ASUS shook up the mobile computing world with the Eee PC, the pioneering mini-notebook that inspired manufacturers across the board to jump onto the lightweight, low-cost laptop bandwagon. The initial models were powered by a tweaked version of the Xandros Linux operating system, but now ASUS is offering Windows XP on the Eee PC—at the same $399 price tag as the Linux version.

With the Eee PC available in two distinctive flavors, potential purchasers have a tough decision to make: Linux or Windows? Both operating systems have their pros and cons on this hardware, so we pit them head to head in an eight-round brawl to see which version of the Eee PC comes out on top. It’s a potential OS war the likes of which haven’t been seen since Mac OS X vs. Windows Vista. Let’s get ready to rumble!

Interface 

Productivity 

Performance 

Peripherals 

Multimedia 

Adding Applications 

Boot and Shutdown Times 

Battery Life