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Test: Asus Eee PC Box B204

PCOnline has become the first Swedish newspaper received test the new Asus Eee PC Box B204 . There is a small media PC that falls to us the taste, but that does not fit for all users.

Asus Eee PC Box B204 is one of the new models in the Box series of increasingly growing Asus Eee PC segment. This is in contrast to the more famous portable mini-computers, a small desktop computer. With the B204 takes Asus PC into the living room, much because its only connection to the screen is via an HDMI connector .

The foundation reminds Box B204 lot of portable mini-computers. The computer is small and nicely designed, has an Intel Atom processor and 1 GB of internal memory.There are wireless networks with support for 802.11n and Ethernet with 10/100/1000 Mbps and Bluetooth. The storage space consists of a 160 GB Hard Drive. One difference is that you have chosen to put a real graphics card, an Ati Radeon HD 3450 256 MB . It needed to deliver full HD resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels.

The package comes with an HDMI cable, power adapter, converter from audio-out to S / PDIF, a hearty and good Remote Control and table stand and a metal structure to mount the computer on the back of your flat screen TV.

For installation you need to have mouse and keyboard can be connected via USB. As usual, Asus has opted for Windows XP SP3 as an operating system , which I think is a good choice. Running Vista on a newer Intel Atom processor and 1 GB of internal memory is not a hit ...

The benefits of Box B204

What I personally think is best with the B204 is the fact that it is running just Windows XP. It will start up in XP and there are no restrictions of any kind. Many other competing media players use their own software, which often are limited and can not handle all file formats. But here, you have the opportunity to customize your system exactly the way you want.

Asus ships with a media player called the Eee PC Cinema . The check via the remote control and interface is so hot and easy to handle. But as with all other media players, there are problems with unsupported file formats. Most cope safely with the Cinema, but you have higher requirements, you can get another player. Just download and install.

The computer is almost dead silent and it looks really great when it is together with color-matched Panasonic plasma TV. All drivers and things worked without any problems, so the entire installation process was painless. The first time I boot up the Windows task bar had gone out of the picture, which was very annoying - until I saw the tool Eee PC Screen Settings , which was located on the desktop, and as adjusted image positioning.

That there are four USB ports, I also think about. Then you can plug in a USB flash drive, external hard drive and the IR receiver for remote control and a radio transmitter to a multimedia keyboard. For example.

Disadvantages of Box B204

The computer running Windows XP is as big a disadvantage as an advantage - it all depends on the type of user you are. I like the ability to customize the system by itself. It is not all do. Are you looking for a media player that can quickly boot right into one easy to use interface where you can kick off the movies that you put on your hard disk, so is Box B204 is not for you.

According to the specifications that were previously sent out by Asus, it would be a DVI port on your computer. It does not. HDMI is the only connection that exists, which is a disadvantage because few monitors have it. Some users want to attach a small monitor to his media computer, having along with flat screen TV, but it is not possible.

Correction: See comments from the readers attention below. There are HDMI to DVI converter, and with such, you can connect to the monitor without any problems.

Like most other Eee PC Box B204 lacks an Optical Drive , then CD / DVD reader.As a media PC, this is a disadvantage. One would like to throw out their DVD players and just have the computer, but it is not possible without having to add an external reader. Nor is there any TV tuner.

I also found a problem with the software Cinema, and it was that I did not manage to link the files and folders from any device other than the internal hard drive. It was annoying because I would like to play movies and music that is on my network drive.To access these files through the Windows of course, was not a problem because the computer nicely connect to my wireless network. So with another media player solves the problem itself.

Verdict of the Eee PC Box B204

As I wrote in the preamble of the Asus Eee PC Box B204 is not an option for everyone. That I am aware of. However, signed-target and I really liked this little machine. It is a media PC that offers many opportunities, but at the cost of it is not suitable for the novice user who wants something easy. Again, it is Windows XP that will start when computer starts up, and it opens up many opportunities but it also means that you need to fix some himself before it works as you want.

Update: The Eee Cinema , according to Asus the following specifications:

Photo:. Jpg, png,. Bmp
Music:. Mp3,. Wav,. Wma
Video: ASF, AVI, DivX, DVR-MS, M2TS, MPG, MPEG, MPEG-2 TS, MPEG-2 PS, WMV, WMV HD, H.264, MPEG-2, WMV9, VOB, VC-1

Suggestion: Some formats play with limited bitrate as Follo wing
1st MPEG-2 bit rate <45Mbps
2nd MPEG-4 AVC (H.264), bit rate <15Mbps
3rd VC1 bitrate <25Mbps

Facts about Asus Eee PC Box B204:

• Contact: Asus
• Target price: 4299 SEK, will be the end of March
• Size: 22 x 18 x 1.6 cm
• Processor: Intel Atom 1.6 GHz
• Storage: 160GB hard drive
• Memory: 1 GB DDR2
• Graphics: ATI Radeon HD 3450, 256MB
• OS: Windows XP SP3
• Ports: 4 USB, HDMI, Ethernet, card reader, audio out, microphone, headphones
• Wireless: 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth

 

Terminology : Asus Laptop batteries | Dell Vostro 1500 battery | ThinkPad t60 battery

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