Netbook Scoop

Asus Eee PC 1008HA

Summary

What’s Special

• The Eee PC 1008HA features Asus’ new Seashell design – the look is simply stunning
• Super slim – only 1.0 inch thich but the shape makes it look even thinner
• Extremely light at only 2.2 pounds
• All of the external ports have covers, which really itrackmproves the looks

What’s Not So Special

• While the appearance of the 1008HA is breathtaking, what is inside is rather typical for a competitive netbook
• The battery is non-removable
• There is no VGA out port -but there is a VGA dongle stowed in a pocket in the bottom that provides that functionality.

Recommendation

Netbooks are supposed to be thin, lightweight and visually appealing.   The Asus Eee PC 1008HA is scores at the top of the chart on all of these categories.

The 1008HA makes sacrifices to achieve these traits.  But if having the skinniest, lightest-weight, best-looking netbook is a priority for you, it is well worth the extra money.

On the other hand, if you are looking for really thin netbook at a better value, you might be interested in the Acer Aspire One D250.  Or, if you need a better keyboard, the Samsung N310 might be your ticket.  Or, if you need better battery life, then take a look at the Toshiba mini NB205.

Or, if you want the appearance of the 1008HA without sacrificing utility, then the Asus Eee PC 1005HA is what you want.

Rating:  

Asus Eee PC 1008HA Keyboard

Outside

Appearance and Build Quality

The Asus Eee PC 1008HA with its seashell design is breathtaking.  It is so thin and light and beautiful, that when people see it for the first time, they are awed.

The quality of the fit and finish is top-notch.  To really complete the look, Asus covered all of the external ports, which really improves the appearance.  However, if you use the ports often, you will soon find yourself frustrated at the work required to uncover/recover the ports.

The Asus Eee PC 1008HA’s dimension are 10.3″ x 7.0″ x 1.0″ and it weighs 2.2 lbs.

As a comparison, the Acer Aspire One D250 is a just as thin (1.0″) but weighs more (2.4 to 2.8 lbs. depending on the battery).  The Samsung N310 is just a smidge thicker (1.1″) but weighs a lot more (2.8 lbs.).

The 1008HA is available in four colors: Pearl Black, PearlWhite, Pearl Blue and Pearl Pink.

Display and Keyboard

The Eee PC 1008HA has an extremely glossy 10.1″ display. The glossiness makes it difficult to use outdoors and can even be a challenge in a brightly lit room.

The display’s maximum resolution is 1024 x 600 pixels, which offers an extra 24 rows of pixels over the 1024 x 576 widescreen format used in many other netbooks like the Dell Mini 10v and the HP Mini 110.

The 1008HA has a chicklet-style keyboard where the keys have flat surfaces and are positioned with the key tops levels with the case. The keyboard contains two full size shift keys which are located in the correct position. It also has a full set of function keys, two ALT and two CTRL keys. The only annoying thing about this keyboard is the half-sized up and down arrows which also serve as PageUp and PageDown when used in conjunction with the Fn key.

The touchpad is adequately-sized and has little bumps designed to provide tactile feedback that lets you know that your fingers are on the touchpad.

Asus Eee PC 1008HA Side View

Webcam, Audio and External Ports

The 1.3 megapixel web camera is significantly better than the 0.3 megapixel camera configured in some netbooks.

The Eee PC 1008HA’s speakers are located on the front bottom of the netbook. The speakers have good volume but the sound quality is typical for a netbook, with a bit of a tinny sound .

The 1008HA is configured with a typical array of external ports:

• two USB ports
• 3-in-1 card reader
• Audio in/out
• Ethernet

There is no VGA port, however, in  a small storage cavity on the underside of the 1008HA there is a VGA dongle that plugs into a small port on the left side of the unit.

Inside

Processor, Graphics and Storage

The Eee PC 1008HA is powered by a 1.66 GHz Intel Atom N280 processor which just slightly faster than the 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 which is standard for most of today’s netbooks.  In reality, the speed difference is almost imperceivable.

It is configured with 1GB of RAM. The graphics accelerator is an Intel GMA 950. The hard drive is a 160 GB model spinning at 5400 RPM. These features are typical for a netbook.

Communications

The 802.11b/g/n wireless adapter provides faster speeds, a wider range and is more reliable connections than the 802.11b/g support provided by most other netbooks.

The 1008HA contains an internal Bluetooth adapter.

Battery

The Asus Eee PC 1008HA has a built-in five-cell battery which cannot be removed.  With the life  expectancies for batteries being less than the life expectancy of a netbook, many question the logic of this design.

The battery is rated at 2900 mAh and will last about six hours in real world.

Operating System

The Eee PC 1008HA is configured with Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition.

Wrap Up

The Asus Eee PC 1008HA is an ultra-thin, ultra-light and stunningly beautiful netbook.  But to build-in these features, Asus had to comprimise on in other ways.