Asus EEE PC 1015PE – matte 10 incher for every pocket
After years of not giving a damn about what their customers craved for, Asus finally decided to lower their ears to our pleas and start replacing the extra glossy finish on their netbooks with a proper matte one. One of the results is the Asus EEE PC 1015PE, one of the two 10 inchers meant to replace their current Asus 1005PE line, most popular in this class in the US and many other countries.
On a first look at the Asus 1015PE you notice that the casing is not matte, thus way better when facing scratches, smudges and fingerprints. In fact, a soft rubberish material was used for the upper casing, similar to the one used on the matte version of the existing Asus 1005PE (just launched in the last months). The same material is used now also for the palm-rest and the entire area around the keyboard, so bye bye nasty glossy finish. In fact, not entirely bye bye, as the 10 inch display remained glossy (based on what we know right now) and so did the area around it. But still, the 1015PE is an improvement. And, if you don’t like the soft finish, you can opt for a textured one, on the Asus EEE PC 1015P.
Asus 1015PE mini laptop
The keyboard and trackpad changed too. From the pictures, better plastic is used for they keys and the trackpad is now bigger and matte too, plus it’s separated from the rest of the palm rest by two narrow lines, dressed in a nice chromed finish. Click-button is bigger too and easier to press, but it’s still a single-click one.
Improved trackpad and keyboard
Inside, not much has changed. For now, the Asus EEE PC 1005PE is expected to bring:
- Intel Atom N450/N470 processors (followed by N455/N475 later) + GMA 3150 graphics
- up to 2 GB of RAM DDR2 (with DDR3 memory support on a later version)
- up to 320 GB hard-drive
- Wi-Fi N, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
- 3xUSB slots, 4-in-1 card-reader, VGA out, 0.3 MPx webcam
- Stereo Dolby speakers
- 3 Cell battery (23 Wh) or 6 Cell battery (55 or 63 Wh ) – up to 13.5 hours of life
- Windows 7 Starter
- weighs 2.3 pounds (with 3 Cell battery) or 2.5 pounds (with 6 Cell one)
So, as you can see, only minor improvements will be seen on the 1015PE in terms of performance, but the hardware is pretty much standard and similar to what all the other 10 inch mainstream netbooks offer. This while connectivity is top notch, battery life is better and the device comes with a nice design and solid built quality.
All in all, with the 1015PE, Asus manages to solve two of the biggest complaints current Seashell versions had: the casing and the trackpad. If they’ll use a matte display too, this device will be just perfect.
Way better with the soft rubberish finish
For now, we know nothing on availability and prices, but stay tuned for more details in the near future. The Asus EEE PC 1015PE is for sure a netbook we should keep our eyes on, as I’d reckon it will be the most popular mainstream 10 incher of the next couple months.
Update: The Asus 1005PE now sells in the States for $379, with Shipping included . The price is fair for what it has to offer. Besides the matte casing and new and improved trackpad, plus the other minor details, this EEE PC also comes with improved hardware, boosting the powerful N475 1.83 GHz Atom processor and support for DDR3 memory. So no wonder this device is so popular right now on the US market. See this link for more details, pictures, reviews and the option to buy one (for what seems the be the best available price in the US right now).
Perhaps the most popular 10 inch netbook for the second half of 2010
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