Eee, what a bargain! (Asus Eee PC 901 GO)

Member Name: Lehen

Product:	Asus Eee PC 901 GO
Date:	14/06/09 (99 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap and cost effective ultra-mobile computing

Disadvantages: Not the best choice for online gaming, mass downloading or media storage

Firstly, a lot of people may be asking the question "why should I choose a netbook instead of a laptop?" - so let's answer this question before going any further!

If you are a business user (like myself) you will benefit from a netbook in a number of ways. The main benefits are how compact they are in comparison to laptops. They are basically the future for compact mobile computing, that are able to support all general administration and communication needs, which can fit onto the palm of your hand and slot comfortably into a handbag, or briefcase, with plenty of room to spare. The 1GB RAM and powerful Atom CPU with supporting Windows XP will be enough resources at your fingertips to get the job done while on the move out of the office. If you are in the creative sector, such as a graphic designer, or photographer, you will benefit from a netbook for slick presentations, mobile freelance communications and ability to compile images for clients in their own workplace. If you wish to be able to heavy edit photographs or to design within Adobe software, such as Photoshop, Lightroom, Flash, Illustrator, Dreamweaver or After Effects, a Duo Core+ laptop will be more suited for your needs.

If you are planning on buying a mobile computer for yourself, or for a family member, such as a school child, or parent, for personal usage, such as viewing photographs, emailing, listening to music, watching videos, browsing the internet and using MSN - the netbook range is mostly suited if you prefer a smaller PC to carry around the house, or plan to take this out and about with you.

It is not recommended to choose a netbook if you plan to do large amounts of downloading, or running such as high-end modern games and applications. In saying this, the Asus Eee range is capable of playing some modern games at reasonable standard if they are ran from an external harddrive. The latest Asus Eee model for example could run games like World of Warcraft and Left 4 Dead, along with other resource hungry software titles if you have knowledge of overclocking and using external hardware. If you don't, it is advised that you look for a laptop with higher specifications if your main concern is playing top of the range online games.

The Eee range of netbooks were originally aimed at children, due to the size of the machine. A netbook is ideal for a school child to complete homework and communicate with family and friends, while being able to run average games and use as a basic media centre for music and streaming video entertainment.

Another main topic regarding the netbook range is the SSD harddrives Vs the standard HDD. For mobile use, the SSD is more reliable than the standard HDD. This is simply due to that the SSDs have a much smaller storage than the standard HDD, but make up for it due to using less power and allow applications to run slightly more smoothly and have an overal better resource reaction quality on a mobile computer. To make up for the lack of storage space on the drive, the 901 has a built-in card reader, which allows for SD cards to be used as extra storage space for media, if required.

If you are a first time PC buyer, or plan to buy this for an older member of the family to get them online, this model would be a perfect choice and an ideal solution.

Summary: An inexpensive yet powerful mobile computing solution for all ages