53 replies to this topic

[mando]

I'm looking for a small netbook for travel this year. Might you have any personal recommendations? Features to consider?

I think I want these features:
Intel Atom N270 CPU
Intel GMA950 graphics
1 or more GB RAM
160 GB HD (carry my music and maybe some movies)
9" screen (smaller form factor) - I have bigger PCs for other purposes
>4 hrs battery life
webcam and mic (for Skype)

Currently leaning towards these two models:
ASUS Eee PC 900HA
Acer Aspire One AOA150

Can you convince me that what I really want is an iPod Touch?

[chris v]

I'm looking for a small netbook for travel this year. Might you have any personal recommendations? Features to consider?

I think I want these features:
Intel Atom N270 CPU
Intel GMA950 graphics
1 or more GB RAM
160 GB HD (carry my music and maybe some movies)
9" screen (smaller form factor) - I have bigger PCs for other purposes
>4 hrs battery life
webcam and mic (for Skype)

Currently leaning towards these two models:
ASUS Eee PC 900HA
Acer Aspire One AOA150

Can you convince me that what I really want is an iPod Touch?

hahaha... I got an ipod touch instead of a netbook.... now I want an iphone instead.

[MrsTuffPaws]

hahaha... I got an ipod touch instead of a netbook.... now I want an iphone instead.

OP, what do you want the netbook for? The iPhone is great for web surfing, email, music, games, phone, texting.... But not so great for typing or flash-based websites. And while you CAN watch a movie on it, the screen is rather small, I wouldn't try anything with subtitles.

[john]

I don't know about the specs, but I have been playing with a Dell Mini 9 at work. I don't think it's useful for the work environment, but I do think it's an excellent travel computer. It boots quickly, sips power, and is fairly efficient. It's got a lot of capabilities as a full notebook, but smaller form factor. You cannot play DVD's unless you had an external DVD drive or it was transferred from a flash drive or something. It does have an Atom processor, I know that.

[bunny]

All I can suggest is that you use one before you buy it. Many of the sub 10" models have absolutely unusable keyboards, while some 9" models have keyboards that are better than some 10" models. Some have odd key placements...check out the arrow keys and the size and placement of the shift keys.

The difference between the 9" screen and the 10" screen is huge if you dont have really sharp eyes.

You definitely want the Atom and not a leftover Celeron ULV or brand x processor. About he same performance and much better battery life.

If you get a model with a solid state drive and its smallish, find out in advance how much it costs and how hard it is to put a bigger one in.

Returns on linux models is far higher than windows xp models. So unless you've got fairly low usage requirements or are familiar with linux, it might be advisable to get a model with XP on it. I've found that linux neophytes will do okay with 80% of what they want to do 80% of the time, but it can become pretty annoying to figure out how to do relatively simple things with an operating system that you dont know.

I really, really want one because I like technology stuff. Every time I try to tap out a few lines on one in the store, I quickly realize that it wouldnt be practical for anything involving moderate to high typing volumes. If I spent a lot of time traveling and needed a computer for Office, email and browsing I'd much rather have this than lug an 8lb computer around.

[Dave Burrell]

I've played with a few netbooks, comparing video and sound quality/capability and all the additional features, the itouch/iphone is much better

[eVader]

I agree, you have to use one for a bit to determine if it is a fit or not for your needs.

The HP 1000 series looks impressive and a friend has an Acer that he likes.

Dell has a Mini 10 coming out in March per the tech forums that may be a good pick. It has a 1024x576 10" screen vs. 8.9, the new Atom Z520 & Z530 procs, new graphics chipset and HDMI out. Per the tech sites, Dell is said to have a 720p version but not at the initial release.

[mando]

Thanks for all the thoughts so far.

I forgot to mention that I do want WinXP for a Netbook. Besides my sizable software investment, I also already know how to make it play well with the rest of my home network.

If I could justify the cost of an iPhone data plan, I would probably get one. The convenience of a full browser in my pocket, untethered to a hot-spot is extremely appealing. But I am trying to limit my expense.

The idea of an iPod Touch remains attractive mainly on account of its superior portability over a Netbook, but also on account of its "coolness" (user interface, form factor, accelerometer apps, etc.), but the limits of a small screen do raise concerns for my intended usage.

Here's how I think I would use a travel Netbook:

• Check e-mail
• Access the Web (directions, travel arrangements, travel/dining guides, etc.)
• Store and upload photos; minor editing if needed
• Travel log; itineraries; expense tracking
• Watch movies; maybe listen to music - iTunes
• Skype - phone home for low cost from abroad

Side thought: Since I'm a musician, I could also find other cool uses for an ultraportable including field recording (with appropriate USB pro audio gadgets), MIDI-based backing tracks, and guitar tuning.

It needs to be small enough to stick into a backpack or messenger bag without too much forethought, and have enough battery life for intermittent use over a day or two on the road. (the instant on/off behavior of an iPod wins here, too)

[Dave Burrell]

Side thought: Since I'm a musician, I could also find other cool uses for an ultraportable including field recording (with appropriate USB pro audio gadgets), MIDI-based backing tracks, and guitar tuning.

It needs to be small enough to stick into a backpack or messenger bag without too much forethought, and have enough battery life for intermittent use over a day or two on the road. (the instant on/off behavior of an iPod wins here, too)

as a musician you might dig this - on my iphone I have a guitar tuner, a metronome and a few apps with mass amounts of guitar chords and other guitar tab references - pretty good stuff

[mando]

as a musician you might dig this - on my iphone I have a guitar tuner, a metronome and a few apps with mass amounts of guitar chords and other guitar tab references - pretty good stuff

Those are cool. I forget I have some of these apps on my trusty old Palm Pilot, too. Nowhere near as slick as the iPhone versions, I'm sure.

I think I saw an iPhone app somewhere that turns it into a fretboard/guitar.

By the way, do all non-cellphone iPhone apps work on the iPod Touch as well? I've been assuming that they do.

[Dave Burrell]

Those are cool. I forget I have some of these apps on my trusty old Palm Pilot, too. Nowhere near as slick as the iPhone versions, I'm sure.

I think I saw an iPhone app somewhere that turns it into a fretboard/guitar.

By the way, do all non-cellphone iPhone apps work on the iPod Touch as well? I've been assuming that they do.

I have that app that turns it into a fret board and you'll like this - that app also does mandolin, and several other types of string instruments

Yes, all non-cellphone iphone apps work equally as well on the itouch (my son has one)

[FolsomFrogGuy]

This response comes directly from my Acer Aspire One, which I've now had for nearly 3 months. The keyboard is fine, and it works great with my wifi network, once I updated the drivers. The wireless adapter requires an update to work at all, so don't be surprised if you have trouble at first. Now the connection is very quick. For comparison sake, and since you literally asked for it, our Ipod Touch is very slow, and stalls out a lot. It also freezes up quite a bit, but this may be due to our ongoing bad Apple karma... My wife's classic Ipod had to be replaced 4 or 5 times.

I've got the 160 GB hard drive, and a Gig of Ram. It fits well into my briefcase, and is so light...well, it's troublesome as I forget I have it sometimes, only to drop down the case harder than I would otherwise.

The only real limitation is the battery life. Since I've never had a laptop of my own, I'm really not used to their short charge life. Conveniently the Acer One has a switch on the front of the keyboard that allows you to turn off the wireless adapter to save NRG when you're not online. This, along with a display on/off switch at the top of the keyboard probably allows me to stretch the battery life an extra 30% or so. Maybe laptop users are used to these already...

Anyhow, please let me know if you have further questions. Since they were out of the 120 GB models, they gave me the larger 160 version for the same price, and through in a free two year extended warranty for free. Now that's salesmanship!

[Dave Burrell]

This response comes directly from my Acer Aspire One, which I've now had for nearly 3 months. The keyboard is fine, and it works great with my wifi network, once I updated the drivers. The wireless adapter requires an update to work at all, so don't be surprised if you have trouble at first. Now the connection is very quick. For comparison sake, and since you literally asked for it, our Ipod Touch is very slow, and stalls out a lot. It also freezes up quite a bit, but this may be due to our ongoing bad Apple karma... My wife's classic Ipod had to be replaced 4 or 5 times.

I've got the 160 GB hard drive, and a Gig of Ram. It fits well into my briefcase, and is so light...well, it's troublesome as I forget I have it sometimes, only to drop down the case harder than I would otherwise.

The only real limitation is the battery life. Since I've never had a laptop of my own, I'm really not used to their short charge life. Conveniently the Acer One has a switch on the front of the keyboard that allows you to turn off the wireless adapter to save NRG when you're not online. This, along with a display on/off switch at the top of the keyboard probably allows me to stretch the battery life an extra 30% or so. Maybe laptop users are used to these already...

Anyhow, please let me know if you have further questions. Since they were out of the 120 GB models, they gave me the larger 160 version for the same price, and through in a free two year extended warranty for free. Now that's salesmanship!

That was a good deal - where'd you buy it?

on your itouch probs - update the firmware and reboot it, that should fix the issues you are having with it.

[webuser]

I was thinking of getting a netbook soon, but I think it will be better to wait.

Windows 7 will probably be worth waiting for for several reasons if you are getting a Netbook.
If you spend $299 on a Netbook now, you aren't going to want to spend $100 or more to upgrade it to Windows 7 since that will be more than 1/3 the total cost of the purchase in well under a year after buying. If you wait for Windows 7, by the time the next version of Windows comes out, it will be time to trash the netbook.
When Windows 7 comes out, Intel and Microsoft will no longer have any excuses to artificially limit maximum RAM configuration to under 2GB and screen resolution to 1024X600 for contrived Vista marketing reasons, so Netbooks have the potential to become MUCH nicer after Windows 7 starts being factory preloaded on Netbooks.

Another possible reason to wait is that maybe the next version on the iPhone/iPod touch will be able to properly load all websites including those with Adobe Flash.
If the next iPod touch is no longer limited in the websites it can load, it will be a more viable alternative to carrying a laptop or netbook. I use websites that are too Flash intense for an iPhone browser on a daily basis, so I need a machine that can load any web page that loads in a standard PC browser.

[Dave Burrell]

I was thinking of getting a netbook soon, but I think it will be better to wait.

Windows 7 will probably be worth waiting for for several reasons if you are getting a Netbook.
If you spend $299 on a Netbook now, you aren't going to want to spend $100 or more to upgrade it to Windows 7 since that will be more than 1/3 the total cost of the purchase in well under a year after buying. If you wait for Windows 7, by the time the next version of Windows comes out, it will be time to trash the netbook.
When Windows 7 comes out, Intel and Microsoft will no longer have any excuses to artificially limit maximum RAM configuration to under 2GB and screen resolution to 1024X600 for contrived Vista marketing reasons, so Netbooks have the potential to become MUCH nicer after Windows 7 starts being factory preloaded on Netbooks.

Another possible reason to wait is that maybe the next version on the iPhone/iPod touch will be able to properly load all websites including those with Adobe Flash.
If the next iPod touch is no longer limited in the websites it can load, it will be a more viable alternative to carrying a laptop or netbook. I use websites that are too Flash intense for an iPhone browser on a daily basis, so I need a machine that can load any web page that loads in a standard PC browser.

Can Linux be installed on a netbook? That's a much better OS then waiting for Microshaft Windoze 7

You're right about the iphone not working with flash, that is a drag but I haven't used too many sites that are flash based so I've been able to surf pretty good using my iphone on many sites.
I read some news this morning about a new firmware code coming out that has a few lines of code in it for what is rumored to be for a new product release this summer, something beyond just additional memory - maybe this new version is the fix for the flash probs too.