no wonder so many geeks in Asia...$44 gets a netbook + mobile plan
 

24 months contract and you get 3G 7.2Mbps broadband plan + 3G netbook!
too bad, only in Asia.

That's about $24cdn for the plan alone x 2 yrs contract :eek:

http://www.smartone-vodafone.com/jsp.../priceplan.jsp


http://www.smartone-vodafone.com/vit...dex_image2.jpg
http://www.smartone-vodafone.com/vit...dex_image3.jpg

Apparently the SSD is slower than a snail, keyboard is cramped like fat chicks stuck in a porta-potty, and the battery life is as short as that porno with the guy who jizzed after 30s.

Your math kinda sucks... You need a $318 monthly plan, which is around $45 CAD per month. And you have to pay for the laptop outright - $3480 HKD (about $500 CAD). The $500 is "returned" to you in equal monthly payments over 2 years.

So really, it's not "free", it's subsidized over 2 years. And the monthly plan is only usable on the laptop - you can't take a SIM and stick it in an iphone or a 3G router or anything. So that's $1080 CAD going to a plan that is only usable on a single laptop. Which essentially is paying for the laptop as well, on top of the 2 year payment plan you are giving them.

Like most "awesome deals" in Hong Kong, this one doesn't stand up to scrutiny.

Also it's a POS with a crappy battery (about 2 hours). Take a look at a review of the Onkyo C204 it's based on (it's a shitty review, but you can get an idea of how it looks and performs):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3FxIFyl0zE

I don't think asian people who buy a netbook care about these features.

Asians have tiny fingers and you will be amazed how many thumb drives they carry
around. My sister has 512, 1gb, 2gb, 4gb, 8gb in her bag and she's asking if I can buy
her a 16gb. It's weird.

If the battery runs out. LOL...they always have one iphone and one nokia 5800 with
them. No one can understand why they need 2 phones at a time. Probably only Asians,
so I am not too Asian afterward :(


yes, I aware it won't work on iphone or other PDA phone.
I almost fell into their "Laptop + 7.2Mbps plan" deal early this year when everyone at work bought one from Smartone.
It was 388 x 24 months + $2400 subsidized over the next 2 years,

so I think 318x24 months + nettop is not bad.
My gf needs a new computer and internet after she moved anyway, this should be better than the regular PCCW ($168 3M plan)
and it is within my budget. =)

wait so why DO they need 2 phones...

if you ever take MTR in hk, you will see some kids or young adults holding
two phones...usually iphone for checking their contact list (???) and the
other PDA phone for Mp3 or something.

I see at least 2 or 3 per day in average.

^ more room for stick on things and dangly bits from the loophole.

Weird, I have lived in HK for over 3 years now, and have travelled here on and off for 5 years, and I never noticed anyone carrying more than 1 phone with them before. I'll look for it though. I know people definitely have more than 1 phone, but usually they just replace their old one when their contract runs out.. Then the old one sits around or gets passed down (or sold in SSP).

ANd by the way, I tested Vodaphone's HSPA connection on a laptop before, it's nowhere close to being usable as a broadband service. For web browsing it is.. sufficient. But if your gf ever watches videos on youtube or whatever, or wants to download anything, she should get a proper connection. 3G is okay for basic use right now, but even in HK it's insufficient as a sole internet connection at home.

^ yeah, I tried my co-worker's usb 3G on my lappy...I get less than 1Mbps at
Times Square and streaming youtube is slow at this rate. My gf only checks
email and openrice.com only, so it should be good enough.


Strange. I see these people many times. Just like my night class classmates,
they've already bought their iphone S and still have their old iphone with them.
I only have a 3yrs old PDA phone, it's embarrassing to take it out =/


http://cache.gawker.com/assets/image.../05/phones.jpg

LOL taxi drivers are another story. Especially the ones that contract out to several providers. Airport taxis, reserved taxis, etc.. Those guys have a fuck of a lot of phones!

thats not a good deal

my iphone 3GS plan on 3 is only 398 with unlimted data and 2500 minutes, i can tether my iphone to any laptop with full 7.2Mbps HSDPA and can use it normally like a phone, PLUS i get the 3GS for $780

my gf have 2 phones, she use one for personal and one for work. and usually have one could be used as back up phone whenever her iphone runs out of battery

my buddies gf has 2 phone, she works for rogers. One is for personal and one is for "business" she wants a 3rd phone now. She's a phone whore and wants to look cool and imprtant. There is never a need for 2 phones imo. Get 2 seperate phone #'s and make different ringtones for them. Problem solved :thumbsup:

what kind of useless phone can't last a day on a charge?

phone wh0res
i had no idea vodaphone and onkyo made netbooks hahah.

They don't make netbooks - they license from manufacturers in China.

damn jealous

That'd be a decent deal if you could use the plan on something other than that shitty netbook.

There are plenty of plans in the States where you pay like $20 a month for wireless internet that works off a USB attachment. Not sure how good they are...they're probably horrible but hey, at least you can use your own goddamn laptop.