[SOLVED] To eeePC or not to eeePC is THE question...

[mthakur2006]

Hi ppl,
I am in a bit of dilemma at the moment and would like some input from you on the matter. I currently have a laptop (see my sig for details). I do move it a lot and use it for surfing, listening to music and some light word processing or the occassional web development. I want an eeePC, but for that I would have to sell my current laptop and use that money to buy the eeePC.
Should I?
Thanks for answering.

[Lostincyberspace]

Hi ppl,
I am in a bit of dilemma at the moment and would like some input from you on the matter. I currently have a laptop (see my sig for details). I do move it a lot and use it for surfing, listening to music and some light word processing or the occassional web development. I want an eeePC, but for that I would have to sell my current laptop and use that money to buy the eeePC.
Should I?
Thanks for answering.
You for got "that" in the title

[mthakur2006]

You for got "that" in the title

:confused: i don't get it....

[Lostincyberspace]

:confused: i don't get it....
"To be, or not to be, that is the Question:"
Hamlet, Act III, scene I

[mthakur2006]

"To be, or not to be, that is the Question:"
Hamlet, Act III, scene I

aahhh kk i get it :popcorn:

[Lostincyberspace]

Well any way do you like your laptop, can you type on a keyboard that small?
Will it be comfortable and will it have enough space for you. Those are the major questions for you.

[mthakur2006]

Well any way do you like your laptop, can you type on a keyboard that small?
Will it be comfortable and will it have enough space for you. Those are the major questions for you.

i mean i have a big hand but rather thin fingers + space wise: i can always use a sd card or somethig, but i like my current laptop as well: i am really in a fix, man.
HELP!

[Wiebelhaus]

I would not , seems like allot of trouble , if it ain't broke don't fix it.

[mthakur2006]

I would not , seems like allot of trouble , if it ain't broke don't fix it.

but at the same time, my laptop's nearly 1.5 yrs old now, so ain't much life left in that order.....

[mdsmedia]

my laptop's 2 1/2 years old. Why do you think 1 1/2 is old?

[MattBD]

I've recently had a go with a friend's Eee PC, and it really is a great machine. I really want one myself, and I may start saving up for one.
Having said that, I really don't think it can do everything a normal laptop can do. If I had a choice of either hanging onto my current laptop or selling it and buying an Eee PC, I'd hang onto the existing one. For one thing, the price of an Eee PC may come down in the future (even though it's already a great bargain), and there may well be an 8GB version on the way.
While it is a fantastic computer for the price, I wouldn't want to have to rely on it as my main computer. It's great for casual browsing, checking e-mail, occasionally playing the odd game and catching up on some work. But I really don't think it's likely that it will be an adequate replacement for your existing laptop.
My advice would have to be to stick with what you've got, but start saving for an Eee PC if you want one. Obviously, only you can make the decision as to whether it will do all you want from it, so if you can try one out, that might be a good idea.

[mthakur2006]

my laptop's 2 1/2 years old. Why do you think 1 1/2 is old?

the battery is dying, the fan's on it's way out, the panels occasionally pop out etc.....

[mdsmedia]

the battery is dying, the fan's on it's way out, the panels occasionally pop out etc.....Well that's a different story then :)

I've rarely relied on my notebook's battery life. It's never been much more than 2 hours anyway.

I haven't looked at the eeePC. Seen it mentioned a bit. Might have to do some research. I believe it's a sub-note?

[popch]

the battery is dying, the fan's on it's way out, the panels occasionally pop out etc.....

Then your original proposition would not hold. If the laptop is about to fall apart, I don't think you will get enough for it to buy an e3. I suggest to wait half a year or even a year and buy the successor of the e3.

[MattBD]

I'm inclined to agree. But I can't help but feel that a laptop that is on its last legs after a mere year and a half is pretty poor. The battery issue is fair enough, that happens, but the rest is very poor performance.
I'm running Kubuntu Gutsy on a three-and-a-half year old Dell Inspiron, and that's still going strong apart from the battery not having much life in it.

[adam.tropics]

I'm inclined to agree. But I can't help but feel that a laptop that is on its last legs after a mere year and a half is pretty poor. The battery issue is fair enough, that happens, but the rest is very poor performance.
I'm running Kubuntu Gutsy on a three-and-a-half year old Dell Inspiron, and that's still going strong apart from the battery not having much life in it.
Agreed, plus, laptops aren't quite as un-upgradeable as people tend to think! You can add larger drives, you can add more memory, and if you're really lucky....and fearless, there's a chance you could ditch the celeron.

[isaacj87]

This is slightly an off-topic question...

Considering the OP's current laptop specs...Is it or is it not more powerful than the Asus eeePC? Doesn't the Asus have an Intel Celeron M running at only 900mhz with the same intel chipset (i915/GMA900) as the OP's Lenovo?

I almost have the same setup as the OP and I am also keeping my eye on the Asus. I personally wouldn't get one...at least not at this point. I'm holding out for some better features that Asus might introduce.

[got awesome?]

10", 8GB model will be out this year apparently, I'm waiting for that one! :)

[adam.tropics]

10", 8GB model will be out this year apparently, I'm waiting for that one! :)
Yeah, that one does sound fairly tempting.

[mthakur2006]

I've recently had a go with a friend's Eee PC, and it really is a great machine. I really want one myself, and I may start saving up for one.
Having said that, I really don't think it can do everything a normal laptop can do. If I had a choice of either hanging onto my current laptop or selling it and buying an Eee PC, I'd hang onto the existing one. For one thing, the price of an Eee PC may come down in the future (even though it's already a great bargain), and there may well be an 8GB version on the way.
While it is a fantastic computer for the price, I wouldn't want to have to rely on it as my main computer. It's great for casual browsing, checking e-mail, occasionally playing the odd game and catching up on some work. But I really don't think it's likely that it will be an adequate replacement for your existing laptop.
My advice would have to be to stick with what you've got, but start saving for an Eee PC if you want one. Obviously, only you can make the decision as to whether it will do all you want from it, so if you can try one out, that might be a good idea.

I have a pretty powerful desktop (3.66Ghz P4 HT, 512 MB RAM, 128 Graphics, 17" Monitor, 160 GB Hard disk etc.) and i use my laptops for casual browsing, email, im, some music, some work and some compiling once in a while + some web development......and not so long ago, my current laptop had 256 MB + i usually scale the CPU down to 537 Mhz to save battery......so the e3 is a better proposition. Only thing I am worried about is the screen...what were your thoughts on that?


Well that's a different story then :)

I've rarely relied on my notebook's battery life. It's never been much more than 2 hours anyway.

I haven't looked at the eeePC. Seen it mentioned a bit. Might have to do some research. I believe it's a sub-note?

Yes, it's a sub-notebook (from wikipedia) :)


Then your original proposition would not hold. If the laptop is about to fall apart, I don't think you will get enough for it to buy an e3. I suggest to wait half a year or even a year and buy the successor of the e3.


I'm inclined to agree. But I can't help but feel that a laptop that is on its last legs after a mere year and a half is pretty poor. The battery issue is fair enough, that happens, but the rest is very poor performance.
I'm running Kubuntu Gutsy on a three-and-a-half year old Dell Inspiron, and that's still going strong apart from the battery not having much life in it.

Erm... i mean i do have some spare cash and laptop is alright now and will be for a couple of years with some upgrades (i know a mate who said he will change the fans etc. for a nominal charge). :KS

[gn2]

I have a Toshiba Portege 3440CT. It's a P3 500.
Eight years old and good as new.
Better in fact because with Zenwalk it's faster than ever.
I really like the Eee, but if you can find a Portege 3490CT on ebay it will be a fraction of the cost, have a far better screen and can accommodate a big hard drive.
There's an extended life battery for the 34xx available that runs for 3.5 hrs, combined with the main battery, life is 5hrs, although there is a weight penalty....

[smartalecks]

I have a Toshiba Portege 3440CT. It's a P3 500.
Eight years old and good as new.
Better in fact because with Zenwalk it's faster than ever.
I really like the Eee, but if you can find a Portege 3490CT on ebay it will be a fraction of the cost, have a far better screen and can accommodate a big hard drive.
There's an extended life battery for the 34xx available that runs for 3.5 hrs, combined with the main battery, life is 5hrs, although there is a weight penalty....

have a thinkpad 600e from 2000, runs good as new as well :D (well, have to replace the battery sooner or later)

they just dont make laptops like they used to :/

[kyphi]

The eeePC is not designed to be used as a main computer, in my opinion.

It does come in very handy for travelling and can fit into a lady's handbag (good for swinging at muggers).

It can do everything a full sized laptop can do. Everything on it is fully functional. It even responds to voice commands.

It is a delightful little machine - my wife loves hers but for main work she uses the Brute, her desktop computer.

There are all sorts of rumours about a bigger screened version - they are pie in the sky hopes denied by Asus. The idea was to make a cheap, fully functioning laptop so that everyone can have one.

[gn2]

they just dont make laptops like they used to

Very true. In 2000 mine would have cost it's first owner £2000!
In those days laptops were primarily aimed at businesses and they had to be built well to withstand the intended use.

You can still get well built "business" laptops but they tend to be a bit more expensive.
Some current low priced laptops I've seen appear very flimsy.

[MattBD]

I don't think you'll have any issues with the screen. If you mean "Is it fragile?", I thought it was pretty robust when I tried my friend's one.
If you're more concerned about the size of it, that might depend on the mode you'll be using it in.
The size certainly won't be a problem in the default mode - it's got big icons and is really easy to use thanks to a well-designed tabbed menu, but I haven't seen what it's like browsing the web. I haven't seen the advanced mode either (which I imagine you might be more inclined to spend time in if you're used to desktop Linux), but it's basically a modified Xandros desktop - you can install things using Synaptic just as you would in Ubuntu.

[Presto123]

Very true. In 2000 mine would have cost it's first owner £2000!
In those days laptops were primarily aimed at businesses and they had to be built well to withstand the intended use.

You can still get well built "business" laptops but they tend to be a bit more expensive.
Some current low priced laptops I've seen appear very flimsy.

My Compaq FEELS like it is...but I dropped it from 4 feet onto the side of it's screen and it is okay. Man I was ticked about that...and worried I would have broken it.

I almost thought I lost about $500 for it.

[mendieta]

My answer to the OP:

I have an EEE and I love it. I don't think I've ever been so excited with a computer. But I really wanted an Ultra Mobile (UMPC), it is exactly the kind of machine I wanted. Icluding: no windows tax, and Linux preinstalled and working perfectly. If you are looking for a regular laptop you'll be disappointed on screen size and hardrive size. But, again, this is an UMPC, not a laptop.

Now, even if you do wantan ultra portable, since you have a laptop and you're fine with that, I'd suggest you wait a couple months. The next generation eee is said to be around the corner (google for it). It seems it'll come with a 9 inch screen, which is the only thing the eee needs to be a dream ultra portable IMHO. If they do release it' I'd buy it instead. Also, the existing generation will drop in price, so you'll have that choice, too.

Hope this helps, cheers!

[mthakur2006]

My answer to the OP:

I have an EEE and I love it. I don't think I've ever been so excited with a computer. But I really wanted an Ultra Mobile (UMPC), it is exactly the kind of machine I wanted. Icluding: no windows tax, and Linux preinstalled and working perfectly. If you are looking for a regular laptop you'll be disappointed on screen size and hardrive size. But, again, this is an UMPC, not a laptop.

Now, even if you do wantan ultra portable, since you have a laptop and you're fine with that, I'd suggest you wait a couple months. The next generation eee is said to be around the corner (google for it). It seems it'll come with a 9 inch screen, which is the only thing the eee needs to be a dream ultra portable IMHO. If they do release it' I'd buy it instead. Also, the existing generation will drop in price, so you'll have that choice, too.

Hope this helps, cheers!

ah kk, advice taken.
marking this thread as solved :)