If the first review of the Samsung NC10 didn’t convince you, here’s another that might make you think twice about this new netbook. Now if only Samsung would sell it more markets worldwide.
Categories
Category: Laptop Reviews
PortableMonkey has a review of the newer version of Lenovo’s netbook, IdeaPad S10e. Not much different than the widely available S10, this updated model has a 6–cell battery and is equipped with a quick–boot OS that appears Linux–based and is made for basic tasks like email and browsing the web. Read on for the complete review.
Portable Monkey has a comparison of three of the more prominent netbooks you can buy now, the Asus Eee PC 901, the Acer Aspire One, and the Dell Mini 9. Interesting how they rate these models in various aspects that will surely be of interest to potential buyers. But then again, TechCrunch tells us why ultraportable netbooks are not good enough. I don’t agree though.
Does it really do everything right? LaptopMag reviews this netbook/ultraportable from Samsung that retails for USD $499. It has a 10–inch screen making it slightly more usable, but at the expense of reduced portability. The spacious keyboard is something not too common among netbooks, so it’s a plus point for this model. In the beauty department, it surely does look good and should be a looker compared to its competitors. Is it worth getting? Read the review to find out.
I recently came across a review of the Asus Eee PC 900HA but before I read it, I thought it was just going to be one of many Eee PC variants that are becoming too common these days. After all, the specs is just the same as every other netbook these days:
- Intel Atom 1.6 GHz processor
- 160GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive (Seagate Momentus 5400.4)
- 1GB of DDR2 RAM (667MHz)
- Windows XP Home Edition Operating System
- 9″ WSVGA LED-Backlit 1024 x 600 LCD
- Ports: Three USB 2.0, 1 VGA monitor out, headphone jack, microphone input, SD card reader (SDHC-compatible), Kensington lock slot, Ethernet 10/100
- Webcam (.3 MP)
- Battery: 7.4v 5200mAh 4-cell battery (39Wh)
- Wireless: 802.11b/g (Atheros AR5007EG)
- One-year warranty
- Size: 8.86 (W) x 6.69 (D) x .79 ~ 1.33 (H)
- Weight: 2 lbs 7 oz
Nothing too spectacular, right? It has an ordinary notebook hard–drive for more storage but makes it noisier than an SSD module. Even the webcam’s downgraded from the 1.3MP one found on the Eee PC 900.
What makes the Asus Eee PC 900HA an interesting offering are the subtle niceties that comes with it. It has a reconfigured keyboard that’s a lot easier to type on. And with the Intel Atom, it is now a battery miser that can get to four hours of mobile use. And the clincher, a street price of around USD $250! The listed price is supposedly at USD $350 but it’s commonly found in the low 300 range. If it sells for less around 15,000 pesos here in the Philippines, it will be sure to fly off the shelves!
Note: Image courtesy of NotebookReview.com and/or its reviewer.
If the announcement of the new aluminum MacBooks got you all excited, aren’t you wondering how they would fare in real world use? NotebookReview now has a user review of the new MacBook and if that’s not enough, a guest editorial breaks down the position of Apple’s new product. Very interesting is the comparison putting the MacBook against similar offerings available in the market, which suggests that the so–called “Apple tax” is much more than we used to get, and questions if it’s worth paying now.
Nice read if you’re considering the new MacBook just like me, making you think twice if it’s worth all the money. But then again, buying a Mac was never only about the money.
Categories
Ultaportable battle
If you’ve been looking for an ultraportable to complement your computing gear, I’m sure the task of picking one is getting very hard these days. Just a few months ago, there was only one — the Asus Eee PC 701. That, and its siblings. Now, you have the Asus Eee PC 900, the Asus Eee PC 901, the HP Mini–Note 2133, and now the MSI Wind U100.
Here are some articles that you will find useful in choosing your ultraportable:
- ZDNet UK: MSI Wind: a first look
- Laptopmag: ASUS Eee PC 901 12G XP
- Laptopmag: ASUS Eee PC 901 Mini-Review
- Laptopmag: HP 2133 Mini-Note
- HardwareZone: Shootout: ASUS Eee PC 901 vs. MSI Wind NB U100
- Laptopmag: ASUS Eee PC 1000H vs. MSI Wind: 10-inch Mini-Notebook Face Off
- OCW: Review of MSI Wind 1.6GHz ATOM 10″ notebook
- OCW: Review of ASUS Eee PC 901 1.6GHz ATOM 8.9″ notebook
- NotebookReview: Asus Eee PC 901 12GB First Look
In a nutshell, if I were to get one now, I’m looking at the MSI Wind with a six–cell battery. According to the reviews, it can get up to five hours of battery life. One caveat though: they’re only selling it with the three–cell battery for now. If you can wait a bit more, once these models are widely available in the market, prices should drop and you’d get a better deal. At least until they come up with the next generation models again.
Categories
The Everex CloudBook
I’m sure you’ve heard about the Everex CloudBook, a contender to the cheap ultraportable crown that the Asus Eee PC has comfortably held for a few months now. Do you think it stacks up to the current king?
Having the same screen size and amount of default RAM as the Asus Eee PC 4G, it has an advantage in storage space with an ample 30GB hard disk drive, compared to a 4GB SSD on the Eee. Both also use Linux variants as their default operating system.
However, what might be the CloudBook’s Achilles’ heel is its touchpad which happens to be a lousy excuse for a pointing device. It is a two–handed operation device, a first and hopefully the last for such small devices. The keyboard, though seemingly the same as that on the Eee PC, has considerable flex that makes it no fun to use.
I guess the CloudBook’s not getting to a second generation anytime soon.
Despite the weird name, the Asus Eee PC is a well–anticipated mobile computing device that’s sure to be in most geeks’ wishlist this Christmas. It isn’t exactly a workhorse, and spec–wise it may as well be a good cross between a laptop/notebook and an advanced PDA. The 4GB version, known as the Asus Eee PC 701, is reviewed by NotebookReview.com, with its features listed as:
- Processor: Intel Celeron M ULV 900MHz
- Graphics: Integrated Intel GMA 900 GPU
- Storage: 4GB of Flash-based storage (SSD)
- Memory: 512MB of DDR2 RAM (667MHz)
- OS: Xandros Linux (Asus customized)
- Screen: 7-inch screen with 800 x 480 resolution
- Ports: 3 USB 2.0, 1 VGA monitor out, headphone jack, microphone input, SD card reader (SDHC compatible), Kensington lock slot, Ethernet 10/100
- Webcam (0.3 MP)
- Battery: 4-cell 5200 mAh 7.4V Li-Ion (rated at 3.5 hours)
- Wireless: 802.11b/g Atheros
- Input: Keyboard and Touchpad
- Weight: approximately 2 lbs with battery, 2.5 lbs travel weight with AC adapter.
- Two-year warranty
The folks at NotebookReview.com gives this device an “Editors Choice” rating, a tag they rarely give out, suggesting something special about the Asus Eee PC.
In the end, the Eee PC is the single most impressive notebook we’ve seen priced below $400. The technical specs might look sub par, but the usability and overall performance of the Eee PC rivals notebooks costing several thousand dollars more. Granted, you can’t install Photoshop on this little notebook and you can forget about playing Bioshock on this thing, but the Eee PC can do just about everything you “need” to do with a notebook while on the go.
Now I’m sure you’re almost ready to get one soon. Be sure to familiarize yourself with it so you’d know what to expect, and read this helpful tweak guide to get the most out of it.
Other reviews of the Asus Eee PC:
Categories
Lenovo vs. Compaq
Our favorite NotebookReview.com has a head to head to head (three–way?) battle between the HP Compaq nx8220 and Lenovo’s T60 and Z60t. This is an interesting comparison, with the new T60 going against the lowly nx8220 and the older (and slightly better) Z60t.
Expectedly, the Core Duo–based T60 outperforms the other two in many ways. Read the complete review for a thorough discussion of these products.