Hi John (and list), I have one. It's running XP right now, but I plan to install Mepis 8.0 when it exits RC status.
There are many models in the range, but not all are available in NZ. I suggest you head to PriceSpy www.pricespy.co.nz and search for "Aspire One". You will get two subcategories- Linux and XP, but they are not well defined, so study both results lists. General options in NZ are: RAM is either 512Mb (Linux) or 1Gb (XP) SSD (?Gb) or hard drive (120Gb or 160Gb) Here in NZ only the 3-cell battery option is available, but a 6-cell battery can be purchased separately. Also the built-in webcam is 300k pixels (there is a 1.3Mp version in the US). I have two of the 1Gb/160Gb XP models in black and white. They cost just over $800 from Noel Leeming (who have a 7 day return policy and a 28 day replacement policy). So far I am extremely happy with mine- everything works. Here are the caveats however (and all of these relate to the out-of-the-box state with XP): 1) No recovery disk is provided There is a hidden partition for restoring XP, but this won't help you if the hard disk goes bang (or if you choose to wipe the entire disk installing Linux). There is a utility to make your own disk (if you have a CD/DVD writer), but it doesn't seem to work for me. An 'official' recovery disk set (1 CD and 1 DVD) does exist, and if you are in the US you can encourage Acer to send one for free, but I have an open enquiry with Acer on this topic for NZ. 2) Wifi dropouts The black and white ones I have are identical apart from the BIOS version (as far as I can tell). Mine (black) has no trouble with Wifi, but my wife's (white) drops the connection randomly, or after suspending the laptop. This *might* be a known issue, but since Noel's will swap for a new machine we'll try that approach (it's after 7 days now). Dare I say it, but I'm almost not looking forward to putting Linux on it because it 'just works'. XP is fine for web surfing (Firefox) and OpenOffice, but I actually want to be able to *do* stuff with it, so I will put Linux on once I have sorted out the XP restore disk set. Googling around shows that most of the recent distros work well out of the box, with only a little tweaking required (people forget that Windows actually needs a lot of tweaking, but when you buy it pre-installed that's all been done for you). Aside from that, the screen is clear and bright (vertical resolution is only 600 pixels, but this turns out to be less of an issue than imagined). Built-in audio (mic and speakers) is adequate. The keyboard is excellent IMHO, and the touchpad is fine (it's Synaptics). There's nothing not to like. I haven't tried DVD playing (either locally or via a network), but you will of course need an external DVD drive if you want to do it locally. Word on the street is that the LG slimline external DVD writer is a good match for the Aspire One (Noel's has it for $180, but PriceSpy will find it cheaper). I am very happy with mine, and since everything works I expect we can sort out the white one too. Best wishes, Andrew On Thu, February 5, 2009 10:22, John Carter wrote: > I have totally given up trying to buy a laptop. > > > You have to buy Windows and the continuous "M$ftOwnsOurSoul company > recommends Windows Vista(TM)" bleat ruins any joy I'd get from the thing. > > But I have just noticed Bruce Perens has one of these Acer Aspire One > Linux netbooks. > > > That guy plays even harder "Open Source" ball than I do, so I'm > sitting up and interested in these things... > > Anyone have one of these gadgets? (Or equivalent) > > > Where did you get it from / price? > > > I'm trying to decrease the fierce and rather disruptive competition > for multimedia devices amongst my kids.... is it fast enough of streaming > media / mount DVD on Big Grunty desktop DVD drive and view via wireless > (or USB 8Gb pen drive) on netbook? > > > Any opinions on these (or similar) things from those who have one? > > > > > > > John Carter Phone : (64)(3) 358 6639 > Tait Electronics Fax : (64)(3) 359 4632 > PO Box 1645 Christchurch Email : [email protected] > New Zealand > > >
