Did Asus negotiate a killer XP deal for the Eee PC?
This isn’t a surprise as we knew Asus would be offering the Eee PC with XP pre-installed, but I’ve been watching for it to see what the price would be. I can’t remember if I heard, read or dreamt that Asus was trying to work a deal with Microsoft on the XP licensing, but I’m thinking that happened based on the reported price.The Register indicates that the 4G-X (an Eee PC 4G model with XP) works out to $468. My purchase of the 4G with Linux was the standard $399. Add in that Asus is also bundling a 4 GB SDHC card and optical mouse and it sounds to me like they got a good deal on XP licensing costs. Just a guess based on the news, but if correct, that bodes well for potential purchasers in other countries.I’m still running XP on the Eee PC, which I installed just before CES and only because my USB727 modem isn’t yet supported in Linux. I’ll be going back to Linux on the device at some point, but I made the mistake of loading eReader on the Eee… I have to finish the book I started before I go back to Linux. *crosses fingers and wishes for a Linux build of eReader*
yes, yes, yes
a Linux build of eReader. That will make the eeePC really eeeXCELLENT for me
..wiley
NW Houston
>I’m still running XP on the Eee PC,
>which I installed just before CES
>and only because my USB727 modem
>isn’t yet supported in Linux.
Huh?
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=650795
Thanks for the link Xinill. The solution you reference was pointed out to me by Brian Jepson at Hackszine prior to CES, but it didn’t seem to work for me when I tried it a few weeks ago. Perhaps I’ll give it another go, but I haven’t seen anyone at the EeeUser forums indicating success with this modem working on Xandros Linux.
Kevin, was wondering why you want to go back to Linux on the EEE? I think XP actually works quite nicely on the unit (albeit I’m on 2Gb Ram and no swapfile). Will you be going back to the original restore disk or going Ubuntu?
I remember reading that they got sweet deal of $40 for XP but I have not seen any official info..
.. other that it will be with xp too : http://www.asus.com/news_show.aspx?id=8691
We should all just start emailing Mobipocket about a linux version of ereader now that they own it. They seem to be good at covering a large number of platforms, and if we make enough stink, hopefully someone will listen.
doesn’t ereader work with wine in linux? http://appdb.winehq.org/objectManager.php?sClass=application&iId=2423
i don’t have an eee but maybe the linux distro it comes with doesn’t work with wine.
One thing that is keeping me from going back to Linux (after just installing XP) is Netflix.
Last night I got the Netflix streaming working and for someone who spends a lot of time in hotel rooms this is going to be a godsend.
I’m on the road again next week and I’ll see if it streams as well on the road as from home and if so it’s going to be very much worth the upgrade.
That and hibernate capability have made this a most productive machine.
Slightly off topic but responding to bobm, anyone who has a Netflix account and hasn’t taken advantage of their streaming movies is doing themselves a huge diservice and missing out on a great feature.
Granted, you won’t see “first run” movies (at least not yet) but you do get a very good selection for in between deliveries.
Oops, Sorry for asking you to install ereader. I was just curious.
If eReader does a version for the iPhone/Touch, would that code be close enough to also make a Linux version? (Yeah, you can see I tend to see everything that ends with an “X” as being related…)
Fictionwise, purchasers of eReader, have stated they intend to produce versions of eReader for additional devices. I would be amazed if they don’t do a Linux version soon.
Here’s the quote from the Forbes article that talks about Microsoft freaking out and offering XP on the Eee PC for $40:
“Meanwhile, the prospect of millions of new PC users buying the Eee PC without Windows seemed to worry Microsoft. Just before the launch, it agreed to give Eee PC buyers the option of getting Windows for under $40, more than a third off the standard price.”
http://members.forbes.com/global/2007/1112/024a_2.html
I just “played the game” and got a value of $64 for that Windows license (disclaimer: the link is in Spanish):
http://asuse3.blogspot.com/2008/01/ha-conseguido-asus-un-xp-tirado-de.html
It can’t be close to reality. For instance, if I were doing that in Euros, Asus would have given me money for having XP Home installed!
However, I would like to point out that Xandros’ license has a cost as well.
I just don’t want Windows in my laptop, so why should give Microsoft money for it?
I thought one of the objectives of this laptop was being really affordable. They even dare to say they’re good for “third world” or “emerging” countries, but the truth is that I live in Argentina and the cheapest model of the eeePc is priced $500, that is, 1500 argentine pesos, which is not exactly what I would call cheap. Therefore, more reasons for not paying Microsoft for Windows.
Does anyone know what version of XP is going to ship with the eee. For those using XP, what version are you using? How well does XP home work with XP Prof and even XP MCE? I heard there are problems with shares between XP HOME and XP pro.
Does anyone know what version of XP is going to ship with the eee. For those using XP, what version are you using? How well does XP home work with XP Prof and even XP MCE? I heard there are problems with shares between XP HOME and XP pro.
MS can ill afford to allow Linux-powered computers to become popular. Linux isn’t the be all end all operating system. Offering customers choice is a good thing.