Buying a netbook. Feedback and suggestion requested

[soumyasch]

I am considering buying a cheap netbook for my secondary use. Won't be used for intense tasks, just some browsing, Word/Excel/OneNote, some presentations and playing some music/movies.

I am considering the Lenovo IdeaPad S10-2 or the Dell Inspiron Mini 10v. Will they be able to run Windows 7 (with Aero enabled) satisfactorily? Unfortunately, none come with Windows 7, so can't just go to the store and check out the models on display.

[Bubblex]

netbook is small and light!

I hope e-paper screen would be made in future!

[Slackerr]

Take a look at Toshiba NB205-310.

As a lucky owner I can say it is stylish, lives over 9 hours in "office mode" (my tests: 7 hours of 7-10 Mbps torrenting via Wi-Fi), has a wonderful kbd and a large touchpad, Atom 280 on board (with 667 bus, not 533 of Atom 270). Migration to Win7 completed only with one problem - the developers haven't finished with the hotkeys utility, but I think it's a matter of some more weeks.

One thing against - a rather quiet monaural speaker, but it didn't matter for me.

[I am Reid]

Gateway LT31 is the best one i've used, it has a better screen, more RAM, better CPU, and graphics card(but that one doesnt really matter) then pretty much every generic n270 you see nearly ever company makes with th exact same specs.

[tonyunreal]

Although 945GSE chipset can run Aero Glass just fine, I wouldn't recommend installing Windows 7 on a netbook if it's bundled with Windows XP.

Not only you *might* get into incompatibility problems in drivers and bundled softwares, Windows 7 with Aero enabled also kills your battery life faster than Windows XP. If you often carry your netbook around like me, an acceptable average battery life is definitely your primary concern.

[John S. Veteran]

I've got a mini12 (now discontinued) that came with XP and have installed 7 on it. It runs better than I thought it would, CPU usage is actually a little bit less with 7, but I despise the 1GB of ram that you can't upgrade on the 12. It's fine for browsing on the run, but it's no powerhouse.

[I am Reid]

Although 945GSE chipset can run Aero Glass just fine, I wouldn't recommend installing Windows 7 on a netbook if it's bundled with Windows XP.

Not only you *might* get into incompatibility problems in drivers and bundled softwares, Windows 7 with Aero enabled also kills your battery life faster than Windows XP. If you often carry your netbook around like me, an acceptable average battery life is definitely your primary concern.

yes, this x100. The graphics chip in my gateway can run all the areo and fancy GUI stuff without a hitch, but when I turned it off I gained like an hour of battery time. I think ANYONE with a laptop should turn it off.

[soumyasch]

Although 945GSE chipset can run Aero Glass just fine, I wouldn't recommend installing Windows 7 on a netbook if it's bundled with Windows XP.

Not only you *might* get into incompatibility problems in drivers and bundled softwares, Windows 7 with Aero enabled also kills your battery life faster than Windows XP. If you often carry your netbook around like me, an acceptable average battery life is definitely your primary concern.

Long battery life is indeed a concern for me. But after being accustomed to Vista and now 7, working with XP is painful. Guess I will not remove XP but install 7 and turn all power saving features on and see if that does indeed satisfy my needs.

Also, I went to the Lenovo store and they will upgrade the battery to a 9 cell one very cheaply. And the specs look comparable to the other N280 netbooks mentioned here. I am thinking it will be a good value considering the price. Unfortunately Gateway isn't a choice because they one offer one Netbook in India, and that one has only the Atom Z520 processor (Gateway LT3004l).

[matthewmarley]

I have the Samsung NC10 and it awesome, runs Win 7 Home Prem perfectly :)

[Hawkeye666]

If at all possible I recommend you try the keyboard on which ever brands and models you are thinking about getting. I've found that since the keyboards are smaller even than small notebooks, that the typing comfort, mechanics, and even form of the keys makes more difference that it does on a regular notebook.

[soumyasch]

Looks like the choice comes down to either N270 or N280, as the specs surrounding them are exactly the same across manufacturers (1 GB DDR2, Intel 945GSE + ICH7m + GMA 950, 160 GB). And by the suggestions here, both seems to handle Windows 7 fine. So, its only a matter of price then?

If at all possible I recommend you try the keyboard on which ever brands and models you are thinking about getting. I've found that since the keyboards are smaller even than small notebooks, that the typing comfort, mechanics, and even form of the keys makes more difference that it does on a regular notebook.

Good point. Will keep that in mind.

[Slackerr]

If at all possible I recommend you try the keyboard on which ever brands and models you are thinking about getting. I've found that since the keyboards are smaller even than small notebooks, that the typing comfort, mechanics, and even form of the keys makes more difference that it does on a regular notebook.

Touchpad too. Some vendors (e.g. Asus) put a small but multi-touch one, some - just small and uncomfortanle. Speaking about experience with NB205 - the touchpad is bigger than on my Latitude D630.

[evo0o]

i always thought the dell one was pretty sweet. personally own a hp netbook, isn't the speediest thing in the world, but it just works as it's really light to carry to and fro school.