About Netbooks ...


Adam Goi

ClubSNAP Idol
Staff member
Hi people, currently in the market looking for one. I realise since I only need it mainly to surf the net, check emails and work on MS Office related stuff, I think I don't the the raw power of a notebook ...

Currently looking at Asus Eee PC 1015PEM and Lenovo IdeaPad™ S10-3; are they good choices and any user feedback?

Where's a good place it?

Thanks in advance and have a great weekend! :)
 

I dont own either netbook, but did a search and discovered that lenovo is still using the old intel chip n450. My netbook which is nearly 1 yr old and is using the same chip. Last time I checked most are jumping to n455? or is it n460? asus is using a new dual core n550. definitely a plus. with weight, size approx the same, I would prefer asus.

I did a comparison at this link.. http://reviews.cnet.com/4504-3121_7-0.html?id=34211758&id=34168001&id=34180962&id=33953796 Have a look
 

i wun suggest for a net book cos,
1) value depreciate fast
2) once lcd/led panel break(which is very common) replacement will cost a bomb
3) if die die want, why not take a walk in sim lim and consider second hand?
 

Hi people, currently in the market looking for one. I realise since I only need it mainly to surf the net, check emails and work on MS Office related stuff, I think I don't the the raw power of a notebook ...

Currently looking at Asus Eee PC 1015PEM and Lenovo IdeaPad™ S10-3; are they good choices and any user feedback?

Where's a good place it?

Thanks in advance and have a great weekend! :)

The Atoms in most netbooks will barely do the basics running on Windows 7, and if you multi-task a lot using internet browsers they will struggle. I worked with Lenovo netbooks (Thinkpad Mini10) and they were solidly built, had excellent battery but compromised by the processor and video.

Get a netbook for :

- cheapest price
- average to good 3-5 hours battery life (but decreases heavily when running 720p videos or USB devices)
- lighter weight
- running one program/process at a time

Otherwise invest a little more in a more powerful notebook. I got my 11.6" Acer tablet for under $800, but it has a Core 2 Duo SU7300 and Intel GMA4500HD which is fast enough to run 1080p videos and 3D games on the lighter settings. Its not much heavier than a netbook and I can use it as a tablet. The best part is that it can run for 8 hours, I haven't even looked back.
 

i wun suggest for a net book cos,
1) value depreciate fast
2) once lcd/led panel break(which is very common) replacement will cost a bomb
3) if die die want, why not take a walk in sim lim and consider second hand?

not a personal attack, but any laptop will depreciate in value, and this is not a house or car where u hope to sell it off in the future and minimize loss. Considering that a netbook cost only about 600, the absolute lose in value when u do decide to trade-in is at max 500? A 2nd hand laptop cost how much? 3-400? or even more for a good recent model, I would rather pay 200 more for a new netbook. unless u r telling me I can get a macbook air at 3-400, I will buy that instead then :) And of course, it hope u dont imply that lcd or led in netbook is more fragile than that of laptop. It cost a bomb for any laptop, netbook or monitor when it breaks. And its not common that it breaks, I have used laptops for more than a decade and hands on multiple models, only 1 cracked, and its my own fault.

MrSamo's suggestion is good too. A tablet using core 2 duo that is small and light and cost less than 800 is a very good option too. The last time i saw a similar acer tablet with touch screen capabilities is only 900+ too. However,Asus is using the new atom n550 duo core too to assist multi-tasking, it might work relatively well but i doubt as faST as a core 2 duo.

However, a word of warning, samsung seems to be the only netbook at the moment to stretch resolution to 1024 by 768. The rest are fixed at 1024 by 600. Browsing and using most programs are alright, but adobe raw cannot work here (cant see the last row of options and ok button), most pple wont use raw in a netbook anyway. I always bring my netbook out with me, browsing the net in a cafe, checking for important info in excel or typing email etc. Not as cool as those using a ipad, but definitely stylish enough and light enough to be brought around.
 

Overall in my opinion, if its just normal office work stuff.. A netbook Asus would be a better choice as their chipset is rather new than Lenovo.

Comparing Netbook and Laptop, the only few different between them is the screen size, weight, performance and battery life.

Another thing to note is that as now many company are moving away from Window Xp. It would be quite laggy for the netbook even if you pump up your RAM to 4GB which is still the max for Window 7 32bit. Window 7 will still need quite a bit more of processing and resource to run than Window XP. If your netbook were to run on Window 7, I would rather you think about getting a laptop with I3 that I believe would be more than sufficient. Of course if you hope your battery life to be much longer. Go for I5 as it has switchable graphic capability. I5 was build to save energy when you are not using resource intense application.
 

Netbook + Windows 7= Nice, but slow

Netbook + Jolicloud OS = FAST :p

Netbook + Hackintosh = Nice, but not-so-legal and Apple fanboys will strangle you using their iPhone earbuds and whack you using iNightSticks :D
 

Hi people, currently in the market looking for one. I realise since I only need it mainly to surf the net, check emails and work on MS Office related stuff, I think I don't the the raw power of a notebook ...

Currently looking at Asus Eee PC 1015PEM and Lenovo IdeaPad™ S10-3; are they good choices and any user feedback?

Where's a good place it?

Thanks in advance and have a great weekend! :)

err... ipad or things like that?
 

i just saw an acer 14" going for $799 with extra $100 off.. with i5 2.4ghz processor, 2gb ram, 256 or 512mb graphics card. seems like a pretty good deal to me. that's about the price of a netbook isn't it?
 

Go for I5 as it has switchable graphic capability. I5 was build to save energy when you are not using resource intense application.
i would say this depends on the laptop model u are talking about... mine run on a i5 but sadly the manufacturer yet to implement switchable technology, so now im only getting 1.5-2hr of battery life in moderate usage.
and its misleading to say that i5 uses less energy in idle or low intense apps.
we should actually be looking at the LM or UM class of the processor instead, these are the ones that is built to reduce power consumption by compromising some speed
 

Forget about net books . . . . Get the MacBook Air, Intel core 2, 2 GB RAM, 11 inch monitor and thinner than any Female magazines. That is the way to go.
 

i would say this depends on the laptop model u are talking about... mine run on a i5 but sadly the manufacturer yet to implement switchable technology, so now im only getting 1.5-2hr of battery life in moderate usage.
and its misleading to say that i5 uses less energy in idle or low intense apps.
we should actually be looking at the LM or UM class of the processor instead, these are the ones that is built to reduce power consumption by compromising some speed

oops.. yap.. i forgot to mention about tt.. yap.. ExplorerZ u r right about that. But I guess not many ppl know hw to see all these details unless research has been done with the help of ppl knowledgeable in this area.
 

To me, netbook is for doing some light stuff like MS Office or net browsing.

When I need to squat at a cafe and wait for my next appointment, that's useful to play around. Or for travelling.

I prefer something with a slightly bigger screen and a better processor.

If I were to get one, I would go for the Lenovo X100 or X200, which are 11inch and 12inch machine. One big thing to me is the anti-glare screen. You know how annoying it is to get nasty reflections wherever you go with the common glossy screen.

And well, the ipad is cool, but not that practical w/o a keyboard and usb.
 

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Goton myself the Asus eee pc 1001px few mths ago. Totally fits what I got it for. Surfing, emails, FB, ms office stuffs. As I've already my MacBook pro, this netbk really serves as a light weight-bring everywhere book for me and allows me to do some work as well. Have knee problem, and needed the portability as I went about doing my school research stuffs to-fro office and school. Best match of needs. :)
 

I got a Samsung netbook, been using it for about 1.5 years....

find it to be sufficiently good, 10 inch upgraded with 2gb RAM, using the first generation atom processor....battery life of 4hrs at max brightness and wifi on, take down the brightness n go into energy conservation mode can stretch to 6+ - 8 hrs ha....

I even use CS3 on it, works well as long as you don't create too many layers :) after 1.5h yrs, the battery still works like it used to, very surprised...but I only use it on and off in SG, mostly brought on trips for archival, websurfing, and sharing pics with friends...best buy for 500+ - 600 back then :)

consider this a vote for samsung :)
 

Have an EEEPC 901 but the battery died a while ago. Due to the "cheap" SSD modules, this machine is pretty slow. When the battery worked, it lasted for hours if you just wanted to surf the net. Battery replacement is 110 and debating if I should replace it.

People did install faster SSD to get a performance boost.
 

i just saw an acer 14" going for $799 with extra $100 off.. with i5 2.4ghz processor, 2gb ram, 256 or 512mb graphics card. seems like a pretty good deal to me. that's about the price of a netbook isn't it?

if i were you, i will wait till next year , rumours on the market that a new processor will be out early next year, till than price of i3-i7 will drop, you go around and see whether there is alot of i3-17 going good, there must be a reason why they want to get rid of it fast right?:)
 

The selling point of netbook is
1) light
2) good battery life
3) cheap enough that you would buy to complement your desktop / laptop

Comparing netbook with laptop is really no point since they were build for different purpose and not meant to replace each other. Saying that for the same price you can get a i3 / i5 is also besides the point since you can't get a i3/i5 for that price that can also last 10 hours on a charge and weigh 1.5kg. If you say you don't need your laptop to last 10 hours on 1 battery and weigh isn't an issue since you seldom carry it around, then you shouldn't even be considering netbook to begin with.

In fact I would say that the netbook's target market is the same as that for the ipad / galaxy tab.
 

I have the Asus Abdul Karim edition which is similiar to the 1015. Good size to lug around everywhere. Useful Express Gate OS to boot up and still access to your media files when you want a quick boot. And covered ports so nothing goes in or out.

The 1024x600 resolution makes it a pain for MS Office stuff. Some windows are too big and I still have not figure out how to get to the cut off <OK> and <Cancel> buttons. Internet surfing is also a PIA as the full webpage cannot be displayed.

There are some models with higher resolution such as 1376 x 768. I think these are the netbooks to go for.
 

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