The $599 Asus Eee PC has sold out in Australia.

The $599 Asus Eee PC has sold out in Australia.

Asus has already sold out of its cut-price, open-source laptop, the Eee PC in Australian retailers.
Dick Smith seems to have reasonably good supply of the laptops here - a quick ring around of stores revealed that stock levels range from three in inner city stores to 17 at Manukau. They apparently are selling fast - a typical Dick Smith store usually orders in five at a time and they sell in three to four days.
So what's the appeal in this Eee PC? Well, I guess it's that for the price of a high-end mobile phone (the Eee PC sells for $599), you can get a portable computer that will do much of what the average computer user wants - surf the web, create documents, play games, edit and manage photos.
It's not the most powerful laptop on the market but it's not aimed at power users. The Eee PC is trying to do something else - get easy-to-use, highly-portable computers into the hands of average computer users with a particular appeal to students and computer novices.
Having said that, the blurb on the Dick Smith website aims the Eee PC directly at people like me: "Indeed, for journalists, photographers and other professionals who need to use a computer in the field to create, to communicate and to collaborate with other colleagues, the Eee PC's combination of power, extreme portability and rugged build makes it the ideal computing solution," the advertising guff reads.
The Eee PC has been getting largely good reviews. I had a good look at one recently and was impressed at the form factor - it's definitely in the "sub-notebook" category of devices which are ideal for carting around in your bag - it weighs just 920 grams.
The 4GB solid state drive is a touch on the small side but allows for quick loading of applications.

If you stick to the applications you're currently using and back-up files to the web or an external drive, say a 2GB USB memory stick, you should be able to work with 4GB.
The Eee PC is shipping with a customised version of Linux, complete with Open Office, but you can run Windows XP on it. It will be interesting to see what sort of leg-up the Eee PC and computers like it give Linux in the consumer space.
Other specs for the Eee PC include: 512MB of memory, an Intel Celeron processor, Wi-Fi networking, Ethernet port, built-in web camera, external card reader and three hours battery life.
Would I buy one? Probably not, I just invested in a Dell XPS M1330 which has 4GB of memory alone and a 250GB hard drive. But I'd seriously consider it as a Christmas present for my increasingly tech-savvy mother, who just wants to check her email, do some Googling and write a letter or two.
The portability is its major drawcard - the Eee PC does this extremely well. It reminds me of one of those sub notebooks I always used to see in Akihabara, Tokyo's electronics district, but that never came to New Zealand.
Pint-sized laptops on sale here have largely been the domain of Sony and Toshiba and they've sold at a premium. The Eee PC challenges that model, which is great for laptop users in general.
Has anyone bought an Eee PC? Keen to hear any feedback on the little device.

By Peter Griffin | Email Peter
  1. 9
    comments
  2. Roveit.
    03:20PM Friday, 07 Dec 2007
    The brillance of this machine is that it can be different things to different people. For me it is a brilliant 'additional' mobile PC running familiar Windows XP applications. Away from home I use the Asus eee to watch DVDs stored as image files on a small but large volume external hard drive, along with using a Usb vodafone Vodem to have Web and email anywhere. While the installed Linux setup is great Having Windows XP means I can easily work with applications I am used to. For someone new to computing the straightforward Linux setup is way easier than the trial that XP/Vista can be. All power to Asus for delivering this alternative computing experience.
  3. Linus.
    03:20PM Friday, 07 Dec 2007
    I've been privileged enough to be an Eee PC user since October (my girlfriend bought me one on the release day in Taiwan). Apart from the obvious advantage of great mobility and connectivity the Eee PC presented a perfect opportunity to familarise myself with Linux (my experience with the resource heavy Windows Vista is not the best, and with XP support being discontinued in a few years time I'm looking around for alternative OS). The default Linux flavour on the Eee (a customised Xandros) has a very simple and intuitive UI, and comes with a vast range of applications which should meet the needs of most users. In fact, working on the Eee is such a breeze that you don't even realise that you're using Linux. With help from Eee-user forums I managed to enable an option to run the machine in a 'full desktop mode', a KDE style UI. The default 'easy mode' is great and very ha**le free, but enabling the full desktop mode really brings out the potential. Admittedly, installing software and computer maintenance in Linux is different and slightly more complicated for a newbie, however the Linux community out there is more that willing to help. (For a full review feel free to contact me).
  4. C0md3onk33.
    03:20PM Friday, 07 Dec 2007
    I picked up an Eee the day they arrived at Dick Smith in Auckland and have to say I've been perfectly happy with it. I had been after a secondary computer for a while due to ongoing arguments about who gets to use the home PC in the evenings. The Eee fits the bill perfectly. It allows me to surf the web with Firefox, check email with Thunderbird and as a software engineer by profession I'm more than happy to have a useful Debian derived Linux install out of the box. Www. Eeeuser. Com has an excellent forum full of tips for any Eee owner interested in customising and extending their new laptop.
  5. Dizzy.
    03:20PM Friday, 07 Dec 2007
    Hi there, I bought an Eee PC in the States the week they came out (a month ago) and it rocks. I wouldnt want to work on it for 8hrs straight, but thats not why I got it, it was for the portability factor, and the ease and speed of it, and its lightness, you dont know you're carrying it in your bag. I love this machine, it's not an 'instead of' machine, its an 'as well as' but when you can actually use a laptop in coach cla** on the plane, and still have room for your drink and peanuts on the tray table, you'll appreciate this little marvel. Diz
  6. Pouw.
    03:20PM Friday, 07 Dec 2007
    Purchased one of these the first week they came out. After a day I ditched the installed linux for Xp pro as drivers for my phone are not available in Linux. I now use it regularly to browse the net (dont want to miss those auctions), check my emails, listen to music (via bluetooth headphones) and watch video. The form factor alone swayed me, and the external ports and SD card reader. Paired with my Htc touch phone this unit more then suits my needs.
  7. Post
    03:20PM Friday, 07 Dec 2007
    I have used the EEE for the last month and its very good. I have loaded XP on it and the total space is less then 2 gig, leaving 2 gig for applications and data. I have upgraded the ram to 2 gig and found it loads in 21 seconds. It is now my primary computer at work and I would totally recommend this for anyone using it for MS office type work. The only problem I have is the small screen size and low resolution.
  8. David.
    03:20PM Friday, 07 Dec 2007
    I tried to resist the temptation for a couple of weeks but when I saw people had Ubuntu running on it I gave in. Out of the box it is quite usable and would be fine with the non-geek user. Getting Ubuntu on it turned into a 2 day mission but now everything is work, except the microphone which I will sort out soon. With WiFi and a built in webcam in a single device that can be carried in one hand it makes a great portable comms device. With Skype 2 beta the video appears to work and Pidgin gives me a single point of access to the 5 IM accounts I use. Despite the small keyboard it is surprising usable. I think it would benefit from a larger LCD, which would fit the form factor, but I guess would push the price up. Long term the SD slot should help offset the disk space limitation. While it runs great under Linux I would be concern about it's specs for Windows XP which would tax it's limited resources more heavy and could make for a disappointing experience. A legal retail copy of XP could be 50% added cost. For the right type of user it would be all they need and for many others it would make great supplement to and existing desktop. Well worth the asking price.
  9. Bigal.
    09:55AM Monday, 10 Dec 2007
    I bought one of the very first ones in NZ, and am very happy with it. Plug in an LCD screen, keyboard, mouse and external drive and you have a usable desktop. Unplug everything and you have a superb mobile PC. I's quite fast enough (actually, it's faster than my XP desktop)

    So yes, a good buy for the price AND no Windows viruses!