Popmonkeys.com - Asus Eee PC, Canon, Computers, Gadgets

I’m reading a lot of about people buying a netbook because they think they are buying a cheap laptop.  I could see why people could get confused.  They see something that looks like a laptop next to a price tag that reads below $400.  The natural reaction is to wonder why anyone would spend upwards of $1,000 on a laptop when they can purchase one for less than half the price.

A netbook is not for everyone.  A netbook is meant to be a secondary system.  Something you take with on on trips.  It’s not meant to replace your work machine.  I use it to write, email, surf the web, and light duty task.  It has a low powered CPU, no optical drive, and weak graphics.  Look at it this way, you’re expecting a four door sedan, but what you’re really getting is a scooter.  Keep that in mind.

I have a quad core desktop to handle most of my work, a laptop to support my mobile needs, and my netbook to keep me occupied during long trips.  It is not possible for me to have the netbook meet all of my needs.  Now, for some people who do not rely on a computer as much, a netbook might be perfect as the only computer in the house.

Acer Aspire AS5735-6694 Notebook is a good value for your bucks.

acer-aspire-as5735-6694

In this economy, you have to stretch your dollar and get the most you can.  Buying a new notebook can be tough.  Most of the salesman in the big box stores seem to speak another language.  I admit that you really should buy a laptop that fits your needs.  For the sake of simplicity, I’ll pick one that does a little bit of everything.

I recommend this Acer laptop because it has a strong CPU, a nice screen, lots of memory, a decent hard drive, and a better integrated graphic chipset.  It could have a stand alone graphic processor, but the Intel GMA 4500MHD is a newer chip.  It has an Intel Core 2 Duo T6400 (2.0 GHz), 4 GB of memory, 15.4 inch WXGA screen  (1366×768), and comes with wireless N connectivity.

Rating 4 out of 5, 5 being the best.

Amazon.com has this unit for $594 with free shipping.

Newegg.com has this unit for $599.

Well, at least this new netbook has something new and not just the typical Atom N270, 1GB memory, 160GB hard drive, and 10 inch screen.  I’m so tired of those specs already.  Every “new” netbook is the uses the same cookie cutter model…except Asus.

Asus just released the new Asus Eee PC T91.  It’s basically a 9 inch tablet netbook.  The screen swivels around and lays flat.

Another recent Asus announchment is the Asus Eee PC 1000HV.  This was Asus response to the new Nvidia ION GPU.  The Eee PC 1000HV is basically an Eee 1000HE with an ATI Radeon HD3450.  The addition of the Radeon GPU helps the tiny netbook do Hi Def 1080P videos.  This is pointless since the native resolution of most netbook screens are not equip to even handle 720P.  Early reviewers are saying the video performance of the Eee PC 1000HV is nothing stellar.  My opinion about the 1000HV is to just get the 1000HE and wait for ION.

Intel announced that there will be a new Atom processor to replace the netbook popular Atom N270.  In my opinion, it’s about time.  Sure, they released the Atom Z series.  But that’s just a more efficient N270.  I like the N270, but I always thought it could use a little more power.  On my Eee PC 1000H, running a few tabs in Firefox will give the CPU some trouble.  Flash video requires the majority of the CPU cycles.

Intel Atom Pine Trail

The new Atom N450 will push the tiny CPU to the 2 GHz range.  That’s a much needed increase for the highly efficient platform.  Future netbooks will benefit greatly.  Along with more power, the new CPU incorporates the GPU and memory controller on one smaller chip.  The new platform, code name “Pine Trail”, will process information more efficiently and increase battery life.  The newer chip will be easier to keep cool and easier to fit into smaller netbooks.

Asus Eee Top

As we move to a more green society, expect a lot from the little Atom.  You can already see it in action in form of nettops.  A nettop is a netbook in a desktop form factor like the Eee Top.  It’s basically an Eee PC with a 15.4 inch touchscreen for $500.  Click here for more details. As for me, I like my Q9650.  It’s fast.

Asus Eee PC 1008HA Seashell

Another day, another netbook.  Today, I bring you the Asus Eee PC 1008HA, also named “Seashell”.  Think of this netbook as the MacBook Air of netbooks.  It’s thin, light, with all of it’s components designed to fit and operate in tight quarters.  All the ports are hidden away behind tabs.  The Seashell has a mini VGA port with an adapter built-in to the bottom of the netbook.  The Seashell is about an inch think and weighs about 2.5 lbs.  You can pick up the Seashell at Amazon for about $420 with Free Shipping.  Click here to go to the product page.

Asus Eee PC 1008HA Seashell

Specs:
Intel Atom N280 1.66 GHz
10.1″ LED Backlit WSVGA screen (1024×600)
1GB DDR2 Memory
160GB + 10GB Online storage
1.3 Megapixel Webcam
6 Hour Battery. (Molded to fit the new design)
2 USB 2.0 Ports
1 Mini VGA Connector
1 RJ45 Ethernet port
Mic in, Headphone port
SD Card reader
Win XP Home

The Netbook bandwagon has become the netbook big rig truck.  It seems everyone has a netbook these days.  They’re all about the same price and have almost the same specs.  For about $350, you get a 10 inch, 1.6 Ghz Intel Atom, 1GB, 160GB hard drive, running Windows XP Home.

Asus Eee PC 1000HE

The problem is that all the manufacturers are making the same thing with no product differientiation.  When it comes to netbooks, I think of 3 brands, Asus, MSI, and Acer.  Since everything else is the same, the keyboard and battery life is a huge factor when it comes to picking out the right one.  Unfortunately, there isn’t a place that lets you have any hands on time with the netbooks.

Acer Apsire One AOD 150

So my recommendations:

Asus:  Asus Eee PC 1000HE $385
Acer:  Acer Aspire One AOD150 10.1 Inch $330
MSI:  MSI Wind U120 $330

Coming Soon:

If you’re looking for something a little bigger, I would wait for the Lenovo S12.  It’s a 12 inch, Atom powered netbook with the Nvidia ION GPU.  ION brings 1080P capabilities to a netbook.  That also means it can handle games at a decent frame rate.  Read about it here.

Lenovo S12

In my search for a new cell phone, I considered many.  The iPhone was appealling, but I can’t stand using iTunes.  After my T-Mobile Dash, I think I’m done with Windows Mobile too.  My Dash held up for 3 years, but it’s performance was slowing and eventually, freezing.  Yes, I was running WinMo 6.1 Kadana.

As you can see, I’m already using a BlackBerry for work.  Don’t need two berries in my life.  I wanted something unique.  Practically everyone I know has an iPhone.  No thanks.

Enter the Nokia E71, sleek, thin, beautiful, and fast.

It runs on the Sybian S60 Platform.  I’m still learning all the features and add ons.  My first impression is that the phone is fast.  Menus appear as soon as you press the button.  The sound quality is just amazing.  Everything sounds crystal clear.  With built-in GPS and WiFi, I’m all set.

I’ll post more about the Nokia E71 as I learn.  Right now, I’m still making the transition from my Dash.

Back in November 2008, Asus had a User Experience Survey about the Eee PC.  By participating in the survey, you were automatically entered to win an Asus Eee PC 1002HA or 1 of 30 Asus Mouse.  Well this Chief Monkey won the grand prize.

Asus contacted me in late April, and I finally got my new Eee PC today.  I think the unit was a review unit.  Just unpacking it felt as it was already unpacked before.  The foreign plug was a dead giveaway.  But whatever, it’s not like I paid for it.

A couple of years ago, I bought a Corsair 1GB 133X SD card.

Corsair CMFSD133-1GB

The card could not be recognized by any of my devices.  Corsair quickly replaced the defective unit with an identical one.  The problem was the new unit has the identical problem.  I tossed it to a side and forgot about it.

I recently found the card and decided to send it in again.  The SD card were backed by a Lifetime Warranty.  Well, it turns out that Corsair discontinued this card.  As a replacement, they sent me a Corsair 8GB Flash Voyager drive.  That’s pretty cool of them to stand by their product warranty.

Corsair Flash Voyager 8GB

Corsair Flash Voyager 8GB

The lesson here is to pay attention to the product warranty when you have a defective product.  Most flash memory cards have lifetime warranties.

Thanks Corsair.

Asus Eee PC 1000H - 1000HE Keyboard Mod Part 1

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keyboard

If you are lucky enough to order an Asus Eee PC 1000HE replacement keyboard, you have some work to do before you can install it.  Remember, please use gentle force because these parts are very fragile.

Things you’ll need:

Asus Eee PC 1000H
Small Screwdriver
A nail clipper
An sharp knife
A file
A tweezer
Scissors (optional)
Double Sided tape (optional)

Prepping the new 1000HE Keyboard

The first thing you need to do is prepare the new keyboard.  The 1000HE keyboard has extra plastic bits that you’ll need to remove in order to properly seat the keyboard in shell of the 1000H.  There are three tabs located below the space bar.  The two smaller plastic tabs needs to be removed.

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keybaord Extra Tabs

You can clip them off with a nail clipper.  One of the tabs is surrounded by the ribbon cable.  Be extra careful to not cut or nick this cable.  Take your time.  Smooth out any excess plastic left with a knife.  Now, file down the areas so that it is smooth.

On the two sides of the keyboard, there are two plast nubs.

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keyboard Extra Side Tabs

Those have to be removed to properly seat the keyboard.  I just ran a knife and carefully sliced them off.  Take your time because you don’t want to scratch the keyboard.  Once those are off, set the keyboard aside.

Removing the old 1000H keyboard

At the very top of the keyboard, you should see four black tabs between the F keys and the body of the netbook.

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keyboard Tabs

Use a very small screwdriver to push those tabs away from the keyboard.  The keyboard should pop up enough to keep the tabs held back.  Once all the tabs has been back, carefully use your finger and the screwdriver to lift keyboard on top of the F7 keys.  Slowly pry the keyboard up.  The keyboard might be held down with some double sided tape.

The keyboard is connected to the netbook by a very short ribbon cable, like the one on the back of the new keyboard.

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keyboard Ribbon

To detach the ribbon cable. push the two black tabs on either side up.

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keyboard Ribbon Connector

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keyboard Ribbon Connector

Use the tweezer and slowly push them up.  They are small and can be broken easily.  Be careful.

Installing the new keyboard.

Notice how the crease on the ribbon cable of the old keyboard.  You’ll need to crease the ribbon cable on the new keyboard like that.  Hold the keyboard so that your left thumb in on the G key and your on the back of the keyboard.  Use your fingers to project the ribbon cable out.

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keyboard Install

Insert the ribbon cable in the slot and secure by pushing the black tabs back down.  Make sure the cable is secure.

System check

Before closing up, you may want to boot the netbook to make sure the keyboard is working.

Once you have confirmed that the keyboard works, go ahead and push the keyboard down.  Makre all four tabs on top is re-engaged.

Depending on which BIOS version you have, some keys might not work properly.  The forward slash and the semicolon keys didn’t work for me.  To fix this, you have to upgrade your BIOS.  Go to START -> All Programs -> Asus -> Asus Updater.  Select update from the internet and choose VIOS version 1803.  Follow the steps and your done.

Finished Product:

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keyboard Installed

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keyboard

Shortly after the discovery of modding an Asus Eee PC 1000HE keyboard for use with the 1000H, Asus could not keep the replacement keyboard in stock.  Well guess what, this Chief Monkey managed to buy one when there were only 10 in stock.  It was actually a fluke.  I happened to check the Asus website a couple of days ago, and they happen to have it in stock.

I should be getting the part in a week.  Of course, I’ll post the how to when I get it.  The chiclet style keyboard is a much welcomed addition to the 1000H.  I think after this mod, my 1000H will be all modded out.

Windows 7 Release Candidate was released for trial this week.  I already downloaded a 64 bit and 32 bit copy.  I plan to install the 32 bit version of Windows 7 on the eee 1000H.

Luckily, when I re-installed the OS on the new hard drive, I created another partition knowing that I would install another OS.  As usual, stay tuned on how Windows 7 will perform on the Eee PC 1000H.

Update:  The Asus Eee PC 1000HE keyboard is still out of stock on the Asus Estore.  I’m still waiting to get my hands on that part to complete this mod.

If you own a Nintendo DS and want an entertaining game, check out Rhythm Heaven DS.

Sometimes I just want to play a game that doesn’t take up too much time.  Like the name suggests, you play many mini games while tapping along with the rhythm.  The characters in the game will put a smile on your face.  It may seem simple and childish at first, but it’s addictive game play will suck you in.  I highly recommend this title.  Oh, it’s also good for the whole family.

You can pick up a copy at Amazon.com for $30.

I was wondering when AMD would come out with a small, snappy CPU.  The AMD Athlon Neo CPU is not the same as the Intel Atom CPU.

AMD Athlon Neo

The Neo is meant for a small laptop, 10 inch - 13 inch models.  For a laptop CPU, this is a low power comsuming chip at 15 watts.  The Intel Atom consumes between 4 - 8 watts.  It’s also a 65nm chip, which means that it’s not as efficient as the new 45 nm chips.

Here’s where the Neo outshines the Atom.  It operates at the same frequency as the Atom at 1.6 GHz.  The Neo can operate as a 64 bit processor, has more Cache than the Atom, and an integrated memory controller.

Currently, the Neo CPU could be found on select HP laptops like this one at Newegg.com.

A user in the www.eeeuser.com forum discovered that the Asus Eee PC 1000HE keyboard is compatible with the Asus Eee PC 1000H.  The keyboard on the 1000HE is radically different than the 1000H.

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Keyboard

The keyboard is more comfortable to type on, 92% of a full size keyboard, the right shift key is fixed, and flex seems to be corrected.  To clarify, flex is when the keyboard appears to be springy when pressed down.  The 1000HE keyboard is sold out at the moment.  At $15, it’s very affordable.  It’s currently sold out at the moment.  As soon as it’s back in stock, you bet I’ll order one and post a review/how-to.

Yes, I have a new Dell Vostro 420.  But Dell managed to screw up my computer.  Dell Hell is still alive and well.  I’ll dedicate a seperate post about my “situation”.

The system is outfitted with an Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 running at 3 GHz with 12MB of L2 cache.  Now, compared with an Intel Pentium D 820, this CPU is fast.  Start up takes less than 2 minutes, installing Office 2003 took less than 5 minutes, and running multiple resource intensive application is no sweat.  The quad core is prefect for me because I tend to do many things at once.  I wished my work laptop was can keep up with me.

Overall, I’m very impressed by the Core 2 Quad Q9650.  Yes, I agree that this CPU is a big overkill for my needs.  But hey, you never know when you might need some crazy computing power.  Overclocking is not something on my list to do.  I’ve already paired it with 4GB of memory and a 1TB Western Digital Caviar Black drive.  I might upgrade the heat sink and fan with something better.  I think Dell used the stock assembly.

When I purchased the system, I did consider the Intel Core i7.  However, manufacturers were charging a premium for it.  Ideally, the Intel Core i7 would be the way to go at this point.  I went with the Q9650 because I had a crazy deal on this tower.  I think I only paid a total of $300 after you factor out the price of the 24 inch Dell Ultrasharp LCD.

The Nintendo DS lite is one of my favorite gadgets because it provides many hours of entertainment in a small compact device.  Games are fun and more importantly, non habit forming.

The recent release of the Nintendo DSI has me wondering if it’s worth upgrading.

The screen is bigger, 2 cameras, and an SD card slot.

It has a game store similar to the Wii where you can pay to download old games.  Other than that, there isn’t anything that makes me wanting to go out and get one.

But if you’re looking for a new mobile gaming device, I highly recommend getting the Nintendo DSI.  It’s available at Amazon.com for $170.  Click Here.

I can always use an external hard drive.  Who can say no to more storage right?  However, my Mac Mini really doesn’t need 1TB worth of storage.  My PC does.  It could use an extra 1TB.  Out of the box, the drive was not recognized by Windows because it has been formatted for Mac.  In order to get this drive PC friendly, you’ll need a Mac’s help.  Disclaimer - Follow these instructions at your own risk.  Popmonkeys.com is not responsible if anything happens to electronics.

1. Plug the drive into the Mac.
2. Open up Disk Utility from the Utilities menu.
3. IMPORTANT - make sure to highlight only the Seagate FreeAgent drive.  You could accidentally format your hard drive if you make a mistake.
4. Navigate over to the Erase tab.  The drive should be in the Journal Format.
5. Click on the drop down and select MS-Dos.  This should format the drive to FAT 32.
6. Click Erase and follow the on screen instructions.

1TB should take a while to format depending on your Mac.  My Mac Mini is pretty lightweight, so it took about half an hour.  The drive will shut itself off when it’s done formatting.  After that, the drive should work work with the PC and Mac.

I just realized that I bought something completely opposite of a nettop.  A nettop is a netbook but in a desktop form.  They are normally very small PC that can handle your everyday computing needs such as surfing the web, emails, browsing, instant messaging, and light tasks.  Acer is the first PC manufacturer to release a system that utilizes the Nvidia ION GPU.

Specs:

Intel Atom N230 1.6GHz
Up to 4GB of RAM
Up to 250 GB Hard Drive
4 in 1 card reader
HDMI/VGA out
6 USB ports
Nvidia ION GPU

The new Nvidia ION based chipset unlocks more for the lightweight Atom CPU.  Nvidia’s ION chipset instantly makes any nettop capable of outputing 1080p video (Blu-ray).  ION is also DirectX 10 capable meaning you can play some demanding games without the need for a high powered system.  The Acer Aspire Revo is estimated to be priced around $300.  I’m thinking more like $400 - $450.

For most people, this little PC is enough machine for them.  It’s perfect for parents who just emails and children who surfs the web with the occasional game play.  However, for power users (games, video rendering, photo editing, etc), this little capable PC still lacks raw power.  That’s why I bought myself a new Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 system.  If the PC is not a major part of your life, sure, the Acer Aspire Revo is perfect.  It’s small, efficient, and gets the job done…eventually.

I’ve been busy lately.  But something that caught my eye was people leaving spam on popmonkeys.com.  One of the recent comments advertised electronic and computer cables.  I won’t name the site.  However, I will name my preferred store for cables, especially high quality HDMI cables.  Go to www.monoprice.com.

Also, I’m working on a new template for the site.  Hopefully it will vastly improve load time.  I promise I won’t load the site up with a bunch of ads.  Those unbiased and real life reviews will still get churned out.