Where can I buy an eee Box?

I’m interested in getting a low cost desktop for archiving my DVDs. I’d hook it up to my flat screen TV.

Would an eee Box en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASUS_Eee_Box work well?

I am wondering where I could buy this in Taipei and have English Windows installed in it - XP if possible

Except the small problem that it doesn’t have a DVD drive, sure :smiley:

There are a few different models and the newer ones are really quite nice. You should be able to find all of them at the computer market, but not sure which of the older models are still available.

I guess this is the model you really want monday.com.tw/gdsale/gdsale.asp?gdid=1877637

Just watch out though, as they’re also shifting a model with a Celeron 220 and it’s slow crap, but looks exactly the same monday.com.tw/gdsale/gdsale.asp?gdid=2002440

This is the latest model, a bit pricey, but loaded with features. Considering you’d have to spend another NT$1k on an optical drive, it’s not that bad and it offers much better performance compared to the old models. It also has HDMI output, so no need for adapters etc. monday.com.tw/gdsale/gdsale.asp?gdid=1803533

Another option would be this shopping.pchome.com.tw/?mod=item … 1W&ROWNO=1

ViewSonic has a slightly more powerful model with a clip-on DVD drive shopping.pchome.com.tw/?mod=item … 5F&ROWNO=1

MSI also has an alternative, but without optical drive again shopping.pchome.com.tw/?mod=item … 1&ROWNO=12

Hi,

I bought my 2nd eeeBox two days ago, EB1501 from Guanghua mall, 5th floor, left from the escalator, 11000 NTD without OS and 13500 NTD with Windows 7 (EN or CH).
2GB RAM, 250GB HD and 1.6Mhz Atom.

As a HTPC, it fits the bill perfectly, this EB1501 can even play some games due to Nvidia ION GPU.
FullHD (1080P) playback capabilities (connected with HDMI to my TV / amp), very silent, looks cool and comes with a DVD-burner.

Upgraded from the older EB202-model due to that had too small HD (80GB) and couldn’t play HD-stuff.

I saw an eee pc on sale for 7998NT today. Does anyone have any idea what model it could be at such a low price? It’s ridiculously cheap! I’m very tempted to go back and pick one up.

My desktop pc is getting pretty old and I could use backing up some important files, and I would also use it for internet on the go when I’m on business trips. It’s small and convenient to carry around.

You talking netbook or desktop here?
I presume you’re talking netbook?
This thread was actually about desktop systems.
Most netbooks are all the same, just be aware of the fact that they only come with 1GB of RAM and a fairly small hard drive and most importantly, they’re quite slow and have a very low screen resolution at 1024x600 which makes surfing many websites a painful experience.
If you were to splash out on a netbook, I’d go for this shopping.pchome.com.tw/?m=item&f … _NO=DHAO00 as the new Lenovo has a great keyboard compared to most netbooks.

Thanks, TLS. Yeah, it’s a notebook I saw. 8k including windows 7 installed. I would much prefer windows XP just because that’s what I’m used to working with.

The Lenovo looks nice. It’s 3000NT more and you have to buy an OS, though. The screen is bigger, too, and that might be worth the extra 3k… The eee pc I saw for 8k was quite small. Any idea what XP costs these days? I only ever used hacked versions and the pirate who did the installation for me is not around anymore.

As far as an HTPC box would go I would buy an Acer Revo before an EEE Box. Without OS 2GB ram, 320gb drive for 9000NT.

Well, on a netbook, one of the key things is to get a decent battery, don’t go for anything less than a 6-cell unit. Many of the really cheap netbooks only come with a 3-cell battery and it’s not going to give you more than 3-4h of battery life, while the better 6-cell batteries can give you 8-9h+.
Acer has a cheap alternative monday.com.tw/gdsale/gdsale.asp?gdid=1940337

That adds up to too many options already. Here’s the deal. I have not shopped for a computer for over 5 years. Back then, laptops weren’t available in the 10000NT range. When I saw that small laptop for 8k today, I was shocked. I almost bought one on the spot no-questions-asked.

During my spare time today, I did a bit of research online. It didn’t go so well. There are way too many laptops to compare. To make matters worse, many of them from the same manufacturers look almost identical except they have different model numbers. The model specifications are partially listed but I don’t know what it all means. I know that more ram and more Mhz makes for a faster computer.

As it stands, I would probably pick the one that just looks nicer. :laughing:

I’m hoping to get more help from posters who know better than I do. I’m not sure if I should be starting a new thread. Maybe a moderator can point me in the right direction if needed.

Let me make this simple. The computer I have used at home for the last five years works just fine for me. It’s fast enough and it can run the programs I need. The most demanding thing I do on my computer is processing home videos I occasionally make with Windows Movie Maker. That slows things down to a near stall. Other than that I download torrents, browse the web, listen to tunes, watch movies, Word, Excel, and that’s about all.

My computer:

Pentium 4
3.00 GHz
992 MB of RAM

My questions:

1- How will a 10-15k laptop perform compared with my old computer? Faster? Slower?

2- What laptop/netbook (they are the same, aren’t they?) would you recommend based on my requirements? The cheaper the better. 10k or under would be preferable, but I’d be willing to stretch it to 15k if I was convinced that I can not do what I normally do on my computer with a cheap 10k laptop.

My requirements:

1- I’d like to be able to run Windows XP.

2- I’d like to be able to connect to the internet via bluetooth on my iphone.

3- I’d like something that can open pages on the internet as “quickly” as my old(current) desktop computer. I understand that the type of internet connection affects download speed.

4- I don’t mind not having a CD reader. I can get an external one eventually.

Am I way off, or can I achieve that for 10 to 15k?

  1. No idea, as you didn’t provide a lot of details with regards to what kind of P4 you have, single core, dual core with hyper threading etc. It seems like you’re running it on a board with integrated graphics and that’s why you have less than 1GB of memory, so a NT$15-20k laptop is very likely perform at least as well, if not better, but a netbook might not.

  2. A laptop/notebook and a netbook is not the same thing. A netbook is in general using an Intel Atom processor which is a fairly slow processor, despite the 1.6GHz clock speed. Most netbooks have single core processors which doesn’t help. I’d spend a little bit extra and get a notebook. How important is weight?

This is as cheap as you’ll get a notebook, but it doesn’t have any OS
shopping.pchome.com.tw/?m=item&f … _NO=DHAO01

Slightly more expensive, but smaller and lighter and with OS
shopping.pchome.com.tw/?mod=item … -A44221315

ViewSonic has a 12-inch model which is just under 15k
monday.com.tw/gdsale/gdsale.asp?gdid=1820580

Acer has a nice little small notebook as well, but it seems to come with a very small battery and you might want to spend 1k extra on the model below
monday.com.tw/gdsale/gdsale.asp?gdid=2072873
monday.com.tw/gdsale/gdsale.asp?gdid=2077788

These are the very most basic notebooks out there, but they all have dual core processors and are fairly lightweight and compact, similar to a netbook, yet offer higher screen resolution and vastly improved performance in most circumstances.

Other than the graphics (Ion is OK) my router/firewall literally has better specs than that.

It’s ridiculously cheap because it’s a piece of shit. All netbooks are crap and represent a false economy. There is a very short list of specific users for whom a netbook could be good enough. Someone who want’s to do video editing is not one of them.

With an ultra-thin/CULV notebook with 2GB+ of RAM you probably won’t see any loss of (or improvement in) performance compared to your current desktop while editing video, LTS has given you plenty of links to some models.

If 15k is the absolute top end of your budget, consider looking for an old stock/2nd hand traditional notebook with a Core 2 Duo CPU and which takes DDR2 RAM so it can be cheaply upgraded to 3-4GB. With one of these you would be able to feel a difference compared to your current desktop, although it probably won’t look as good, or have as good battery-life (1-2 hours vs 3-6h), and will be heavier than a CULV.

If you don’t need portability, any desktop you see in the shops that doesn’t have an Atom CPU will be much better than your current one.

[quote=“Rik”]
It’s ridiculously cheap because it’s a piece of shit. All netbooks are crap and represent a false economy. There is a very short list of specific users for whom a netbook could be good enough. Someone who want’s to do video editing is not one of them.[/quote]That’s one thing well clarified. Thank you for taking the time to help out. I didn’t even know there was a difference between a laptop and a netbook. I thought the size of it was possibly the difference. :blush:

[quote]With an ultra-thin/CULV notebook with 2GB+ of RAM you probably won’t see any loss of (or improvement in) performance compared to your current desktop while editing video, LTS has given you plenty of links to some models.[/quote]Yes, much appreciated from LTS. So far I prefer the Acer Aspire the best. I’ll definitely pay a bit more for a better battery. I like the idea of a better keyboard, but I have never even heard the name Lenovo. It looks nice, though.

[quote]If 15k is the absolute top end of your budget, consider looking for an old stock/2nd hand traditional notebook with a Core 2 Duo CPU and which takes DDR2 RAM so it can be cheaply upgraded to 3-4GB.[/quote]I think I’d rather pay a bit more than go second hand. Battery life is a big consideration and with all the dust in Kaohsiung, laptops have a limited lifespan. The only reason my old desktop still runs after 5 years is because I have it cleaned at least once a year to keep it running cool. My computer has not been turned off for five years except for occasional needed restarts.

After a year or two, laptops build up with dust and they run really hot. I’d be interested in a second hand one if it were less than a year old. I have considered a second hand one, but the convenience of just walking into a store and walking out with an English OS installed and ready to go on a new machine has a very definite appeal.

Thanks again, Rik.

So anyways… Can these machines connect to the internet via bluetooth on my iphone?

Lenovo is the Chinese company that bought IBM’s Thinkpad business :wink:

The nice thing with these so called CULV (Consumer Ultra Low Voltage) machines is that they run quite cool and doesn’t require the fan spinning all the time.

As long as your network provider allows for it, it should work, but I don’t know how that works in Taiwan. You’d be better off using the cable though, as Bluetooth is actually slower than high-speed 3G (HSDPA).

Thanks a lot, TLS. It’s raining cats and dogs in Kaohsiung this morning and it looks like that’s what we’re getting this weekend. I think I’m going to need some retail therapy. :wink:

Later today or tomorrow I will go to the computer market area. We’ll see if I come home with something. Now that I know that the cheaper netbook won’t work for me (thank you), I decided to increase my budget to 20k. I think that opens up my options a bit. I talked to a friend of mine yesterday and he can install XP for me so I don’t need an OS.

I’ll let you know what happens.

Thanks!

Rob

Well, for 20k you can get a lot of decent stuff right now.
A mate of mine got a 13-inch ViewSonic for just under 20k with Windows 7, they even set it up so it works in English (which is quite easy to do).
It’s this model monday.com.tw/gdsale/gdsale.asp?gdid=1823041 and it should definitely be as good as your desktop, if not better for many things.
It’s also nice and light, although don’t expect more than 4-5h battery life. I would still need an external DVD drive though.
There’s also a 14-inch model of that one that’s going for about the same money shopping.pchome.com.tw/?mod=item … 0Q&ROWNO=7

Asus has a cheap 12-inch model shopping.pchome.com.tw/?mod=item … 1T&ROWNO=2 but it still uses a slower processor compared to the ViewSonic’s for the same money.

HP also has a 13.3-inch model shopping.pchome.com.tw/?mod=item … 0O&ROWNO=6 but it’s a bit heavy compared to the competition at 1.9kg.

You might be able to pick up one of Acer’s outgoing models for cheap as well, since they’re updating their product lines right now and the outgoing models should be going for cheap, although I can’t find any listings online.

One last option would be the ThinkPad Edge with a dual core AMD processor, but the battery life isn’t fantastic again, 4-5h at most, but it’s a pretty solid machine shopping.pchome.com.tw/?mod=item … 25&ROWNO=1

I’d suggest you go somewhere where you can have a play with the various models and try out the keyboards and look at the screens, as those two things are fairly important when it actually comes to using the notebook you’re buying, as it’s not as if you can change them.

Thanks again, TLS. I almost bought a Lenovo, the keyboard is nice, indeed. I used the information from this thread to make a list of what I wanted on my notebook.

I bought the Acer TravelMate 4330. As per your recommendation, it has dual core processors and 6 battery cells. 1,9GHz, 4Gb of RAM (I upgraded the memory from 2Gb for an extra 1000NT.) and 250Gb of storage. This machine has built in webcam/microphone/speakers, bluetooth, wifi, a 5 in 1 card reader, 2 USB ports and an optical drive. It has a 14" screen. It also has fingerprints detection for security. The casing is made of magnesium composite.

They installed Windows XP for me because I didn’t want the custom Windows 7.

The damage is 16500NT with two years warranty. How did I do?

Uhm, well, the only details I can find on a TravelMate 4330 is of a fairly old machine, but I guess the price you paid was ok. I guess this is the CPU in question ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=37258
It’s a bog standard notebook from Acer’s business line from last year or possibly even the year before…
But if it does what you want it to do, then I don’t see a problem with it and as I said, the price is ok and it should perform on par if not slightly better than the CULV machines, although you won’t get more than 3 maybe 4h battery life out of it.

You know, that’s one thing I forgot to ask for, the CULV . I will test how long the battery lasts for today. I had it charging all night.

I knew it was a bit older because the price was lower than other machines with smaller screens, and a fair bit lower than other machines with the same size screen. I think this is what I bought:

It’s too bad I didn’t think about the CULV, but that’s what happens when you don’t know computers. It’s a good thing I got some pointers from you guys, though, because I didn’t even know the difference between a laptop and a netbook. :blush:

[quote]But if it does what you want it to do, then I don’t see a problem with it and as I said, the price is ok and it should perform on par if not slightly better than the CULV machines, although you won’t get more than 3 maybe 4h battery life out of it.[/quote]I think that’s good to hear. 3 or 4 hrs should be enough for me since I won’t be logging this thing around very often. What’s even better, and the reason why I’m happy with the new acquisition, is that it is A LOT faster than my old desktop. So far I’m very impressed with how fast it responds when I click on things.

I bought a wireless mouse and keyboard and I have a 19" monitor hooked up to it. So it’s pretty much like using a desktop when I use it at home. To me, it’s like replacing an old bulky and noisy tower and a bunch of wires for something smaller, more convenient that also performs better. It’s not bad considering the low price tag.

By the way, a google search for acer travelmate 4330 doesn’t show the same notebook I bought. It looks the same, but the specifications are different. I wanted to post a link to this notebook’s specs, but I can’t find the same one online.

PS: Bluetooth connection doesn’t work with the iphone. Both machines do not recognize one another. I’ll fiddle with the settings later but I doubt it will work.

Thanks again for the important pointers. :slight_smile:

Rob

I think you need to install iTunes to get Bluetooth going , but I really don’t know as I don’t have an iPhone and I’m sure someone else can give you pointers at how to get that working.

Sounds like you got a machine that suits your needs and I guess that’s really all that matter, right? And as I said, the price wasn’t bad, I bet that machine was about 25k when it was new as the Travelmates are more expensive than Acer’s Aspire range, as they’re meant to be Acer’s business notebooks. That also means that the build quality should be better.

Think I found your machine :smiley:
gohappy.com.tw/shopping/Brow … pid=595657
20k online, so I guess you got a good deal.

[quote=“TheLostSwede”]I think you need to install iTunes to get Bluetooth going , but I really don’t know as I don’t have an iPhone and I’m sure someone else can give you pointers at how to get that working.[/quote]I managed to get both machines connected via bluetooth, but only for a headset. :idunno: I’ll have to try again later. I spent a lot of time importing all my files from my old PC and installing all the programs I use, including itunes. I had to reconfigure itunes on the new computer and reorganize my library before I could sync the iphone. The guys who installed XP did not install the language pack for east asian languages so the computer won’t display Chinese at the moment. I’ll be working on that shortly. If I can’t figure it out I’ll have to take the thing back to the shop where I bought.

[quote]Sounds like you got a machine that suits your needs and I guess that’s really all that matter, right?[/quote] I think so. [quote] And as I said, the price wasn’t bad, I bet that machine was about 25k when it was new as the Travelmates are more expensive than Acer’s Aspire range, as they’re meant to be Acer’s business notebooks. That also means that the build quality should be better.[/quote]I asked the difference between the Aspire and the TravelMate. I was told that the TravelMate is a better machine than the Aspire in the same price range. The Aspire has a more stylish and modern look to it, though it.

[quote]Think I found your machine :smiley:
gohappy.com.tw/shopping/Brow … pid=595657
20k online, so I guess you got a good deal.[/quote]

That’s the one! Yeah, I guess I did OK. :slight_smile: