parisphotog
Senior Member
What's your favorite netbook? I only want to use it for backing up images (have a card reader now) and for mail and Web browsing. A 160 Gb HD would be a min.
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Your favorite Netbook?
- Thread starter parisphotog
- Start date
PHXAZCRAIG
Forum Pro
I have an Acer Aspire One that I'm quite happy with. Typical specs (which were more or less dictated by Microsoft to protect their Vista-on-laptop market).
Win XP Home
160GB hard drive
1GB RAM
Atom processor
10.5 inch screen
2 SD slots
1 Ethernet
3 USB
wifi
that weird touchpad with buttons on the side
Cost me $275 when I bought it a few months ago, from Fry's Electronics. I see what seems to be identical or very similar versions ranging from about that price (Walmart) to mid-$300. Perhaps some of these have some bluetooth or other accessory connections I don't use.
Like probably many other people, I bought an external DVD burner for it. When I went to buy the DVD, there were about 10 different models to pick from, almost all priced right at the $70 point. I take it to mean that Netbooks got extremely popular, and everyone then jumped into the external USB dvd market.
I use my Netbook quite a bit now, carrying it from room to room and using it in bed in the evenings. My 17" Dell laptop sits in its bag now (too heavy, and it's encumbered with Vista anyway). The netbook is perfect as a camera accessory on trips to offload pictures and dump them to USB backup drives.
Win XP Home
160GB hard drive
1GB RAM
Atom processor
10.5 inch screen
2 SD slots
1 Ethernet
3 USB
wifi
that weird touchpad with buttons on the side
Cost me $275 when I bought it a few months ago, from Fry's Electronics. I see what seems to be identical or very similar versions ranging from about that price (Walmart) to mid-$300. Perhaps some of these have some bluetooth or other accessory connections I don't use.
Like probably many other people, I bought an external DVD burner for it. When I went to buy the DVD, there were about 10 different models to pick from, almost all priced right at the $70 point. I take it to mean that Netbooks got extremely popular, and everyone then jumped into the external USB dvd market.
I use my Netbook quite a bit now, carrying it from room to room and using it in bed in the evenings. My 17" Dell laptop sits in its bag now (too heavy, and it's encumbered with Vista anyway). The netbook is perfect as a camera accessory on trips to offload pictures and dump them to USB backup drives.
ink0gnito
Senior Member
If you don't care about customization (MSI Wind is one of the better ones for that), then your purchasing decision should depend on the price/feel/looks/specs.
Also check HDD prices. If you can find a high capacity one for cheap, then buy any netbook with the lowest capacity HDD and swap them.
Also check HDD prices. If you can find a high capacity one for cheap, then buy any netbook with the lowest capacity HDD and swap them.
jhorse
Veteran Member
Hi,
I use an Advent 4211 (new version has 160Gb HD). 10" screen, but I chose it because it has a matt rather than a glossy screen. I travel a lot and matt has less reflections, but is not as sharp under good viewing conditions. Also, many netbooks have spongy key boards, but the Advent has a solid feel to it.
It has Windows XP, an Atom 270 processor and 1Gb RAM, which are fine for MS Office 2007, NX Transfer and NX View. I have Capture NX 2.2 loaded and it works, but is slow (up to now 10MB files with a D80, but likely to be slower with new D300s 12MB files). I tend to use it only to back up images, view, tag and sort them. It fits into most hotel safes.
Its wireless features are normal, it has been totally reliable and as a travelling companion it fits work and photo requirements. Bottom line, it is a cheap solution that will hurt neither your back nor your bank balance!
Hope that helps.
--
J.
http://jules7.smugmug.com/
I use an Advent 4211 (new version has 160Gb HD). 10" screen, but I chose it because it has a matt rather than a glossy screen. I travel a lot and matt has less reflections, but is not as sharp under good viewing conditions. Also, many netbooks have spongy key boards, but the Advent has a solid feel to it.
It has Windows XP, an Atom 270 processor and 1Gb RAM, which are fine for MS Office 2007, NX Transfer and NX View. I have Capture NX 2.2 loaded and it works, but is slow (up to now 10MB files with a D80, but likely to be slower with new D300s 12MB files). I tend to use it only to back up images, view, tag and sort them. It fits into most hotel safes.
Its wireless features are normal, it has been totally reliable and as a travelling companion it fits work and photo requirements. Bottom line, it is a cheap solution that will hurt neither your back nor your bank balance!
Hope that helps.
--
J.
http://jules7.smugmug.com/
Flashlight
Veteran Member
I'm looking at this Toshiba. It has a free fall HD protection and is rated for 9 hours of usage. Looks pretty good to me. Here's a review if interested:
http://www.trustedreviews.com/laptops/review/2009/06/26/Toshiba-NB200-10Z---10-1in-Netbook/p1
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Philip
http://www.trustedreviews.com/laptops/review/2009/06/26/Toshiba-NB200-10Z---10-1in-Netbook/p1
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Philip
I bought a netbook for the same exact reasons: travel and a place to store pictures.
For backup, I have an old 60GB portable USB drive to come with it, that space is enough for my purpose.
When I'm home, I transfer them into my HD for processing, and they will automatically backed up to the media server.
I bought the preconfigured version, direct from HP. With my discount, it's cheaper than the similar configuration from Costco (which is already cheap). Oh, the 6-cell battery is great.
Configurations are almost similar from different brands at the time I bought one. So it's a matter of choosing the right keyboard size/button layouts, quality of LCD/LED screen, additional ports (like USB), and the aestethic look.
XP Home
1 GB RAM
160GB HD
media slot (SD/MS only, not for CF though)
10.1 screen
6-cell battery
etc.
--
just me
Teddy
For backup, I have an old 60GB portable USB drive to come with it, that space is enough for my purpose.
When I'm home, I transfer them into my HD for processing, and they will automatically backed up to the media server.
I bought the preconfigured version, direct from HP. With my discount, it's cheaper than the similar configuration from Costco (which is already cheap). Oh, the 6-cell battery is great.
Configurations are almost similar from different brands at the time I bought one. So it's a matter of choosing the right keyboard size/button layouts, quality of LCD/LED screen, additional ports (like USB), and the aestethic look.
XP Home
1 GB RAM
160GB HD
media slot (SD/MS only, not for CF though)
10.1 screen
6-cell battery
etc.
--
just me
Teddy
DezM
Forum Pro
......but, I'm waiting for a quality Netbook to be released with 1080p HDMI output, faster processor and with a minimum of 2GB of RAM.
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Dez
http://photos.dezmix.com
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Dez
http://photos.dezmix.com
This is the Dell outlet store. Same warranty as new with 21 days to send it back. Many deals and you can get what you want if you are patient.
I just bought my daughter a 14", High Definition+ (900p), with webcam, bluetooth, 320GB, 4GB, and a P8600 processor for $579.
If you have an .edu email address you can buy Windows 7 for $30. A lot of colleges have lifetime email, mine does, so use that one for your discount.
http://outlet.us.dell.com/ARBOnlineSales/topics/global.aspx/arb/online/en/InventorySearch?c=us&cs=22&l=en&s=dfh
bjn70
Veteran Member
Some of the newer ASUS models seem to be good values- lots of features, reasonable pricing, and longer than average battery life. However if all you want is a screen/keyboard/USB port/hard drive then whatever brand you can find the cheapest would probably work fine.
stromaroma
Senior Member
If you wait a month or two you can get one with Windows 7 which is supposed to be a bug free and streamlined version of Vista. I'm waiting till January to get mine (I need it Feb so I'll hold off as long as possible).
Tell me about Annie Leibovitz.
Tell me about Annie Leibovitz.
parisphotog
Senior Member
Thanks for the advice, I'll take a look at that one.
parisphotog
Senior Member
As shipped I don't care about customization, but that's good advice about the HDD.
Camillo
Leading Member
The best buy is a 1st gen powerbook 17" 1ghz, I have my toped with 250 gb hd 2gb ram and got it for 700 bucks 8 months ago. Have leopard, cs4 suit, caputure nx2 and use it to shoot tethered with lightroom 2 and my wonderful D300.
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Camillo
http://www.cam-photo.com
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Camillo
http://www.cam-photo.com
yslen
Forum Enthusiast
some of them use more advanced batteries - check the battery life when you're browsing, it varies from 3-4 hours all the way up to 8-9 hours
parisphotog
Senior Member
I hear what you're saying but that's exactly what I don't want. Just mobile backup and email via Wi-Fi.
R_U_Q_R_U
Senior Member
Samsung NC10
2 GB RAM
160 GB HD
Ununtu linux Netbook Remix 9.10
Excellent netbook for all around use. Easy to upgrade RAM. Many other netbooks come with only 1 GB and are difficult if not impossible to upgrade.
Very nice almost full size keyboard.
Works well with Ubuntu Linux which is free.
I also was running Windows 7 RC and it ran great too.
2 GB RAM
160 GB HD
Ununtu linux Netbook Remix 9.10
Excellent netbook for all around use. Easy to upgrade RAM. Many other netbooks come with only 1 GB and are difficult if not impossible to upgrade.
Very nice almost full size keyboard.
Works well with Ubuntu Linux which is free.
I also was running Windows 7 RC and it ran great too.
parisphotog
Senior Member
Thanks, I'll take a look around for that one.
PHXAZCRAIG
Forum Pro
The netbook features are partly a product of Microsoft's being a monopoly. They dictate to the manufactures the maximum amount of hardware they can use and still be called a 'netbook', and still use WinXP. For instance, the maximum screen size and hard drive size. The drives are no different than any regular 2.5" sata drive. Easy to upgrade those if you want.
There are a few wireless options that could be added on to up the price. Maybe worth it if you want them.
But there is one significant option you might want to pay for: 6-cell battery. The standard 2-cell gives me about 2 hours of life under normal usage. A 6-cell costs more but about triples the battery life. This may be significant for you, especially if you plan to use it on long plane rides.
There are a few wireless options that could be added on to up the price. Maybe worth it if you want them.
But there is one significant option you might want to pay for: 6-cell battery. The standard 2-cell gives me about 2 hours of life under normal usage. A 6-cell costs more but about triples the battery life. This may be significant for you, especially if you plan to use it on long plane rides.
Rick Floyd
Member
I do all of my portable computing on a HP Mini 110. Since I use Macs for all my photography needs, I dumped XP and am running OS X v10.5.8 on a stock 110. In fact, I'm typing this on my Mini right now. It isn't 100% perfect, but great for wireless browsing, downloading photos, email, etc and fits into a small slot in my photo/messenger bag.
Rick
Rick
Luckily that won't be an issue after next week.
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