OSNews

Shouldn't pressing in the middle of both buttons (e.i. pressing both at the same time) do the middle button trick?


Sure, the version they'll sell in Germany will have German keyboard layout, why wouldn't it?


The announced price was 400 Euro. We'll see once it's available if demand doesn't push the price up.

Yes and no. Pressing buttons 1 + 2 does a middle mouse click, which usually outputs the edit buffer at the current cursor position. Pressing the physical middle mouse button enables the mouse wheel function - you move the mouse in Y direction and you get a much smoother mouse wheel. Having both functionalities on buttons 1 + 2 at the same time isn't very attractive. Just imagine a double middle mouse button click.



I'm a programmer. We usually estimate values bigger than neccessary, so we won't run into trouble later. Regarding prices, they seem to be much cheaper than we feared. :-)

I'd really like to get such a little helper, but still, 400 Euro is much money here in Germany. And I don't get much money at my current job so it's still "too expensive" - at least for me.

I'm also really waiting for such device with a Trackpoint...yes, touchpad vs. trackpoint comes down to personal preference, but:
a) even when ones preference is a touchpad, it's harder to use the smaller it gets...which brings us to point
b) it's perfectly suited for such size-constrained machines

Here's hoping Lenovo will do something about it...

For the forseeable future, you'd probably be best off to pick up a refurb. x31 or x40.

Most of the big laptop makers are stubbornly refusing to sell any laptops below a certain price point (and, by extension, profit margin). It seems to be the Apple business model, where products aren't discontinued when they become technically-obsolete - instead, products are discontinued once the profit margin falls to a certain level.

It seems to be largely a holding-action, to try to prevent laptop computers from becoming as "commoditized" as desktop PCs. I suspect it's going to be ultimately futile - there's obviously demand for low-cost laptops. And with companies like Asus stepping up to fill that demand, that's going to eventually/hopefully to force Dell, Acer, HP, Lenovo, et al.

It was starting to feel as the big-name laptop makers were engaging in round-about/accidental price fixing - by way of an unwillingness to compete on price when it comes to laptops (out of fear of jeopardizing the price premium that laptops typically command).

IMO, that's the best thing about the Eee PC: its existence will (hopefully) shake off some of the stagnation that has become the status-quo with laptops.

Yes, it does, but I may tell you what I miss:

1. The device has a glidepad. It would be great to have an option to buy it with a trackpoint instead. Furthermore, I miss the middle mouse button which is sooo important if you want to run your UNIX / Linux GUI stuff in an adequate manner.

http://www.cnet.co.uk/i/c/rv/e/laptops/asus/eee_pc-901/story_2.jpg "

Seriously, ever since I've been using a Thinkpad (bit worn-out X40), I cannot imagine anyone would want to put up with a laptop without a trackpoint-style pointing device.

But that may also be because the Thinkpads have something else going for it, i.e. the best three "mouse" buttons ever designed on laptops. No to mention the keyboard that doesn't flex like most other crap laptop keyboards do.
If they'd put that on the Eee, that would be smart.

I know, it takes most people at least five minutes to get used to a trackpoint, that's too much for most of use.



In the Hague there's a store that's going to sell it for 400 (the Linux version, Dutch warranty).
I'm thinking of getting my brother one, or the MSI wind, depending on which one of them is the first to be available with a *really* efficient chip. IMHO the goal that any tiny laptop makes should have is 24 hour battery life plus the ability to charge the battery manually if necessary (at the gym, for instance).

I mean, say you're on a train to the south of France and you want to work for hours, then most laptops are still a joke when it comes to battery life.
It can be done, and it will be done, eventually.

Forget the trackpoint. What I want is a touchscreen (with stylus input). Like the Psion netBook. Now that was a pleasure to use!

If you don't mind gaps in your keyboard ;o)