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Photos: Eee PC 901 vs Acer Aspire One

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We already know you want an Eee PC 901 -- everybody does. But you also want the Acer Aspire One, don't you, you Internet-loving netbook fiend? We happen to have them both in the house, so we thought we'd stick them side by side and write a few words that'll help you choose which is right for you.

The Eee PC 901 has already wowed us. Its 8.9-inch screen, 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor, 1GB of RAM and 20GB solid-state hard drive -- plus 20GB of free online storage -- is pretty much perfect for this sort of product, as is the 4+ hours of real-world battery life from the 6600mAh battery pack. The £319 price tag isn't bad either.

The Aspire One is available in a wider range of configurations, including a £220 entry-level model. But here's how it stacks up against the Eee PC 901, pound for pound: 8.9-inch screen, 1.6GHz Atom CPU, 1GB of RAM, and an 80GB mechanical hard drive -- which offers more storage, but is more fragile. The One also packs an optional 3G module for surf-anywhere Web access. The 2200mAh battery simply sucks, though -- you'll get two hours at best.

Which is best? It's a close call, but we reckon the Eee might just have the edge -- provided you're not typing anything. Anyway -- enough with the words. Have a look at the pictures, then tell us what you think in comments below. -Rory Reid

Update: Read our full Acer Aspire One review.

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Comments

AnonymousFri 20 June, 2008 2:21am

Hey, you are not 100% true about the keyboard size. If you size both, horizontally the asus is bigger!!!!. The Acer One have the separation betwen keys more pronounced than the Asus, and the keys are more deeper. The unique advantage of the One is in the vertical size of the keys, but for confortable typing you need more horizontal space, not vertical....

AnonymousFri 20 June, 2008 2:40am

No SDHC support in the Asus - big mistake, particuraly with only an 8gb SSD

aamircFri 20 June, 2008 8:22am

not necessarily the gap between the keys in the acer allow you to press individual keys easier... also the no gap keyboard on the asus would be annoying to type on... However the eee pc is a hell of alot smaller.... but how small do you really want it.... The Eee pc linux interface looks miles better than the Acer linux interface. Seems like to me that Asus spent more time on theirs.

Rory could you possibly get your hands on a Gigabyte M912 UMPC and make a review of it... it seems to me you keep on reviewing the same thing over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. Eee, Eee and Eee again.

AnonymousFri 20 June, 2008 9:12am

It does have SDHC support. Get your facts right.

AnonymousSat 21 June, 2008 2:01pm

Can you give us the official dimensions and weight of the 901? I cant find them anywhere.

AnonymousMon 23 June, 2008 4:02am

901 demensions & weight:
225mm(W) x 175.5mm(D) x 22.7mm~ 39mm (H), 1.1kg ( 2.43lbs)

AnonymousMon 23 June, 2008 3:32pm

Hello, how are you missing the HUGE discrepancy in price? The last screenshot should be of the pricetag.

AnonymousWed 25 June, 2008 9:54am

How about pictures of the power adaptors ? How big / heavy are they ?

AnonymousWed 2 July, 2008 6:09am

I agree with anonymous: its a pretty close battle UNTIL you get to the price.

Were looking for a second laptop to carry with us when we visit granny or when we travel, so price is very important.

The only thing that scares me about the One is that small battery.

AnonymousSun 6 July, 2008 12:50am

Bigger battery is available for the One, UK cost ~£80 which brings it back up to near the Eee 901. If they can sort the 3G, I'd lean towards the One, although the peculiar trackpad mouse buttons location would take some getting used to.

AnonymousMon 14 July, 2008 11:33am

No Compact Flash readers = no sale. Acer is close. Price difference in the USA is LARGE. US$550 vs. US$380 Asus vs Acer. ASUS is now offering a US$100 rebate, an 18% discount.

BTW CF cards can achieve 266x with a lifespan 10x greater than the SSD's provided by both companies.

AnonymousMon 14 July, 2008 1:31pm

The eee is a nightmare to type on, I´ll go with the One.

AnonymousTue 15 July, 2008 11:15pm

@anonymous 25 june: Maybe a bit late, but after i bought the asus i was surprised with the adaptor size of it, it is relatively small. Approximately an 1/3 of my asus laptop (and i think every normal laptops) adaptor.

AnonymousThu 17 July, 2008 2:04am

the case for the acer is noticeably larger while the screen is the same size. this doesn't make any damn sense.

yeah, yeah, keyboard, whatever. I've got no problems typing on the eee 700 keyboard, so maybe it's just you?

AnonymousSat 19 July, 2008 9:53am

I was confused about the webcam; is it 0.3 megapixels or 1.3?
And is the bluetooth optional? It seems some reviewers say it has and some say it doesn't. If it's an option what's the price differece.

Btw, Asus 701 keyboard is OK. I've been typing a lot lot for the last 4 months and didn't have a bit of a problem there. And I'm male with big fingers :)

AnonymousSat 19 July, 2008 10:51am

Re your comment on hard drive, hence greater fragility: there's also a flash memory version of the Acer.

AnonymousSat 19 July, 2008 11:11am

So on the flash version, presumably I can stick in something like a
SanDisk 2GB Secure Digital (SD) Card for a meagre amount of money... Sounds good to me. Or am I missing something here?

AnonymousFri 25 July, 2008 8:50am

Actually SDHC full compatible i have my A-Data SDHC 16Gb Class 6 special edition for Eee pc today on my Asus

AnonymousMon 28 July, 2008 7:17pm

In the first picture it looks like the Eee is eating the Aspire One. Personally I think the Eee is the better purchase, simply because of the battery life. The Eee 1000 model has a wider keyboard than the 901, which would definately give Asus the market if they'd just drop their price! They're fools to price it so high.

AnonymousSun 3 August, 2008 12:19pm

I have both Asus EEE and Acer Aspire One I think, Acer's SSD Drive is so week to have Windows or any other OS then Acer's Linux when Asus support Windows XP perfectly so Asus EEE is 100 times better then Acer's Aspire

AnonymousSun 3 August, 2008 10:34pm

Personnally I think that the aspire is much more stylish but cant compare in quality to Asus I havent had great luck with acer but I need lots of space and my big fingers arent great on the asus has anyone other than me noticed that while they are opened (in cnet pic) the Asus looks kinda like the dual USB iBook G4 ?

AnonymousSat 16 August, 2008 3:24am

Is 6600000 micro Amp hours better than 6600mAh or better than 6.6 Ah?
What about 6600000000 pico Amp hours?

You should not let manufacturers choose your units of measure.

Just use Ah.

AnonymousSat 16 August, 2008 10:13am

Correct me if I'm wrong. The 901 has wireless N but the acer doesn't. Maybe some of the price difference is because of that feature. Can anyone who has experience with both give a comparison for the build quality. I'm thinking about getting a 901 but the Acer One seems tempting as well.

AnonymousSat 16 August, 2008 12:58pm

I have been looking at both of these... along with the MSI... how does the MSI match up with the Asus and Acer? Any thoughts?

AnonymousWed 20 August, 2008 2:34pm

Well, I made my choice and bought the one, it has 120 gig hard drive and only £249.
I touch type and found it very easy to use, have to avoid touching the mouse pad when typing. I think the one is really nice piece of kit. I have the linux version, still new to this, but it seem ok, and boots in around 10 seconds very clear screen.
TC

AnonymousThu 21 August, 2008 10:50pm

Asus will do a last min price drop i think. Or Acer will pull a trump card and supply with a larger AH battery for a fraction more. This has to be a war for both companies. If i was CEO i would have all stops out to destroy the other companies sales.

AnonymousSat 23 August, 2008 11:52am

Well, I went to the electronic store locally and I must say that the Acer was much easier to write on. Maybe the Asus has a larger keypad, but their layout is just stupid. The Acer on the other hand has a much bigger and right placed backspace, enter and shift key. I could probably have recommended the Asus for the ones with very small hands, but otherwise I feel that it's too small for me anyway. And my hands are big, but my fingers aren't so fat, so... I would recommend you to try it befor even considering to buy any of them.