After presenting the first EeePC several years ago, ASUS created an entirely new category of notebooks, one that would soon prove to be a massive hit. It’s been almost four years since then, and ASUS still keeps surprising us with models that don’t follow the familiar netbook path, despite the fact that they are pretty much the ones who created that path to begin with. “Unusual” can be achieved in many ways, mostly through hardware or design changes – for instance, we’ve seen a fair share of netbooks designed by famous people in the fashion industry, with SSDs instead of conventional HDDs, stronger graphics chips instead of the ordinary integrated ones and so on. Well, ASUS’ EeePC VX6S is extremely different from both typical netbooks and powerful and expensive ultraportable machines.
Exterior and interior
We’ve already encountered a few models from the VX-series, designed in line with Lamborghini’s automobile appearance. This new VX model follows the same trend, with its sharp Lamborghini lines, an unusual lid design and the golden emblem featuring the raging bull, but also the choice between two colours – orange and black. That said, the design hasn’t really changed much, but it’s remained just as striking and interesting, starting with keyboard keys, over the trapezoid touchpad, to the strangely shaped lid.
The lid is the only orange part and contains three indentations that resemble the hood of the famous sports car, a Lamborghini logo in the middle, a net (covering the cooler) below, and ASUS’ signature at the very bottom. Design is as subjective a category as ever, so we’re sure that not everyone will like this appearance, but it’s definitely instantly noticeable, which is sure to appeal to many sports car enthusiasts. The lid hides a 12.1” display with marvellous specs. Its only feature that we’ve come to disapprove of is the glare coating, as it seriously hampers the user’s ability to see the display clearly in broad daylight – these are, after all, extremely portable pieces of hardware. The rest of the characteristics – diagonal, viewing angles, response time, brightness and colour precision – are all top-notch, which is to be expected of a netbook like this.
The Chiclet keyboard is rather unusual. The keys are firm and square-shaped, which gives it a very peculiar look. It’s uncompromisingly high-quality, though, which becomes evident very quickly; it’s so much of a pleasure typing on it that business-oriented people and Facebook addicts will certainly love it. We’re glad to see that there’s no bending or crackling anywhere on the keyboard, which can grow to become a huge annoyance when present. The full width of the enclosure has been used, so the keyboard stretches from one end to the other, which was reflected in a larger surface of all the keys, and consequently a reduced chance of hitting the wrong button while typing. The silver trapezoid frame contains a largish touchpad with very attractive looks.
The active surface is smaller than the visual one, though, so don’t be surprised if you land your finger in a dead zone and wonder why the cursor isn’t moving. The left and right click have taken the form of a see-saw button, which means that about a third of the button (the one in the middle) is completely unresponsive; again, it’s not a big deal, but it may take some getting used to. The section below the keyboard has a leather texture, but it also has a thin rubber coating, preventing palm sweating and slipping, which is a definite plus.
The power and mode switch buttons are situated in corners above the keyboard, right next to the lid hinges. They have a glossy metal finish, making them feel stylised and remarkable, and the same goes for the inscription between them to remind you of the source of this model’s design.
