MSI Wind U90X Review

The MSI Wind U100 was the first version of the MSI Wind netbook series and now MSI has released a second version - the MSI Wind U90X. While the Wind U100 was a 10.2″ netbook with great specifications and was one of the first netbooks to use the Intel Atom processor, the MSI Wind U90X is relatively underpowered, features a 8.9″ display and brings nothing new to the table. It is supposed to be a low cost version of the MSi Wind U100 and will primarily compete with the Asus EEE PC 901. The specifications are almost same as the earlier version and it seems that MSI didn’t want to add anything, just strip down on a few points and reduce the overall cost to compete in the low cost segment. MSI is also coming up with a new version of the Wind - the Wind U120 soon which should pack more features and power. In this review, we check out the MSI Wind U90X and see if it can live up to the ‘Wind’ family name.

MSI Wind U90X Specifications:

• Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.1 x 1.2 inches
• Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Processor: Intel Atom N270 at 1.6 GHz, 512 MB L2 cache
• RAM: 512 MB DDR2 RAM
• Hard Drive: 120 GB SATA HDD at 5,400 rpm
• Display Size: 8.9″ LCD at WSVGA - 1024 x 600 pixels
• Chipset: Intel 945 GSE Express
• Integrated Graphics: Intel GMA 950 with 64 MB VRAM
• Wireless: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
• Operating System: SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10
• Ports: 3 USB 2.0, Ethernet, Headphone, Mic, VGA out, Kensington lock, 4 in 1 card reader
• Price: $369

Design and Display:

The MSI Wind U90X has a external design which is almost similar to the MSI Wind U100. The chassis is the same as the Wind U100, give or take a few mm. It has a glossy black exterior which looks nice and clean. The build quality feels great, just like the Wind U100. It is available in black, pink and white. It has dimensions of 10.2 x 7.1 x 1.2 inches which are almost the same as any other netbook in this category. It weighs just 2.4 pounds which makes it very compact and portable. Nothing new on the design front, even the port placement is similar. On the left are two USB 2.0 ports and a power jack and on the right are a USB port, Mic, Headphone, VGA out, 4 in 1 memory card reader and a Ethernet jack. On the right in the front are the activity lights / status indicators.

The Wind U90X sports a 8.9″ LCD display with a native resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels, which is the main difference between it and the U100. The extra space left is covered by the bezel. The display quality is nice and has nice brightness and contrast levels. The images produced are sharp and clear. It has decent full light legibility as well. The viewing angles are decent, atleast the horizontal ones. The vertical viewing angles are a bit acute. The U90X also sport a 0.3 MP webcam and a microphone just above the display. The video capture quality is decent, but nothing to write home about. The microphone audio quality is also nice.

Keyboard, Touchpad and Speakers:

The MSI Wind U90X has a nice keyboard which is almost the same as that of the Wind U100. The full size keyboard was one of the strongholds of the U100 and it totally adds up to the Wind U90X as well. The keys are nice and have good tactile feedback. There is ample key spacing and adequate travel, all of which adds up to provide a very enjoyable typing experience. It should take touch typists just about a couple of minutes to get used to this keyboard. Most of the keys follow the standard layout with some exceptions. All in all its a superb keyboard - one of the best you can find in netbooks, just like the one in the U100. The touchpad however doesn’t fare as well. It is very much smaller than it should ideally be. It measures around 2″ x 1.7″ which is quite small. You can’t traverse the whole screen with one swipe thanks to the small touchpad. The sensitivity and response are nice though. It has a single mouse button which act as both the right and left click. The button feels hard to press and doesn’t have a distinctive clicking noise. A dual button arrangement would have been much better.

The speakers are located at the bottom of the laptop. They sound nice and have good sound quality and volume. They are easily audible in a medium sized room.

Performance and OS:

The Wind U90X comes loaded with a custiomised version of Suse Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 which is fun to use. It looks similar to Windows XP which is why it should easily appeal to many users. There are some driver issues with some hardware - the webcam and the Wi-Fi adapter but overall it is one nice usable OS.

The Wind U90X comes with the good old Intel Atom N270 processor clocked at 1.6 GHz - the worldwide standard for netbooks now. It also comes with 512 MB DDR2 RAM which is good enough for multitasking some apps. You can also replace the RAM with a 1 GB module in case you need more power. The graphics department is handled by the Intel GMA 950 integrated graphics solution which is good for a few light games. It comes with a slow 5400 rpm 120GB SATA HDD which slows down the whole OS. Boot times are a bit too much.

Other Features:

The Wi-Fi reception is nice and offers good data transfer speeds. There are some driver issues as well but those should be fixed soon. The 3 cell battery is quite good and offers very low endurance, lasting just about 1.5 hours on a single charge. To conserve battery life, you can switch off Wi-Fi when not in use and lower the display brightness.

Pros:

• Nice Keyboard
• Good Design and Build Quality

Cons:

• Low Battery Life
• No Express Card slot

Final Words:

The MSI Wind U90X is a nice option for those who wanted to buy the MSI Wind U100 but found it too costly. It is one of the cheapest and most value for money notebooks at just $369 and definitely a good deal. It is a very nice alternative to the overpriced EEE PC 901 and also the Acer Aspire One and Dell Inspiron Mini 9.

Our Rating: 3.5 / 5.