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Good review but you guys should really review the Acer Timeline, it's yummy! Plus there is a new 11,6" model coming and none of that feeble Atom either!

Is is just me or does the mouse look reaaaly ugly.


Almost like... a pen***


Back on topic, can the fan be controlled through speedfan and the like?

I have a 1000HE and after playing with a 1005HA for a few minutes, I have to say that I prefer the 1000HE.

The 1000HE's multi-touchpad is far superior out of the box than the 1005HA, it supports more gestures like 2 finger scrolling (The 1005HA does the scroll up/down when you get to far to the right on the touchpad thing that I had). I also like the keyboard layout of the 1000HE better, whats up with the gigantic left/right arrow keys on the 1005HA?


I don't know if you can use SpeedFan, but there is a tool made specifically for the EEE: hxxp://cpp.in/dev/eeectl/

Hi Mike,

This is a timely review -- and now we are drooling about this unit... Do you know if it is compatible with Linux? Also, are there any models with SSD in the 32-40GB range?

Timely because you've been shopping for one?

I haven't seen Linux options on this one. Maybe on the value model -- which I probably wouldn't choose (tho it has the matte screen).

There's another new market-busting product that amazingly is available only in Canada right now. Gateway EC Series ULV 11.6" Intel Core 2 Solo SU3500 1.4GHz Laptop (EC1803H). CA$500 killer price right now at www.futureshop.ca This is a very impressive model -- priced close to a netbook, but that processor puts it in a different class altogether. No problem with 720p. It could easily be the primary PC for most people --perhaps with an external slim optical drive.

If there are more models like this, they are going to shake up/differentiate the netbook and maybe the high end road warrior markets. The Lenovo X300 I bought last year for $1200 used looks now like a pretty bad buy -- tho it's still pretty damn cool & tough but battery life is nowhere near these...

Look for our review very soon.

*ahem*



http://www.acer.com/timeline/

OK, so we're on the same page.

In fact, we're ahead by a step or two -- the review of this Gateways is almost done.

There's also the new Samsung X120, although it might be more expensive.



But the Timeline is sexy

I always like it if you review things like notebooks and not just fans and heatsinks (although I read all of those reviews as well). Keep on diversifying! SPCR is the hardware site I trust most.

I have a question concerning the way you express battery capacity. You tend to give it in W/h which I find a) unusual and which b) I also think makes no sense.
I'm used to seeing battery capacity being given in A*h or mA*h. W*h would also make sense (since it'd be an energy term, A*h is electric charge) W is energy over time which makes W/h energy over time squared which makes no sense in this context.

Thank you.


I agree w/ you... but we're just quoting Asus. 99% of the time, specs are from the mfg. It's when we dissect a spec for whatever reason (like dBA) that we delve into all the technical details. This might happen, for example, if we run into two similar laptops that have differently spec'd batteries and one still runs longer.

A Netbook without SSD? Why would I buy that?
It just does not make sense to me to put a HDD into something that is supposed to be carried around in unusual places (my EEE 900A spends quite some time in jacket pockets, e.g.) and will probably be beaten up a couple of times (the aforementioned Netbook sustained ~4-5 falls from > 1m already).

Small other nitpick: In the last table on the first page, there are some stars... without any explanation for them?


The Wireless chipset is pretty new, so you might have to track down some driver issues. There's some talk on the Ubuntu forums about that already.
Oh, and the automatic downclocking will probably not work. Of course, there's also some free tools for that, but I nether bothered to track them down - the standard laptop kernel already does quite a good job at sending the CPU to S3 when not needed.

Otherwise, the hardware is pretty much standard and should be supported in ...whatever distro you want to install

I have to say, I'm extraordinarily happy with my 13.3in Timeline - it's the $800 dual core+SSD model from Newegg - which gets me a good 6.5-7h general use on a single charge (no entering sleep, just autodim on the LCD, fairly constant use at work). It's a bit heavier and wider (obviously but a little thinner than the Asus. Not small enough to put in a pocket but easy to slip into a small backpack. I would buy another in an instant if I needed to!

I picked up a Gateway EC1803 w/ Core 2 Solo SU 3500 from futureshop. I was looking for a 'netbook' mainly for travelling, surfing the web around the house, some office stuff. Wasn't really interested in the atom processor based netbooks. Wanted a 10-11 inch screen. Didn't want to spend $2000 on a high performance ultralight portable. I was hoping the via nanos would hit the market but what from what I've seen so far these don't seem to be much better than atom based 'netbooks'.

Bestbuy Canada carries a Gateway LT110 based on an Athlon 64 for for $349 up here. I liked the look of it and it runs vista, decent graphics. Also considered the HP pavillion which is 12.1 inches based on the AMD Neo - seems much bigger and is a lot more. I then came across the EC1803 and for the price $499 is seemed a good deal. 3GB of ram, 250 GB hard disk, intel GMA4500MHD graphics (would have preferred an ATI solution). Seems to have the same chasis as the LT 110. I also see now that Bestbuy is carrying the Acer version of the of the EC1803 for $499 (Acer owns Gateway).

Quite happy with the EC1803. Seems quite fast for what I use it for. I streamed backed up DVDs from a NAS device over wireless to our bedroom TV through the HDMI port. No problem. Web pages load fast. Played with aero features - seems to work without difficulty. Decent build quality, very thin. Left mouse button sticks a bit if you don't press it in the centre. The fan runs pretty much all the time but it is very quiet, nowhere near as loud as my older sony vaio pentium M 1.6.

Very happy with it. Now if they came out w/ same computer with the core 2 duo ulv su9600 it could do well. Sony has one but it was >$2000.

Greg

There is an Acer Timeline model with an SU9400 FYI. Model 3810T-944G32n (which thanks to the bloody boneheads at Acer Iberia it isn't available here). In the UK it's £660 (£160 more expensive than the single core version), that's roughly 760 € / $1175 CAD. Those prices are with 15% VAT mind you!


There's also the ASUS U20A. Though it's more expensive and only has a 3-cell battery

Nice review Mike.
I like the SPCR recommended logo. It would be cool if you could click it and have it take you to a list of links to SPCR recommended products.

I had a 1005 and returned it for the 1000he and been very happy.
Main reasons..
Glossy screen (on the N280 vrs.). Need my portable be viewable outside.
Tiny 19v plug. Need my portable to easily charge from solar/car/plane.(1000/900 series are 12v and sturdy)

FWIW:
1000he is being shifted to end of life status.

There is a slight problem some people are having with faulty 1005 chargers and batteries. replacement batteries for 1005 are not yet available. (another reason i returned it)

I bought a Gateway LT3103u because it had the screen size/resolution I wanted, 2GB ram, and a keyboard I liked. It has a 6cell battery and I figure I can swap the 250GB hd out for a SSD as soon as the SSDs get cheap enough that I don't care that I'm tossing out a $50 hard drive.

I got my laptop tax free and I wasn't looking for an OEM SSD because:

Agree that SSDs are not very good except from Intel and Indilinx. But Samsung SSD are still cheap and they are good enough to use as a main system drive for a netbook. They are not Jmicron bad.


Mike, I was expecting more of a SPCR take on the netbook review. For example, mentioning the Dell Mini 10 as an alternative which is a fanless model. Or maybe delving into the 1005HA a bit more for some sort of fan control or off switch under low loads. Maybe with software control.

I don't think the Sasmung SSDs that come in Lenovo are bad; in fact, it's quite decent. Not as good as the best retail SSDs but generally at least as good as HDDs -- and less fragile.

Having said that, don't think HDDs in netbooks are any worse than HDDs in other mobile devices, whether notebooks, cameras, MP3 players... I've been using laptops for years, never had a HDD failure in any of them. I don't abuse them but I don't think I baby them either.

Finally, w/ regard to your expectation on a "SPCR take" on this netbook, I did expand my comments a bit, but note my PoV regarding the required "quiet" level for a notebook, esp a netbook:

Mike, thanks for the expanded comments. I'd be interested if someone could comment whether eeectl or other software can control the fan RPMs (and if so, how hot do things get running passive).

Your comments regarding locations where netbooks would be used are fair enough - but personally I can also see myself using a netbook late at night or even in bed, or perhaps as a low-power front-end to remote or web apps. In this case, fanless or quiet operation could be more handy.

Like I said, it's quiet even w/ the fan on. 24 dBA/0.6m is pretty good. It's hard to hear beyond 1m in normal house ambient -- and mine is pretty low. It's not as quiet as my Lenovo X300, which has an SSD and a fan that turns off more often, but the difference isn't dramatic. I did use it in bed a few times and had no problems with the noise either. The main thing is that I don't think anyone would use it continuously for that long, so even if it was a bit annoying to you, it just wouldn't matter as much as with a "full-time" primary computer.

Gotcha. Thanks!

I woke up this morning intending to buy a 1005HA. This review hasn't changed my opinion. Its not perfect, but its the best evolution of the netbook so far and its price is very good (£250, most 10" rivals costing £250-350 with very little extra).
I plan on getting the cheaper matte display version with smaller battery since i will be using this in less than optimal lighting areas and glossy screens annoy me then. Also its £45 cheaper than the gloss version.

Thinking of trying ubuntu netbook version on it. Apparently it doesnt like the wireless connection out of the box but theres a workaround. We'll see if i can be arsed to try it.

this...



..is sweet.

is this a new thing?

good review. If I find myself in the market for one..ill take this review into consideration! especially with the seal of aproval

Frankly i find 24 dBA at 0,6 meter to be pretty bad for a unit with such a minuscule power draw. It should be pretty easy to do better.

AtW

sigh... have you actually listened to what 24 dBA/0.6 sounds like? This is ~19 dBA/1m. Trust me, it's quiet.

http://www.silentpcreview.com/forums/vi ... hp?t=55282

To be fair I understand his point. It's not about what is quiet and what it's not, it's about how such a low powered device could be so "loud". I mean, it consumes what, 10W?! That's just lazy engineering TBH. Really, a fan running all the time for a 10W device?

The NB, wifi, BT, HDD,RAM all make heat- not just the chip. The fan helps cool everything.
This thing is quiet and it wont cook your parts right after warranty expires, like so many net/laptops tend to.

Then you're saying that SPCR is wrong, because it clearly states: "System AC Power Consumption Measurements".