GB hard disk drive, although I would have thought that MSI would have put a SSD in the Wind. The laptop also comes with Wi-Fi 802.11b/g, for wireless internet.

The standard version comes with a 6-cell battery; this is good for at least 5 to 6 hours of use. Considering the MSI wind has a 10-inch screen, the battery life is just as good as those with a 7-inch screen, like the Asus Eee PC 700. So it does show that MSI have not cut corners, as the first thing that some companies would have done was to put a 3 cell battery in the laptop instead.

All-in-all the MSI Wind is a nicer experience that the Asus Eee PC, but most of this is down to the slightly larger keyboard.

Asus Eee PC now with Touch Screen: is it any good?

Ok so before you get too exited, I have to let you know that there is not any official Asus Eee PC on the market at the moment however; there is an aftermarket company that has produced a great mod. You will be able to convert your standard keyboard on the Eee PC and give it a touch screen; the mod is available from those clever guys over in China. Once you unpack the little touch screen, it should only take about 30 minutes to install and the great news is, there is no soldering involved.

As yet we do not know how great the touch screen mod for the Asus Eee PC as the guys over at Blorge have not had a chance to test it out yet. It seems as if they are not so brave when it comes to testing this mod out, would be great if a reader has already tried this one out and let us know how it all went. We are not sure if there is anyone shipping this mod within the U.S. so you will have to order it from China, and wait a while for you new gadget to arrive. Once you work out the conversion, the Asus Eee PC Touchscreen mod will cost about $338, you will have to add the shipping on top of that price.

When you order it from the store they will direct you on to a page, this will give you full directions of the install process, as well as easy to understand images, well you need the pictures as the site is in Chinese.

If you have installed the Eee PC Touch Screen mod, please let us know how it all went.

Not an Apple Mac Mini or Nintendo Wii its the Asus Eee PC Desktop (aka Ebox)

This product might be the next big thing from Asus but it has certain design lines from the Nintendo Wii and Apple Mac Mini, although its nothing like the Wii as it wants to handle your desktop computer needs. This is the new Asus Eee PC desktop that could end up competing with the Mac Mini for your desktop computing needs in a small space.

The product has been named the Asus Ebox and we are hearing that this Mac Mini competitor will be on show at the Computex trade show, and that’s not long away as it’s all happening from the 3rd of June in Taiwan. The real question is why would you want an Ebox and not an Apple Mac Mini?

For starters the price of the famous Asus Eee PC laptop is only around $230.00, with that in mind, what could the Ebox sell at? It’s bound to be on the cheap side and if the design does not get you, then the savings in your pocket could end up taking some of Apple’s Mac Mini market share.

With the Credit Crunch in full swing, most peoples spending budgets are getting very tight and cheaper products are needed for both the consumer and the business if they want to keep selling them. Asus knows this and they are planning ahead with computer products that give great value for money.

We are hearing that the new Ebox will be sold as a standalone computer, and to keep costs down it will not include peripherals like a keyboard or monitor. Other features will be a 160GB solid-state drive, so this is confusing, considering they cost a lot of money still. The Ebox should have 2GB of RAM and measure around 8.75×7 inches and about one inch thick. We will update you when get more information.

Source: Read

256GB SSD in your Asus Eee PC or Apple MacBook Air

As you know SSD are now being used in a number of our mobile technology products like the Asus Eee 900 and the Apple MacBook Air, but the downside is that they still have limited storage capacity. The Asus at the moment only has a 12 - 20GB SSD, and the Apple MacBook Air comes with a larger 64GB SSD. The latter has a larger capacity, but it is still not enough for what people need in their laptops and UMPC’s. However; this could be about to change towards the end of the year, as PC World reports that Samsung Electronics who are the largest consumer electronics company on the planet are to release a 256GB solid-state disk, which should be on the shelves by the end of the year.

If Samsung do keep hold of their promise to release the larger more reliable hard drive, then future owners of mobile technology like the Eee PC and the MacBook Air will be hoping that both Asus and Apple decide to go with the larger SSD. It is not just laptops and UMPC’s that could benefit from such a device, even MP3 players might get a smaller version of this larger solid-state-disk, and I would put money on it that Apple will be the first to use it on their iPod range.

SSD as we know is the future in storage solution as there is nothing spinning like a conventional hard drive, this will save power which is the holy grail in portable technology, as well as reduce the risk of failure. However; there is one problem with the solid-state-disc, and that is the price. There is one problem with all new technology, the price is always high but as time goes on the price will become lower. If you do not believe me, just look how the price of Cell Phones have reduced in price, who would have thought 10 years ago that you could purchase as a cell phone for les than $10.

Li-on Batteries Update: LG Chem fire loses Asus Eee PC sales

Back in March we reported that a South Korea fire at LG Chem had caused a laptop battery shortage, this was already affecting Asus, HP and Dell. Today we are hearing that Li-on Batteries will be back to normal supply by Q3 of this year, although the fire could not come at a worse time because the demand for laptops has soared this year. It was only a few years ago that I tried to buy a laptop that could play games, there was no real choice but today many laptops are as powerful as desktop computers and gaming is easily achieved on the move.

Why do you want a big bulky computer when you can have a nice smaller, more portable computer in the form of a laptop? This is why the Asus Eee PC has become so popular, as it has price and portability just right. The CEO of Asus, Jerry Shen, said that the Eee PCs could have sold a lot more than the 5 million units they achieved if there was not a shortage in supply of batteries.

Sung Fu-hsang, chairman of Simplo (world’s largest independent notebook battery maker), said on Friday that “The LG Chem problem has had a big impact on supplies, but we’re working with customers and they understand”.

The real problem will be for the smaller companies that make laptops, as the big companies will be looked after first.

Have you been affected by the laptop battery shortage?

Source: Read

Asus to replace Eee PC 900 UMPC batteries

It has not even been a day since reports came in about Asus Eee PC 900 UMPC, owners started to complain about how long their batteries were lasting. Well now it seems that Asus are all ready to get something done about the poor battery performance.

When you go to the Asus website and then do a rough translation, the company posted a statement stating that they are thankful for the support of their customers business and that they are now chalking some ideas to resolve the whole battery issue. Asus has said that every single owner of an Asus Eee PC 900 in Honk Kong will be receiving a free 5800mAh replacement battery, not sure on the rest of us yet.

The original batteries were a four-cell 4400mAh which Asus now realize was a mistake as the battery life was from 1.5 to 2.5 hours; both are not fantastic for such a small UMPC.

It is a shame that the Asus Eee PC 900 has got of to a poor start, as the original did not have any of these problems. However; it is satisfying to know that a company like Asus is big enough to own up and admit that they made a mistake and will fix the problem quick.

Source – Engadget

Asus Eee PC 900 UMPC: launch dates and details

The original Asus Eee PC was a great little UMPC, however many of us knew that this was just a teaser until the launch of the Asus Eee PC 900. We thought that this slighter larger model would be a huge improvement on the previous model however, I was a little shocked to learn that they would still be using the 900MHz Celeron M processor.

Although Asus have tried to make up for this by giving us two different flash storage units, the first is 4GB of flash storage that is soldered on the motherboard while the other is the 8GB SSD which will be in the PCIe slot however, this is only on the XP version of the Ultra Mobile PC, and on the Linux version that will come with a 16GB SSD.

One thing that I do not understand, why would Asus give the more simpler Linux operating system more storage, very strange. The price for the Asus Eee PC 900 UMPC will be $500 - $650, the reason for this high price tag has something to do with the Windows license fee.

So now comes the all important launch dates of this Ultra Mobile PC, well both the UK and Honk Kong should see ship dates from today with France following tomorrow. Germany, Italy and Australia will have to wait until May. As yet there is no news as to when the Asus Eee PC 900 UMPC will be released in the U.S.

Source - Asus News

ASUS Eee PC Overclocking: apps for both Windows and Linux

The ASUS Eee PC is pretty cool for the value you get for price and with a little bit of Overclocking you can get a speed boost to 1GHz, Cyb3rGlitch talk about the 3 ways of overclocking the Eee PC running XP or Vista and just How to overclock the little UMPC.

The one reason most people do not overclock is the worry of getting a busted computer and that is very possible when you enter the Overclocking world, feel free to visit Cyb3rGlitch for more information.

Would you overclock and do you know the risks?

Source: Read | Via liliputing.com

HP 2133 Mini Note PC: Hands on with this UMPC

The HP 2133 Mini Note PC is going to be the company’s competitor for the Asus Eee PC. This new UMPC weighs in at just 3.2 pound and is 10.0 x 6.5 x 1.1 inch in size, making this the perfect Ultra Mobile PC. This small notebook has an aluminum chassis as well as a decent size screen and keyboard.

The HP 2133 comes with a 1.0GHz VIA processor and 512MB RAM as well as 4GB flash storage. The UMPC comes with the Linux OS, however it will be able to run on Windows Vista or XP as well. There is also a bigger spec version; this will give you a 1.6GHz CPU, a larger 2GB of RAM as well as a 120GB standard hard drive.

For a more detailed review please visit: Slash Gear

Official News: Asustek rolling out ASUS 8.9-inch Eee PC with touchscreen & GPS possibility

At last official confirmation on the second generation ASUS 8.9-inch Eee PC, this new laptop will feature 8.9-inch touchscreen display and possibly GPS.

ASUS VP of Sales Kevin Lin has said that the starting price of $500 the Eee PC will be shipping as early as May or June 2008 in either 8GB to 12GB capacities and it could possibly have GPS support.

Now if they do plan on releasing it then this means it is about the same time when they release the E-DT (desktop PC) priced at US$199

The new second generation ASUS 8.9-inch Eee PC will have Intel’s low-cost notebook platform and will be upgraded from 512MB to 1GB, SSD (solid state drive) capacity will be upgraded from 4-8GB to 8-12GB.

Source - DigiTimes

Sony are scared of the Asus Eee PC, surely there is space for Sony though!

Oh yes it is official and Sony are scared of the Asus Eee PC, Sony do fear the cheap laptop if it does well. Senior VP with Sony US’ IT products operation Mike Abary told CNET “If [Asus' Eee PC] starts to do well, we are Read more