Mini Notebook

[Guest Guest]

One of SMT want a mini notebook just to use as a big PDA, typing up minutes, diary, notes etc.

 

Is there any real differances between them all? TBH i think she needs a windows one as iu cant see the point in having to learn linux and mess about with compatibility issues with openoffice when you are only saving a coupe of quid.

 

Any recommendations? Looking for the cheaper the better but id seriously recommend against a celeron or anything less tha 1gb ram so...

[Busybub]

For typing notes I'd be inclined to get a cheap 15" laptop (anything of recent vintage will do): More usable keyboard than a 10" netbook, half the price of a 12".

[Ric_]

I like my Acer Aspire ONE - they do a Windows one if you are that way inclined and the keys are not as tiny as an eeePC 701. Edited October 6, 2008 by Ric_
typo

[Guest Guest]

For typing notes I'd be inclined to get a cheap 15" laptop (anything of recent vintage will do): More usable keyboard than a 10" netbook, half the price of a 12".

 

The idea is she wants a big PDA. She already has a laptop. Ta anyhow

[Domino]

if she wants something just for notetaking type things then I'd think again with the linux option.

 

The ones I've used tend to be extremely user friendly - and have none of the windows-centric overheads such as anti-virus and updates eating system resources, so a gig of RAM goes a lot further.

 

Also OpenOffice incompatabilities are few and far between these days

[Busybub]

Frankly I'm a bit baffled about why she isn't already using her laptop and feels the need for the school to splurge on another device to do exactly the same job?

 

That said, have an Aspire One myself and though the keyboard is better than a 701 I wouldn't want to use it during a long meeting, especially since the battery life is really(!) poor and the orientation of the trackpad buttons takes some getting used to. Worst case, I'd probably go with an Asus 901 - battery lasts at least 3 times longer, keyboard is about the same.

[Guest Guest]

if she wants something just for notetaking type things then I'd think again with the linux option.

 

The ones I've used tend to be extremely user friendly - and have none of the windows-centric overheads such as anti-virus and updates eating system resources, so a gig of RAM goes a lot further.

 

Also OpenOffice incompatabilities are few and far between these days

 

The way i see it it does not cost a penny more for the windows versions as for the extra £30 you tend to get more ram and a bigger HD which more than offsets the extra cost, so you could actually look at the winders version as being cheaper.

Im just far too busy to be worrying about yet another system so would prefer an OS she is familliar with. Ive used the Asus eee but i found it so small and unfriendly that i couldnt give the OS a fair chance.

[broc]

I bought an Advent 4211 (badged MSI Wind) last July/August, having tried out a few Asus EeePCs at school. It's a lot more useable with a decent keyboard and very bright 10" screen. Only downside is the early ones only had a 3-cell battery so battery life is not brilliant. I understand later ones have a 6-cell battery now. Specification is Intel Atom CPU XP Home 80gb HDD, I upgraded it to 2gb memory for a few pounds. Includes wireless & bluetooth. Edited October 6, 2008 by broc

[Guest Guest]

Frankly I'm a bit baffled about why she isn't already using her laptop and feels the need for the school to splurge on another device to do exactly the same job?

 

i dont know whos money it is and frankly i dont care. £200-300 is nothing compared to what is wasted on white elephants.

[Sirbendy]

they're doing the Aspire one with 8gb solidstate drive and 512mb ram with Linux in Tesco for £198...

 

I've just bought the parts to turn my trusty inspiron SSD on the cheap for about £20.

[Ric_]

That said, have an Aspire One myself and though the keyboard is better than a 701 I wouldn't want to use it during a long meeting, especially since the battery life is really(!) poor and the orientation of the trackpad buttons takes some getting used to. Worst case, I'd probably go with an Asus 901 - battery lasts at least 3 times longer, keyboard is about the same.

 

Strange that, I think the keyboard is acceptable for a couple of hours use and the battery in mine lasts a decent time too.

[somabc]

Has anyone seen the new Samsung NC10?

 

Samsung NC10 Laptop - Laptops at Ebuyer

 

It has

 

1.6GHz Atom

1GB RAM

160GB HD

1024x600 10.2" screen

Windows XP

Bluetooth

Wi-Fi

6 Cell Battery

 

£299

 

Looks like a good compromise between a full/mini laptop but I have not found any reviews yet.

[Domino]

The way i see it it does not cost a penny more for the windows versions as for the extra £30 you tend to get more ram and a bigger HD which more than offsets the extra cost, so you could actually look at the winders version as being cheaper.

Im just far too busy to be worrying about yet another system so would prefer an OS she is familliar with. Ive used the Asus eee but i found it so small and unfriendly that i couldnt give the OS a fair chance.

 

Fair enough

 

My personal view is that more ram and extra HD space is eaten by windows anyway - so whats the difference?

 

A 512 ram eeepc running linux is much faster than a 1Gb ram one running xp