DeskNote A900 (VIA Giga Pro 733MHz, 128MB RAM)

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First Take

By CNETAsia Staff
Nov 26, 2002

The ECS A900 i-Buddie is part of ECS's popular budget-conscious line of notebook-desktop hybrids that combine utilitarian hardware and portability with an attractive price. Running on a low-powered VIA processor, this Taiwan-made system has sufficient power to run all but the most intensive number-crunching applications. The glitch is ECS's restriction on the user-upgrade feature that gives users freedom of choice to upgrade and build their own mix-and-match i-Buddie, which somewhat lowers the overall appeal of this device. Still, at S$950 (US$540), the A900 is one of the lowest-priced portables currently in the market.

Upgrade limitation
One of the main highlights of the 900 DeskNote series, apart from its ingenious use of cheap desktop processors, is the user-upgradeable feature that allows users to upgrade components such as processors and memory using low-cost, third-party hardware. To keep prices down, ECS has apparently omitted this unique feature from the ultra-budget A900: Instead of a Pentium or an Athlon, the DeskNote sports a slower and non-changeable VIA Giga Pro processor operating at a clock speed of 733MHz. While this is adequate for running daily work-related applications like spreadsheets and word processors, it may prove insufficient for power users who need more oomph for their games and multimedia applications

Although the processor itself is non-upgradeable, ECS still allows for the upgrading of other components such as hard disks and memory modules--there is also option to upgrade to an internal DVD-ROM drive at the time of purchase, something mobile movie mavens will appreciate. And, like its predecessors, the A900 still runs on mains --an optional S$120 (US$70) battery pack is available for those who want a total mobile solution.

A 13.5-inch LCD screen is standard, although models like the A928 sport the larger, 14-inch panel, while an integrated SIS graphics accelerator caters to the display needs. The graphics chipset runs on shared memory (up to 64MB) and, based on our experience with the other DeskNote models using the same chip, this should be sufficient for all but the most graphics-intensive applications such as 3D games.

The inclusion of a 56kbps modem and a 10/100Mbps Ethernet controller will suit the needs of road warriors who require connectivity and access to the Internet or their company's Intranet network. The four USB ports also provide sufficient connection upgrade options to multiple external USB devices such as a CD writer or a TV tuner.

On a low note, the ports included are legacy version 1.1 versions, so transfer rates with external devices are limited to 11MBps only. ECS's continued exclusion of an in-built PCMCIA slot will also disappoint potential buyers expecting to utilize the A900 with their PC card devices, such as Wi-Fi cards and USB 2.0 adapters.

Plentiful accessories
ECS provides a year's warranty for parts and labor. The company also offers a huge list of accessories which are available for purchase on their Web site, including optional battery packs, car chargers, USB thumb drives, as well a USB TV tuner for use specifically with the 900 series DeskNotes.
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Read first take of the DeskNote A900 (VIA Giga Pro 733MHz) »