HD capable Asus 1005PR – best multimedia 10 inch netbook right now

The HD capable Asus EEE PC 1005PR has been around for a while, but it just recently started shipping in the US. It was only available for preorder for a while, but now if you order it you’ll be able to have it in your homes in just a couple of days tops.

I’ve written a couple of things about this device earlier, but I’m going to summarize them again.

Shortly, the 1005PR is an upgraded version of the popular EEE PC 1005PE series, with 3 major improvements:

• comes with a HD ready display with 1366 x 768 px resolution
• comes with a Broadcom accelerator chip, allowing it to play almost all types of HD content
• has a new textured exterior, one that resembles carbon-fiber

Asus 1005PR - HD capable ultra-portable

The rest is more or less the same. Inside you still get the N450 processor, 1 GB of RAM and 250 GB storage. Connectivity options are still good, with Wi-Fi N and Bluetooth as standard. Also, the ergonomic chiclet keyboard we saw on many Asus devices is present, along side the multi-touch trackpad.

The exterior is still made of plastic, but it’s not glossy anymore, thus it’s more resistant to scratches, fingerprints and smudges. However, display remained glossy and so did the palm-rest area.

Inside you get a Broadcom accelerator, making the device capable of handling HD content. You will be able to play up to 1080p self-stored videos and 720P Flash clips. 1080P Flash might work, but also might not. It all depends on the quality and bit-rate of each clip. Having the Broadcom chip won’t improve gaming performances, as it is made for H.264 decoding and not more. But still, this makes the Asus EEE PC 1005PR the most capable 10 incher of the moment.

Display is HD ready. I know many of you were waiting for this upgrade, but I’m not a fan, as I’ve seen other 10 inchers with such big resolution and using those devices for a couple of hours gave me some terrible headaches. And in fact, that even happened on the 11.6 inch Asus 1101HA too. But that’s just me, my eyes can’t cope with small content, although i really like the wider working area and the quality of a display with a smaller dpi.

The Asus 1005PR is available in the US like i said. Although it comes with some improvements over the 1005PE, it’s not way more expensive, as you can get it for $399 and that’s includes Shipping too. And you can now order it from Amazon, perhaps the most trusted and reliable online store in the States, with 1 year warranty and 30 days Money Back Guarantee. So if you don’t like it, you can always take it back.

Asus EEE PC 1005PR - best multimedia 10 incher right now

All in one, the 1005PR is a great pick. It comes with HD playing abilities and improved casing over the 1005PE, an although it’s only equipped with the 6-Cell 48 Wh battery (capable of up to 7-8 hours of life in practice, although Asus states 11 on paper), that’s something i can live with it, although the 1005PE-P provides better autonomy.

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Tags: 10" netbook, 1080p movies, Broadcom Crystal HD, HD display, most powerful netbooks

Last updated: September 30, 2011 | Published: May 6th, 2010 | See the comments or add yours!