The Acer Aspire One netbook. It’s inexpensive, it’s tiny, and the base-level version only comes with 512MB of RAM. I cracked open the case, voided the warranty, and added an extra gigabyte. Watch the above video to see how. More details after the jump.

Tools Needed

• Small Philips screwdriver
• Two small flathead screwdrivers (or something similar) to get at the keyboard
• 512MB or 1GB stick of RAM. For best results, use PC2-5300 RAM.
• Time, patience, and a blatant disregard for your warranty

Full reading at Crunch Gear

Owners of Acer’s Aspire One mini laptop will soon get the USB 3G modem support so many of them have been crying out for without having to replace Linux with Windows XP.

Robert Perenz, Acer Europe’s product manager for the AA1, confirmed that the machine has the ability to support HSDPA dongles, but admitted the missing link is a utility to initiate and managed connections to carriers.

However, that will be rectified in the coming weeks, he promised here at IFA, Berlin today.

Right now, the Linux version of the AA1 won’t support a USB HSDPA modem out of the box - though there’s a flyer in the package that invites owners to download code that will allow the Small, Cheap Computer to do so.

So far, though, Acer has yet to release the code.

The Connection Manager utility works, Perenz told Register Hardware, and is now undergoing final testing ahead of its release.

In the meantime, some AA1 owners have turned to a Linux version of Vodafone’s Mobile Connect in a bid to get their SCCs connecting at mobile broadband speeds. However, the utility doesn’t support all the available HSPDA modems, only those resold by the carrier.

The arrival of Acer’s own utility is also a step toward the release of an internal HSDPA module for the AA1, space for which - and for a SIM card - already exists within the laptop.

Thanks to RegHardware.co.uk for the info.

Acer has added a couple of new drivers on their ftp site - Launch Manager, and Lan_Realtek
These are mainly for Windows XP, but alot of the drivers also work with Windows Vista.

07/24/2008 09:23AM     44,697,361 Audio_Realtek_v.5.10.0.5628.zip
07/24/2008 09:23AM      8,082,184 CCD_LiteOn_v.5.8.33.1.zip
07/24/2008 09:23AM      7,485,348 CCD_SUYIN_V.1.0.1.3.zip
07/24/2008 09:23AM      3,363,335 CardRdr_Jmicron_v.1.00.16.01.zip
07/24/2008 09:23AM      2,102,841 Chipset_Intel_v.8.3.0.1018.zip
08/26/2008 08:15AM      4,795,739 Lan_Realtek_v.5.602.619.2003.zip
08/25/2008 11:35AM      2,983,744 Launch_Manager_v2.0.04.zip
07/24/2008 09:23AM      6,677,838 Touchpad_Synaptics_v.11.1.4.zip
07/24/2008 09:23AM     18,148,372 VGA_Intel_v.6.14.10.4926.zip
07/24/2008 09:23AM      3,754,859 WLAN_Atheros_v7.6.0.224.zip

With the recent announcement from Acer, regarding the price drops on the current range of their Aspire One netbooks; they are also releasing a new model - AOA150-1447.

Featuring a six-cell battery, 160GB internal hard drive and Windows XP Home, the Aspire one is perfect for on-the-go business travellers and environments which require long-lasting battery power. The Aspire one AOA150-1447 is now available via Acer authorized resellers with prices beginning at $399.

In less than 3 months of their launch, we are witnessing a decent price drop on the Aspire ONE netbooks. Here are the new pricing details for respective models:

• Aspire One AOA150-1570: Atom; 120GB HDD; 1GB RAM; Windows XP; 3-cell battery $349
• Aspire One AOA110-1722: Atom; 8GB SSD; 512MB RAM; Linux; 3-cell battery $329
• Aspire One AOA150-1447: Atom; 160GB HDD; 1GB RAM; Windows XP; 6-cell battery $399

The official announcement has been made. It should take a few days for this pricing to reflect with retailers.

Source: laptoplogic.com
(no word about UK price drops though yet)

PC World UK, has stock now of the Acer Aspire One - 8GB Blue, 120GB Linux White, and the Windows XP models.

8GB blue - £199
120GB Linux White - £229
Windows XP models - £299

Dixons (part of PCWorld) also have the White 8GB for £199 also.

UPDATE:
5% off discount code for PC World (might only work for online delivery)
Minimum Spend: £0.00
Promotional Code: YAWAUG08
Expiry: 31/08/2008

5% off discount code for Dixons (might only work for online delivery)
Promotional Code: HOME5 or THIN5

With the announcement of the Dell Inspiron 910 (aka Dell Mini) going to launch for £199 in the UK on the 22nd August, early rumours suggest you can see Acer and Asus dropping their prices on their netbooks shortly after.

Thankfully, Acer has taken a slightly more restrained view of what constitutes an SCC. Its Aspire One is available in just three basic flavours: 8GB SSD and Linux; 120GB HDD with Linux; and 120GB HDD with Windows XP. On the desk in front of us, we have the least expensive, most basic model, the 8GB in MacBook-envy white, the most pure iteration of the SCC concept to date, in our opinion.

 
Acer’s Aspire One: stylish

Out of the box, the AA1 - as fans call it - is a petite 249 x 170 x 29mm and weighs in at a correspondingly featherweight 995g (2.19lbs). So the portability box is well and truly ticked.

It’s wider than the Eee: about 25mm more than the Eee 900, for example. That’s to accommodate the AA1’s larger keyboard, which Acer claims is 85 per cent of the size of a full laptop keyboard - larger and less cramped than the one on the Asus and, consequently, easier for bigger hands to use.

Overall, the AA1’s build quality is excellent. The keyboard is well laid out, firm and responsive, the screen hinge is solid, and the fan is never intrusive once it fires up to cool things down. It has a decent colour scheme as well, the black screen surround nicely setting off the white of the lower half of the device, though we’re not entirely sure what the red rims on the lid hinge are all about. There’s a pleasing lack of stickers too, with only the Intel Atom label besmirching the palmrest area.

Full review at reghardware.co.uk

Basically, I connected a micro USB Bluetooth module (Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR) to a 5V trace (off in standby), a nearby ground trace, and the USB signals (pins 36 & 38) available on the mini PCIe card slot occupied by the WiFi card. The Bluetooth module was stripped, wrapped in Kapton tape and installed under the palm rest.

Full how to do it here

ACER’s Aspire One is a solid netbook, but it can be much more.

In the last two weeks, I’ve been using it as a full notebook, running office applications, editing digital photos, surfing the Web and watching videos on a robust, full-featured system. The remarkable thing is, I’m doing it on a such a small, lightweight computer (less than a kilo) that has only 8 gigabytes (GB) of storage and 1GB of memory.

The key to unlocking the Aspire One’s power was to replace the Linpus Lite Linux operating system that comes installed with the netbook with Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron).

Linpus Lite, based on Fedora, is a good choice for first-time Linux users because it shields them from the complexity of the operating system. On the other hand, the simplified approach also makes it unwieldy to add programs that do not come installed, or to customize the system to work the way you want.

I chose Ubuntu as a replacement because it’s a great, user-friendly Linux distribution and I’ve always wanted to run it on a notebook.

The first challenge in installing the new operating system was the absence of a CD-ROM drive. Fortunately, I found an excellent guide (https://help.ubuntu.com/community/AspireOne) that stepped me through the process, which entails using a USB drive in lieu of an install CD.

A few caveats before you decide to jump in.

First, you will need another machine with Internet access to download the latest version of Ubuntu and Live USB, a program to create the boot USB disk.

Second, you will need a wired connection because Ubuntu’s default drivers will not work with the netbook’s Atheros wireless card when you first boot it. This shouldn’t be a problem if you have a standard wireless router—just connect the netbook to one of the LAN ports with a cable and you’re ready.

Third, because Ubuntu is not tailored to work with the Aspire One’s hardware, some features—the Wi-Fi indicator light and hibernate—will not work. Other functions work only partially.

Further reading @ Philippine News