Asus Eee PC S101

Review by Julian Prokaza on Tue 07 October 2008

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Summary

Guide price
£449.00
Rating
 5 out of 6
Good
Fabulous good looks; very slim & light; large SSD
Bad
Precariously pricey for a netbook; would benefit from HSDPA for "high end" tag
Verdict
The Asus Eee PC S101 is a truly stunning netbook, but we'd like to see at least a small bump in the specs to justify that "high end" price tag.
Manufacturer
Asus

Review

Asus Eee PC S101Leaked photos have already hinted at the existence of a high-end Eee PC from Asus, but little else has so far been revealed about this sleek new netbook – until today, that is. Asus has now officially announced the Eee PC S101 and Mobile Computer is lucky enough to have scooped the worldwide exclusive review.

“High-end netbook” might sound like an oxymoron, not least because the whole point of these little mobile internet devices is 'low-cost, low-power'. The thinking at Asus, however, is that the S101 will appeal to people who have so far been put off buying an Eee PC because of its ‘built to a budget’ appearance, and in that respect, the S101 is a big success – it’s gorgeous.

Asus Eee PC S101

The S101 is about the same size as the Eee PC 1000, but a little shorter and a lot slimmer – just 23mm at the front (not including the feet) and 26mm at the back, compared to 29mm/38mm on the 1000 (though the S101’s tapered front edge fools you into thinking it’s slimmer still – just like with the Apple MacBook Air). At just under 1.1kg, it’s lighter than both the Eee PC 1000 and even the Eee PC 901, which weigh in at 1.44kg and 1.3kg, respectively.

Asus Eee PC S101Asus Eee PC S101

So, the Eee PC S101 is slim and sleek, but yes – its lid is brown (or ‘mocha brown’, if you believe Asus). It is a rich, metallic brown with a gloss finish though, and we rather like it. A couple of other finishes will also apparently be available, though – “champagne” and “graphite” (we’re guessing light and dark grey…). The two halves of the case have a narrow silver strip running around their perimeter to add a touch of contrast, and the slender hinge has the same silver plastic finish.

Asus Eee PC S101

Asus Eee EPCS101-BRN004X specification

Processor
Intel Atom N270 (1.6GHz)
Memory
1Gb DDR2
Graphics
Intel GMA 945
Hard disk
16Gb SSD / 32Gb SSD (Windows XP/Linux)
Optical drive
NA
Floppy drive
NA
Screen
10.2in (1024 x 600) LED backlit
Connectivity
802.11b/g/n, Bluetoth 2.0, Ethernet, 3 x USB 2.0, VGA, SD Card, 3.5mm mic & headphone
Other
Webcam, 16Gb SD Card with Windows XP model
Operating system
Windows XP or Xandros Linux
Size
266 x 191 x 28mm
Weight
1.06kg
Battery life
Light use: 5:11; heavy use: 3:34 (4900mAh)
Warranty
2 years UK C&R

Comments


Comment 1
neutral
Flandry 19:43 on 7 Oct 2008

I didn't see anything about battery replacement. Can it be changed out by the user?

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Comment 2
neutral
Julian Prokaza | registered | 58 posts 23:07 on 7 Oct 2008

It's a standard, replaceable battery - nothing funky here.

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Comment 3
neutral
cjdshaw 23:16 on 7 Oct 2008

Do you think the crystals on the hinges could be pried out without damaging the case? I'm not sure my friends would let me live them down

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Comment 4
neutral
ron 23:30 on 7 Oct 2008

doesnt this model have an onboard Intel GMA 950 like the other EEE's as well as Geforce 9300 GS graphics??? or is that the N10?

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Comment 5
neutral
Sam 02:41 on 8 Oct 2008

Why is it that the battery life of this model is substantially less than that of the (cheaper & slightly larger but otherwise identical) eee 1000 according to your tests? Does this one in fact have a smaller capacity battery than the 1000 to keep its size down?

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Comment 6
neutral
oioi 04:15 on 8 Oct 2008

does have a multi-touch pad likes the other eeepc??

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Comment 7
neutral
Robin 08:44 on 8 Oct 2008

It looks nicer then the 1000 but still the keyboard right shift is not ok. The size and weight is ofcourse a big plus but I'm not into the SSD for now I'd rather have a bigger HHD in their but ofcourse this causes that it would much more be live the Asus 1000 or N10 or NC10 from Samsung I'm very curious to see what the Samsung NC10 will do in the comparison chart (battery),specs,pricing. I will probably wait for that one to launch early November in Europe (The Netherlands)

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Comment 8
neutral
Lardo 14:57 on 8 Oct 2008

Netbooks tend to run a little warm due to their small casing, so it´s easy to guess that with this machine will be an even bigger problem.It´s beyond me why reviewers tend to "forget" about this aspect which greatly affects their usefullness.Any info about it, please??

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Comment 9
neutral
DustyMac 02:29 on 9 Oct 2008

I've been asking PCers ever since I went Mac 8 yrs ago, by accident, w/ a lent laptop (&, true to the saying, never went back!). Took me several yrs to realize all those others have vents on the bottom (sorry, you British folks; I have gather that particular term may be rude, but I don't know what to call the side on the reverse of the side with the Apple logo. ;-) What the devil? Three Mac laptops in a row, back to 9.0, and not only is the fan soundless, but the vents are on the left, right, and back. What a concept!I keep asking. Fellow Macheads (actually, I'm not a fanboy, but a fangirl, no pun meant), just act like I'm a dumb girl, and Gates people change the subject. Yeah, Apple is more expensive, but how can something be sold as a laptop--altho' last few years I notice the other companies dodge that term; if it can't safely be used, either on a lap, or on any other surface, with out some sort of barrier below, to let it breath???Thank you. So glad I found this site.As for those Asus's, I got in on the first day of the One Laptop Per Child, and that works great for light & easy for travelling. Fun, too. Just hope by the time I can justify getting an Air, they will be in 'cute' colors, too. I really like those crystals on this new Eee PC. Too bad it's a PC, Linux or no.

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Comment 10
neutral
ProDigit 23:22 on 13 Oct 2008

yeah, getting an overpriced $900 mac with sub performance properties may be the way for you to go LOSER!You paste the same thing all over the internet.. I went over to mac and all of a sudden I have no worries anymore!Like only a sucker believes that!Let alone you can hardly get any software to work on it (except for sub quality products).Anyways, Asus again made a STUPID move to sell. All over the internet people where complaining about the too high price for a mininetbook.Instead they chose to even raise the price even higher!I might as well go for a Sony Vaio.Also batterylife/performance statistics don't make no sense if you compare an EEEPC ATOM system, with another EEEPC ATOM system. They should perform the same!Both have GMA950, and ATOM. Maybe one was in battery life powersetting?Another thing, I hate the screen's bezel.too big.Another thing, 10" is no longer a small notebook.9" is about the best combination you can get for screensize and keyboard size.I mean, might as well buy a 13" Core2Duo laptop for $100 more!Small and cheap! that's where we should aim to!

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Comment 11
neutral
Paul 04:40 on 19 Oct 2008

does it use the same battery & charger as the 901 & 1000?
Is the screen as good outdoors as the 1000?
Thanks for all the info!

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Comment 12
neutral
Mark 00:59 on 20 Oct 2008

Does anyone know if the SDD can be easily upgraded? How about system memory? Can I easily upgrade the memory from 1GB to 2GB and the SDD from 16GB/32GB to 64GB or 128GB if I purchase a third party SDD?

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Comment 13
neutral
anonymous 17:30 on 22 Oct 2008

They made it lighter by giving it a smaller battery. The 1000 and 900's (at least some) have a 6 cell 6600 mAh battery(at least in North America). The S101 has a 4900 mAh one. I'd rather get the extra hours and carry the minimal extra weight around.

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Comment 14
neutral
Paul King 08:53 on 30 Oct 2008

hi, just got delivery of my asus eeepc s101 and its brill, much better than my eeepc 900 and well worth the upgrade, in uk you can buy i think if they still have from www.asusnotebooks.co.uk directly and get option of 2048mb memory upgrade.i prefer the xp as linux was harder for me as i am a none techie

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Comment 15
neutral
Robert Pirillo 15:27 on 14 Nov 2008

I hope to see that Viyya Technology is adde to the EeePc soon for web 2.0 cloud computing

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