NetBook advice

[dracer777]

Wirelessly posted (MOT-QA30/00.72 UP.Browser/7.2.7.5.610 (GUI) MMP/2.0)

I say go with a cheap, new netbook with a 1ghz Atom CPU, 1-2 gigs of ram. Running XP. I highly suggest getting one at sams club if you can. they are very cheap and you can return it whenever do to their "100% satifaction gurantee".

Expensive laptops are a waste to me, in my opinion. They are a grey area, when i use a computer for its power, I punish it. I built myself a 1.5k desktop about a year ago, mostly for gaming and man do i punish it. I have maxed that thing out with a game or two.

I can go get a 2k laptop and not be able to do half the stuff i can with my desktop. Performance laptops are a waste. Get a cheap laptop for portability and save your resource intensive applications for the desktop.

I am also looking for a netbook and have much experience with computers. I think I will end up getting a 10in. 1.06 ghz atom, 1gb ram, Win XP, Dell from sams for $300. It will handle everything that i need on the road and its small.

 

[N_Jay]

I know what you mean. I also build my own desktop machines.

Although my laptop is usually a solid business machine, as that what it is form and how it is paid for.

What I am looking for is something to supplement the laptop for travel, and so I don't have to carry a 6 lb machine to every meeting just to take notes or show a PowerPoint.

I just want something as small as I can getm and still have a big enough keyboard to hunt and peck, and a big enough screen not to have to squint.

Also enough power not to bog down when running office and to run video (non HD) off teh HD or a USB drive.

Of course, I don't play games.

 

[WayneH]

A little late to the party but my two cents....

Most of the cookie-cutter netbooks are all the same save for ergonomics (mouse & keyboard), and graphics and CPU though you have few choices for those. Like others have said, you want a 6-cell battery. You also want at least the N280 chip. There is the N330 which is a dual-core but I don't know of any netbooks using it yet. If you want to do any HD (i.e., make it somewhat future-proof) you'll want the ION graphics chip. It has hardware acceleration built in for HD file formats and will offset the slow CPU. Even with an N330 these little devices still aren't enough for resource intensive apps/content. Also think about 802.11n if it's of interest.

With a quick look, the HP Mini looks like a decent choice. The S12 has the N270 so forget it. The Acer has the Z520 which is not as fast as the N280.

I personally use an Asus 1000HE. I'm still at 1GB of ram with XP. I leave it on all the time and have no issues. I use Office with no complaints. My only gripe is the display, but that's what you get with a netbook.

FWIW, there is supposed to be a version of Win7 that's designed for netbooks. Most of the XP versions that come standard on many netbooks are also designed for them.

 

[poltergeisty]

I don't get it. I have an Inspiron 6000 with a 1.86 GHZ processor (Soon to be 3 Ghz soon as I install the proc) and a gig of RAM. Not too shabby, really. What kind of apping do you want on a netbook with more than a N270? For a netbook I wouldn't need anything more. :lol: Waist of $$$

Have heard they don't last long. There are ton of modes out there for netbooks.

Cheap, Easy-to-Mod NetBooks Are a Hacker’s Paradise | Gadget Lab | Wired.com N_Jay's favorite mag. :lol: :twisted:

 

[N_Jay]

Have heard they don't last long. There are ton of modes out there for netbooks.

Cheap, Easy-to-Mod NetBooks Are a Hacker’s Paradise | Gadget Lab | Wired.com N_Jay's favorite mag. :lol: :twisted:

Of course they don't last long when you start disassembling them.

Ah, an article from "Popular Internet"

 

[N9JIG]

Netbooks have their place. For casual portable surfing and low power applications they are great. For more demanding uses more robust machines are called for.

Tearing apart a netbook is not practical, most of them are difficult in not impossibe to upgrade but they are cheap enough so that isn't really needed. Why spend $200 to add more RAM and a larger hard drive when for $50 more you can get a whole new netbook with more of each?

I equate netbooks with the plethora of thumb drives I tend to collect: The data contained on them is more valuable than the device itself. I can get a 32 GB thumb drive for $50, they are giving away the 2 GB these days. Colleges and even some high schools are giving students laptops and netbooks. For $100 more than the cheap netbooks you can get a full sized laptop with plenty of horsepower for most needs.