ASUS is Quickly Getting Away From Its Roots With The Eee PC
by Brandon Hill - Daily Tech
More features means more $$$
It may seem like ages ago now, but when ASUS first announced the original Eee PC 701 4G in June 2007, it promised a retail price of $199. Many people were skeptical of such a low price and they were right to express such feelings.
When ASUS finally got around to launching the Eee PC in late 2007, the price for the notebook was much higher at $399. The higher price tag didn’t stop the Eee PC 4G from becoming an instant hit with consumers to the surprise of many.
ASUS introduced cheaper models in the following months. The company drove prices down with the 4G Surf model ($349) and the 2G ($299). While the Eee PC 2G became the lowest-priced model, it was still a far cry from the original $199 promise.
ASUS, however, is moving down a path which is seeing the price of the Eee PC steadily increase. The new Eee PC 900 adds niceties such as a larger, 1024×600 8.9″ display, larger SSD capacities and the option to select Windows XP as an operating system.
The added features mean an even more inflated price tag: $549 for the Eee PC 900 12G (Windows XP) and Eee PC 900 20G (Linux).
Today, ASUS revealed plans for yet another Eee PC model which will join the fray by the end of the year. Not only will the Eee PC 900 be available with Intel’s Atom processors as previously discussed on DailyTech, but the company will boost the screen another inch to 10″.
Most seemed satisfied with the 2″ increase in screen size from the Eee PC 701 to the Eee PC 900, but ASUS apparently knows something we don’t about Eee customers. An extra inch could give the Eee PC a tad bit more room to add a larger keyboard, but it wouldn’t be enough to dampen the criticisms already leveled against it.
The only way for ASUS to increase the size of the keyboard would be to go back to the original design of the Eee PC 701 and have the speakers flank the display screen to take up dead space (the speakers on the current Eee PC 900 reside underneath the device). HP takes a similar approach with its 2133 Mini-Note PC which features an 8.9″ 1280×768 display.
As more features, larger keyboards, and larger screens are added to the Eee PC, we’ll be left with a larger and heavier device. The Eee PC 900 is already marginally larger and heavier than its predecessor and a 10″ model would only further that trend.
But the thought that seems most depressing is that ASUS is content with pushing the price tag of the Eee PC higher and higher instead of trending lower. The Eee PC 900 retails at $549, so a 10″ model could easily break into the $600 bracket or even higher at $650. That is a far cry from ASUS’ original goal with the Eee PC and pushes it comfortably into “grown up” laptop territory.
Via DailyTech.com.
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