Hands-on: New ASUS Eee PC Flare 1025C and Eee PC X101CH Netbooks

January 9th, 2012 by Meghan J. McDonough, LAPTOP Web Producer/Writer

LAS VEGAS– Viva la netbook! As we mentioned earlier today, ASUS is releasing new netbooks at CES 2012 and we had the chance to check out two of them, the Eee PC Flare 1025C and the Eee PC X101CH.

The Eee PC Flare 1025C continues the 10.1-inch netbook tradition with a 6-cell battery that ASUS says will last up to 10 hours in mixed-mode, meaning a combination of web surfing, YouTube watching and productivity applications, and two weeks in standby. Though it weighs 2.7 pounds, the system felt light in our hands and with a slim profile– but nothing as impressive as the company’s Zenbooks. Though we weren’t able to turn the system on, the keyboard felt roomy enough and similar to ASUS’s more recent netbook keyboards. For $299, the Eee PC Flare 1025C comes with a 1.6- GHz Atom Cedar Trail processor, 2GB RAM, 320GB hard drive and Altec Lansing speakers. As you’ll see in our gallery below, it’s available in a wide-array of colors and finishes.

ASUS also debuted the Eee PC X101CH, which features 2-second instant resume and, in spite of its 3-cell battery, two weeks of standby time. It features the same Intel Atom Cedar Trail processor as the Flare 1025C, 1GB of RAM, and a 320GB hard drive for $269. It’s also 0.4 pounds lighter than the Flare, though we barely noticed the weight difference. The X101CH doesn’t look as refined as the Flare; its black plastic bottom was an instant contrast to its deep red lid. It’s not thick, but the profile of the machine isn’t as thin as the Flare either.

Check out plenty of shots of both systems below.