AP Technology Review: Eee Laptop PC Shreds the Rules

By DANIEL SORID – 2 days ago

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Unencumbered by Windows, the Eee boots up so quickly I didn't bother counting the seconds. Its Wi-Fi chip links with the Web in a flash, and its webcam — a feature missing from many laptops triple the price — turns it into a video messaging device with the help of eBay Inc.'s Skype, which comes pre-loaded. There are USB ports for peripherals, a port to connect to a monitor, and — most essential — a flash memory slot to expand its meager storage. Battery life is advertised at 3.5 hours.

The Eee's custom version of the Linux operating system has a simple user interface that takes some getting used to. It organizes the software by tabs — Internet, Work, Learn and Play — but many users on the Eee forum dislike its look. An upgrade to a more familiar, Windows-like interface is available in "advanced" mode, which can be activated with a few minutes of careful programming. (But you'll do that at your peril. On my second day, a badly written command crashed my system. I had to reinstall the original software.)

The Firefox Web browser, Adobe Acrobat Reader and OpenOffice — the open-source equivalent to Microsoft Corp.'s Office — come pre-installed, as do a music player, a video recorder and some addictive games. Google Docs — an online document suite for storing files remotely and sharing them — is also configured.

Links to Yahoo Mail, Gmail and other e-mail programs are already on the desktop. A messaging program called Pidgin worked with AOL Instant Messenger and Google Talk. Skype, the voice and video calling program, also worked well when I called home from the international airport in Hong Kong.

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