Skinn-Eee Asus out next week
MacBook Air-style non-removable battery included
Asus' MacBook Air-style Eee PC 1008HA - aka Seashell - goes on sale in the UK next week, the company said today.
Asus' 1008HA: skin-eee
This 10in "user-centric blend of timeless design and effortless mobility" - and there were we thinking it was just a netbook - weighs just 1.1kg and is no more than an inch thick. Like the Air, it's well curvy and packs its ports behind fold-out flaps.
See the 1008HA on video here
The 1008HA's battery - which Asus called "integral", though we assume it actually meant 'integrated'; all laptop batteries are integral - is built into the machine and can't be (easily) swapped by users. But Asus did claim the power pack will deliver up to six hours' on-the-go runtime.
Non-removable battery on board
Inside, there's a 1.6GHz Intel Atom N280 processor, 1GB of DDR 2 memory, a 160GB hard drive with Windows XP on it, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1, a 1024 x 600 display and SRS Surround Sound audio.
The 1008HA goes on sale on 15 May for around £379. ®
Asus Netbook Reviews
COMMENTS
@"Battery Trolls"
Where as I agree with you that there really isn't a need for "EVERYONE" to need to swap out a battery, I have to admit that both my laptops (one for power, one for small size) have 2nd batteries. I also know of quite a few people that have 2nd batteries. This is probably because we travel a substantial amount, and invariably are not near power outlets, or have time to charge up the laptops when we are near one.
Hell, I know of one chap that has 4 batteries, but then he is 'old skool' and prefers to have them rather than a connector that plugs into the airplane terminals...
Again, agree with you, but there some of us that do have secondary batteries (cue Metallica!)
Good idea...
... if the battery really does deliver 6hrs battery life, surely there won't be much of a reason to swap it out, short of there not being a Starbucks within 100 miles of your location?!
The point is here - and it's been made about price - is that there must be a sweet point when it comes to battery life.
I'll put a fiver on it being, er, 8hrs or above...
Wot No Linux option?
Its a bit of a shame that they're not selling it with an SSD and Linux on it, that would definately be my preferred option... still may get one.
@Nathan Hobbs
Anyone who opens the machine?
Having seen sparks and smoke from the RAM fittings when duncehead here forgot to pop the battery out, I can assure you that I will NEVER forget to do that again! Each of my machines gets cracked open to a greater or lesser extent at least twice a year to give the innards a good blast of compressed air and get the dust out of the fan enclosures and heat sinks. And besides, I like to have the “emergency shut down” route for if liquid ends up on the machine…
Battery Trolls
Ok, everyone (EVERYONE) I work with uses a laptop as their primary computer. None of them have a 2nd battery. I question whether the huge number of people posting about needing a removable battery have every removed a battery or own a 2nd battery for their current laptop.
Anyone complaining about the non-removable battery is just a bandwagon-jumping-troll. In the future, it should be required if anyone is going to complain about a non-removable battery, they include a picture of themselves with their current laptop and their extra batteries. Because if I don't see it, I don't believe they swap batteries.
Based on my rather large sample size: NO ONE swaps out batteries.
