Asus Eee PC 1015PN netbook with NVIDIA ION 2 up for pre-order

1. I believe optimus auto switch doesn’t work on win 7 starter so I imagine the starting price with win 7 premium brings it up near to $500! Ouch.

2. Bahh! This suspense is killing me. Everything with this netbook sounds perfect so far. Just need final confirmation on screen resolution and battery life. If both are high then I am sold.

3. Generally speaking, whether people think it’s practical or not, people do play games on their netbooks. It’s just more of a hobby or just the practical way to have fun on the go when nothing better is available.

   Really, if you can have fun with a DS then you can have fun with a netbook.

   Larger is better but you’re not going to be taking your PS3 with you everywhere you go and besides even people who game don’t game all the time. It’s one of the reason so many people converted their old original XBox into media centers.

   The majority will probably use the 1015PN for media, and it’s better for that than gaming, but it’s nice being able to use it for light gaming even if you hardly ever use it that way and helps avoid carrying too much stuff on trips and long outings for which that’s the main appeal.

   Even the older 1201N ION system was more of a media system than a gaming system. Gaming feature was just emphasized because it could play games that could never be played on a regular netbook, and many interested in the 1015PN are just looking for something that can last a long time on battery power and still give enough performance when needed and for comparison the N550 does score better than the N330. So you get better overall performance than 1201N, less than the 1215N, but better battery run time than both.

   For those serious about a gaming system though then break the bank on a Asus ROG G53 or even bigger G73.

   1. Yes gaming aside it will mean smooth hd video across the board which netbooks have to date mainly struggled with without say the broadcom hd (which isn’t perfect).

      I couldn’t even preview my hd camcorder clips on my old pinetrail netbook without a lengthy conversion.

4. I will buy one for the reasons:
   1. Light and small enough for my backpack. 10″ is just fit!
   2. HD video playback for the 42″ HDMI TV in my parent’s house.
   3. Long battery life for internet browsing and stocks trading while in traveling.
   I won’t use it for gaming. For best gaming experience, I prefer playing games in a PS3 or XBOX360~

   1. That must be a small backpack!

5. The acer 521 is a better all round netbook package. Sells for $330 and has an ATI GPU and a CPU 3x better than a regular atom.

   1. Problem for the Acer Aspire 521 is battery run time is significantly less and GPU isn’t better than the ION. Main advantage is the CPU, which is single core, and so depends on what balance of features best suite you.Difference in price can easily be surpassed by the added cost of either a higher capacity 3rd party battery or getting additional batteries to make up the run time difference.

      So not an obvious choice for mobile users.

      1. 95% of people will be happy with 5hr runtime. This is likely to be only a few more at the most. GPU is only marginally lowerJust saying the acer 521 is a better buy for a $ conscious buyer looking for a 10″ with GPU … unless you are regularly stranded on a desert island.

         1. You’ll get much less than 5hr runtime while gaming… though this is also true with a ION system (just not as severe), For those who actually need all day computing it makes a difference if you can consistently get over 5 hours for even basic usage and an additional 3-4 hours can be significant in that choice.Nvidia’s Optimus for example allows the ION to be completely shut off when not needed and thus the 1015PN could get as much run time as the 1015PEM gets.Upgrade the screen to a Pixel Qi and you can even get over 10 hours then during daylight hours…

            The less you need the power adapter the more light weight and portable you can be and it’s not the same experience if you have to be near a plug most of the time…

            1. Yes the optimus part is sweet.

               I ditched my last netbook partly because it was a little too slow for me (atom 1.66 single core). I guess really I appreciate the acer’s processor power over the battery life and slightly better gpu of this one. Plus an extra $100 in my pocket.

               Well of course I am just going from benchmarks here – i wonder what is the difference in the real world.

               In the end the fact that there are some really interesting alternatives to choose from (other than the boring single core atom 1.66) is a plus for everyone. Surely will revitalize the netbook market.

            2. Yes, up till now Intel had no competition in the netbook market. So hopefully now we’ll finally see some real innovations or at least a final push to get something better…

               It took AMD awhile but they’re finally getting serious about the sub notebook market, with Intel always being lazy to make advancements unless they need to, and competition in the end is good for us end consumers.

               Though real world use will depend on how you use the system and what you are running. Right now the AMD solutions are like low end CULV’s. So definitely better performance than a ATOM but still not equal to higher end CULV and far less that high end notebook systems.

               It’s mainly the battery run time advantage and general lack of need for anything really powerful on the go that keeps netbooks as a viable choice over AMD solutions right now… Also not all AMD solutions are as cheap as the Acer Aspire 521, especially if using the dual core chips. But with Fusion coming out next year that can all change…

               For now though, regardless of which you go with just upgrading the HDD to SSD can add a noticeable performance boost even to a low end netbook. With prices finally dropping in the SSD market it should make for an easier choice of upgrade.

               You can also over clock the ATOM’s without losing too much on battery run time and help lessen the gap between them and the AMD solutions, but for now the AMD solution does have the CPU advantage.

            3. i saw here https://liliputing.com/2010/09/asus-eee-pc-1015ped-review.html the acer 521 is much quicker at cpu tasks than the dual core atom. So it is the usual power vs battery life decision. The single core atom never cut it for me even with 10 hours of battery life. This promises to be better so I am still considering it.

               I totally agree about the ssd. I have a low end culv at the moment with an SSD. It cost me $140 for 80gb. This set up now serves as my main computer. My wife has an i5 with a hdd and i prefer mine over it! Though i am not doing intensive tasks. I’d put in an ssd just to get a working environment in around 20-30 seconds over a hdd at 60 seconds+

            4. Yes, the 521 as stated does have a clear CPU advantage, which is why I said lessen the gap and not over come it. Not even an over clock can close that large a gap.

               It’s also why I compared it to a low end CULV, before these AMD solutions there wasn’t anything between an ATOM or a CULV. Now AMD fills the gap between the ATOM and CULV’s with a few higher end chips like the K625 entering CULV level performance.

               Much quicker is relative though, dual core isn’t applicable to all applications. So single core can have advantage at applications that for whatever reason can’t use the second core. While application that do take advantage of the second core can potentially get the equivalent of double the performance as early benchmarks of the N550 indicated. So performance will vary depending on what you’re doing but no doubt single core performance gives the 521 a large advantage.

               But also as mentioned an Over Clock could help lessen the gap. Since the N550 is a bit under clocked at 1.5GHz to help it conserve power, while the D525 runs 1.83Ghz and has been successfully over clocked to just over 2.1 GHz.

               So if the N550 can be similarly over clocked then the gap shouldn’t be as big. This is though just to help those who can live with less performance decide. Since compared to the previous generation ATOM’s it does score noticeably better as is and helps make the netbook performance that much better than it was before. Add the battery run time and slightly better ION graphical performance and it can still compare pretty well to the Acer Aspire 521 in balance.

               There are also more CUDA accelerated apps available than offered for ATI/AMD… So depends on both user preference and what they intend to run.

               I’m giving an honest assessment, so one point to add to Acer advantage though is they generally make it easier to access the hard drive than Asus has ever since they adopted the Seashell case design and pretty made RAM the only thing you don’t need to open the whole case to reach. Though Asus generally has a better average build quality than Acer.

               SSD can potentially also help increase battery run time, depending on how you use the system and how efficient the HDD you replace was… Also if you’re one of those who find drive noise annoying then there isn’t much more silent than a SSD…

6. Specifically Dual core N550 instead of a D525 + ion2 is why i am so interested in this netbook.
   That could mean 9+ hours of runtime and be able to do same decent gaming when you want to.

7. Finally dual core atom combined with ion2. Make it a 12 inch screen and i will buy.
   Must be great to play a pot of R.U.S.E on it 😉

   1. Want 12″ then look for the 1215N… Uses D525 with NG-ION. Price is just around $70 more than the 1015PN…

8. lol, ok. first, who care’s about enthusiast gaming on a netbook. Second, who cares about USB 3.0. Third, MichaelPaul come visit me, I want to show you something. I have a feeling you’ll love it.

9. I did agree with Michealpaul about the price of netbooks, not about being”stupid” if you buy one. It is everyone’s own choice to buy whatever they want for whatever they want. I just don’t see how a netbook is worth $429. As for battery life they ALWAYS lie. My asus that’s supposed to get 10 hours will only get 8. That’s turning off wifi and bluetooth. While the Asus has a decent keyboard,and can play some games most people would prefer something a little bigger.
   I got a Dell with 4 gig ssd for $199. I cant see spending $429. As for weight I don’t care if my my laptop weighs 10 pounds, the exercise might do us all a little good.

   1. Like I pointed out, anything cheaper is old and/or using old parts or are refurbished. You’ll be hard pressed to even find a 4GB SSD anymore. They’re trying to get rid of them. You won’t find any new models that cheap! There are plenty of old Eee PC models you can get cheap too, but we’re discussing new models right now and they’ll always be priced higher than old models they are trying to get rid of…

      Netbooks right now range between $300-$400 on average. Any premium features like higher end CPU, higher end Graphics, Higher end Screen, etc. All add to the default price.

      CULV’s, unless you point to an older model, go over $600 on up. So $429 is well in the netbook price range. Really, netbooks are priced pretty much to the actual cost of their build. Profit margins for netbooks are smaller than pretty much any other computer system in the market.

      Besides, this is a pre-order from ExcaliburPC… which isn’t known for giving the best pre-order price. So might be less once other companies start selling it too. But really there isn’t a much of a reason to complain about this price for the features being offered.

      At best you can point to cheaper and probably more powerful offerings using AMD solutions, but AMD always had the price advantage over Intel and there are advantages and disadvantages to both…

   2. If you don’t care about weight you are obviously not an extensive traveler 😉 A 2.5-3lb machine is perfect for travel. When i’m traveling a lot i still appreciate a reasonably powerful machine. I’m not in the group that could say get away with using an ipad or your dell and leave their laptop at home. I could easily use this for a month away from home and not miss my laptop. That is me and you are you. Some people could easily justify the $429 price for these features but for you it is over powered for your needs and so how much you value it.

10. The Asus Eee PC 1015PN looks like a pretty good netbook, it has dual-core atom, DDR3, a nvidia GPU, and a 1366×768 screen, so it is in theory capable of genuine computing tasks and PC gaming, but i still think i’d prefer the extra power of Fusion with an 11.6″ screen.

    https://jedibeeftrix.wordpress.com/2010/08/28/redefining-the-netbook-%E2%80%93-how-gaming-and-productivity-tasks-broke-the-atom/

    1. Fusion does look good, though AMD has yet to show it’s claims of CPU performance of the Bobcat are true. So far on their demo units they have carefully avoided any tests on the CPU and only have demonstrated the GPU performance.

       But the more choices the better and it usually takes AMD threatening to take over part of the Market before Intel gets off it’s proverbial butt and start innovating… Intel has dominated the Netbook market for far too long without any serious competition until now.

11. Not counting last gen CULV’s, which they are trying to get rid of now, the prices for CULV solutions are still over $600 on up for any new model. The price of the Dell Alienware M11x even goes from $799 to over $2200 depending on configuration.Similarly no new netbook price has dropped below $299. Any you have seen are either older models or models using old parts. While prices of Netbooks when they first came out went over $500. The only reason price has gone down was because they haven’t increased the performance significantly in over 2 years and used standardized system designs that reduce the cost of production. But adding anything new and/or redesigning means price goes right back up. So it’s actually significant that they can still keep the price below $500.Never mind netbooks still have the advantage of weight, size, and power efficiency over CULV and notebooks. CULV’s may have gotten close to the size and weight of netbooks but they still use more power and thus will generally have less run time with the same size battery than a netbook would get. So it’s not just about CPU performance. Never mind the cost of the battery can easily be a 3rd of the cost of the whole system once you go over basic six cell capacity.Meanwhile, Smartbooks are basically a Smartphone shoved into a netbook form factor. Go look up the Toshiba AC100’s tear down and you will see there is hardly anything in there, which is why it is so light, and there is no comparison of what is needed to power a ARM system versus either a Intel or AMD system. So the battery, which accounts for a good chunk of the weight, is going to be bigger for a netbook on up.Mind you that HD 10″ screens are more expensive than standard screens, along with new features like DDR3 RAM and Bluetooth 3.0, and ION by itself can add quite a bit to the price and it’s quite the deal to get it for only a $50 increase over the regular 1015PEM.So they are not over charging, you’re getting what you’re paying for and if you want more then pay more and get something more powerful.

12. I agree with Michealpaul, the cost of netbooks is getting absurd. Plus add the fact many come with a dud of a os stater, why bother. You can get a much more powerful notebook for only a little more, I like netbooks, I have 2 of them but I bought them with XP and cheaper prices. I did a check at Newegg and there sells are not anything like they used to be. Low power cpu = low price for me.

    1. exactly. A netbook should have a huge gap in price from a notebook.

       Only an idiot would spend so much for a netbook.

       Furthermore, its still so bloody heavy. Whilst smartbooks are going below 800grams, the stupid netbook is getting heavier at 1.4KGs

       1. Heavy? It is not like you are going to hold it up like an e-reader

13. Prices have jumped to $429?? Netbook buyers are plain stupid. Just plain stupid.

    Every IT or computer part ie like monitors, cpu, hard disks etc have gone down over the years but only the stupid netbook is going higher.

    It was going down initially to below the $200 mark but then, fools get suckered into marketing gimmick and start to creat deamd and supply.

    Seriously, why should I buy this trash when paying a bit more gets me an Asus UL20A? or any other CULV?

    1. You don’t “get it”. CULV gives you what type of gaming? Compare that to ION and get back to me. If you want gaming in a 10″, what options are there? Get back to me. Actually, I’ve save you the trouble. The answer is… none. Your CULV gives you what kind of battery life vs. Atom? Um what else is there? Oh, well people using a portable PC don’t need extra power in reality. If you can get a CULV at a netbook price, then the CULV sucks. Weight comparisons? You get the point. People are always willing to pay more for smaller, great battery and graphic power. Supply and demand. You can’t find any other 10″ with ION and dual core. It makes sense to me. You say why bother? Well enjoy your CULV. I hope you don’t have a toshiba because last time I checked those were recalled because they are a fire hazard. Long live CULV. Not.

       gemaster
       aka gman

       1. I asked the gaming community, everyone there laughed when I mentioned whether they would like to play on a 10 inch screen.

          I guess gamers like large screens. Nothing less than 12 inches.

          Maybe you like to game in a 4.8 inch screen netbook?

          1. Sorry your true colors are showing here. You are outclassed and pwned. What the 11.6″ Alienware all about? They laugh at that too? So, PSP, Nintendo DS and Gameboy are too small for gamers too. Interesting. So are those cell/smartphone games? I think you should quit now and keep your flailing reputation intact 😉

             Pay for a powerful CULV which sucks at gaming or buy ION and get gaming and portability. Nobody needs what CULV offers. I would gladly sacrifice power for 1 or 2 more hours of battery life. I have a real computer that I use for important intensive tasks. 90% of the public uses a computer for light tasks. Period.

             /end pwning

             gemaster
             aka gman

             1. 10 inches and 11.6 got big difference in size.

                What you talking about reputation? Huh?

                Why so emotional small boy?

             2. No offense intended. I’m trying to have fun while we debate.

    2. MP,
       you might want to see a doctor about your mental issues & also might want to look into getting a better job so that spending $100 extra doesnt make you so angry.

       Asus already made the netbook for you, its called the PEM. i & many others will GLADLY pay the premium for this version that gives ION + HD screen.

       theres nothing wrong with having a range of lowend to highend netbooks just like ALL other laptop sizes have. there are plenty of dirt cheap cookie cutter netbooks out there for people who dont want to spend extra.

       i say congrats to Asus, if everything holds true this is the best netbook ever created hands down.

       1. Neeroi, I was not angry. You need English grammar tuition to decipher what sentences can be construed as anger and not.

          Only an idiot would ask another to get a better job if one finds spending $100 more difficult.

14. I’ve read that ASUS latest netbooks will have usb 3.0, but I see the Specs on this latest ASUS Netbook having USB 2.0. Am I missing something, like maybe I could download USB 3.0 drivers? Also, will this processor support a 13×7 resolution that Excaliber and ASUS told you it has?

    Thanks for any education you can give me on this. I am low tech.

    Pat

    1. Basically not enough to go around yet, so Asus is limiting USB 3.0 to the premium model units.Like the 1215N doesn’t have USB 3.0 either but the more premium Asus Lamborghini VX6 does and they use the same motherboard.The two USB ports on the side though are on their own separate IO Board. So it’ll be fairly easy for Asus to add it in later as USB 3.0 becomes more wide spread or for users to upgrade later by swapping in the newer board.

15. 1GB of RAM?
    2GB should be the default by now. Is it because Intel/Microsoft still has those ridiculous restrictions on netbooks?

16. Okay, lets get this straight… Since the mere mention of Ion, people have been wanting it, even in a 10″ form, but Asus has said “no” time and time again. Now that the netbook is losing ground to pad based products, they finally offer a 10″ with one? Again, this is another example of manufacturers not delivering on what the people have wanted until it’s too little, too late.

    1. Actually, nvidia released a new ION platform recently which is
       designed specifically for 10 inch and smaller models.

Comments are closed.