Comments on: ASUS Eee PC Seashell 1201N-PU17-BK 12.1-Inch Black Netbook – 5 Hours of Battery Life

By: Damon Z. Cassell

Damon Z. Cassell — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 04:24:20 +0000

I bought the 1201n from Amazon and have been using it for a few hours. So far, a very positive experience.

The very first thing I did was hook up a USB CDROM and blow away the pre-installed Windows 7, then reinstalled Windows 7 with a real Microsoft branded media kit, not the OEM restore disk. I didn't want to take my chances with whatever junk Asus pre-loaded on this thing. Windows 7 re-installs flawlessly by the way, and detects all hardware with the exception of the co-processor, for which you must install the chipset drivers from the Asus site. No real drama.

From a usability standpoint, so far it runs my standard internet suite very well - Firefox, Winamp, IM clients and the like... you get the feeling it's not chugging at all and could handle far more intensive apps. I primarily wanted a very portable unit to do some casual work on while I'm running around and this works perfectly.

Screen is excellent. Keyboard is excellent. Touchpad is acceptable. I paired my purchase with a Logitech VX Nano laser mouse so I don't have to deal with the touchpad too much. Works slick. Battery charger gets alarmingly hot to the touch when it is charging a drained battery but cools off once the battery is topped off.

There is no "sleeve" included, contrary to what you may read.

Overall this is a lot of little computer for short money. One last off topic rant though. Why can't Amazon pack their shipments - especially electronics - as well as Newegg?

Newegg = lovingly pack thingy in peanuts and bubble wrap.
Amazon = chuck fragile thingy in an empty cardboard box, close, tape, ship. The silly inflatable bubble or two they sometimes stick in the box is a joke.

I've been lucky so far and my computer showed up fine despite the complete lack of packing material but one of these days my luck is going to run out when someone at the UPS facility drop-kicks my purchase into the truck... Rating: 5 / 5

By: Adam

Adam — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 01:25:12 +0000

This netbook is the best in the biz right now. The monitor is excellent and GPU and CPU are speedy enough to watch 1080p video. I love this netbook. I can’t wait to take this on a plane because of its portability.
Rating: 5 / 5

By: Brown

Brown — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 23:40:02 +0000

This was my first netbook purchase and I was waiting for high end netbook with better graphics and HD capabilities and a processor which can handle these features. This netbook didnt let me down on any of these features. My usage is primarily centered around web surfing, watching media and routine office work.Alright talking about this netbook:

Physical attributes: Attractive looks ( silver probably works better than black regarding showing dust and finger prints),Weight is perfect for portability.Charging adaptor is small in size. It doesnt come with any covering bag/sleeve (as mentioned in details)except for soft neoprene cover.USB ports are available on both sides which is convenient.Plastic case doesnt feel cheap and seems reasonably tough for 3.22 lbs netbook.

Function:I havn't tried other ATOM processor netbooks but this one works smooth, fast and uninterrupted. From launching a new application to streaming videos, it doesn't demonstrate significant lag time.Keyboard is big with wide keys which are really great for typing.Mouse pad is appropriately responsive and I havn't noticed any issues with it. I like 12" screen size ,though it wasnt the selling point for me.LED based screen is bright even at half the brightness.Webcam and inbuilt microphone are impressive as well though I wound have enjoyed features like "face tracking" and zoom in the webcam. Volume output from inbuilt speakers is good enough.

Software: I was skeptical about windows 7 and have been a XP user for long time. Transition to windows 7 was easier than I thought and I am liking the new features especially ease of setting up ans using home network. It allowed me to access the shared folders on my XP based laptop and was so easy to set.HDMI transfer to big LCD works like a charm but I had to upgrade my NVIDIA ION driver version as it wasnt trasmitting the audio to the TV when I first hooked it up. After updating the version, both audio and video transfer were great.

Overall a great netbook. Price might be on the higher end but you get features like fast processor,higher RAM, NVIDIA grpahic display,HDMI quality,250 GB of HD space ( 222GB effectively after partioning)and I would add Windows 7 to the list as well.
Highly recommended. Rating: 5 / 5

By: Caroline

Caroline — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 21:11:19 +0000

If you’re seeking a great tech review, go take a look at the “Crysis” one. He’s got it goin’ on… As for me, I chose this netbook because of the reputation of the company. I searched online and found numerous reviews covering multiple factors and Apple was ALWAYS #1 and Asus #2. Apple is way too expensive… So, Asus won out. A big scoring gap was always present between the #2 and #3 positions. And, it didn’t matter if the survey was completed by experts or the general public. It was always the same. So, yes this is a speedy and feature packed netbook, BUT what does that matter if the company doesn’t operate ethically? And, if they don’t honor the warranty and give you the run around when there’s a problem. I had a HORRIBLE experience with my 1st netbook… it was defective. It wasn’t so much that the product was problematic but more the company’s poor response. The company is Acer and they don’t care. You are stuck and on your own. Don’t take my word for it go check out all of the websites dedicated to Acer complaints. But just to be fair, I haven’t used the Asus Customer or Technical Services, however, I’m not worried either, because I’m confident that it will be a productive and pleasant experience. That’s why reputation counts.
Rating: 5 / 5

By: Thinh Dang

Thinh Dang — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 20:44:35 +0000

Pro,

12.1 screen
Dual core Nivida Ion
Full version Window 7
Very light for a 12.1 screen
Got HDMI output

Cons,

Glossy screen
Black = fingerprint magnet
Dual core,..not that much faster then N280.
Battery life is a dud,...less then 4 hours.
Power button on the inside.
Lot of heat on the left size.
Don't like ASUS bumpy mouse pad,..its a little small also.
The brightness adjustment is FN+F6 or so,... I like FN + up or down arrow better.

I never did like ASUS,..I'm waiting for the Dual Core Samsung version.

FYI I own 3 Samsung netbook and 2 Asus. Rating: 3 / 5