ASUS Eee PC 701: субноутбук at the price of a handheld computer

Submitted by reader Bruno Campos - A comprehensive Russian review of a black Asus Eee PC from the Russian site 3DNews.

We will cite just the important and new info. The complete translated version is available at Translate.ru -

Note test unit is a preselling sample that may differ from the production units. Here are the results:

Characteristics (for Russian production model )

The processor	Intel Celeron M 900 MHz ULV, cache L2 of 512 Mb, FSB 400 MHz
Operational system	Linux-based
System logic	Intel NG82910GMLE/NH82801FBM
Memory	256 Mb DDR2 of 400 MHz
LCD the Display	7 " wide-screen, 800 x 480
The module schedules and video	Integrated Intel 910GMLE Express
HDD	Flash-disk in volume 4 Гб
Optical drive	No
Communications	Built in module Ethernet LAN, 56K modem, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g
Dimensions, mm	225 x 165 x 21~35
Weight, kg	0,89

Design and appearance

The Eee PC 701 looks like classical "book", without a cover latch. The fit between the cover and case is tight. Both case and cover are made from black matte plastic with a slightly rouogh but very pleasant touch. It looks stylishly expensive.

All the connectors are located on the left and right sides of the unit. The SD/MMC, two USB ports and the VGA-out are located on the right side.

An Ethernet port, the modem port, a 3rd USB port and the audio ports are located on the left side.

On the bottom there are several air vents along the perimeter. There are also four rubber legs to stabilize the unit.

The battery is secured by two separate locks.

Interior

The LCD display is attached to two massive ring supports. The hinge works very smoothly and is moderately stiff.

The keyboard is also made from the same matte black plastic and is less than full-sized. The lay-out is more or less standard. However, it would have been desirable to see the block with курсорными keys displaced at the bottom.

The alphabetic keys, number keys , and also курсорный the block are essentially allocated with the almost full-sized keys.

All keys have precise tactile feedback and travel short distances. The keys also slightly jingle but this should not matter. The substrate of the keyboard hardly noticeably caves in, but it is not appreciable almost.

The touchpad is small but works well with the display. It has scroll bar on the right, and also two standard buttons integrated in one long metal strip.

There is a slot for a web-cam above the display but our unit did not come with a web-cam.

The display

The LCD is a 7" TFT with 800 x 480 resolution. While the 7" should not be a problem, the 480 pixel length is not enough for Windows applications. The display has a huge range of brightness control, a fine saturation and color rendition.

Sound

The speakers are located near the display and sound is okay - not bad, not worse than other
ноутбука. But the loudness has to be set to a maximum and on a bustling street it would be necessary to use headphones.

Internal

Both RAM and flash memory are soldered on, making upgrades impossible.

The test unit had the Intel Celeron M 800 MHz running at 570 Mhz.. However production models are supposed to have the Celeron M of 900 MHz (Dothan 353: architecture 90nm, cache L2 of 512 Mb, frequency of the system trunk of 400 MHz). The BIOS did not allow us to make any adjustment on the clock frequency.

Near the processor two more large microcircuits of a set of system logic Intel NG82910GMLE/NH82801FBM are located. They comprise the Mobile Intel 910GMLE Express with the built in graphic kernel.

RAM is 256 Mb DDR2 400. The sample unit uses Qimonda HYB18T512161BF-25 64MB modules. The memoy have an access time of 2.5 nanoseconds.

The Asus Eee PC has no hard drive and uses flash memory instead. While production units will have 4GB, the sample unit has 2GB, composed of two 1GB HYNIX HY27UG088G5M chips. These chips are commonly used in MP3-players. A number(line) locates the controller from company Silicon Motion-known microcircuit SM223.

Battery

The power adapter of the Asus Eee PC is tiny - similar in size to those used by mobile phones.

Using Battery Eater ’ 05 Pro 2.70, the Asus Eee PC is estimated to last 2 hours 30 minutes.

Heat

There are several air vents along the bottom perimeter but these may be blocked if the unit is set on the user's lap. But the ULV processor is not expected to generate excessive heat.

There is a fixed fan inside the case but it never made a sound during our testing. Interestingly, it does not cool the ULV processor directly.

Quality

It is easy to throw this ноутбук in a backpack and bring it around all day.

The lack of a hard drive may be an issue but it depends on the flash memory installed. Windows XP occupies nearly 1GB so a bigger flash size might be necessary. Alternately, an external hard drive can be connected via the USB port, or even SD or CF cards.

Windows XP boots up in 30 seconds but is sluggish.