affordable EDC laptop!?

If the only thing you do with your laptop is check out the ETS forum, then here's an interesting upcoming product:

http://event.asus.com/eeepc/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASUS_Eee_PC

Very light (2 lbs) and a small form factor (7 inch screen) for $199 USD. Wireless-b/g, flash hard drive, linux based OS, 4 USB 2.0 ports, 3 hours battery life. It is viewed partly as a response to the XO-1 notebook from the not-for-profit One Laptop per Child initiative. A very "democratic" laptop anyway.

What do you think?

Frankie

I like the idea, and the price, but I'm not sure that these old eyes could handle a 7" screen. And I would probably have to hunt and peck with a pencil to type anything...

Motorola Q. is my EDC... e-mail, websites, etc.

Can even hookup to laptop to get on internet.

Looks like my kind of laptop, my currant laptop has too many bells and whistles for me to use or understand. Portable and easy to use sounds good to me.

The $100 laptop currently in development for school children in developing nations looks really interesting, almost perfect for outdoor use especially as it has been designed to overcome the constant problem of lack of availability of mains electricity supply as one of its main design goals. It also appears to be designed to be rugged and best of all no Microsoft so it has an elegant and efficient opensource OS.

Details available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6908946.stm

Speaking of laptops, PDAs, and so on...

I think it would be neat if you could load google earth and pre-load the area you'll be in so you can view it at maximum resolution without being connected to the internet.

Combine that with a GPS, and you'd be able to check out what's around you for miles. Imagine if James Kim had something like that...

How do you like your Q? I'm up for a new phone this month and was thinking about one. I need a decent calendar since all I have on the office laptop is lotus notes whose calendar is useless.

Hi Burncycle,

I think Bushnell has come out with a new GPS this year that you can load Satellite photos onto and use like a map in the field with your position indicated on it.

I have not tried one yet but find them very interesting.

Mike

I looked at the $100 laptop and it sounds great, but it's not being sold on the consumer market, is it? We wouldn't be able to buy it.

They will be on ebay shortly after their release

For personal use, I would buy a used full-featured laptop on craigslist/ebay before buying one of those. I know the $100 laptop will not be available on the consumer market, at least not at first. I'm not even sure it will be available in the USA to begin with. For 3rd world use, I think they will be a big hit, although spending $100 per child on other necessities should probably be more of a priority. A laptop isn't going to help a child that has no running water, food, warm clothes, etc.

LOL...I saw an iPhone listed for $5000 shortly after they hit the market. I'd like to meet the sucker that replied to that ad.

I own a full laptop, and this wouldn't replace it. But I also wouldn't haul my laptop into the back country. I'd be interested in the $100 computer not as a replacement, but to fill another niche. The computer as described would be almost ideal to take in order to type while outside of town, and to access the internet through the wifi while in town. I could even see myself throwing it into my bag to use around town, instead of carrying my much heavier, much less durable, and much more expensive laptop.

I have been considering building a 'survival pc'. Something I can stack tons and tons of data on (maps, survival information, general knowledge, etc) kind of like a portable post-TEOWAWKI library of congress. It'd be invaluable but you'd have to consider the important aspects of a device like that... like for one:

1) It would have to be rugged
2) It would need to have ultra-low power consumption
3) It would have to have adequate storage space
4) it would need to be easily repaired.
5) It would preferably be light.
6) It would need to be stored in a faraday cage-style container that is waterproof, shockproof, etc.


So I'm kind of in a tossup between buying a ruggedized PC or building my own. I like the idea of using a hand-dynamo or bike dynamo for power too.

I'll make sure I add this EEE pc to my list of potentials for my little 'project'

I also like this guy:

The Everex StepNote NC1501 - it's got a 12w power usage.. 12w! Figure throw in a ruggedized hard disk like the MHW2040AC and it should be reasonably capable. You could attach a little hand crank on it and everything. Best of all it'd run you under 500 bux for the whole DIY shebang. Oh well. I'm rambling but you get the idea.

I would suggest a solar panel rather than a dynamo. I own several assorted dynamo 'necessities' and some solar. Solar has fewer parts to break and after cranking a dynamo your muscles will get sore, plus your hands will be free to do other things.

I agree. However I'd rather have multiple power inputs so as to ensure energy efficency. I.e. solar + dynamo + etc..

Eugene - two people in my office have Qs and love them. One guy was a longtime blackberry user and he much prefers the Q.

Look at the mini ITX stuff. I have a 500MHz Samba server at home running 12v @1A (12W). I boot from a CF card and leave it read only and have a copy of my laptop on my old hdd in a USB enclosure plugged into it.

Thanks, I'm waiting until the 20th now as the Q9m is supposed to be released then.

You've forgot about the LCD screen. It is the primary power consumer in any Laptop or PDA. Especially if it's color and high resolution one.

Actually I didn't. I don't have a screen on this setup.
But for someone replacing a laptop you can get very low powered lcd displays and most of the mini-itx boards do have tv out.