Asus Eee PC 904HA Review

There was a time when buying a lightweight laptop was very expensive. You would think that getting a smaller laptop would mean spending less money but that is not the way the laptop industry worked. Lightweight usually meant better materials and engineering which kills your pocket. That all changed when ASUS came out with it’s EEEPC. When ASUS started making really inexpensive and really small laptops they had the rest of the computer manufacturers shaking in their boots and having to adapt.

Introducing the Asus Eee PC 904HA

The Eee PC 904HA is not the first Eee PC that ASUS has created and not the only one you will find on the market. This laptop has some nice features including price. The price tag for the 904HA is under $400 retail.

What do you get for $399?

ASUS Eee PC 904

Weight:

This sucker is light. It’s not the lightest Eee PC around but it’s still 3 pounds. This is good for taking with you on vacations, library, class, Starbucks, long driving trips or commutes. Pretty good choice for going on vacation because it will probably fit in that in room safe and won’t hurt you as bad if it is damaged as much as a $2000 laptop.

Screen:

You get a 8.9 inch screen that does 1024×600 WSVGA screen. While this is good for most, if you have trouble seeing or are used to a large monitor this might not cut it for you. This is one thing where you really have to see a laptop up close to get an idea of how it will display fonts and web pages. Even at the $400 price this might be a deal breaker for some. If you can view a small screen ok then this will be fine for you.

Network:

One of the good things about the 904HA is that is comes with wireless built in and has an network jack. You can take this to Starbucks or another hotspot and get wireless internet. This doesn’t mean you will get internet everywhere but if that is an issue you can always get tethered modem service from your wireless carrier and connect that Blackberry to the USB port and use it as a modem. This works well for me with Verizon Wireless, but other providers offer this as well.

Power:

It’s $400 what do you expect?  It’s not the fastest laptop in the market and it does come with a skimpy 1 gb of ram. Don’t expect to have a million documents or programs open at one time. It does come with a 160gb hard drive which is pretty good for a laptop this size.

Battery:

ASUS claims that the battery life is a good 5.9 hours but in real world situations you can expect less. This one really is dependent on your power settings, and usage.

Extras:

Als included is a 1.3 Megapixel Webcam which you might or might not use.

What’s Missing:

Bluetooth, CD Rom, DVD.

Summary:

Overall this laptop is a great gift for a younger person on the go or a young child who is learning how to use a computer. The reason I say younger person is due to the screen size. Unless you have great vision and seeing the screen is not a problem I wouldn’t recommend this laptop for a older person. It does make for a great travel laptop.

Box Contents: Asus Eee PC 904HA, 6-Cell Battery Pack, AC Power (120-240v), Sleeve Case; Software Bundle: Windows XP Home, Microsoft Works, 1-Year Limited Warranty

• Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz Processor
• 1 GB DDR2 RAM
• 160 GB Hard Drive
• 8.9″ LCD (1024 x 600) WSVGA Display
• Intel UMA Graphics Card
• 1.3 Megapixel Webcamera
• WiFi 802.11b/g Wireless
• 10/100Mbps LAN
• Hi-Definition Audio Speakers and Microphone
• Memory Card Slot - MultiMedia Card (MMC), Secure Digital (SD) Card, SDHC
• Connections: 3 x USB, VGA, Headphone, Microphone, RJ-45 (LAN)
• Approximate Unit Dimensions: 10.47″ (W) x 7.53″ (D) x 1.12″ ~ 1.50″ (H)
• Approximate Unit Weight: 3.09 Pounds