[geeks] ASUS dual-core Atom-based netbook

[Lionel Peterson]

See in-line comments...

On Jan 12, 2010, at 2:48 AM, Jonathan Groll <lists at groll.co.za> wrote:

> On Mon, Jan 11, 2010 at 10:30:39PM -0500, Lionel Peterson wrote:
>> For those curious, ASUS has a new dual-core 330 Atom based netbook
>> with ION graphics, the PC-1210N - it takes up to 8 Gig of RAM (2x  
>> DDR2
>> SoDIMM slots) and has a 12" display (1366x768) with HDMI port, for
>> $499 at Newegg & Amazon.
>>
>> Looks nice, but that is very close to a low-end laptop, save for  
>> battery life.
>
> I guess the bottleneck on that machine would be the speed of the Atom
> processors, since it is so like a conventional laptop.

It is and isn't. The graphics 'should' be better than typical budget  
laptop. (ION not available widely outside of netbook market, is it?)  
Lack of optical drive and battery life also are differentiators, as  
well as physical packaging (12" vs. 15" display, for example).

> I wonder if
> it's all that good in terms of value for money - afterall you can buy
> a similar specced celeron laptop for $100 less (and that comes with
> GigE; 3GB RAM and win 7 pro): http://tinyurl.com/ycbge97

That link is to an interesting system, packaged with Win7  
Professional, it could find a home on a AD domain. This laptop is  
priced at $499, same as the netbook.

> How would a 2.2 GHz celeron stack up against the dual core atom?

For true web browsing, mahjongg-playing, email, etc., the dual-core  
Atom might seem more responsive to the user, but push the laptop/ 
netbook a bit harder, and I suspect the Celeron would come out on top.

I've said I wanted a dual-core Atom netbook, but I'm leaving my money  
in my pocket (for now) Intel has a new Atom (Z540, IIRC) that supports  
hyperthreading and Intel-VT, so I could run WinXP Mode or a hypervisor  
on it... That could be fun, so I'll wait and see where that chip winds  
up.

What would be nice would be a laptop that can take 8 gigs of RAM and  
sports a Wolfdale E3200 or E3300 CPU, with it's dual cores and Intel- 
VT support... (This CPU sells fo $40-60 Retail)

Lionel