Follow us on TwitterNetbooks Get Bigger, More Powerful
Posted by Tom Greer on May 3, 2009 in Asus Netbooks, Dell Netbooks, HP Netbooks, MSI Netbooks, Netbook Market, Ultraportables
For a long time, it seemed every new netbook looked the same as the last: 1.6 GHz Atom N270 processor, 10-inch screen, 160 GB hard drive, etc. But recently, there have been a whole wave of netbooks featuring bigger screens, faster processors and other features unique to netbooks.
Here are the ones that we like best:
- HP Pavilion dv2
- Asus N10J
- Dell Inspiron Mini 12
- MSI Meron VR220
Read more about each in the tabs below.
Dell Introduces an All-In-One
Posted by Tom Greer on April 29, 2009 in All-in-Ones
Dell Studio All-in-One
Dell has introduced an All-In-One product, which is quite aptly named the Studio One All-in-One.
It sports an 18.5″ widescreen display which is great for viewing your desktop or watching HD movies.
While you can outfit it with a keyboard and mouse, you might simply choose to use the touch screen to interact with the system. In fact, if you want you can custom configure a Studio All-in-One with a multi-touch screen.
The All-in-One comes with an Intel Celeron (up to quad-core) processor and NVIDIA graphics support. With that power under the hood, HD video streaming should be smooth.
Dell offers lots of options. Here are the specs for the basic model:
Display: 18.5″ 16:9 WXSGA, CCFL (1366x 768)
Processor: Intel® Pentium® Dual Core (E5200)
Chipset: NVIDIA MCP 7A chipset
Graphics Adapter: nVidia GeForce 9200 Integrated
Memory: 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz- 2 DIMMs
Hard Drive: 320GB 7200 RPM SATA Hard Drive
Optical Disc: Slot load CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability
Operating System: Genuine Windows Vista® Home Basic 32-Bit
Multimedia Keyboard and Optical Mouse
All this for only $699.
This is obviously in a different league than All-in-One nettops like the Asus Eee Top which offers a 15.6″ Touchscreen (1366×768), a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor, 1 GB of RAM, 160 GB Hard Drive and Microsoft Windows XP Home.
But the Eee Top goes for about $200 less.
Both are great options. It just depends what features are important to you.
Selecting My New Netbook, Part 3
Posted by Tom Greer on April 16, 2009 in Dell Netbooks, Fujitsu Netbooks
I described in an earlier post how I dropped my netbook, leading to its demise. The good thing is: Now I get to buy a new netbook!
In Part 1of this series, I reviewed out the features that are important to me. Then I scanned the currently available netbooks and selected five that met my requirements.
The first on the list (in alphabetical order) is the Linux version of the Dell Inspiron Mini 9. I reviewed that netbook in depth in Part 2.
The next netbook on my list of potentials is the Dell Inspiron Mini 12.
| Dell Inspiron Mini 12 40GB 6-Cell Linux | |||
 | 12.1" Display (1280x800), 1.33 GHz Intel Atom Z520 Processor, Intel GMA500, 1 GB RAM, 40 GB Hard Drive, 802.11b/g, Bluetooth 2.1,6-cell battery, Ubuntu Linux | ||
Comes in:
| More Info | ||
Selecting My New Netbook, Part 2
Posted by Tom Greer on April 14, 2009 in Dell Netbooks
As I described in an earlier post, I need to replace my netbook. In Part 1 of this series, I laid out the features that are important to me. Then I reviewed currently available netbooks and selected five that met my requirements.
The first on the list (in alphabetical order) is the Linux version of the Dell Inspiron Mini 9.
Falling Netbook Prices – 4/5/09
Posted by Tom Greer on April 5, 2009 in Asus Netbooks, Dell Netbooks, Falling Prices, Netbook Market, Samsung Netbooks
Here is today’s list of netbooks with new prices that are $5 or more lower than the previous lowest prices.
Let’s start with the Inspiron Mini 12 60G 6-Cell Vista Home on which Dell has trimmed its price from $638.00 to $549.00.
| Dell Inspiron Mini 12 40GB 3-Cell XP | |||
| 12.1" Display (1280x800), 1.33 GHz Intel Atom Z520 Processor, Intel GMA500, 1 GB RAM, 40 GB Hard Drive, 802.11b/g, Bluetooth 2.1, 3-cell battery, Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition | ||
Comes in:
| More Info | ||
Next, we have a nettop. Buy.com reduced their price for the Asus Eee Box B202 160GB Linux in White to $282.99. Previously the lowest price was $300.99.
| Asus Eee Box B202 160G Linux | |||
 | 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor, 1.0 GB DDR2-533/677 RAM, 160 GB Hard Drive, Linux | ||
Comes in:
| More Info | ||
The pink version of the popular Samsung NC10 has, for some time, been more expensive than the other colors. But with an Amazon Merchant cutting its price to $413.00, the gap is smaller. (The lowest price for all of the other colors is $409.00.)
| Samsung NC10 160G 6-Cell XP | |||
 | 10.2" Display (1024x600), 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor, 1.0 GB RAM, 160 GB Hard Drive, 6 Cell Battery, Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition | ||
Comes in:
| More Info | ||
As always, remember that the widgets shown above are dynamic, which means that they will automatically be updated with the latest prices and availability.
How Acer Became The Top Netbook Maker
Posted by Tom Greer on December 27, 2008 in Acer Netbooks, Asus Netbooks, Dell Netbooks, HP Netbooks, Lenovo Netbooks, MSI Netbooks, Netbook Market
Acer Aspire One
Back around the middle of this past year, the netbook marketplace really began to buzz as the launch dates of the second-generation netbooks were nearing. MSI was garnering a major chunk of the mind share, with the Wind Netbook receiving rave reviews. Meanwhile, Asus was busy announcing new Eee PC models at a dizzying pace. Acer was preparing to introduce the Aspire One; however, while the reviews were favorable, it was getting a lot less buzz.
Fast forward to now (year-end) where the Acer Aspire One is king of the netbooks. How did they do it? Read the rest »
Holiday Netbook Bargains – Number 4
Posted by Tom Greer on December 9, 2008 in Dell Netbooks
With the holidays around the corner, a netbook makes a fine gift. To help you save money while giving, I’ve scoured the Internet for the best deals. I’m counting down the five best. I’ve already posted number five. Here is number four:
Dell is offering an additional 9% off their entire Inspiron Mini 9 lineup.
Here is some information on the entry-level model.
| Dell Inspiron Mini 9 4G Linux | |||
 | 8.9" Display (1024x600), 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270 Processor, 512 MB DDR2-533 RAM, 4 GB Solid-State Drive, Ubuntu Linux Version 8.04 | ||
Comes in:
| |||
You can view features, specs, reviews and videos for this product here.
Dell also offers additional colors and decals at an additional cost. These can be selected after clicking through to their site,
Of course, you can customize your version to meet your needs. But be sure to click on the link below to get your extra discount.
For a limited time, Dell is now offering and extra 9% off all Inspiron Mini 9 netbooks.
Click here to obtain your extra 9% discount.
Note: If you click on the Go! buttons above, you will not receive this special discount.
Dell Offers 9% Off Mini 9s and 12% Off Mini 12s
Posted by Tom Greer on December 4, 2008 in Dell Netbooks, Netbook Market
For a limited time, Dell is offering special discounts on their netbooks:
- 9% off Inspiron Mini 9 netbooks
- 12% off Inspiron Mini 12 netbooks
If you go directly to Dell’s Inspiron Mini order entry pages, there is no mention of this special discount, If you look around long enough, you can find the deal page. Or you can just click here.
You can view our Buyers Guide pages (which contain specs, reviews and videos) for the Inspiron Mini 9 by clicking on the links below.
- Dell Inspiron Mini 9 4G Linux
- Dell Inspiron Mini 9 8G XP
- Dell Inspiron Mini 9 16G XP