ASUS Eee PC 1002HA 10-Inch Netbook Review
October 24th, 2009
ASUS Eee PC 1002HA 10-Inch Netbook Review from Mike Trojanowski. Asus 1002HA – A Very Impressive Netbook Indeed, I’ve had the pleasure of using the Asus 1002HA netbook for 4 days and have formed some definite impressions that I’d like to share with you. I’ll comment on 6 areas that are important to me and hopefully to you as well.
1. Very 1st Impression – The saying “You never get a 2nd chance to make a 1st impression” is very true and here the Asus 1002HA delivers right off the bat in its stylish packaging. The boxing is in a black tuxedo look – very sharp and compact. Reminds me of the meticulous attention Apple gives to its packaging in introducing its customers to its trendy products. Unwrapping and opening up the Asus 1002HA is indeed a pleasure – a very stylish, slim, light weight unit with an upscale brushed aluminum finish. I asked several friends to hold the unit in their hands and guess its weight. Their typical response was 1.5 lbs even though the 1002HA weighs 2.7 lbs. My guess for their low estimates is due to the 1002HA’s wonderful balance and even weight distribution – not back heavy as many units are with a 6-cell battery. Note: the 1002HA has only a 2-cell battery. More on this later. One final point here, in the box is also a compact zippered black velvet case with a padded interior – a very suitable companion to the sleek 1002HA.
2. Powering It Up – A very easy and quick process for your initial arrival to the home desktop screen. I suggest at this time you review the included software that comes with your unit. Then remove what you know you won’t use via the easy-to-access Control Panel. Also, this may be the right time to load in any software you prefer. Note: You will have to buy a separate external CD/DVD drive that can be purchased for about $50 on the Internet if you shop around.
3. LCD Display Screen – Simply a very vibrant and appealing 10-inch view. The screen is non-glare so you don’t have to worry about reflections of indoor lighting or the bright outdoors. There have been negative comments (posted on other websites) stating that the .8-inch wide glossy black bezel surrounding the LCD screen is a magnet for fingerprints; a criticism made that I personally found to be true. What I did to reduce this fingerprinting problem was to apply a thin coat of fine, high quality liquid car wax to the casing only (not the screen). Result – fingerprints shown now are less noticeable and very easy to wipe off.
4. Keyboard – Pressing the keys is very comfortable and easy to do with little resistance. The 92% of a normal size keyboard presented no problem to me. What did however, which is amply noted by many, is the tiny size of the right shift key, particularly a problem for touch typists. The right shift key’s tiny size is a challenge that can be largely overcome with practice. Lastly, the white print showing the characters on top of the keys is not very bright. I often do work very early in the morning in bed where the only light on in the room is being emitted from the LCD netbook screen. Clearly in this setting, I can’t see the lettering on the keys so I purchased a USB powered notebook light for $3.99 at Amazon which should take care of the problem.
5. Trackpad – The 1002HA provides wonderful navigation via the Elantech Smart-Pad which offers a variety of easy to use gestures and is superior to the typical track pad offered by competitors. It offers 1, 2 or 3-finger gestures similar to the excellent gesture options and track pad Apple offers their customers. The track pad is rather large for netbooks and you can easily tell when your fingers move on or off its surface. This is especially important at night when you might have the netbook on your chest and the track pad may be too close to your chin to see it very well. In my mind the track pad is as important as the keyboard and the Asus 1002HA hit the bull’s-eye in getting it right.
6. Battery Life – How would I describe its performance? IMPRESSIVE, especially for a 2-cell battery. It must be turbocharged because I get about 4 hours before I receive the 1st warning to power down. Your own mileage will vary depending on the type of processing you do and your preferred personal settings for screen brightness and processing speed. I do use the Power Saving Mode for processing speed and set screen brightness to about the 80% mark to achieve 4 hours of battery life. At these settings, performance is very acceptable and the screen is plenty bright. Lastly, I found the battery charger to be quite small and light. It easily plugs into the back of the 1002HA which I really like; sometimes my hand inadvertently hit the cord with other notebooks that are plugged into the side causing a disconnect.
7. Conclusion – I’m very pleased with my Asus 1002HA. It boots up rather quickly taking only 44 seconds from when you press the power on button to seeing your desktop screen. Front speakers have plenty of volume and you can modify the Realtek equalizer settings to satisfy your tone preference. The screen is bright and sharp, battery life is excellent for a 2-cell although not as good as what a 6-cell battery offers. The large easy to use trackpad and the many finger gestures offered are simply outstanding, especially for a netbook priced at $500. The keyboard has a deficiency with its tiny right shift key but can be overcome with some practice. I think Asus has a winner here. If you can afford $500, the Asus 1002HA should be on your short list in deciding what netbook is the right one for you.
To check price or purchase ASUS Eee PC 1002HA 10-Inch Netbook.
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Posted in Asus Netbooks | 
Tags: Access Control, Black Velvet, Boxing, Brushed Aluminum, Cell Battery, Desktop Screen, Eee Pc, External Cd, Guess, Home Desktop, Impressions, Meticulous Attention, Non Glare, Right Time, Slim Light, Suitable Companion, Tuxedo, Typical Response, Velvet Case, Weight Distribution
i always use my Asus Eee PC when i am travelling. It is very convenient to carry on any place.
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I got an Asus Eee as a christmas gift. It is very compact but i wish that the LCD screen was larger.
Asus Eee is not only portable, it is also one of the most affordable netbooks you can buy. Asus is also a good brand which means quality and reliabilty.