Comments on: Micro Fondles: hp Mini, HTC Shift, Asus EeePC

By: Nate

Nate — Sun, 11 May 2008 00:04:42 +0000

Yep, I type as nature intended, on the home row.

I will say, I had no issues with typos or speed typing on the Eee keyboard. Like I said, I have pretty small hands, and I’m sure that helps quite a bit on that small pad.

I think what the real problem , for me, was that the size of the keys forced me to hold my fingers closer together than I would on a normal keyboard. The Mini-Note resolves this, for me.

Believe me. I understand the appeal of the Eee Pc, and I’m a huge backer of the machine. I’d never tell anyone not to buy one. I’m the only person I’ve heard of mentioning RSI issues with it. Truthfully, I type on these machines for more hours out of the day than any normal human being should.

By: mikecane

mikecane — Sat, 10 May 2008 22:44:02 +0000

>>>As time went on, I began to develop stiffness in my forearms and hands, presumably from the way I had to contort my hands to get my fingers to fit properly on the tiny keys

Do you type the way people are “supposed” to — fingers over the Home row and all that?

I primarily use my right hand (one finger, thumb on spacebar — although that’s usually the left thumb doing that) with some assistance from my left. People have literally marveled at my mutant style. (Still, it did not prevent RSI from a ThinkPad!)

By: Nate

Nate — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:48:21 +0000

No. You aren’t, Mike. Fifty bucks here, fifty bucks there, and pretty soon we’re talking real money.

I’d say I’ve thought, virtually, the same things you have about everyone of these devices.

For my money (which I’ve put directly where my mouth is on both the 701 Eee and the Mini-Note) the Mini-Note is the superior machine because of the keyboard, LCD and hard drive, most notable being the keyboard.

For me, and I have pretty small hands for a guy, the Eee keyboard got worse over time. Early on, I didn’t see why people were complaining. As time went on, I began to develop stiffness in my forearms and hands, presumably from the way I had to contort my hands to get my fingers to fit properly on the tiny keys. Because of this, I’ve discontinued use of the Eee Pc.

By: papergraffiti

papergraffiti — Sat, 10 May 2008 20:07:24 +0000

I forced myself to concentrate on the price/size/weight appeal of the eeePC and all else fell away. I got mine a few months ago (the 701 4G), added an 8GB SDHC card, installed Ubuntu on it, and got a 250GB external drive for the few instances that I need hefty storage. I have NOT looked back. I find myself preaching the greatness of my eeePC all over the Internet! LOL

I have had a few moments of almost-remorse when I see the HP Mini-Note and others, but I remind myself of some of your excellent points above: 1) They’re not going to be as cheap, 2) They’re not going to be as light, and 3) When they get bigger and have options to make them faster, have more storage, etc., the point of having a small, cheap sub-notebook starts to get lost.

Hope you are able to decide soon!