Je dois changer mon Asus eeePC 901 A HT à cause d'une erreur critique Windows écran bleu de la mort (UNMOUNTABLE_BOOT_VOLUME).
Purpose :
The purpose is I've to change my Asus' eeePC 901 A HT because it has an unrecoverable Windows blue screen of death (UNMOUNTABLE_BOOT_VOLUME).
So the story here is to "change for the same" quality, functionality, and get better reliability ; the last point implies using a better OS than Microsoft Windows XP. I'm fed up with blue screens of death.
The eeePC 901 A HT I had is perfect for my everyday work : fast (because of RAM and SSD upgraded), reliable, 9 hours autonomy, a "dual core" Atom, no heat, silence, 1kg weight, and around 400 € after upgrade.
The eeePC 901 A HT was bought 329 € (509€ avec les upgrades de RAM DDR2 de 1->2 Go et SSD 16->64 Go)
Finding the equivalent in the current Asus line of products is very difficult. Current machines all have plain ol' hard drives, which are backwards IMHO, and cost around 1000 EUR.
Also, all have Windows enforced. The time when you could choose the linux or the Windaube version seems over. Newer machines are also quite expensive.
The only problems I had with my eeePC 901 A HT was the keyboard whose quality is low (keys stopped responding correctly after one year only of intensive use, despite the quasi-permanent use of an external keyboard).
I looked onto other manufacturers, of course, but to no avail.
Finally, I decided myself for... an other eeePC ;)
Namely, the 1015 PX.
On the paper, the model 1015PX seems almost perfect : powerful ("quadcore" Atom), lightweight (1,2kg because of the 10" screen, 9" screens don't exist any more in 2011) and not too expensive (280 €)
With the RAM upgrade to DDR3 1->2Go (Crucial) and the SSD to replace the HDD 250 GB at 5400t (performances reading : 40 Mb/s -> 400 Mb/s) we should end up at 421 €
NB Asus ne fournit plus de housse... 16€ à rajouter!
Hence 438 €
The goal of this article is to compare the 901 A HT with the 1015 PX, then to show you how to upgrade an eeePC 1015*, particularly difficult to open.
I chose the 1015 PX variant (lotta variants... :/ ) because of the CPU and the "up to 11 hours autonomy". It's the only one having the N570 :
Intel Atom N570 Dual Core Processor 1.66Ghz
1 GB DDR3 SODIMM memory, 1 slot, max 2 GB
250GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM); no optical drive
10.1-Inch Matte WSVGA LED Display; 802.11 b/g/n; 10/100 LAN; Bluetooth 3.0; 3 USB 2.0 ports; 2-in-1 Card reader (SD/MMC)
Up to 11 Hours of Battery Life; Windows 7 Starter Operating System
The whole for just 300 U$D (249 EUR), it's very competitive, even when adding the price of the RAM upgrade to 2GB and the SSD price.
First, the machines are similar in weight but not in dimensions (the 9" screen became a 10" one ; just to change from 1024x600 to 1024x800 it's not ***that*** interesting for me, and I had to buy a new transport sleeve because Asus stopped giving one fit to the machine...)
Then, putting the two machines side-by-side produces this :
| Asus eeePC 901 A HT (2009) | Asus eeePC 1015 PX (2011) | |
 | Boxes |  |
 | side by side | |
 | Ready |  |
Right out of the box, the 1015 PX is very beautiful in red. The first thing that comes to mind when plugging it in is that the power charger is a lot more easy to use (vertical design) ; this stresses a lot less the plug and saves a lot of space around the plugs.
| Asus eeePC 901 A HT (2009) vs Asus eeePC 1015 PX (2011) | ||
 | Boxes | side by side |
 | height | |
 | surface | |
 | side view 1 | |
 | side view 2 (note that the power, video and network connectors changed side ; this is not very practical) | |
 | BIOS 1 |  |
 | BIOS 2 |  |
 | clavier |  |
J'ai alors tenté d'utiliser le Windows 7 "Seven" préinstallé, pour une fois que je vois une machine sur cet "OS" ;-).
5 redémarrages plus tard (2 ou 3 fois pour Windows 7 - pas demandé -, Asus Express Gate - pas demandé - et Asus trucmuche Live Update pas demandé - )
C'est quand que j'ai l'OS dispo ?
MS force Bing et sa barre (sinon boucle mortelle, cf vidéo) OGG 3Mo MPG 42Mo
MS empêche de décocher IE8 : (vidéos) OGG 6Mo MPG 68Mo
MS empêche d'arrêter les services inutiles et gros consommateurs de ressources (vidéos) OGG 8Mo MPG 99Mo
Faire tourner le CPU Intel Atom N570 (dual-core, 4 threads) à 100% le fait monter à presque 80°C ce qui est troublant par comparaison avec l'Aton N270 de l'eeePC 901 A HT qui montait à 40°C maxi, à 30°C en fonctionnement.
La température au repos est quand même de plus de 60°C et ça, ça craint.
Malgré l'autocollant, l'autonomie est plutôt de 5h30 que de 11 heures avec le bin's par défaut (webcam, services windaube update, parefeu, antivirus trend non demandé...).
Elle passe à 7h30 en charge et 8h au repos en désactivant Bluetouffe et les services inutiles ainsi que la camera.
Then, I tried to play a little bit with the preinstalled Windows 7 "Seven".
5 reboots after (2 or 3 times for Windows 7 - unasked for -, one for Asus Express Gate - unasked for - and one for Asus trucmuche Live Update - unasked for - )
MS forces upon you the Bing and its toolbar (else deadlock, cf video) OGG 3Mo MPG 42Mo
MS prevents you from refusing IE8 : (videos) OGG 6Mo MPG 68Mo
MS prevents you from stopping greedy services (videos) OGG 8Mo MPG 99Mo
The CPU burning test just stressed the temps reached at 100% CPU on this Intel Atom N570 (dual-core, 4 threads).
The peak in temp around 80°C is a bit worrysome, but the idling temp at more than 60°C is a lot more of a problem for everyday use!
Then, despite the manufacturer's sticker, the autonomy is more 5h30 than 11 hours with all the running services (incl. defective "firewall"), hardware and web camera.
It's only around 7h30 working (8h idling) with deactivated Bluetouffe, useless services and camera.
I measured the performances of the CPU.
I measured also the performances of the RAM (given I've to change it also, because 1GB DDR2 - excuse me, 1016 KB ;-) - are not enough and I can install 2GB DDR3).
I measured the performances of the preinstalled 250 GB HD, already knowing I would have to change it for a SSD (faster, safer). The peak at 73 MB/s just comforted me in this opinion (current SSDs reach more than 300 MB/s, if not 500).
The default partitioning schema of the provided HDD 250GB is also a point of interest. Note the 15 GB lost space.
Then only, I tried to use the "Windows Seven Starter edition" so-called "OS", looking into default settings, installed services etc"Windows 7 Starter doesn't support extended desktop across multiple monitors. To use dual monitors you need to upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium or above. "
Looking at this eeePC 1015 PX, it's very difficult to upgrade. On the 901 A HT, you could change the RAM without opening completely the case (one screw and a trap to open - see on the left - ), and to change the SSD you only had to unscrew the back 4 screws.
The Crucial M4 64 GB SSD I want to put in place. It's given for 500 MB/s Read, 95 MB/s Write (SATA 800, at 6 Gbps) for 111 € (70£) only.
It comes with a very handy SATA-to-USB cable, which I'll use afterwards ;-)
The 2GB set of RAM that I chose : a Kingston set ; 2GB of PC3-10666 DDR3 at 1333 MHz for just 16 U$D, it's given ;-)
Aucune doc. valable à ce sujet. La machine est fermée et visiblement le fabricant ne souhaite pas qu'on l'ouvre...
In short : there is none.
The official documentation says nothing about upgrading the machine, as usual.
This said, there is an addendum to the user guide which states that the "boot booster" must be taken off when upgrading the hardware. So be it.
Also, browsing through the user manual brings to your attention the section about "system restoration" : the companion DVD comes in with a factory configuration of Windows.
les vis sont ridiculement petites comparées à celle du 901
The screws are ridiculously small compared to the 901 ones...
la trappe ne donne accès qu'à la RAM
The accessible opening gives access only to the RAM.
 | There are 4 screws under the battery, none under the feet. |
 | After removing the 4 screws it's a case of removing the keyboard |
 | |
 | |
 | And then there's a whole bunch of 11 screws that need removing from under the keyboard |
 | |
 | defect on a screw |
 | the last screw is under the yellow sticker |
 | - ne pas toucher les deux petites vis visibles |
 | And then it's just a matter of prying the case apart with a credit card all the way around |
 | - attention aux doigts en "déclippant" |
 | |
 | |
 | Alors seulement vous pourrez accéder au disque dur... |
 | - assez facile mais long (7 minutes) - tous les connecteurs sont du type "bloqueur à soulever" ou "bloqueur à pousser" et les nappes sortent toutes seules ensuite |
There are 4 screws under the battery, none under the feet.
After removing the 4 screws it's a case of removing the keyboard
And then there's a whole bunch of 11 screws that need removing from under the keyboard
And then it's just a matter of prying the case apart with a credit card all the way around
Just take it easy and you won't break anything.
2) installation du mSATA 64Go de Crucial, "guaranteed for eeePC HDD replacement"
 | |
 | |
 | Monter le "rail". Attention la SSD est à l'envers par rapport au disque dur |
 |
3) lancement du LiveCD de Kubuntu 11.04, GParted etc ok...
 | |
 |
4) upgrade RAM, the only "visibly allowed" user operation...
| |
 |
In a few words, this 1015 PX is a very good replacement option for any eeePC. Beware of other 1015 variants, they're not as interesting (ex. PEM).
What I didn't know was that I would get : lower autonomy (if same battery quality, then hardware is a lot more consuming), cursor "bumping" all the time out of place (because of the touchpad sensitivity?) when using the builtin keyboard (very good keyboard, otherwise), a lot of heat, problems with the preinstalled "Seven", and a very difficult time upgrading the hardware (the case has to be completely dismantled and there's no official documentation about it).
The philosophy of the original eeePC (extendable, easy, etc) seems completely forgotten by Asus.
With a notebook stand (Antec Notebook Cooler Stand, 40€), I achieved 50-55°C working temp (-10°C). Now I've a reasonably-cool linux PC, with good Windows (software, network...) support, up and running from S3 deep sleep in 4 seconds.
Worth knowing beforehand : also, the computer doesn't open as wide as the old one ; this can be borderline when put on a stand. On both sides, the eeePCs are open at their maximum.
Hope This Helps
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Last update 2021-03-15 16:07:31
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