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Netbooks / Mini Laptops

MJo

By MJo
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MJo Gold Member

MJo

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Been tempted for a while to get one of those netbooks or mini laptops but really missed all the hype and don't really know what is available out there.

Seen Samsung N310 and it looks nice and looks like that HSDPA connections are built in, has battery life of 5 hours and some HD space, integrated web camera etc etc.

What you think about it, anyone have one in use ?

If you are using netbook / minilaptop please please tell me and the general public why you purchased the particular model. Pros and cons. like battery life compared to others or weight etc etc. And are you using it also for business (excel, word etc or just for internet and email) ?

My use for it would be mainly internet and emails as i do have "proper" laptop for business use but with company set-up / image so not able to do and install whatever i like for it. Anyways been considering running the netbook on linux. Does this make any sense, i.e. make the atom processor to run it faster ?

All pro's and experts out there, shoot away...

Edit: and my apologies if this has been done before...

Edited by MJo
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dave_boo Platinum Member

dave_boo

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Been tempted for a while to get one of those netbooks or mini laptops but really missed all the hype and don't really know what is available out there.

That's too bad; they're great travel companions. A bit of a bear for using as your main machine, but much better to lug through an airport.

Seen Samsung N310 and it looks nice and looks like that HSDPA connections are built in, has battery life of 5 hours and some HD space, integrated web camera etc etc.

Make triple-sure that the model you get has the features you think you need. There are many NC10 models (with extremely confusing -xxx; worst than Harley's naming scheme) and not all of them have the best battery life, nor the WWAN card, nor multi-touch, nor bluetooth, etc. Also, I'm not sure where you are, but are you sure that they offer HSDPA where you are at?

What you think about it, anyone have one in use ?

Sorry, I don't have a NC10, but I do have an Asus 1000HE.

If you are using netbook / minilaptop please please tell me and the general public why you purchased the particular model. Pros and cons. like battery life compared to others or weight etc etc. And are you using it also for business (excel, word etc or just for internet and email) ?

I purchased the 1000HE because of battery life. At the time there was no other netbook that came close. And I'm not talking about 'rated' battery life, but rather real life. Running wi-fi and low brightness, I can surf the web for nearly 7 hours. Next up came screen size. 10 inches is where it's at. I understand that a 'real' netbook doesn't have anything over 9", but I couldn't stand anything smaller than what I got. After that was networking; the 1000HE has Draft-N and bluetooth. Two absolutely required standards as far as I'm concerned. Weight wasn't much of an issue for me, since I'm used to carrying around a DTR which with charger comes in at just under 8 kilos :) I also considered the processor; it's got a Atom 280 which isn't that much faster, but every little bit helps!

My use for it would be mainly internet and emails as i do have "proper" laptop for business use but with company set-up / image so not able to do and install whatever i like for it. Anyways been considering running the netbook on linux. Does this make any sense, i.e. make the atom processor to run it faster ?

Excellent choice to try Linux out on it. Actually one of the biggest problems that Windows based netbooks have is HD Flash video. They struggle with it. Installing a lighter weight operating system (and flash player) results in success. Do note that Linux isn't as advanced in power management though, you'll lose some battery life.

All pro's and experts out there, shoot away...

Edit: and my apologies if this has been done before...

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MJo Gold Member

MJo

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Thanks Dave,

I'll be using it 50/50 in thailand and outside with HSPA networks. Would be nice to be able to do it without the dongle or phone connected. Also battery life is important during long flights i take frequently.

For Samsung i was referring N310, new model i guess that is advertised in their web pages. NC10 is older model ?

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d0ndela Silver Member

d0ndela

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The Asus Eee series is our best selling netbook by miles, it looks good, it has amazing battery life and in most cases it has all that the customer wants.

Another good selling netbook is the Sony Vaio P series, for this one I would say that 95% buy it for the design + looks. It truly looks amazing and with it's only 8" (to small for me though) they managed to keep it really small for transportation.

About Acer and HP as you ask, Acer seems like an OK purchase as well, but I would pay the extra little bit for an Asus any day. And for HP, I can only say that I wouldn't own one even if they gave it to me for free. They are not good looking and they can't compete on prices, add that to the fact that we seem to get broken HP laptops brought in every day almost for repairs, I would stay away from HP when it comes to portables.

Also the BenQ Joybook Lite series are decent machines.

I don't really think I helped you in any way :) But I guess my message is that pretty much all netbook manufacturers have the same parts inside their computers, so really it's a matter of personal preference in the ways of design and size.

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MJo Gold Member

MJo

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Thanks guys for the advice and opinions.

I will definedly check out Asus. Battery life is most important for me together with connectivity.

Plan is to buy it in a month or so once i get to Singapore and have a day to spend at funan. I let you know how it goes and start flooding the forum with my Linux questions. It was early 90's i touched Linux machine last time :)

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mezcal Senior Member

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I just bought an ASUS 1005HA. I've done my homework and read many reviews and comparisons and in the end I came up with this model. It got excellent reviews both from websites and customers alike. I got it from IT Fever in Pantip (top floor, left side)...paid 16.320Bht (incl 1067Bht VAT and a 920Bht 2Gb RAM upgrade)...got a mouse, earplugs and a cleaning set for free. Couldn't bargain any more, even by paying in cash.

So far I'm very happy.

+ about 8hrs real life battery life

+ 160Gb HD

+ small and light

+ beautiful design

+ Atom 280, but there's not a big difference with the 270

+ WIFI b/g and n

+ Bluetooth

+ 3 USB

+ good touchpad

+ very small battery charger

+ very good boot and shut down times

- glossy casing, which attracts a lot of fingerprints. I bought a skin (sticker) and solved the problem, adding my personal touch at the same time

- keyboard could be a bit better/stronger build

- speakers could be better

I got 4000Bht for my 7years old Dell Inspiron (pentium 4!) to soften the expense (in another shop though). In my country they would have laughed at me for trying to sell it! :D

Netbooks are pretty amazing, especially the last generation. I use it mostly for surfing, email and movies/music and some smaller programs...and it performs those tasks as fast as, or even faster than my HP Pavilion.

All in all I think I made a good choice :)

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sbk Star Member

sbk

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I got the Asus 1000 HE. Fantastic battery life, over 8 hour, really, even with wifi turned on. I don't find the keys cheap feeling at all, quite sturdy really. The 10" is better I think than the older smaller ones.

I added extra RAM and it came with XP. Bluetooth works great, just connected to my phone to back it up (I have no idea where I put the nokia cable :)).

I couldn't be happier with my netbook, tbh. Didn't know that the shops in Bangkok will buy old laptops, tho, good to know and something to bear in mind.

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mezcal Senior Member

mezcal

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I got the Asus 1000 HE. Fantastic battery life, over 8 hour, really, even with wifi turned on. I don't find the keys cheap feeling at all, quite sturdy really. The 10" is better I think than the older smaller ones.

I added extra RAM and it came with XP. Bluetooth works great, just connected to my phone to back it up (I have no idea where I put the nokia cable :)).

I couldn't be happier with my netbook, tbh. Didn't know that the shops in Bangkok will buy old laptops, tho, good to know and something to bear in mind.

Yes, there are a few...especially on the top floor. You can easily identify then by the display of dated laptops in the windows :D

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MJo Gold Member

MJo

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Asus still seems to be the top pick :)

Any idea if they have build in 3G/EVDO or HSPA modems available for Asus ?

This is one good accessory to have if you use it outside Thailand and within a year or so it should also make some sense to have it in Bangkok. Also i would assume the modems also handle GPRS/EDGE ? Would be good backup in case there is no wifi available.

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mezcal Senior Member

mezcal

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Asus still seems to be the top pick :)

Any idea if they have build in 3G/EVDO or HSPA modems available for Asus ?

This is one good accessory to have if you use it outside Thailand and within a year or so it should also make some sense to have it in Bangkok. Also i would assume the modems also handle GPRS/EDGE ? Would be good backup in case there is no wifi available.

As far as I know Asus doesn't have 3G on eee PC's. I don't know about other brands, but I doubt it...

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MJo Gold Member

MJo

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Asus still seems to be the top pick :D

Any idea if they have build in 3G/EVDO or HSPA modems available for Asus ?

This is one good accessory to have if you use it outside Thailand and within a year or so it should also make some sense to have it in Bangkok. Also i would assume the modems also handle GPRS/EDGE ? Would be good backup in case there is no wifi available.

As far as I know Asus doesn't have 3G on eee PC's. I don't know about other brands, but I doubt it...

New HP Minis and Samsung N310 should have EVDO/3G/HSPA modems build in. Almost everywhere you get HSPA networks nowdays with dongle. Hopefully Thailand will follow soon :)

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Crushdepth Ruby Member

Crushdepth

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The new HP Mini 5101 looks pretty cool. Finally addresses all the shortcomings of the 1000 series (N280 processor, 2 gigs of RAM, gigabit LAN, VGA port, standard screen res, HP un2400 EV-DO/HSPA Mobile Broadband Module, metal case). PLus a 7,200 RPM hard drive. But they changed the keyboard - not sure if that was a good idea. If there was one thing good about the earlier minis, it was the keyboard so why mess with that!

It's on the HP Thailand website already, which hopefully means this model will actually be for sale here. But probably not going to be cheap?

Edited by Crushdepth
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phazey Gold Member

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I got a 1000HA yesterday, upgraded to 2GB and installed OSX. Runs like a charm (apart from no wifi, but thats no biggie for me as i tether to my phone when i am on the road - which is what it is for). Great as a secondary/travelling laptop.

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ianwuk Silver Member

ianwuk

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I had an Asus EEEPC when they first came out but promptly sold it because I just could not find a justifiable reason to keep it alongside my main laptop.

The new netbooks that support Windows 7 look interesting though.

Ian

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Veazer Silver Member

Veazer

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The newer netbooks on the horizon will address some of the shortcomings of the current crop, namely poor video performance. The Lenovo S12, Samsung N510 and Mobii ION will all feature the nVidia 9400M video card. This means full 1080p HD playback and smooth playback of flash video and HD flash video at sites like youtube, vimeo, etc (with Flash player v10+). It also means faster encoding for CUDA supported apps.

I'm holding out for the S12. It's larger than my current 10" asus but the higher res screen and better video card will be worth it.

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