901 and 900: The 901 is about half an inch deeper than the 900!
Both have bright 8.9" screens and are running XP
I hate that fatter bezel on top; aesthetically offensive!
Next to the "Please someone buy me!" Sylvania
Basically all I did was look at all sides of it.
Then I felt the weight.
Then I looked at the bottom for the hatch jkk opened to install a hard drive.
Damn, that bottom was waaaarm!
Then I did some typing, trying to really ramp up my speed to see if I could use it. I could. But most of the time I'd have to look at the keyboard. I guess as I keep trying this, my fingers are slowly becoming accustomed to the lack of key spacing.
The fatter trackpad has a nice feel to it as do the dual metal buttons.
I didn't look to see how much crapware Microsoft made Asus install on (like all the LIVE crap the poor 900 is infested with!). I didn't launch anything other than MSWorks for the quick typing test.
I did play with the new strip of buttons under the screen. I like the one-touch access to switching resolution, turning off the screen (or is that Sleep?), quick launch (preset to Sype, aka Satan's Hotline), and changing CPU speed. Very nice touches, Asus. That also shows Asus isn't content just to spit out the same thing over and over. They're actually making smart improvements.
But, yeesh: six hundred dollars!!!
The MSI Wind (which J&R didn't have in yet) will have a 10" screen, bigger keyboard, and 80Gb hard drive -- for fifty dollars less. (It was supposed to be a five hundred dollar price, but I guess MSI had to pay more to get those six-cell batteries for the American market and have passed that cost along. That might also explain why the 901 is a whopping six hundred dollars: it has a six-cell battery.)
From what I've seen of video demos of the 901, it's now a true contender. It beats out the 900. Longer runtime and the CPU is better at video and graphics tasks.
However, if that 900 is really dropping to just four hundred dollars ...
No decision until I've fondled the MSI Wind and the 10"-screen Asus 1000.
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