http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3218565Current consensus for raw performance value?Acer Aspire One AS1410 or AS1810with Dual-Core CPU
Acer Aspire AS1410-2920 (
$450 at Amazon and at
NewEgg)
* Intel Celeron SU2300 dual-core (1.2GHz) CULV
* 11.6" 1366x768 display
* Intel GMA 4500MHD Graphics
* 2GB - 4GB of RAM
* 250GB Hard Drive
Current consensus for best video performance for under $500Asus 1201N (Around
$485 at Amazon and
NewEgg)
* Nvidia 9400M w/256MB Graphics
* 1.6GHz
Dual-Core Atom N330
* 2GB up to 8GB of RAM
* 1366x768
* HDMI Out
A damn good competitor on the CPU and graphics front - AMD :siren: updated :siren:
MSI Wind12 U230-040US (
NewEgg link- $480 now -
Amazon - $480 pre-order)
* AMD Athlon Neo X2 L335(1.60GHz) - Dual-core "Congo"
* ATI Radeon HD 3200
* 12.1" WXGA 1366x768
* 2GB (4GB Max)
* 320GB HDD
* 6-cell battery
*
Review at Hexus.netA damn good competitor on the CPU and graphics front as well - AMD*
11.6" Toshiba Satellite T115D-S1125 - around
$500 at Amazon and
NewEgg* AMD Athlon Neo X2 Dual-Core Processor L325
* 11.6" 1366 x 768
* 2GB RAM, 320GB HDD, Windows 7 Home Premium,
* ATI 3200 Graphics
* HDMI Out
Current consensus for best value for video performance :siren: HP Mini 311• Intel Atom (Single-core)
• 1GB DDR3 System Memory (1 Dimm)
• 160GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
•
NVIDIA ION• 11.6" diagonal HD LED BrightView Widescreen Display (1366 x 768)
• Wireless-G Card
• 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Current consensus of older netbooks: (becoming outdated by the hour)
* Asus Eee PC 1000HE (1005HA is newer version of 1000HE)
* Toshiba NB200/NB205
Best Hackintosh / Mac OS X experience?* Above-mentioned Asus 1201N - dual core CPU, :krad: graphics (
see this InsanelyMac thread)
* On a budget: HP Mini 311, see
this insanelymac thread for details*
Stay the hell away from netbooks with Intel's X4500 graphics if you want OS X, Apple moved away from Intel before the X4500 graphics came out, you will be better off with the HP Mini 311 mentioned above if you want to get OS X running on a new model.* Older Netbooks: Dell Mini 10v.
Not the Dell Mini 10. The Dell Mini 10v. 10v 10v 10v* Older Netbooks: Ye Olde MSI Wind U100 (the thing has been documented to hell and back)
*
11.6" Gateway (
Best Buy) - AMD Athlon 64 Processor L110 with 1366x768 display. 6-cell battery, $380, but don't expect spectacular battery life.
Characteristics of a Netbook: In the past, it typically was:* 7" - 10"
* A price in the range of $250 - $600
* Running with a low powered single-core CPU (usually Intel's Atom or on older machines an older Celeron)
* Usually Windows XP Home or Linux.
* Lack of an internal optical drive
As of CES 2010, you're seeing:* 10" - 12" (the 7" form factor has all but died off thanks to cheap 9" netbooks and the 9" netbooks are dying off too))
* Low powered single-core (Intel Atom, Celeron, Core 2 Solo) to dual-core (Intel Celeron, Core 2 Duo, Intel Atom N330)
* Windows 7, Linux, Google's Android, and less and less likely, Windows XP (Microsoft has been wanting to drop XP sales for a long time, and netbooks kept them around)
* Still typically lacking an internal optical drive (there are one or two models that have tried, but they didn't do so well)
Want to argue what a Netbook is? Don't. We're all aware of that argument and we've seen it play out in the past. The sub-notebook or ultraportable laptop versus netbook argument is only going to get more contentious now that we are weeks away from getting a Core 2 Duo netbook for around $550, but there is no point in hashing it out again.
Important Links:*
Previous Netbook Thread*
Previous Previous netbook megathread thread*
Even older previous megathread :qfg:
Something Awful Netbook Gaming Thread :mario:
But I want a trackpoint* Got lots of :20bux: ? If so, check out Sony's offerings. (actually you can find them on clearance these days)
What about tablet netbooks?:qq:
* Amazon.com shows
Asus Eee PC T91 Tablet as shipping
* iPad :effort:
Higher Resolution displays (above 1024x600) in 10" models and smaller* A lot of the 11.6" and 12" have the option for 1366 displays
* Dell Mini 10 and HP Mini 5x series both do but you may have to select the option.
* Sony's 10.1" W series also has one (
SonyStyle link)
* While it's 11.6" Gateway "netbook" (
Best Buy) has a 1366 x 768 display, but it's pushing the limits of what a netbook is, given it's CPU. Seriously, for nearly the same price, grab the AS1410 from Acer.
What about HDMI out?* Going to become standard. See the Acer Aspire AS1410 netbooks listed in the next post.
Frequent questions:*
Bootable USB Keys XP/Vista/Windows 7*
Dual-Core CPUs: :xd: Wait, it's October 22nd, it's upon us.
*
Difference between 1005HA models, specifically - 1005HA-V and 1005HA-P. V has the N720 Atom, P has the N280 Atom.
*
Batteries: DON'T buy anything less than a 6-cell unless you absolutely have to as in there is some kind of $100 price difference.
*
Chrome OS: See the
Google FAQ for more details. It's a ways off.
Discussions of specific Netbooks:*
Asus EEE Megathread at Something Awful*
AspireOneUser*
HP2133Guide.com*
EEEguides.com*
EEEUser.com*
MSIWind.net*
MyDellMini.comWhere to buy Netbooks - US?*
Amazon's Netbook Section,
*
MWave - lots
*
NewEgg - lots
*
ZipZoomFly - lots
* Best Buy: Acer Aspire One, Asus Eee PC line, HP Mini (Atom), Dell Mini 9
* Target carries them on and off
*
US - Importing =
Dynamism (Warning, will make you jealous of Asia :smith: )
Where to buy - US/Canada*
US/Canada =
NCIX (sometimes has international keyboard, see FAQ to replace)
Where to buy - Europe*
UK / Europe =
Expansys Clove.co.uk,
Amazon UK - netbook section*
Gamma - Dutch hardware store
Where to buy - Asia* Give me a break, there are entire stores in Asia dedicated to these things (I have no idea the particulars, I just know they are all over the place - Asia was ahead of everybody else when it comes to smaller notebooks).