Sum and Substance:

Thumbs Up:

Great battery life, included 3G antenna

Thumbs Down:

Comes with outdated Windows XP, there is a single mouse rocker button instead of 2 separate buttons.

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

Asus 1005HAGB-BBY-BK01X is powered by an Intel Atom N270 / 1.6 GHz with data bus speed of 533 MHz, it has L2 cache of 512 KB. The Netbook has 1 GB DDR2 SDRAM which is expandable to 2 GB. It has a 160 GB hard disk at 5400 rpm.

The built in card reader can take SDHC Memory Card, SD Memory Card, MultiMediaCard. 10.1 TFT LCD screen has a resolution of 1024×600. The integrated graphic processor is Intel GMA 950 Dynamic Video Memory Technology 3.0, and the Netbook also has a 0.3 mega pixel web cam. Interfaces include 1 x Network – Ethernet 10Base-T/100Base-TX – RJ-45, 1 x Microphone – Input – Mini-phone 3.5 mm, 1 x Headphones – Output – Mini-phone 3.5 mm, 1 x Display / video – VGA – 15 pin HD D-Sub (HD-15), 3 x Hi-Speed USB – 4 pin USB Type A.

The Netbook runs on Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition SP3 and other bundled software includes Norton Internet Security 2009 (60 days trial), ASUS Super Hybrid Engine, Adobe Acrobat Reader, ASUS Eee Docking, Microsoft Works, ASUS Eee @Vibe, Windows Live, Skype.

Asus gives a one year warranty for this machine. The 6-cell Lithium ion has a rated battery life of 8.75 hours.

Razzle Dazzle:

The design of this Netbook is the same as the non 3G version of the device. The gadget feels thinner due to the wedge-like silhouette and tapered front lip. Just like most laptops and Netbooks, the Asus 1005HAGB-BBY-BK01X has a glossy back exterior which easily attracts a lot of fingerprints.

Inside Dope:

This Netbook is essentially the same device that Asus got in the market earlier but this one comes with a Gobi 3G antenna. The inclusion of this peripheral takes the price to $399 and you can also get this without the antenna for $299. We as tech enthusiasts didn’t find anything exciting in this Netbook, it has a slow Intel Atom N270 processor, clacky keyboard, low definition display and the presence of Windows XP as the OS gives the system an outdated look. A tech conscious Netbook shopper looks at Nvidia’s Ion chip, 11 inch HD screens, and faster processors. We are highly skeptical if this Notebook will survive for long in a stiff competition market.

However, if you want a Notebook just for basic tasks like word processing documents and light music playback, we would give you thumbs up for this device. It has 160 GB HDD, 1 GB RAM and Atom N270 processor inside it. You might think the processor is slower than others but it performed better than we expected in our lab tests.

The Netbook will do fine as long as you keep your expectations modest and use the device just for light tasks like e-mail, Web surfing and word processing. If you are a game enthusiast, we would recommend you to wait for a bit longer because there is a new range of Atom chipsets round the corner which come integrated with GPU. It is supposed to hit the market this January itself.

The 1005HA has all the standard connections and ports that you would expect in a Netbook. It doesn’t have Bluetooth and ExpressCard slot but that is not unusual in a Netbook. The main feature of the device is the inclusion of Gobi 3G antenna. For using this, you will have to sign up with a 3G service provider. Both AT&T and Verizon offer this service and it costs $60 a month.

The keyboard of the Netbook is wide, just like those of Eee PC models, the large keys are comfortable and easy to type on. The touch pad is highlighted by raised dots on the area of wrist rest. There is a single rocker button for the mouse keys. We would like to see all Netbooks have 2 separate mouse buttons since they are easy to use.

The display of the device is 10.1 inch big and gives resolution of 1024×600 which is acceptable for a Netbook. High end machines give 1,366×768 pixels of native resolution. But it would be crazy to ask for this res at the given price.

This Asus Notebook was really impressive in battery life tests; it lasted for about 6 hours and 12 minutes in our battery tests of video playback. Only Toshiba N205 has done better than this in our labs. Asus gives you different power profiles which you can change by pressing the spacebar and Fn button. You can also play with XP’s power settings for better battery performance.

Asus gives a standard one year labor and parts warranty for this product. Other services include a toll free support over the phone and Web-based help. The manufacturer’s Web site is still not at par with other competitors, however it is improving and we could easily located the driver download and FAQ page there.

Nitty Gritty:

Asus 1005HAGB-BBY-BK01X is a very good Notebook in terms of performance and Asus could have made it better by giving us Windows 7. The inclusion of 3G antenna drives the cost up and it will prove to be an expensive deal for people who don’t need this feature. But if you use 3G frequently we would definitely recommend you to go for it.

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