I have now owned and used the EeePC 701 4G for a little over three months. It has been an interesting time, from boom to bust and back to boom on the use curve.
Early Days
Firstly I got it as a little device to give me a better email and web browsing experience when I was running around without the need to have a big bag along with me and all the usual gubbins. I started off using the standard Linux distribution tweaked via information from the EeePC Wiki to provide me with a full standard desktop and the ability to download software that is not available from the official channel. Out of the box, I had the web browser (Firefox) and the email (Thunderbird), along with the Office applications (Openoffice.org) that I needed day to day. With the addition of Google Browser Sync and del.icio.us browser integration I was cooking with integration on multiple PCs that I have, and access to my documents via the cloud provided by Box.net. Also out of the box, my 3G HSDPA modem worked to give me truly mobile access wherever I was. I also then added Openproj to give me the Project planning software I needed, full size monitors/keyboards/mouse at permanent workstations and I could then basically do everything I needed to use the EeePC as my main PC.
The Big Issue
However, I came across a big problem with my particular situation, in that I have full contacts and calendar synchronisation via Microsoft solutions, using my Windows Mobile phone and my hosted Exchange mail. This is where the Linux distribution broke down and I could not find anything that would give me a reasonable solution so that I could handle the calendar except via logging into a Windows PC via logmein or whatever. I took the deep intake of breath and ordered the Windows XP software and took myself into the Windows world again. I must say that the Linux solution was sound in almost every other respect, and would be fine for most of everyone else in the world.
Windows on the World
Installation was simple once I found an external USB CD driver (I tried to use a USB Flash device to do the install but it all went bad). Configuration again used information from the manual and from the EeePC Wiki. I then installed Office 2007 and came across my first big mistake… the internal 4GB storage is not enough. It all went to pieces once I started installing patches for Office, and the installation process is so inefficient that we were left with hundreds of megabytes of duplicate files stored all over the flash device. I found myself (after a bit of poor deletion) in a state where Outlook stopped working, and had to wipe and reinstall. This time I made sure I used the SD Card for all applications and I had no problems… almost.
Today…success
After a brief problem with the SD card being too slow, which was solved by upgrading to a 4GB Class 6 SDHC card (upgrading is easy – copy contents of old to new making sure that you copy system and hidden files), I now have a pretty neat and working solution that solves all my problems for standard office applications and usage. I even have Project 2007 fully installed now and the machine is fully patched up to SP2 Windows and SP1 Office status, with 400MB free on the internal storage, and space enough for Foldershare synchronising documents from my other machines. I have my ‘full’ machine that provides all that I need from work. This is an excellent device for the consultant.
Improvements
It would be nice for a large pixel resolution, more storage directly in the box, and built in 3G, but this is not detracting too much from the experience. It is also important to note that I switched to 1GB of RAM as soon as possible after purchase, and I am thinking about the 2GB stick but I have not had need yet to be pushed into it. One more USB port would be nice also.
Not a full replacement…yet
Unfortunately it is not a full replacement however, as even though my work needs are satisfied, my after hours enjoyment is not. I use Miro and also sync podcasts down to my phone, and these require multi-gigabyte storage to work. This is something that I have not got yet for the Asus, and that may have to wait until the 16GB or 32GB SDHC cards are available. I can barely wait for those things to get economic, but then again I might just be tempted into getting the EeePC 900 series…
