Asus X401U-WX050R

Asus has released another version of their X401 laptop, the X401U. What makes Asus X401 series so interesting is that it is a low cost 14-inch laptop that weighs only 4.1 pounds. To put this into perspective, Acer's 14-inch budget offering, the Aspire 4750, weighs in at 5 pounds.  HP's new low cost HP1000-1116TU weighs in at 4.8 pounds. Compare it to more expensive models, and the X401 fairs well too. A 13.3-inch Apple MacBook Pro weighs in at 4.5 pounds and the 13.3-inch Sony Vaio S comes in at 3.8 pounds. 

The first X401 series laptop released, the Asus X401A, with an Intel B970 processor, is priced at just Php22,990 with Windows Home Basic installed. A DOS version is priced at Php20,990. The Asus X401U swaps the Intel processor for a AMD E2-1800 Accelerated Processing Unit with a 1.7 GHz dual core processor and Radeon 7340 graphics. This allows Asus to bring down the price to Php18,990 with Windows Home Basic Installed, for those who do not need an operating system pre-installed, a DOS version is available for Php16,990.

Other than that, it has the same specifications as its Intel powered sibling, with 2GB of RAM, a 500 GB, card reader and the other standard equipment you can expect to find in a laptop these days. The 6-cell battery is rated at 4400 mAh, which is what you expect from a laptop in this price range. In addition, you Altec Lansing speakers, HDMI out and a new fast USB 3.0. This laptop does not have an optical drive though.

Fashionably thin at just over an inch at the thickest point, the Asus X401A, already ruled budget the thin and light 14-inch laptop market. A lower cost AMD E2-1800 makes this laptop a netbook competitor too, and I would recommend it over any netbook in the market.