Mobility Mind

ASUS Eee PC : Foleo killer?

Okay, it’s a bit contentious to say that a device is a Foleo killer, when it fact the Foleo never shipped. We know Palm has publicly stated that they are working on a new, better version of the Foleo. The Foleo was designed as a “smartphone companion” : lightweight but powerful enough to do basic tasks such as word processing, email and web browsing. With the Foleo 2 in limbo, what are our options? One new device which has taken laptop mobility to a new level is the ASUS Eee PC.

The ASUS Eee PC seems to hit just the right balance of performance, size and price. At just US$400, it manages to deliver impressive specifications :
* 7″ LCD display at 800×480 resolution
* Intel Mobile Chipset CPU
* Memory Onboard: 512MB DDR2 (Upgradeable to 1GB)
* Storage: 4GB Solid State Drive
* SD card reader
* 3 USB ports, 1 VGA out, Ethernet (LAN) port
* Headphone Out, Microphone In jacks
* Under 1 pound in weight (just 920 grams!)

The EeePC has a version of Linux preloaded, but the hardware is compatible with Windows XP, so you can easily install that (or a slimmer version such as TinyXP). Out of the box, the EeePC comes bundled out of the box with loads of applications so that you can immediately be productive out of the box.

If you are interested in the EeePC, check out the initial reviews :

* Laptop Magazine
* CNET
* HotHardWare
* PC Perspective

The Eee PC is also attracting a lot of attention locally, thanks to its attractive price. MyPDACafe, a local online forum, has a discussion thread 16 pages long (as of this writing).

Eee PC versus Foleo

So what can the Eee PC do that the Foleo can’t? At first glance, the Eee PC is quite formidable : it’s light, powerful and expandable (via SD card, USB drives, etc). It doesn’t have Bluetooth, although Bluetooth dongles are cheap these days. It should be quite easy to connect and synchronise the EeePC with your Treo if you have Windows XP installed. The Eee PC can already do what most of the Foleo can do, except for the smartphone synchronization. Of course, the Eee PC is available now at around the same price the Foleo was supposed sell for.

Palm now needs to go back to the drawing board with the Foleo. The Eee PC is just the first version out. By the time the Foleo (eventually) comes out, you can bet ASUS can make it better and cheaper. They also have the advantage of scale, since ASUS is a manufacturer for many different brands including Apple.

You can get the ASUS Eee PC in many online stores including Amazon.com.