CNET has an interesting note at the bottom of their article about the recent Japanese launch of the Eee PC 4G-X (which comes with Windows XP preinstalled instead of Linux). It states for USA availability:
Asus originally promised we’d have the Windows version of the tiny Asus Eee PC in December. The Taiwan-based company now says we can expect it in late February or early March. [link]
So, for those of you waiting for Windows to be pre-installed, it could be just a little over a month away.
{ 1 trackback }
{ 34 comments }
It’s a 4G-X, not an 8G-X, so I won’t be trading up (I’ve aready got XP/Pro on my 4G). I’ll be waiting for the 8.9″ screen.
I think they are already “announced” on NCIX.COM (Canadian Computer Company).
If you search for EEE, you will see 2 different model of each, with different price. The price will raise of about 60$ per model
I’m new to all this, and trying to understand the reason to install XP on a machine with such little memory or storage. Why do you do it? And what is the advantage over not running the original Linux variant?
Thanks,
Dave
It’s simple Dave,
1- XP is familar to about 90% of the computer users. Even Linux and Mac OSX users know about XP.
2- XP sells. Like it or not, more computers are sold with XP on it in a month that Linux sells computers in 1 year!
Linux does not sell computers…
There are no “sale numbers for linux”
I’m fine with ASUS selling Windows “X version” on the eee pc, as long that i have still the option of buying it with linux pre-installed, I don’t want windows on it.
Say no to Micro$soft tax.
Thanks for the info. I totally agree – I know XP (and other Windows versions) inside and out, and learning Linux commands will be just another step for me. But with the limited amount of storage space available, isn’t installing XP going to clog up the machine? And other than familiar commands, what about the programs it will run? I’m thinking it’d be impossible to install XP, then say, a digital editor like Photoshop or something? Wouldn’t it run out of space? Or is it smarter to use Open Office and Gimp and such with XP? (Sorry to sound like such a newbie. I’m pretty savvy about this kind of thing. Just trying to maximize this Asus experience. I’ve waited years for a machine bitchin’ cool like this. LOL!
If Asus can come out with the 8.9 EEEPC with a 16gb or better a 1.8″ drive by May then that’s where my tax rebate check will be going. Otherwise I have to look at the compitiion.
They’re selling people what they want, not what they need. For me, the transition from XP to Linux was not significantly worse than going from XP to Vista.
For many corporate and business customers, having XP is a must. I demonstrated the 4G to some people yesterday and they loved it. One of them owns an I.T. support business and said he wants to buy them for his engineers, but he needs XP, since their email is MS Exchange and many of their essential apps are written for Windows only.
This is a smart move by ASUS. Linux for consumers, XP for business.
First off, what do you mean by such little memory? The EEE we have at work runs 2Gb of DDR2…
Moving on
Linux commands? I had to hunt just to find where to put the bloody commands in! They hide the terminal.
Exchange works fine with linux computers as far as I know so far and your average windows app will work depending on the app (I’ve actually installed the windows version of two programs on my computer (which runs linux) just because I didn’t know how much mucking around I’d have to do with the tar.gz Linux version (could be a simple link, or install from source) Both programs work fine.
Asus’ biggest problem is that the Easy mode is just plain *too* easy for someone that wants to do “something different” as it were. My boss actually gave up on the Linux install simply because Easy mode didn’t let him easily put a link to an app into the menu. We even tried to help him with the config files :-/
Either way…really want to get my hands on that bigger screen with touchscreen
navydaveee: Some programs insist on installing some or all of themselves on the C: drive, but you can install many (most?) programs onto an SDHC. 4GB isn’t as small as it seems, even if, like me, you don’t nlite.
The Eee is the first machine I’ve ever used which just worked out-the-box when connecting to the corporate Citrix-based gateway – no additional software needed.
What are the implications for the eeePC -X when Micro$oft stops support for XP? No way Vista will run on the eee.
>Tablet PC User Says:
>2- XP sells. Like it or not, more computers are sold with XP on it in a month that Linux sells >computers in 1 year!
Yes, but that’s because Windows is put on the machines during *manufacture*, so users don’t have any real choice as to what OS they have pre-installed when they buy a machine. The Xandros OS is VERY easy to use, and if you want to tweak it to look like the more familiar Start/Program Files setup you can do so.
I’m a heavy user of M$oft at work, and exclusively use Linux at home (so do my kids therefore
) – I can truly say that I’ve had a *fraction* of the frustrations with Linux compared to Windows, and I think it’s a real shame that Asus have had to bow to M$oft’s pressure to have WinXP pre-installed. Why have Asus agreed? Well, M$oft is THE big player, and they don’t want anyone muscling in to threaten their market dominance…so Asus have got little choice really 
See:
http://eeecast.com/eeecast/eeecast-1/#comment-11
for more of my thoughts on the matter.
The eee runs XP pretty fast because of the SSD. People use xp because they have certain software that wont run on linux i use it to run sling. IT has plenty of space just install the programs to the SDHC and its fine. It actually runs xp better than faster laptops. As for someone who said what about when they drop support for XP you EEE will prob be in the garbage by then. The eee will actually run VISTA there are 800mhz UMPC that have vista stock. but the eee is short on space for vista.
tlpinspw: If you read the XP forum, you will see that there are users who claim that Vista runs very nicely on their eeepcs. If and when XP is gone from the scene, the eeepc’s processor and storage will be more than up to the next iteration of the M$ OS. However, I predict that XP will ALWAYS be an option as long as the current M$ OS is Vista.
I wonder if they’ll sell Eee specific versions on XP at a discount for early adopters. I could be tempted if they do as the only spare copy of XP I have that would work is Media Centre & it’s probably more bloated than the regular versions. I’d barely touched Linux until I got the Eee, & am suprised at how well I’m getting on with it. There are some programs I would like and can’t find and some things I can’t do on it though that I could with Windows.
People seem to forget that you have to pay for Xandros too. Fair enough it’s not as much, but they still charge for it.
Meh. I’ll stick to Linux thank you very much.
As a business decision, I don’t think Asus had any choice – they had to have a WinXP version.
There are lots of competitors promising to come into this new market. Many plan to offer Windows XP as their standard OS. It would be foolish for Asus not to be prepared for this.
As much as I appreciate that Asus matched its inexpensive but relatively lower performance hardware design goals to Linux’s frugal resource needs, the 90% of the PC market that uses Windows does not understand or care about this. You build for the market that exists not the market you would prefer.
I just hope that more people learn that the better-matched, lower-cost Linux version will run faster and better than the Windows XP version.
dvdivx: Is “May” the official date of releasing 8.9” version, or you’re just guessing ?
The Eee PC is Asus’ most popular product, because it’s GREAT in both the functionality & pricing.
A computer is a computer & an OS is an OS. Each one has a GUI that’s easy to use, Wordprocessing, Spreadsheeting, Email, Webbrowser, Instant Messaging, Media Player, etc. The only difference is that some applications are made specifically for one OS, and not the others.
The Eee PC with Xandros Linux OR Windows XP provides the consumer choice, especially if he has an application that will only run in one platform.
Ideally I love the Xandros Linux interface! It’s simple & easy to use. But I have an app that only runs in Windows. Ideally I’d love to dual boot using Xandros most of the time, and Win only when necessary.
I’ve got the 4GB SSD which isn’t really big enough to partition & dual boot. Windows will NOT allow booting from anything other than the primary drive (SSD) so I haven’t had any luck booting off SDHC (too complicated). But maybe future models of the Eee PC will make this easier, or a better release of WinXP that is finetuned & trimmed for the Eee PC.
I’m not quite sure what the debate is about…if you like Linux, then go with linux! If you want XP / Vista, then go with that! Asus is giving people more options, which is good for us and them.
@Dez Futak
Of course users have a choice! I don’t know about where you live but they are SEVERAL computer stores with in 5- 15 miles that sell custom made PCs. Even Dell has a Linux option. All I need to do is to go to a local “small business” PC store and tell them, “hey I want Ubuntu on a new computer with xyz hardware” In about 2 business days (or less), I’ll have my new Ubuntu computer ready for use.
People go with the recommendations of friends, family members and what they use at school/work. No one said XP is better (yes know windows has viruses and malware); I’m just saying that people like things that are familiar and XP is very familiar to everyone…including most linux and OSX users.
@Andy Chapman
>Linux for consumers, XP for business
LOL! Didn’t people think the same thing with Open Office vs MS Office?
I believe that Asus should have marketed the Windows XP version under a new brand name.
Not only would this help isolate true support cost between the two versions, it would also let Linux fans take pride in and trumpet the superiority of their product brand.
Apple has used this “devoted fan” advertising to their advantage for a long time, even if it annoys a lot of the rest of us.
Are you able to create a dual boot system for Windows XP and Linux?
@Legion
Yep… installed eeexubuntu to the 4G sd card included, leaving the preinstaled XP bloat as it where.
Not the best option, but as somebody mentioned, windows has it’s uses when you do IT support.
i am a grad student in the humanities. i need to run a reference manager called endnote that integrates tightly with word. it does not run on linux. my general situation is hardly unique, if not the specifics.
you know, i don’t think the jealous and spiteful attitude prevalent among some members of the linux community does their platform any favors. you tell me, why would you want to protest asus’s attempts to build a wider market for their machine, attempts that would in the long run be advantageous for the open source movement? the linux machine will always be cheaper, and that’ll be enough for many people. better economies of scale for asus = lower eee prices = more linux users. use your heads.
Unfortunately, here in Japan, the Eee is only available with XP. The Linux version is not available. This means I cannot choose Linux. Hopefully if the US is the first country where both versions are available (first Linux, then Linux and XP) then the numbers will start to show which one is more popular. Of course, it is possible that the Linux version will be withdrawn…
I didn’t buy an EEE PC to run windows apps. I have a windows machine for that. For me personally, I bought my 4gb because I want a small, portable laptop to use for simple doc creation, surfing, email, all in an extremely light backpack load.
As a FT college student, it’s important that I can cram my books and not lug around my large laptop with it. In this case, my EEE has a small footprint but does most of what I need a laptop to do.
It’s almost as if Asus catered to my whim.
I know this is a bonehead Q (meaning I haven’t kept up with all the tech gizmo issues)
Can this miniPC deal with Internet via wireless broadband? Via card? via USB? how? and can it be hooked up to a std monitor? how about a std keyboard?
AND can it do internet broadband, keyboard, and monitor all at the same time given its ports?
thanks
B
Back in December 2007 I saw a posting that I seem to remember said Microsoft had agreed to offer XP at significant discount to current eeePC owners. I have lost the link to the posting. Can someone confirm or clarify ?
does the eee pc coming with XP in feb/ march also apply to australia or is it just US meaning aussies will have to wait longer…i am in the process of purchasing one myself.
Just loaded XP SP2 on the 4G and it runs great (with 2GB of DDR2 memory), better than the linux that came on it, and you can install other windows apps as well. Still had some 1.8GB left on the SSD also, even after the following were installed:
MS office XP – Word, Excel, Powerpoint (chose this over Office 2003 as it is slightly faster)
Mozilla Firefox (latest version)
Adobe Reader 8.12 (took up 121mb of space!)
AVG Antivirus (shell disabled, email disabled, all updated)
Outlook Express (comes with XP)
Windows Media Player (comes with XP)
..and other default XP applications.
XP SP2 with all the latest critical updates applied. Several services disabled as I do on all other XP Computers, which makes a difference, but does not stop XP from functioning as it should. Only thing on startup is Tweakui and AVG. All Drivers installed and working perfect. 30 Seconds Boot time. Can hardly tell it is a 900 Mhz Processor clocked at 603 Mhz!
Page file is disabled, due to 2GB of Ram, however could still enable it if required but will have to be custom size of perhaps 50mb-1024mb (some apps may need it such as Visual Basic, and some Adobe Apps, MS office does not though).
Webcam works fine (cheap cam though)
Will do some more testing but so far this is great. The Access time on the SSD is only 0.46ms compared to 7.6 on a 7200rpm desktop drive BTW. Read times are slower though. Working on a 2G tonight and going to load XP on that also, but this one will need to be stripped down some more and no MS Office on this one as just 512 memory!
Add in the Transcend 32GB Compact Flash (CF) Flash Card, dump some music on that and you are good to go
Rory
Forgot to add, they should have dumped the speakers and just left the headphone jack to gain a larger screen, as when on a plane for example, no need for Speakers.
Also, if you want to load XP, just put a ME floppy image on a Flash Card, boot to that, use Delpart to delete the partitions (Fdisk would not delete 2 of them in my case but Delpart worked). Once all 4 partitions are gone, then you have 3.8GB to utilize. Get a regular CD Drive from a Desktop PC and buy an IDE to USB adapter, put your XP CD in that CD Drive and boot to that using escape to select the drive, run XP setup as normal (maybe able to delete the partitions with XP setup actually but I didnt try yet) – setup will take a long time as it is running over USB. If you install the XP updates watch out as their uninstallers take up space too. Disable the page file then install your apps. Good to go from there.
Did a new test tonight, Linux boots in 29 seconds and XP boots in 40 seconds – from power on.
Comments on this entry are closed.