Netbook Network

Netbooks have been getting better and better over the years, sporting faster processors, better graphics hardware, and in some cases, bigger screens. ASUS created the Eee 1215N for those who want a little more punch than an average netbook with more processing power and a faster graphics card from Nvidia instead of Intel, and yet reaps the advantages of portability and long battery life. Read on for a full review of this 12-inch “netbook” – or is it really just a laptop in disguise?

On the Outside

Hardware wise, ASUS has taken quite a few steps in the right direction for the 1215N. Right out of the box, you’ll notice that the netbook lid no longer has a shiny finish and instead, is matte. The touchpad area also has a matte finish. The keyboard area and screen border, however, still remain glossy. The problem with a glossy finish is that fingerprints get everywhere – and if you don’t clean them off, you’ll have more fingerprints than your local police department.

The choice to use a matte finish for the touchpad and lid was a smart move, as that’s where your hands go the most. Over time, though, those surfaces will too start to be covered in fingerprint oil. It’s not nearly as severe as the areas with a glossy finish, but it still requires a wipe-down every now and then.

Both the touchpad and keyboard are quite a pleasure to use. Nice and big, about 4 inches across, the touchpad is extremely large for netbook standards. Multitouch gestures work extremely well here, and you’ll get used to it in a pinch (pun intended). The only small complaint I have with the touchpad are the buttons, which can be stiff at times and hard to press down. As for the keyboard, ASUS has opted for a chiclet keyboard that’s quite comfortable to use. None of the keys are “half-keys”, made smaller to increase the room for the letter keys. Even though it’s not a full size keyboard, it’s close enough that you won’t even think you’re using a netbook.

Surrounding the device are quite the selection of ports. There are a total of 3 USB ports, and HDMI-out, VGA, Ethernet, and a headphone/mic input/output. For the half year that I’ve been using this device, I don’t think I’ve ever needed more than 3 USB ports, and this is with one always taken by the Arc Touch mouse.

ASUS decided to use a glossy screen rather than matte this time around. It’s really a matter of preference which you like more (I think glossy looks better). The viewing angles can seem a little limited, as the colors can begin to get washed out if the screen isn’t directly facing you. When it is facing you, though, the colors are quite vibrant, even without calibration. Under the sun, the colors won’t be as clear because it’s a glossy screen, though, so this isn’t exactly a machine that you want to use outside too much. Offering 12 inches of viewing space and a 1366×768 resolution, the screen size is a huge step up from an ordinary 1024×600 screen.

Other things include a dedicated wifi enable/disable button, two power buttons (I’ll go over that later) and a webcam privacy cover. The privacy cover isn’t of much use, considering a bright blue light shines right in your face in the case that your webcam turns on, but it doesn’t hurt to have one.

Under the Hood

As the 1215N is a more expensive netbook and sports 12 inches of screen space, you’re probably expecting a little more power too. Well, the 1215N delivers, with a dual core Intel Atom processor clocked at 1.8 GHz – a solid boost in perfomance over the standard 1.6 GHz. Granted, it won’t reach Core i3 speeds, but it’s pretty good for a netbook computer.

The graphics in the 1215N are backed by Nvidia’s ION 2 GPU and Nvidia Optimus Technology. That means that the 1215N has two graphics cards instead of one – integrated (Intel) and dedicated (Nvidia). By enabling the dedicated graphics card at times only when you need it, you save a lot of battery life by mainly using integrated graphics. We already have a review on Nvidia Optimus technology, and it works fairly well. Of course, we’ll be expecting solid graphics performance, and we’ll go over that in the software section.

By default, there’s 2GB of RAM inside the machine. For a netbook, 2GB is definitely enough, as you probably won’t be doing video editing on such a small device anyway. Of course, you can always upgrade the RAM and install a a 64-bit OS, but I don’t think it’s at all necessary. Most applications won’t require any more than 2GB of RAM anyway, and even Source engine games will run pretty well with only 2GB.

Software & Performance

Now, the part that we’ve all been waiting for – software and performance! The 1215N has Windows 7 Home Premium 32-bit preinstalled and runs quite well. Boot time averages around 20 to 30 seconds, and Windows Aero is fully supported. Applications like the Office suite and even Photoshop work quite well.

The 1366×768 screen offers much more room than the standard 1024×600, and applications windows won’t be cut off halfway because they’re larger than 600 pixels in height. Video looks crisp and runs smoothly, thanks to the Nvidia ION 2 GPU inside. Even with a bunch of applications open, the 1215N didn’t stutter or cough playing back HD YouTube videos fullscreen. The transition between the Intel chip and Nvidia chip is completely invisible to the user.

The 1215N is also capable of playing modern games at pretty solid framerates, even at maximum settings. With the latest Nvidia driver updates, the graphics performance just keeps getting better and better. Our initial benchmarks showed 20-40 FPS in Half Life 2: Episode 2, and now, you can get around 40-60 FPS. The ION 2 chip by far surpasses performance of the Intel GMA chip found in most netbooks, and when Nvidia advertises a 10x boost in performance, I don’t think they’re lying. The Intel GMA chip can barely run Half-Life 2, whereas the Nvidia ION 2 chip can pick up a game and juggle it along with other applications running fairly well.

How about battery life? Nvidia’s Optimus Technology is all about delivering a good battery life to performance ratio, and it does a pretty excellent job. For normal use, I can get around 5 hours of battery life on a single charge. Even after heavy rounds of gaming, the netbook still managed to last a solid 3.5 hours before running out of juice.

Miscellaneous Things

As mentioned in the Hardware section of this review, the 1215N comes with not one, but two power buttons. The silver one on the right launches into Windows 7, and the one on the left boots you into an instant-on OS known as ExpressGate. To be honest, the time saved launching ExpressGate isn’t worth a cold boot into Windows 7. In fact, I’ve never actually gotten ExpressGate to work before, as it’s never gotten me properly connected to the internet.

ASUS has packed in Super Hybrid Engine, an overclocking/underclocking tool to help give you a boost of performance if you need it or underclock your processor to save battery life. We’ve already covered how Super Hybrid Engine works, and frankly, it’s pretty useless on this computer.  By monitoring the Atom’s core clock using Core Temp, I’ve found that SHE’s “Power Saving Mode” doesn’t actually do anything on the 1215N. I suppose it’s nifty for basic overclocking, but I removed the tool as I didn’t really have a use for it.

I had one instance where the battery insertion module broke and the battery wouldn’t sit in the netbook properly. I contacted ASUS about the issue, sent the 1215N in, and got it back in two weeks, fully repaired. Kudos to ASUS for not charging me anything and delivering a superb repair job while managing to keep the hard drive and all my files intact (even after they said they would format the hard drive).

Conclusion

The ASUS Eee 1215N was created as a balance point between a laptop and a netbook – powerful, yet small and lightweight. ASUS has done a solid job with that, and the 1215N delivers graphics and processing punch never seen before in netbooks. The dual-core Intel Atom processor is really a step above the usual Atom processor, and the Nvidia ION 2 chip delivers sweet performance in the graphics area – capable of playing most modern games and HD video. Overall, the 1215N provides great value as a high end netbook in the $500 range.

Pros:

• Big, 12″ 1366×768 high-res screen
• Large, comfortable trackpad, works well with multitouch gestures
• Keyboard is large, comfortable to type on
• Wide array of ports
• Solid performance with dual-core Intel Atom @ 1.8 GHz
• Excellent graphics performance with Nvidia ION 2, capable of playing modern games at decent settings
• Good battery life with Nvidia Optimus Technology

Cons:

• Some parts still have a glossy finish
• Matte finish isn’t fully fingerprint resistant
• A little fragile, and may be a little thick
• Relatively heavy, as a netbook

You can find the ASUS Eee 1215N online at around $500.