Eee PC XP Version Hits the Shelves
We spoke about the eminent release of the XP version of the Eee PC in episode 80 of the GGP. A few of you had a bit to say about it in addition to Doug sending us an audio comment. Doug thought that the inclusion of XP would make the Eee PC cost prohibitive and not worth it. I would have agreed, but for the observations of it for sale in the wild.
It looks like the Eee PC XP version is joining the market at the same price point as the Linux version. So that took me totally by surprise. Not sure what kind of deal Asus has struck with Microsoft or if they are willing to take a hit on their margins initially to get market penetration.
What has been confirmed is that gadgets like the Eee are prolonging the life of XP in that the ultra low PC market will be able to sell OEM XP for the next two years. While the desktop cousins and laptops will be cut off as of the 30th of June this year. Truth is that Vista would cripple the Eee and Microsoft see these platforms as a money spinner. Long live XP!
It will be interesting to see if the dominance of the Microsoft and XP brand make this the preferred format for the Eee PC. I know, I know the geeks will still go for the Linux version, but I am talking about the poor uni student that needs something to whack out assignments on and stuff like that. There is a market for a budget mobile computing solution and now with XP the Eee PC might just fill a void. For a lot of consumers the traditional laptop just doesn’t make economic sense.
Second I am waiting to hear how the XP version performs. XP clearly has more overheads than Linux and it will be interesting to see if this comes into play witht he Eee PC version. Keith maintains that you can tweak XP to be light and efficient, which I am sure is true. The big question is have they got the mix right?
So what do you get for your hard earned $399? (Best Buy)
- 900MHz Celeron
- 512 RAM
- 4 GB soild state memory
- 800 x 480 screen
- Wireless 802.11 b/g and ethernet
- 3 USB ports
- Camera and Mic built in
- Windows XP Home
So anyone going to be taking up the Eee PC under XP? Maybe you already have. Let us know what you think or do what Doug did and send us an audio comment ton play in the next show.
Check out Episode 80 of The Global Geek Podcast
April 8th, 2008 at 12:03 am
Hasn’t come to Canada yet… We can get the Linux version from “The Source” though. Specifications say “XP compatable,” so I assume one could install XP on their own?
April 8th, 2008 at 12:15 am
@Herne I get the impression and from the look of the screenshots that this is a special edition or something. Not sure… details will emerge I guess.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:46 am
I’m waiting for a eee 900 or dual core eee 900
April 8th, 2008 at 10:45 am
Ive had an EEE pc for about a month.
Bloody brilliant piece of kit. Dont get me wrong, Im a windows guy through and through, but I honestly cant see why (other than market penetration) they would want to put XP on the EEE PC. Given the low end spec of the machine, I dont think that putting a thumping great bloated operating system on it like XP is going to do much for the performance of it.
The linux machine is a beaut, it comes pre-installed with all the software that you need to do what most people need it to do. Working on office format docs is a breeze thanks to open office and google docs, email is easy with thunderbird and browsing is great too with firefox all built in. Later I put google earth on mine.
Add to this the skype and IM clients and its a really useful machine for not a lot of cash.
and it fires up in 20 sec.
Why bugger it up with XP ? Linux isnt anywhere near as hard to deal with these days.
J
Cheers
J
April 10th, 2008 at 8:30 am
[...] What was surprising to me, after reading it at the Global Geek Podcast site, was that the price of the two versions is, for now, the same: $399. [...]
April 10th, 2008 at 8:30 am
[...] What was surprising to me, after reading it at the Global Geek Podcast site, was that the price of the two versions is, for now, the same: $399. [...]