Why only highend?

[Guest]

[Dave P]

I don't have an issue with the price in itself, but the price vs. performance/features/format.
the EEE is a piece of crap

I have both the new WinXP Asus eeePC 900 and a 64Gb SSD HSPDA OQO Sunlight display.  While the eeePC may not fit your needs, it certainly not a piece of crap.  The eeePC boots in under 30secs, runs comparatively cool and both the screen and keyboard is pretty good.   I'm by no means a fan-boy of any brand but as a mini-laptop its just the job IMHO.

De gustibus non est disputandum. That's Latin for "whatever".

We don't need to get into bashing one computer or another. All successful computer models are successful because they appeal to enough people to keep them in production. The OQO is a case in point. People (meaning me and, probably, you) are willing to pay the extra money for the extra value. But what is valuable to me may be valueless to someone with an eeePC.

Also, while we keep talking about OQO being a high end product, let's remember that you can now get an OQO 02 for $999. I think that's cheap enough.

Let's get back to talking about making it more expensive. Like how I'd sell my best model and pay an extra $1000 if they could just make it a half inch thick.

[jptherrien]

Nothing wrong with calling a spade a spade.

The Eee construction sure doesn't impress me with its built quality or technical prowess, but unlike OQO, Asus argument is clearly the price, thin margins and high volumes/mass market appeal. I don't see an outfit like OQO  going after such a market, Eees are now being sold to Joe Sixpack or almost given away as promotional items.

If you want something small and cheaply priced, that you can carry around to surf the Internet with and write the occasional document, why not - just doesn't float my boat.

[fixup]

Yes, the M528 runs XP:

http://www.umpcfever.com/news/?postid=827

Its power jack is also a standard one - 2 pins. OQO's proprietary DC simply pisses me off.

The battery life is the same class of OQO, 2 hours:

http://umpcfever.com/news/?postid=828

But it is significantly thinner and lighter, a double-cap battery will be very acceptable and will certainly not cost $200. Even with the standard battery, I can easily add my own external power because it has a very standard 5V DC jack.

GPS, 2 cameras, USB-client/host ports, 3G, SD and SIM slots are all included. This is what I call as high-end, even better, without a high-end price tag.

OQO is now in big trouble.

[mariosoqo03]

fixup I'm sorry 2 say but oqo is not in trouble because the specs of an oqo is much more heir and the hardware of an oqo just kicks [bleep] also just because u can run xp on the m528 doesn't mean its 100 capable like the oqo . i do have 2 agree on the fact that the m528 has an advantage in Sim card GPSS 2 cameras for video conferencing something that the oqo deeply lacks but just because it lacks in those fields doesn't mean that the oqo is in trouble just means that the oqo needs 2 improve thier prodcts

[jptherrien]

Indeed

Adding "nice to have" like a pinhead camera or a GPS hopefully shouldn't be difficult. The 02/E2 keyboard however still seems to be largely superior to the keyboards on these new MIDs - including the M528's which appears to be craptastic.

I can live with a QWERTY layout, but I do miss the AltGr for full standardized shortcuts/keyboard layout with accentuated characters though.

[fixup]

From my experience with OQO 02 and generally VIA CPUs, I can safely say that the M528, with the new Intel Atom 800Hz, will be more capable than OQO, at least run much cooler (heat should be no longer an issue).

Beside excessive heat and fake clock rating, one of the big problems with VIA CPUs is the high battery drain during standby. If you leave your OQO 02 in standby for a day or two, the battery will still run out. Intel CPUs do not have such a problem and standby goes for 2 weeks and more.

[jptherrien]

With the switch to VIA's Isaiah (or will OQO use an Atom?) indeed this problem will be fixed, as it has a C6 power state.

At twice the processing power with the same TDP and with all the latest features, it could be a nice CPU for the 03...please bring along an integrated chipset/GPU which can actually help decoding videos.

[Bungee]

Yes, the M528 runs XP:
http://www.umpcfever.com/news/?postid=827
...
OQO is now in big trouble.

My earlier post got deleted due to the board's outage... anyway FWIW "正式的 aigo MID 預載了 Linux 系統，而因為測試關係，已經被灌上 XP 系統" means that (like the Gigabyte M528) the Aigo comes with Linux as standard out of the box, but this test unit was loaded with XP. BTW, just a word of caution that unlike LG or Gigabyte, Aigo is a China brand and so far, I've not been too impressed with the build of their cheapo PVP, digital photo frames and solar chargers, although they are still considered better than other even more obscure China brands.

OQO is in trouble if they do not continue to innovate, which includes using newer, cooler and faster CPUs. Something tells me that they will do so. IMHO, OQO really needs to work harder on their product's reliability, which can still justify their higher price tag.

[JCC]

But it is significantly thinner and lighter,

It is approximately 2mm thinner and 100g lighter. Whether that's significant is in the eye of the beholder I guess. I suspect that 2mm is small relative to the thickness of a double capacity battery. The 100g while not significant might actually be noticeable. The weight difference is probably due to OQO's hard drive and magnesium alloy case. (If that's the case, then weight difference between the Aigo and the SSD version of the OQO is likely less than 100g.)