Asus Eee 1215N is finally here
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The previously covered Asus Eee 1215N has finally been unveiled – sporting an impressive 1.8 Ghz Intel Atom Processor and ION 2 graphics by Nvidia. Reviewers like CNET and PCWorld have gotten their hands on one – and it’s looking good. The 1215N is being rated under the 4 out of 5 stars range, citing its speedy processor and graphics performance capability compared to other netbooks, but are concerned of its keyboard. PCWorld has noted that the new trackpad is much larger than an ordinary netbook – great for people who don’t like tiny trackpads (like me!). Instead of a glossy finish like most Eee PC’s, Asus has decided to slap on a matte finish with the 1215N. Although it’s an improvement over the fingerprint-magnet of the other netbooks in the Eee line, it still requires the occasional Handi-wipe.
Review Roundup:
- The 1215N, with a dual core 1.8 Ghz Intel Atom Processor and ION 2 graphics, is the fastest netbook available on the market.
- HD video playback works really well with the ION 2 chip.
- The 1215N is quite capable of light 3d gaming, but games like Crysis won’t run too well.
- ION2 scores a 3dMark06′ score of 2,941
- The dual core processor and better graphics take a toll on the battery life, which has been noted to be 5 hours long.
- Speakers are more full and sound more like speakers
- The trackpad is massive compared to other netbooks
- Keyboard isn’t perfect
- 3.3 pounds
- Glossy 12″ 1336×768 screen
- Trackpad buttons aren’t the best
- Runs Windows 7 Home Premium instead of Home Basic
The 1215N is slated to cost $500, and currently, you can currently purchase it from Excalibur PC.
I have many questions. Question number…
1. $500 USD or CAD?
2. Trackpad buttons are too hard to press or what?
3. Keyboard isn’t perfect as in…?
4. Games like Crysis would still be slow even on lowest graphics?
Thanks…
1. It’s $500 in the US, and 450 Euros I think.
2. Apparently they’re a bit hard to press down, because instead of having two dedicated buttons (like on a Dell Studio 15) it’s a sort of like a volume rocker.
3. The keyboard isn’t full-size, it’s actually 96%.
4. I’m not too sure about Crysis, but it may run it at lowest settings. Source engine games will run really nicely, most notably Portal and Left 4 Dead.
They always use rocker switches for Eee’s.
Thanks Brian! Apparently, my Asus laptop also has the same problem for the tracker; it’s hard to press down!
I’ve been wanting to get my hands on a 1215n for a while. My 1005HA is dying due to a hinge issue, and me being a bit of a gamer, a GMA 950 isn’t going to cut it.
ASUS left out the expected USB3.0 ports and Bluetooth capability, but it’s still a great laptop for the price. Hopefully in other versions or new netbooks on the Eee line will bring what the 1215n doesn’t have.
My Asus is kind of a rip off.
Had no idea it could play games in semi-high quality mode until this year! Unfortunately, the stupid Kaspersky 2010 keeps quarantining my source-games thinking it’s some sort of a worm or trojan variant! It’s so annoying. It says that it has detected 39 threats, and neutralized on my computer. I always have to either shut down the AV or go through the complicating settings just to put it in the exclusion area. Screw Kaspersky.
*Rip off, as in over priced.
Really? I’ve been a Kaspersky user for about 3 years, and it’s never quarantined any of my games, and I have >200 hours logged in Team Fortress 2.
My issue with Kaspersky is it’s quite the resource hog. I used to use Kaspersky on my trusty Eee 1005HA and switched to Avast! for a while. Ever since then, I’ve been keeping track of how fast my computer boots, usually around 30-45 seconds to get to the desktop. But when I installed Kaspersky again because I thought I had a virus that Avast! wouldn’t catch, it raised my boot time to 2-3 minutes.
Switched back to Avast!. It’s a great piece of software.