Otto Berkes, creator of the Origami project and now Partner Architect in the CTO’s office at Microsoft, takes a look at the ASUS Eee PC.
Overall Otto (and his family) give the Eee PC a “very positive review.” Some of the things he likes:
* low price
* small, light-weight, well-built, started up fast
* real browser, connects to the Internet, “pretty good collection of applications”
He also mentions that the battery life is “OK–no worse than a typical laptop.”
From what I’ve been reading many other people have similar reactions. He does say that the display and keyboard are a bit cramped, but I guess this makes sense for a small UMPC-like device such as this.
Otto points out that in part Eee’s design success is due not only to what they put in, but what they left out. He compares the Eee to the ASUS RH2 UMPC, for instance, which is several times more expensive although structurally similar. To me, the prices of the UMPCs have simply been a terrible mistake. I think they went after the enterprise market rather than the consumer market. What a common story this has been in the Tablet space. From a money standpoint I can understand why–they can charge more, they can leverage their sales force, and they don’t have to deal with finicky consumers. However, it’s also capped their sales.
However, whereas the UMPCs went up market–even if they were originally designed for all–the Eee is definitely consumer friendly. It hits the “sweet spot” as Otto points out.
Actually I think price is a big part of the Eee’s success. Charge $999 for the same thing and I think end users would have yawned. Yes, the exact same hardware, just a different price.
I do think, though, that these smaller, more mobile devices need more than inexpensive hardware and a low price (shouldn’t these go together!). They need good experiences. The Eee does an admiral job here with its custom Linux install, but I’d still like a turn on and go experience more like that with the Amazon Kindle. When WiMax finally makes it into the mainstream, this may become a reality. Manufacturers can package their systems with connectivity out of the box–more like a cell phone than a laptop.
As much as I like the Asus and its minimalist design, I do realize I’m part of the problem. Most of the Tablet PCs and UMPCs I’ve owned are all top of the model systems. I go for speed. I go for battery life. I load them up with features. I’d really like to purchase the new Dell Latitude, for instance, because of its touch capability, but frankly the processor is just too slow. I’d be tapping at the desk all day waiting for things to happen. I wouldn’t be happy. I do too many tasks, such as code development, where I need the speed.
Anyway, despite the fact that I tend to go up market, I do appreciate lower cost devices. Something in the under $500 range. I look forward to the UMPCs being pushed down into that price point–which is exactly what I think will happen–particularly with this year’s forthcoming MIDs (Mobile Internet Devices). The game is going to be changing. Finally.
[Via Gottabemobile]