t e c h i e - t a l k s ::: technology at its best

Singaporeans have been waiting eagerly for the launch of the Asus EEE PC after its debut on the market few months back. The launch of Asus EEE PC (4GB edition) was overwhelming. Scores of people were seen to have queued for the launch of the EEEPC yesterday. Sources said that by 9a.m., a queue had already been form at the Asus booth which was well before the launch time at 2p.m.

courtesy of VR-zone.com

The Asus EEE PC is sold at S$598 without any operating systems. You can add $99 for a Windows XP OS and an additional $199 for a Microsoft Office (student edition). You could also screw the Microsoft products (to save $$) and install Ubuntu or any small Linux dirstro onto the Asus EEE PC. Firstly, you won need to waste memory by installing the relatively larger program sized Windows XP and its office companion. On top of that, further memory space will be wasted when you need to install essential programs such as Firewalls, Anti-Viruses and Anti-Spyware programs.

The specs of the Asus EEE PC at the show is as follows:
Model name: Asus Eee PC 4GB
Display: 7¨
CPU: Intel Celeron 620Mhz
Operating System: Linux/Windows XP compatible
Memory: 512MB (someone managed to get a single 2GB ram working for the Asus Eee PC)
SSD storage: 4GB
Audio: High definition audio, stereo speaker, microphone
Battery: 4 cells 5200mAh, approx. 3.5 hours
Weight: 0.92Kg
Dimensions: 23cm x 16.5cm x 5cm (approx)

From the numerous online posts that I´ve seen, Singaporeans mainly chose to install Windows XP on their machine. However, if you are thinking of buying the EEE PC this weekend, do consider the alternative Linux distros so as to save $$ and get the best memory space utilization for your 4GB memory space. Here is a short video of a Ubuntu user using his Gutsy Gibbon on an Asus EEE PC.