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Everex’s netbook, named the Everex Cloudbook, offers a satisfactory, albeit unimpressive, performance. The Everex Cloudbook offers satisfactory operation based on its 1.2 GHz VIA C7-M ultra low voltage processor. Upgrading the tiny 512MB RAM to 1GB does help improve its performance. Still, this is not remarkable compared to the competition.

 

Freemont, California-based Everex is a manufacturer of desktop and notebook personal computers. Established in 1983, the company initially made a name for itself as the leader in tape backup sales with half the world market.

 

The company is also known for several financial setbacks it had to endure in its colorful history. In 1993, the company declared itself bankrupt and was acquired by the Formosa Plastics Group. In December 2006, the company again filed for bankruptcy and was taken over by NewMarket Technology. Just recently, the company was in the news again; apparently their US operation has shut down but the company has not issued a word of explanation. This hints that another case of bankruptcy filing might be looming.

 

Design-wise, the Cloudbook is simple yet solid. We commend Everex for being able to put some sturdiness on this compact design. The Cloudbook’s 7-inch matte screen is easy on the eyes. Its 800×480 resolution offers bright images but, expectedly, isn’t designed for HD video viewing. The device does have a screen scaling system that allows you to scale resolution according to your taste.

 

The keyboard is cramped but we don’t think this would be a problem as most netbook users do not spend long hours typing on their units. The touchpad interface on the Cloudbook is unusually placed on the right side of the netbook. The left and right buttons, on the other hand, are on the left side of the device. The touchpad setup does require getting used-to. Most users, we expect, would be turned-off by this arrangement.

 

As to its share of ports, the Everex Cloudbook has the following ports: 2 USB 2.0, DVI, multiple card reader (4-in-1), Ethernet, an audio out and a microphone input port. The unit also comes with 802.11b/g WiFi. Memory is at 30GB maybe enough for some, but those who are into downloading stuff from the net would be asking for more.

 

If you intend to use this device for gaming, take note of its many limitations. The Cloudbook won’t be able to handle some of the latest games but is able to run many older games.

 

Like most users, we rant about the quality of the speakers on the Cloudbook. The speakers are simply awful. To remedy that, we suggest you use the audio output port.

 

For power, the Everex Cloudbook relies on a four-cell lithium-ion battery that Everex claims to last up to five hours long. Actual tests show this is more like three and a half hours.

 

In extended operations, the Cloudbook is both noisy and hot. The cooling fans produce very audible sound and there is a lot of heat coming from underneath the unit.

 

SPECS	AVAILABLE OPTIONS
CPU	1.2 GHz VIA C7 Mobile processor
RAM	512MB
Screen Size	7 inch 800 x 480 pixel screen
Operating System	gOS Linux (based on Ubuntu)
Battery Life	About 3 and a half hours
Graphics	VIA UniChrome Pro IGP Graphics

 

Pros

The Everex Cloudbook has an excellent high-resolution scaling system. We also like its sturdy design and solid build.

 

Cons

The gOS Rocket operating system is not user friendly. Everex obviously did not put much thought when it opted for this OS for the Cloudbook. The touchpad interface is uninspiring. The device gets hot almost immediately and its cooling fan generates too much noise.

Conclusion

The recent news about the closure of Everex in the US should be a warning to buyers. Now that the company has shut down, where would buyers get technical support? The question becomes more pronounced with a badly made product as the Cloudbook. Besides, there are a lot of other netbooks out there that are available for the same price with a comparable set of features.

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Tags: cloudbook, Everex, gOS

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 15th, 2009 at 7:00 am and is filed under Other, and is tagged with cloudbook, Everex, gOS. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.