Anybody have a netbook type computer?

[doctorchallenger]

Looking for advice: are they worth purchasing, and if so what models are recommended?

[AfghanAnt]

Are you talking about the mini-laptop that are around $300 American?

[doctorchallenger]

Yep.  My beloved laptop, despite efforts to resusitate it, is fading fast.  Being an academic, it is very handy to have my own computer, so I cna work wherever I go, but I don't have the funds for a full fledged laptop at the moment. So I'm looking into this alternative.

[AfghanAnt]

Yep.  My beloved laptop, despite efforts to resusitate it, is fading fast.  Being an academic, it is very handy to have my own computer, so I cna work wherever I go, but I don't have the funds for a full fledged laptop at the moment. So I'm looking into this alternative.

I've played with one and while I would never get one to replace a laptop for the price it really is a steal. I am thinking of getting on in Dec from Target or Best Buy where you can get one for easily under $300.

[Midnight]

I own an ASUS Eee PC 900HA. It's very similar to this model but only has 5.3 hours of battery life.

Regarding it's functionality, it does exactly what I need it to do, no more, no less. I use use Mozilla Firefox (with Flash plugins), Firstclass, Filezilla, Digsby, Open Office and VLC Media Player. It runs everything as fast as I need it to. If I didn't need a few minor Windows-only programs for school, I would've gone with a solid state drive and installed Ubuntu instead.

My last laptop was a Lenovo 3000 C200; a brute of a laptop considering that it's specs are actually WORSE than the Eee PC 900's. The size and weight of the Eee PC are probably it's biggest selling point. Women think it's adorable.  :unsure:

There are a handful of cons however. The keyboard is tiny. Tiny. I'd say that the alphabet area is about 10% smaller than a desktop keyboard's. It may not sound like much but it takes getting used to. I've had this thing for three weeks and I'm still banging the wrong keys, especially on the edges where everything is smashed together. Definitely test drive as many netbooks as you can, maybe Acer or MSI has come up with a better solution.

I also had a problem with the ASUS power adapter. Out of the box it worked fine, but about a week or two later, it died. ASUS customer support was great and sent me a new one for free.

If you know that you're going to be working within the netbook's limitations, they are a wonderful alternative to laptops.

[House Quake]

I got an Asus Eee 1000H a few months back.  Its one of the more pricier netbooks.  I should have waited one more month because Asus started packing the 1000H with a 160gb HD vs. the 80gb I bought it with when it was originally introduced.

Here is the model I have

What can I say.  It's small... but not too small.  The model I have has the 10" screen compared to some of the others which have a 8".  Also the keyboard is almost as large as a standard size... just a tad more cramp.  Battery life is excellent.  It has several modes from energy saver to super performance which determines the battery life (4-7+ hours)

It runs on Win XP though I noticed most of the other net books use a Linux OS.

Another thing to note... some of the net books use a SD type Hard Drive.  More secure as far as no moving parts to wear out... but typically smaller at higher equivalent cost.  Lacking a DVD/CD drive was the only knock I have on this... but that isn't a hard work around.

If your need fits what this offers.. I think its a good buy.

[randyripoff]

Asus EEE 700.  It's useful because it weighs next to nothing, and if I want to look something up quickly on the internet, it's very useful for that.

I would not recommend it as a primary laptop, however.  The keyboard is too small and has some other clunky features.  Fine for occasional use, but trying to do any real work would be very frustrating.

[Midnight]

This is the exact same netbook I have at about $75 less.

[doctorchallenger]

I've joined the club. I am typing on my brand new Asus 1000ha rigght now. I went with the larger model for a little more, but I am already glad, as the key board will take some getting used to.  Thanks for all the advice.

[House Quake]

I've joined the club. I am typing on my brand new Asus 1000ha rigght now. I went with the larger model for a little more, but I am already glad, as the key board will take some getting used to.  Thanks for all the advice.

Good choice  :thumbup: