Daft Posted September 6, 2010 Posted September 6, 2010 I've had an awesome little netbook that's survived 2 years with me I love them. Sadly it has fallen to pieces recently so I'm looking for a new one. Anyone got any advice? The Toshiba AC100 has caught my eye because it is freaking tiny. However, it runs Android 2.1 which I've never used before. Could anyone let me know if I could even connect it to my uni's internet. You need a certificate and I have no idea if Android could connect. I'm looking to spend around £300.
McPhee Posted September 7, 2010 Posted September 7, 2010 There's some pretty cracking deals on eBay for refurbished Dell Mini 1012s. Was looking at them before I picked up the iPad and you can get one with all the trimmings (HD screen, built in 3G, 2GB RAM, Broadcom HD decoder, Bluetooth etc.) and a 3 year Dell warranty for around £320. Less with each extra you remove (though all of them seem to have the 3 year warranty, I guess the sellers get that as standard from Dell?). Had a play with one, seems like a nice machine (especially with the HD screen upgrade!).
Daft Posted September 7, 2010 Author Posted September 7, 2010 Aren't they £300 on Amazon? It looks a bit bulky. Are there any netbooks that are especially thin? (I know netbooks are pretty small as they are. )
McPhee Posted September 7, 2010 Posted September 7, 2010 They all seem to be pretty similar. Some pull tricks, housing part of the battery outside the unit. Those ones are definitely thinner, but you have to put up with part of the battery jutting out (Dell used to do this. I think Acer still do?). IIRC the best models around at the moment are supposed to be the Toshiba NB350, Samsung N220 (or N210, practically the same machine), the Dell Mini 1012 and an Asus Seashell machine (the model number escapes me right now). Of those the Samsung has the best battery life by far, the Toshiba has the best keyboard, the Asus is a good balance between the two. The Dell is the wild card. It's the only one of the four that's available with a higher res screen (1366x768 instead of 1024x600) and can reliably be found with 3G and Broadcom's CrystalHD card (it comes with the high res screen). The Samsung also carries the Broadcom card, but it's not very well advertised and isn't standard, so it's become a bit of a lottery as to whether or not a machine has the card included. I had it narrowed down to either the Dell or the Samsung. The Sammy is probably the best net book around really, the battery lasts 12 hours, the keyboard is solid, the track pad is OK, build quality is good. The Dell for the reasons mentioned earlier. The base Dell isn't as good as the Samsung, it's just the upgrades that make it a particularly interesting machine. It's also worth mentioning that if battery life isn't a massive issue there's much more powerful 11" and 12" machines for a little bit more money (and they come with Win7 Home Premium insteadnof Starter). Battery life still sits at 4-6 hours on those, which ain't bad. That Dell on Amazon is the standard spec unit btw.
Daft Posted September 7, 2010 Author Posted September 7, 2010 Wow. Thanks so much! I think I'm leaning toward the Samsung N220. I'm also quite liking this colour. What is the difference between W7 Starter and Home?
McPhee Posted September 7, 2010 Posted September 7, 2010 Aero Glass, meaning you can only use the “Windows Basic” or other opaque themes. It also means you do not get Taskbar Previews or Aero Peek.Personalization features for changing desktop backgrounds, window colors, or sound schemes. The ability to switch between users without having to log off. Multi-monitor support. DVD playback. Windows Media Center for watching recorded TV or other media. Remote Media Streaming for streaming your music, videos, and recorded TV from your home computer. Domain support for business customers. XP Mode for those that want the ability to run older Windows XP programs on Windows 7. That's the stuff it's missing
Daft Posted September 8, 2010 Author Posted September 8, 2010 I think I can live without those. It's just my netbook, anyways.
Shorty Posted September 8, 2010 Posted September 8, 2010 You can't personalise your background on W7 Starter?? Wtf.
Daft Posted September 8, 2010 Author Posted September 8, 2010 I read that but something in my head assumed that that could be true. ...is it?
Ten10 Posted September 8, 2010 Posted September 8, 2010 Tis true indeed. Kind of a dumb thing to lock you out of I think. Workaround: http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/47294-desktop-background-change-windows-7-starter.html
Platty Posted September 8, 2010 Posted September 8, 2010 (edited) I have this netbook but in all black. It looks sexy. http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/15606183/Sony-VAIO-M12-M1E-L-Intel-Atom-N470-1-83GHz-1GB-250GB-10-1-inch-Windows-7-Starter-Netbook-Laptop-Blue/Product.html?_%24ja=tsid:11518|cc:|prd:15606183|cat:Computers Really good netbook actually, had no problems with it at all and it goes everywhere with me. It was one of the better looking ones when I was browsing earlier this year and it's really slim compared to some and looks and feels quite robust. Only bad point is the battery life I guess. Fully charged you're looking at only 3-4 hours where some netbooks can push 7 hours. But meh, you're not meant to be on netbooks that long anyways :p I recommend. I got mine from House of Fraser for £250 when they had a sale on. The wallpaper thing on windows 7 starter is strange. It doesn't really bother me and I'm not upgrading just so I can change the wallpaper. Edited September 12, 2010 by Platty
Daft Posted September 11, 2010 Author Posted September 11, 2010 Hmmm, I think I'm going to hold off for a couple months...maybe. Just not too sure at the moment. Maybe I'll just wander around the shops to see them in the real world. Cheers guys!
Sheikah Posted September 11, 2010 Posted September 11, 2010 I have a Samsung NC10, it's really nice. The build quality of Samsung netbooks are excellent, pretty much the standard of a good laptop but just miniaturised. A lot of netbooks seem quite flimsy and tacky, so it's a nice change.
Recommended Posts