Thread: Netbooks

This is one of those segments where processor speed is almost everything.

The slower ones really suck, especially for someone used to high performance computers. I believe a new chip just came out for them, you'll want it.

EDIT Atom Z530, Hackman says it's noticably quicker than the 520 which he called a pooch.

Originally Posted by luvtolean

EDIT Atom Z530, Hackman says it's noticably quicker than the 520 which he called a pooch.

OK cool. I am not surprised at all he knows.

He doesn't have a netbook yet, but he's been using Atom based stuff for projects for a while.

They're (netbooks) hot as hell worldwide though.

Check Central for pricing BTW, they get them in direct. If you were local I could get you a better price on one.

I at first lusted for something smallish with a DB9 serial port but came to a realization. Not going to find it unless its on a clunky biz natured machine.

My next best thought would be something with some sturdy USB ports. I have already have loose USB and ethernet ports on my work Compaq 6710b laptop.

The best thing I bought lately that is work related is these USB to serial adapters off Ebay. Other than the not so universal driver (Dont loose that lil disk) it rocks! I was skeptical as they shipped from Asia but they have held up excelent!

No I am not going to be any help finding a netbook but will be watching to see what comes of this thread.

We've been looking to get one for my wife since she doesn't do a single thing on a computer other than internet use and pulling the photos from her camera.

I want Apple to come out with a netbook…that would be cool.

I'm interested in one as well, is there any major advantage to buying one of the ones from the premium brands?

Originally Posted by SomeStrangeGuy

I want Apple to come out with a netbook…that would be cool.

I'm interested in one as well, is there any major advantage to buying one of the ones from the premium brands?

Well, right now they seem to be the only ones including cell modems with them. The Asus, MSI, and Acer models I have found don't.

I have an Asus Eee with flash drive, so robust for travelling. I only use mine for typical Microsoft work stuff and email / web. It's absolutely fine, but the keyboard is smaller and more difficult to use than a laptop for protracted typing.

Originally Posted by SomeStrangeGuy

I want Apple to come out with a netbook…that would be cool.

I'm interested in one as well, is there any major advantage to buying one of the ones from the premium brands?

my brother has a Netbook and runs OSX on it. I haven't really talked to him much about it but I can only recall one instance when it just got funky for a little bit and wouldn't connect to the internet. not sure what the problem was but he fixed it without too much hassle.

Well, I am closing in fast on an HP Mini 311. My normal aversion to HP hardware aside, it looks to be one of the best out there right now.

I am going to see if I can find one in person today. I may pull the trigger and test it out during my holiday travels this week.

Well, I did it. Not only did I pull the trigger and get the HP mini 311, butI switched my data plan to Verizon.

The price was right, and I don't forsee using international data anytime soon, which was my main reason for sticking with UMTS/GSM. Also, the 311 comes with a SIM slot, as it uses Qualcomm's dual network chipset. So if I ever needed to, I could jump on to an international UMTS/HSDPA network. I may stick my AT&T data SIM in just to see what happens.

Very first impressions: Verizon store was not as organized as AT&Ts. Things are placed around in the store in what seemed to me to be a haphazard fashion. I even had to ask where a Droid phone was so I could play with it. AT&T had a much cleaner, more organized feel.

However, the staff was very friendly, and actually knew a lot about the netbooks. They had the answers to all of my questions, even more challening stuff like integrated graphics vs. separate chipset type stuff. Kudos to them.

Machine comes with Win7 Home Premium, another reason I went with VZW as AT&T had all Win7 Starter. However, it has so much bloatware it's rediculous. After this post I get to spend the next several hours slimming this thing back down.

EVDO speed seems about the same as UMTS, which is in line with what we have seen during testing at work.

Keys are going to take some getting used to, but hey, it's a netbook, they are going to be tiny.

All in all, I am pleased. I am taking advantage of the 30 day trial period to see how this thing fares. After 30 days, if I keep it I will send in for the rebate that came with it and be happy. Otherwise, back to the store it goes.

Last night I undertook removing Win7 from my HP Mini 311 and installed Ubuntu Netbook Remix.

Snappier performance, since I don't have Win7's bloat, with HP's extra bloat on top.

But, right now my built-in 3G card doesn't work; there is a way to enable it but takes some geekery. I am hoping when the spring release of Ubuntu comes out they will just have it work like everything else did.

So far I am happy with my purchase, it's worked out well.

Originally Posted by navydevildoc

...Snappier performance, since I don't have Win7's bloat, with HP's extra bloat on top...

From a non-geek, I've always had issues with HPs. I always assumed HPs bloat killed Windows performance since, once I could get all the HP crap out I could get a decent running PC out of the deal.

What say a true geek?

Originally Posted by seamus

From a non-geek, I've always had issues with HPs. I always assumed HPs bloat killed Windows performance since, once I could get all the HP crap out I could get a decent running PC out of the deal.

What say a true geek?

At my job we are all HP now. Step 1 after I get a new machine is re-image the machine with a custom windows build running all the necessary drivers with zero HP software or API's active. I press the hotkeys and nothing happens because stuff is totally offline.

Even though I realize they do this for big brother purposes and stuff, it moves along pretty darn well.

I was thinking about that this morning...

How come no one has gone into business selling real world, working Windows images with none of the BS? Is it in the realm of too hard to do because of the sheer number of variables in PC, laptop and peripherals?

Originally Posted by seamus

I was thinking about that this morning...

How come no one has gone into business selling real world, working Windows images with none of the BS? Is it in the realm of too hard to do because of the sheer number of variables in PC, laptop and peripherals?

That bloatware is what makes the computers so cheap. Everyone is free to buy a clean copy of Windows and do a clean install but it's going to add to the cost of the machine.

Originally Posted by ND4SPD

That bloatware is what makes the computers so cheap. Everyone is free to buy a clean copy of Windows and do a clean install but it's going to add to the cost of the machine.

What he said. All of that bloatware is there because the companies that provide it subsidize the cost of the machine.

Generally big enterprise images that come from manufacturers don't have any of that out of the box, but they pay more. Plus almost everyone loads a custom image anyways. But your custom image may start with a factory recovery since it has all of the drivers and what not. Depends on the machine.

The big 2 (HP/Dell) are both equally guilty. It was shocking to see how much crap came on my netbook.

Does "delete" really not delete all this stuff you're talking about? And does it make a noticeable difference if you do get rid of all that stuff?

Originally Posted by nhfirefighter13

Does "delete" really not delete all this stuff you're talking about? And does it make a noticeable difference if you do get rid of all that stuff?

Delete works. Images are just that because most of the time it's quicker for a co. to just install what they want rather than delete what they don't, because they don't want anything

Originally Posted by nhfirefighter13

Does "delete" really not delete all this stuff you're talking about? And does it make a noticeable difference if you do get rid of all that stuff?

It does, but remnants still get left behind on the hard drive and the registry.

I'm not smart enough to create a base image (maybe I am and don't know that I am). I end up having to spend hours reinstalling programs each time I clean house.

It would be nice if I were able to keep a "running image" of programs I want to reinstall on my annual re-do.

I think MrsSlick will be getting a netbook very soon. I'll probably be asking for bloatware removal advice then.

Originally Posted by seamus

I'm not smart enough to create a base image (maybe I am and don't know that I am). I end up having to spend hours reinstalling programs each time I clean house.

It would be nice if I were able to keep a "running image" of programs I want to reinstall on my annual re-do.

Remove all unwanted software. Make sure you have all your drivers loaded. Add whatever software you want.
Use this (or something similar) to make an image of the HDD. Once you have the image, you can reload it as many times as you want as long as the hardware does not change.
If the hardware changes, it might range from having to load a different driver, to the image just not working afterward for several different issues.