I'm looking forward to getting a small laptop like the Eee PC or the MSI Wind. Which one would you get and why? If you have one what do you think of them and are they good for coding?
Mini Laptops
Miscellaneous Forums/General Discussion/Mini Laptops Dell are bringing out one too - might take a look at that depending on the price. Will only get one (Dell or Asus probably) though once the new Intel Atom is available in them.
I'm hoping it will allow me to do some coding on the train as lugging my 15" Inspiron is getting a bit much.
I'm hoping it will allow me to do some coding on the train as lugging my 15" Inspiron is getting a bit much.
I've got an eeePC 900 :)
Very nice it is too, a little difficult to type on, but it doesn't take that long to get used to it.
Very light/small, so I can just throw it in any bag I happen to be using at the time.
Very nice it is too, a little difficult to type on, but it doesn't take that long to get used to it.
Very light/small, so I can just throw it in any bag I happen to be using at the time.
I like small laptops too. Theyre not much cop for hi-end games though (get too hot) but are great for mobile coding (or where you are not running the 3d maxed out constantly). I had a lattitude D420 for work which was a fairly nice little machine but got hot quick when driving it hard, but wasnt mine so had to return it :(
Myself ive got a compaq nc410 12" with Fedora and XP installed. The old radeon gpu is just about fast enough to test my c++/irrlicht stuff. Its a nice little lightweight machine (if not a little old :) probably pick one up on ebay for next to nothing now.
Myself ive got a compaq nc410 12" with Fedora and XP installed. The old radeon gpu is just about fast enough to test my c++/irrlicht stuff. Its a nice little lightweight machine (if not a little old :) probably pick one up on ebay for next to nothing now.
> I've got an eeePC 900
Nice. No retail shops seems to have this in our area but I would recommend this by the reviews going around. It seems to be an incredibly popular and successful machine
One thing though, and only for folks considering buying an EeePC 900 from the UK, the machine is being supplied with a weak battery so you may want to double-check on that
Nice. No retail shops seems to have this in our area but I would recommend this by the reviews going around. It seems to be an incredibly popular and successful machine
One thing though, and only for folks considering buying an EeePC 900 from the UK, the machine is being supplied with a weak battery so you may want to double-check on that
I've got an Asus EEE PC 701, and couldn't be happier with it :)
> One thing though, and only for folks considering buying an EeePC 900 from the UK, the machine is being supplied with a weak battery so you may want to double-check on that
Yep, battery is poop. There should be an announcement by 10th June as to what ASUS are going to do about that, it looks like £10 to swap it out for a bigger capacity one. Otherwise ebay is your friend for higher capacity batteries.
Yep, battery is poop. There should be an announcement by 10th June as to what ASUS are going to do about that, it looks like £10 to swap it out for a bigger capacity one. Otherwise ebay is your friend for higher capacity batteries.
Yes, the EEE PC is very nice - surprisingly quick too.
It can do 3D fairly well, although Tux Racer segments out, as does trying Mini3D, so options are limited there.
However, standard 2D Linux stuff is fine.
It can do 3D fairly well, although Tux Racer segments out, as does trying Mini3D, so options are limited there.
However, standard 2D Linux stuff is fine.
Graham,
May I ask if you ordered online or from a purchased from local store?
I'm considering getting the 900 myself
MrTAToad,
There are a few videos on YouTube which show the EeePC playing stuff like GTA3 Vice City (at very good frame rates)
xmlspy,
Worth a visit for all things EeePC related -> http://www.eeeuser.com
Something worth noting is that the MSI Wind uses a harddrive rather than SSD drive found in the EeePC and is a little bigger/heavier
May I ask if you ordered online or from a purchased from local store?
I'm considering getting the 900 myself
MrTAToad,
There are a few videos on YouTube which show the EeePC playing stuff like GTA3 Vice City (at very good frame rates)
xmlspy,
Worth a visit for all things EeePC related -> http://www.eeeuser.com
Something worth noting is that the MSI Wind uses a harddrive rather than SSD drive found in the EeePC and is a little bigger/heavier
There are a few videos on YouTube which show the EeePC playing stuff like GTA3 Vice City (at very good frame rates)
Thats when you install XP on it though... Its most probably that XP gets the most out of the machine :)
Hi Jim,
I bought mine from laptops direct (www.laptopsdirect.co.uk). I did next day delivery which worked out well. Although stock around the place is low, it's worth checking around, as that site bumped it's prices by £30-£40 a couple of days after release to milk a few extra pounds from the short supply.
I bought the linux version (bigger ssd), configured linux to work with my 3g usb modem, added wine and a few other tools (plus Cobra of course ;) which plays nice with Linux+Wine ;).. Plug over!) and used it in that state for a while, then imaged it off and put xp onto it, which is where it is at the moment.
Vice City does work well, tried a few other games from a couple of years back, with mixed success (the 1024x600 rez gives some problems). Overall, works very well, and is quite nippy.
It's quite good fun to use with a USB TV tuner card as well.
I bought mine from laptops direct (www.laptopsdirect.co.uk). I did next day delivery which worked out well. Although stock around the place is low, it's worth checking around, as that site bumped it's prices by £30-£40 a couple of days after release to milk a few extra pounds from the short supply.
I bought the linux version (bigger ssd), configured linux to work with my 3g usb modem, added wine and a few other tools (plus Cobra of course ;) which plays nice with Linux+Wine ;).. Plug over!) and used it in that state for a while, then imaged it off and put xp onto it, which is where it is at the moment.
Vice City does work well, tried a few other games from a couple of years back, with mixed success (the 1024x600 rez gives some problems). Overall, works very well, and is quite nippy.
It's quite good fun to use with a USB TV tuner card as well.
Thanks Graham. Good info.
Apparently AMD has joined the market - http://jkkmobile.blogspot.com/2008/06/follow-up-on-new-amd-umpc-at-computex.html
The 901 features exactly what I wanted, upgrade options! http://jkkmobile.blogspot.com/2008/06/eee-pc-901-internals-hint-future.html
It really comes down to a few things for me and they are:
Useful keyboard - if I can't use my fingers to type then it's useless
Battery Life - I don't think anyone disagrees with me
Boot speed - I want to be able to use it quickly
Storage - taking my stuff on the go is a must
Some smart phones and other portable devices like UMPCs seem to be neat little portable media devices, but I don't think they are as useful as a mini laptop mainly the keyboard issue.
My dream machine would be an Eee PC size device with touch-screen, 6 to 8 hours of battery life, accurate speech recognition, sync with files on other pcs via wireless automatically, able to immediatly start typing after I open it, make phone calls, bluetooth and be able to make/receive calls and listen to music with the laptop closed, and the screen must be viewable outdoors. In a way it kind of sounds like I want a mobile phone in a tablet Eee laptop. When I walk around the streets I want to be seen as I'm carrying a small book and not look like a dork with a massive laptop or a geek with every kind of gadget on me. Currently I have a laptop, a zune, cell phone, ear phones as my road gear, each with its own functionality. Why can't I have all in one? I bet it's George Bush's fault. Maybe by next year there will be a device like I mentioned.
The 901 features exactly what I wanted, upgrade options! http://jkkmobile.blogspot.com/2008/06/eee-pc-901-internals-hint-future.html
It really comes down to a few things for me and they are:
Useful keyboard - if I can't use my fingers to type then it's useless
Battery Life - I don't think anyone disagrees with me
Boot speed - I want to be able to use it quickly
Storage - taking my stuff on the go is a must
Some smart phones and other portable devices like UMPCs seem to be neat little portable media devices, but I don't think they are as useful as a mini laptop mainly the keyboard issue.
My dream machine would be an Eee PC size device with touch-screen, 6 to 8 hours of battery life, accurate speech recognition, sync with files on other pcs via wireless automatically, able to immediatly start typing after I open it, make phone calls, bluetooth and be able to make/receive calls and listen to music with the laptop closed, and the screen must be viewable outdoors. In a way it kind of sounds like I want a mobile phone in a tablet Eee laptop. When I walk around the streets I want to be seen as I'm carrying a small book and not look like a dork with a massive laptop or a geek with every kind of gadget on me. Currently I have a laptop, a zune, cell phone, ear phones as my road gear, each with its own functionality. Why can't I have all in one? I bet it's George Bush's fault. Maybe by next year there will be a device like I mentioned.
The new Eee Box looks cool too, though not quite the same market:
http://www.hothardware.com/News/ASUS_Eee_Box_B202_Details_Emerge/
Smaller than a paperback book and only $269 (£138 before Ripoff Britain taxes are applied). Very "Wii-meets-Portal" looking. The draw is the low power and noise of course.
http://www.hothardware.com/News/ASUS_Eee_Box_B202_Details_Emerge/
Smaller than a paperback book and only $269 (£138 before Ripoff Britain taxes are applied). Very "Wii-meets-Portal" looking. The draw is the low power and noise of course.
I have high hopes for the eeeBox as well :)
I currently have a very small ASUS machine acting as a web development/ subversion / mail server / media server box which that would replace very nicely...
I currently have a very small ASUS machine acting as a web development/ subversion / mail server / media server box which that would replace very nicely...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psion_Series_5
Still probably one of the best portable computers available 10 years laters.
I really don't understand why a new version of this hasn't been invented, the keyboard is perfectly usable and rock solid.
Seems to me that take this form factor, put a better screen on it, more memory and a more powerful processor, put a slimline linux os on it with open office rolled in and you're onto a winner.
Still probably one of the best portable computers available 10 years laters.
I really don't understand why a new version of this hasn't been invented, the keyboard is perfectly usable and rock solid.
Seems to me that take this form factor, put a better screen on it, more memory and a more powerful processor, put a slimline linux os on it with open office rolled in and you're onto a winner.
Also.. anyone else been following this ?
http://www.openpandora.org/
OK.. so its geared towards being a powerful OpenSource gaming device but if these guys and Blitz Research got together so it shipped with a custom version of BMax... OK.. so BMax isnt OpenSource.. but..
Imagine that.. a custom powerful gaming handheld with a built in Dev Environment... wouldnt that be cool.. All owners could have a go at writing stuff for it.
Now.. THAT would be a community I would love to be a part of!.
http://www.openpandora.org/
OK.. so its geared towards being a powerful OpenSource gaming device but if these guys and Blitz Research got together so it shipped with a custom version of BMax... OK.. so BMax isnt OpenSource.. but..
Imagine that.. a custom powerful gaming handheld with a built in Dev Environment... wouldnt that be cool.. All owners could have a go at writing stuff for it.
Now.. THAT would be a community I would love to be a part of!.
To owners of Eee PC's: Are the screens hard to read? I want one but I'm not sure if I could read text and code well on a small screen...
>To owners of Eee PC's: Are the screens hard to read? I want one but I'm not sure if I could read text and code well on a small screen...
Not brilliant, but the screen is good quality so I've not had any problems.
Not brilliant, but the screen is good quality so I've not had any problems.
Ok Thanks GrahamK, I just don't want to have a massive headache from straining my eyes...
It seems these computers are aimed at children... are these just overgrown toys?
It seems these computers are aimed at children... are these just overgrown toys?
I think their initial target was kids, the idea being a cheap machine you could just throw into a bag. A kind of pocket calculator for 2008 ;)
When they came out though, a lot of people saw exactly how handy these sort of machines are, and hence the huge interest that has kicked off (and the shortage of supply, I think everyone was taken by surprise).
Personally, I'm finding it very handy.
When they came out though, a lot of people saw exactly how handy these sort of machines are, and hence the huge interest that has kicked off (and the shortage of supply, I think everyone was taken by surprise).
Personally, I'm finding it very handy.
designed for children might equal smaller keyboard, which i could work around
back in the day i wanted an amstrad nc200 (i think) it was a floppy based not a laptop type thing (more like the psion but laptop sized) and iir had a fold away screen like laptops not the small bar on the top of its older brother the nc100
it was sort of cheap (well it was amstrad ;) ) but i was on YTS money at the time and that was nothing much after paying my mum keep and getting a weekly ticket to work
but i liked it cos
it used floppies not pcmcia(?) cards iir it had a port as the nc100 used em
was light
cheap
only really did text editing and thats what i wanted it for
my hand writing was terible and has never improved, at one point i was doing my english course work during my typing lessons as the teacher asked if i could so he could read it as i was only taking typing cos my hand writing was naff and it was on at the same time as the IT class (which was over booked but i rather liked being one of two guys in a 30 girl class)
so it was ideal for me and my still unfinished book
now i write using 5mm a4 paper but i might look into an eeepc or something for writing when out in the pub as its cheap enough to not be too irksom if lost or stolen when out on the razz (unlike mi5 agents and tapas bars)
back in the day i wanted an amstrad nc200 (i think) it was a floppy based not a laptop type thing (more like the psion but laptop sized) and iir had a fold away screen like laptops not the small bar on the top of its older brother the nc100
it was sort of cheap (well it was amstrad ;) ) but i was on YTS money at the time and that was nothing much after paying my mum keep and getting a weekly ticket to work
but i liked it cos
it used floppies not pcmcia(?) cards iir it had a port as the nc100 used em
was light
cheap
only really did text editing and thats what i wanted it for
my hand writing was terible and has never improved, at one point i was doing my english course work during my typing lessons as the teacher asked if i could so he could read it as i was only taking typing cos my hand writing was naff and it was on at the same time as the IT class (which was over booked but i rather liked being one of two guys in a 30 girl class)
so it was ideal for me and my still unfinished book
now i write using 5mm a4 paper but i might look into an eeepc or something for writing when out in the pub as its cheap enough to not be too irksom if lost or stolen when out on the razz (unlike mi5 agents and tapas bars)
Well that is good news.
I'm being advised against it because of the lack of space, but space isn't an issue too much for me... I don't store pictures or music on my PC, just word processing, internet, and coding (which for me never requires loads of images and sound).
I think 20 Gb is plenty, given I still havn't filled my allotted 5 on my other machine.
I'm being advised against it because of the lack of space, but space isn't an issue too much for me... I don't store pictures or music on my PC, just word processing, internet, and coding (which for me never requires loads of images and sound).
I think 20 Gb is plenty, given I still havn't filled my allotted 5 on my other machine.
I'm being advised against it because of the lack of space, but space isn't an issue too much for me...
aye some of them just have system ram and whatever size SD card you put in and not much else, but we have been living in a world of divx mp3 and others for so long its hard to think we'd ever have something that small knocking around without it being filled in the first five minutes of it being switched on
yet most of us remember when games came out on a single floppy
and even if 20gb wasnt enough, they all have usb slots, so thats every usb memory stick you have as another drive, external hard drives and in my case the 160gb ipod (although i wouldnt be able to sync with it as you need the songs on the laptop to begin with)
I have the 20Gb version, it is split into 2 ssd units, 4gb and 16gb (the OS is on the 4gb) one.
I've added an 8gb SD card, where I've installed a couple of older games (which appears to work quite well), I've installed the tools I use every day onto the 16Gb ssd.
In addition to this, I already had an external DVD writer which I use for installing, but I also have virtual drive installed, and images of my frequently used CD's on an external drive (if there are any I use a lot, I move them onto the SSD.
The thing to remember about these sort of machine, is the best way to use it is as a second machine. I have some of my development tools, but mainly I'm just using it for documenting, keeping up with email/web when away from home, as well as writing a few demos.
I've added an 8gb SD card, where I've installed a couple of older games (which appears to work quite well), I've installed the tools I use every day onto the 16Gb ssd.
In addition to this, I already had an external DVD writer which I use for installing, but I also have virtual drive installed, and images of my frequently used CD's on an external drive (if there are any I use a lot, I move them onto the SSD.
The thing to remember about these sort of machine, is the best way to use it is as a second machine. I have some of my development tools, but mainly I'm just using it for documenting, keeping up with email/web when away from home, as well as writing a few demos.
Well I'm going off to college so I thought it might be good for that.