Picked up my new netbook the other day, the Asus EeePC 1000HE, black. Since we have a Toshiba 15.4 laptop at home, we looked for something small and affordable, with long battery life and above average performance. With a HUGE HELP from the master of netbooks in Israel, Nir, we opted for the Asus 1000HE, primarily because of its 9.5 hours (!) battery life (6-cell).
The first hours are spent getting used to the keyboard and touch-pad. Even thou I had a small factor laptop, Levono X60, the netbooks are something else entirely. With the 1000HE the keyboard has been upgraded, each key is separated and it feels more comfortable, but there’s still a learning curve. I was never a big touch-pad fan, and this Asus has a somewhat small pad that takes getting used to. This model has a multi-touch feature (like a MacBook), that enables you to scroll the screen and zoom in/out using 2 fingers – quite handy and cool.
The most impressive feature about this model is its battery life (the E at 1000HE stands for ‘Extended’), that can give you a full business day worth of power, without carrying the ac adapter. Using Eee Super Hybrid Engine you can control the different power scenarios, that under ‘Auto’ mode lasted some 6 hours of above average usage. I guess reaching 8 hours with Super Power Saver mode won’t be too hard – and that’s more than enough.
In terms of size and weight, you could find a smaller netbook – the 6-cell battery is taking its toll, and the overall weight of this model is 1.4Kg (3.2 pounds). Asus supplies a neat little envelope case for your 1000HE, that can also house the ac adapter – which is also small factor, and doesn’t add too much if you need to take it with you.
Performance-wise, Intel Atom N280 is doing a solid work with the 1.6GHz and 1GB of RAM. The 1000HE comes with Win XP Home, but you can reformat it with any OS you want – Ubuntu, Vista or even Win7 – but with the latter you’ll have to increase the RAM to 2GB. Unlike other netbooks, upgrading your RAM can be done at home via an easy to access panel at the back. I’ve installed Adobe Photoshop CS and as long as you remember what’s ‘under the hood’ – you won’t be disappointed. I think the only downside I’ve noticed is with the graphics card, Intel Mobile 945 Chipset with 224MB of shared memory. Viewing YouTube videos in HQ or HD that involves a lot of movement (like the NBA channel) can be frustrating at times. TED Talks are better, but there’s little motion in them, so the card handles them well. It does heat a bit, as with any laptop, but it’s not too bad.
Overall the Asus EeePC 1000HE is an excellent netbook, with super battery life and solid performance. For 2,250 NIS (about $500) it’s a bit expensive than others, but you get a full mobile package that will last a business day without blinking.
