Cheap and tiny submicros rounded up and compared
Liliputing has done a fantastic roundup of the existing and forthcoming micro-notebooks, the Eee and its successors and competitors. There's a lot of interest in these things in my household -- we're all sick of shlepping around shoulder-tearing laptops and the idea of a 2.5 Lb, sold-state submicro tablet is pretty attractive all 'round, especially if it goes for a couple hundred bucks.
Link
(via Gizmodo)
the latest
latest episodes
I've got an EEE and I think it's really great. The biggest feature for me is the portability. I can carry it around (open or closed) like a book, and put it in my bag without it killing my shoulder.
I also love the OS. It's trivially simple to use in its default state, so I think it is a fine choice for computer newbie (if they have good eyes). But since its Linux, just about any customization is available under the surface. It's a good option for someone who wants to learn Linux because of sites like eeeuser.com. Everyone starts off with the exact same setup (software AND hardware) so the walkthroughs they have on their wiki pretty much always work.
I was even able to install and use some development tools on my machine. gEDA for circuit board creation in Linux worked fine right off the bat. I also tried the Rabbit microcontroller tool (Dynamic C) in wine. That ran, but couldn't find the right path to libraries for compilation and serial support was broken so I couldn't program anything. That one of the only things I've ever tried that I wasn't eventually able to get working, and I think it was wine's fault.
My two biggest complaints are processor speed and screen size. The 600MHz underclock makes it hard to play some intensive flash games, though I don't think I've noticed a slowdown anywhere else. The screen is a bit of sore point. It's perfectly adequate for most of the default software and for webpages. It's just not big. Asus is coming out with a bigger screen on the next version which should solve any space issues. They said a few months ago that the screens wouldn't be getting any bigger, and that influenced my decision to buy early. I might have waited if I know then what I know now.
Man, comparing mini laptops must be some kind of crazy new blog fad, I swear I alone have seen probably 6 or 7 of these round up comparisons.
I guess that reflects the level of interest, and also the fact that the machines are a new/different enough gadget that people don't really know what to look for or what distinguishes on from the other.
Either that, or it's just the hot topic of the hour, and everyone wants to get some blog hits from it :)
I think I'd prefer an article titled "Cheap and tiny submicros rounded up and shot".
For somebody who wants to carry one and actually work on it while standing, the 9 inch screen sounds too big.
Y'know, for most of what I need to do portably, a Palm -- perhaps a Treo so it has the thumb keyboard and so I don't need to carry a separate phone -- really is more than sufficient. How often do I *REALLY* need my whole code development environment plus my whole audio processing suite plus the games plus... available on impulse?
OK, I admit I chose an MP3 player by the fact that it had enough disk space to store my entire audio collection. And I'd like to combine that with the above functionality. But I think folks are getting too hung up on trying to cram full PCs into portable devices rather than taking the time to think about what functionality is actually _useful_ in a portable device.
Yes, there are those who actually do need a full PC when they're on the road. But most of those will also need a decent size screen and keyboard. I'm honestly not sure that the awkward space between palmtop and laptop is worth filling.
@ Technogeek, I agree that the move towards teeny little laptops that still try to be whole laptops is kind of awkward. And honestly, it's missing the point of the beginning of this movement, which was not to develop an ultraportable, but to design an ultracheap - a category which doesn't exist in the computer industry, for obvious reasons.
The small screen size was to reduce costs, so a small form factor followed. But the point was originally to create a laptop which was able to competently do the basics (web, email, word processing, photos) for as cheap as possible.
The OLPC project got it down to less than $200, but once the commercial offerings took over the limelight, the features and price started spiraling up into this whole other category of "tiny laptops with luxury features". Can't blame them I guess - there's not much money in $200 bare-necessities laptops.
I prefer the original concept, an ultracheap machine which can do basic things with very modest hardware, and by extension consumes almost no power.
I bought an EEE this month, having had to give my old laptop back due to a change in study/work.
I got it because it was cheap and portable. I plan on taking it backpacking around Europe later this year. (It's light enough not to be a burden, and cheap enough not to make me so much of a target / hurt me if it gets stolen/damaged.)
It runs a lot of nifty full-functionality software that is useful for my productivity and entertainment (Open Office, FF, Amarok, Mplayer, etc). It functions as an ebook reader, and costs half as much (and it *feels* like a book to hold). It functions as a small, portable movie player. (Mplayer plays anything at DVD/TV quality. HDTV not so much, but that exceeds the screen res anyway.) It functions as a videophone (I gave my parents a walking tour of my flat via Skype the other day - try doing that comfortably with a 3kg laptop.) It acts as a hub between my 500GB portable HD and my webcam/mp3 player.
One thing I do not do on it is development - while it *could* run a webserver and MySQL, I don't think I'd be up for the pain. (And having to use the function key to get "|" and "\" on a Linux box is really irritating.) For most of the other things I use a computer for (largely listed above), it does a pretty good job.
But really, the price was the major factor. It does about 90% of what I need a home PC for, and cost half as much. I'm almost not afraid to use it in public...
Odd there's no mention of the OLPC XO. While plenty of adult users (and possibly some of the intended juvenile audience) aren't fond of the Sugar interface, pretty much everyone agrees that the hardware rocks. It's tough, has a long battery life, can tolerate a wide range of voltages, and has great wi-fi reception. The keyboard is a little awkward if you have adult-sized hands, but there are always USB keyboards when you're not on the go. The ability to swivel the display to a tablet and switch it to reflective mode makes it a good ebook reader, too.
The OLPC tech is all developed as a charity effort (no royalties expected) and the laptop is intended for underprivileged kids in developing nations. In other words, not the average blogosphere denizen.
The EEE, and its derivatives were developed as a commercial response to the XO - comparing them is like comparing apples and oranges.
That said, I wonder if you could use an EEE as a semi-realistic test-bed for sugar and other OLPC software?
I eagerly await the first real-life implementation of this...
In response to the people who don't see the need for a development environment on the go:
I find it invaluable when I'm working on a group project on campus. It's not the most comfortable option, but my only other computer is a desktop. The more the EEE can do, the better, as far as I'm concerned. If I already had another laptop, I probably wouldn't have gotten the EEE.
Small, light, convenient & cheap PC* thing. This development is the way forward. Trust me, I've been dreaming of this ever since I had a computer and read Sci-Fi.
The creation of this type of thing is more important than that useless waste of silicon the iPhone**.
Sorry I can't be more coherent, it's late, I need my bed, but my heart sings at every new incarnation of the EEE concept.
This is the sort of shit that will make up for the fact that the I've not got a silver suit and flying car in the 21st Century.
*By PC I mean *Personal* Computer, not necessarily Windows PC.
**The iPhone will hopefully be relegated to a foot note of history for it's marketing strategy and slightly interesting interface development.
@8:Odd there's no mention of the OLPC XO.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought that part of the design philosophy for the OLPC was to create a completely distinctive package to protect it from commercialization. That way, if they ended up on the black market, a community could shame any adults using them. In my mind, that pretty much excludes it from lists like this.