Asus Eee PC 1000H

The Asus Eee PC range needs no introduction. The original Eee PC was the very first ’netbook’ of sorts, and its popularity opened up a whole new segment. Ever since that maiden release, the market for these sub-notebooks has exploded and expanded so much that it’s become a category of its own.

Asus has not been resting on its laurels though; it’s churned out netbook after netbook, with over 23 models available at the time of writing this article. The Asus 1000H that we are reviewing here is the latest in the Eee PC range and comes with Intel’s Atom processor. Let’s find out how it fares.

The 1000H signifies a significant departure from the simple finish and styling that was typical of the Eee PC range. For one, it’s given up a plain matte look for a glossy black finish. While this may look elegant the first time you see it, the truth is that it’s a horrible fingerprint and dust magnet. We had our test model for a few weeks and in that time it went from looking fresh and interesting to something a dust storm would have spewed out.

With a weight of 1.46 kg and dimensions of 10.5 x 7.5 x 1.0 to 1.5 inches, this is easily the largest 10" netbook available today. This may be upsetting to some, but I didn’t find it a problem at all. The build quality is sound, with no extra flex in the body, and the reinforced hinges give it the reliability most Asus products boast of.

The keyboard is easily the best seen in any Eee PC so far. It’s well-proportioned at 92 percent of the size of a normal full-sized keyboard, offers a comfortable typing experience via the ‘just right’ texture finish of the keys, and has adequate space around the mouse pad for you to position both hands easily. This setup allows you to work comfortably and accurately.

The touchpad, however, proved to be a disappointment. Though it’s adequately large and fairly responsive, the mouse keys are a real pain. They are tapered, with the clicking area being around the edge of the laptop. This causes you to lift your hands clear of the keyboard to get a clear press. This may not be an issue for people with large hands, but my thumb got cramped after some hours of use.

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The matte 10-inch LCD panel of the 1000H has a native resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels and is strictly average. At maximum levels it does offer adequate levels of brightness, color and contrast. After the brilliant panel that we saw on the Acer Aspire One, this one was a bit of a disappointment. On the plus side, the matte finish allows you to work in brightly-lit conditions without fuss.

Connectivity-wise, the 1000H is similar to offerings from other manufacturers. It offers 3 USB slots, a multi-slot reader, VGA out, Bluetooth (thankfully!), and a Kensington security slot. It also offers 802.11N as a bonus.

As expected, this Eee PC is based on an Intel Atom N270 processor clocked at 1.8 GHz. The device offers 1GB of RAM, and has an 80GB HDD.