Intel VP says netbooks are "fine for an hour"
By Nilay Patel 
posted Nov 29th 2008 10:14AM
posted Nov 29th 2008 10:14AM
Intel's never made a secret of the fact that it developed the now-ubiquitous Atom chipset primarily for mobile devices and low-powered netbooks for at emerging markets, so it's not totally surprising to hear Intel sales VP Stu Pann say the company doesn't see netbooks as potentially cannibalizing sales of its existing processors -- but we are a bit intrigued by his seeming dismissal of netbooks as everyday machines. According to Stu, a netbook with a 10-inch screen is "fine for an hour. It's not something you're going to use day in and day out." That's probably true, of course, but it's harsher language than we've heard from Intel in the past -- and it's more or less in line with AMD's recent decision to ignore netbooks entirely in favor of more capable machines "above that form factor." Of course, Intel execs can pretty much say whatever they want as long as the company is basically the only player in the netbook game, but we think a lot of people actually are willing to use a netbook as their primary machine, especially in this economy. Could you handle a netbook as your daily driver? The comment box awaits.[Via jkOnTheRun]
I'd say an N10 with an external disk drive would be fine.
I switched over from a 'high power' (at least when it was bought) Asus notebook and now use the Lenovo S10. It is my primary computer and have yet to go back to my desktop. I have even converted some DTS movies to AC3 with my notebook with no problems. So to answer your question, yes, I do see them as replacements to higher powered notebooks, assuming you're not needing high powered GPU or CPU. Most of us, despite what intel or AMD wish to think, use computers for basic daily activities.
Stu is right.netbooks are just fine for an hour or so.
when doing serious number crunching nothing compares to the 14-15 inchers.
"I switched over from a 'high power' (at least when it was bought) Asus notebook and now use the Lenovo S10. It is my primary computer and have yet to go back to my desktop. I have even converted some DTS movies to AC3 with my notebook with no problems. So to answer your question, yes, I do see them as replacements to higher powered notebooks, assuming you're not needing high powered GPU or CPU. Most of us, despite what intel or AMD wish to think, use computers for basic daily activities."
I agree. If you are often out and about, a netbook with a big HDD is ideal. Partner that with a 20" monitor and keyboard/mouse when you need more screen real-estate and ergonomics, and you've got the best of both worlds.
An Atom running Linux is fine for doing everything other than playing games. And it's cheap!
It would be better if they used even less power, and could thus last longer on battery. I look forward to seeing what ARM will come up with. Intel could do with the competition, and the ever growing ultra-low power sector is its only week-spot.
"Stu is right.netbooks are just fine for an hour or so.
when doing serious number crunching nothing compares to the 14-15 inchers."
A couple of years ago, the word was:
"when doing serious number crunching nothing compares to a desktop."
Or...
"when doing serious number crunching nothing compares to an IBM Mainframe."
sitting on big ass while typing on tiny keyboard makes you look funny.
I agree guy made a point ....
@ justin and mario:
You guys are completely right. I thought of the N10 right away because it is one of the few netbooks that can play games.
Hmm, "Fine for an hour."
My girlfriend says the same about me and she hasn't yet left me for a bigger, hotter, and more expensive guy!
I have an asus 900ha, which has 1.6 ghz processor and 160 gb hardrive, it isn't qute enough for me but I bought one for each of my parents and its more than enough for them for everyday use
So everyone was begging for 6 cell batteries, and we got it.. supposedly 6-7hrs
Wonder where fine for an hour came from?
He must have really big fingers or really bad eyesight
@eggothewaffle
She probably has a desktop somewhere else...
Honestly, I use an Acer Aspire 1 whenever I'm not on my desktop, and it has suited all of my computing needs. It goes everywhere. Weighing in at just over 2lbs, I'm never afraid to take it anywhere. It has enough power to manage my Access databases, surf the net, and check my email. So yes, I do use it daily for more than an hour.
I bet I could use a dell mini 9 (with ubuntu) as my daily machine. I'd just need a hard drive.
I got a Dell Mini 9 at the beginning of the month and since then, I have switched entirely over to using it. I use it for school and play an occasional hour or two of World of Warcraft. Even with a 16GB SSD I'm fine; coupled with a 16GB SDHC card it works like a charm. For heavy gaming, I always turn to my XBox360 + Call of Duty: World at War - never fails to satisfy.
I did that. I brought my 3.0GHz Intel Pentium 4 PC dualbooting Slackware/Windows XP and an MSI Wind with a 1.6GHz Atom also dualbooting Slackware/Windows XP to college. My PC turned out to become a nice stand for my Wii and my laptop has been coming with me everywhere.
I have had one productivity issue; people keep interrupting me to tell me how awesome my laptop looks. Seriously, I could get so much more done if this thing didn't look so amazing.
Although, me and one of the french professors are on good terms, he uses the Acer Aspire One and loves it.
I'd love to use a netbook as my "day in day out" machine, if the battery can last the whole day and if it is fast enough not to slow down my work.
Honestly, I have a Macbook Pro, and all I do is surf the web and check my mail. I think a netbook would have sufficed.
Could you live with the massive loss of screen real-estate, and the much smaller keyboard?
Similar here. bought a macbook pro couple of months ago and I always feel bad when carrying something with such a big price tag around. I've even dropped it once. I am a video game designer and I am pretty sure that a netbook would be enough for my portable needs. It's just crazy to carry around a portable computer with a +2000$ price tag. a netbook accompanied with a proper desk would be a perfect mix.
Same here.
I bought some games for it just so it feels useful, but the EEE PC 701 I had did the same thing that I do every day on my giant MPB.
As for screen size I could live with smaller, but not 701 smaller!
Then you should have bought a Macbook Air, since you probably bought it for the looks.
On the other hand people want to know that they can rely on their daily machine for everything , even if they don't need all the features all the time, and that is the problem with netbooks.
I think 720p and 1080p movies and trailers... large library of lossless audio.... having 20-30 browser tabs open along with other applications and perhaps music playing too.... that's when it's good to have that macbook pro instead ;-)
That said, I have one too. And I also have an MSI Wind with OSX. My plan is to sell the Wind sometime soon, it was always a hobby machine. But I have to say, if I'm lying in bed watching a movie or hulu it's awesome.
Here's some pros:
- It weighs almost nothing. Less than 3 pounds.
- The screen resolution is 16:9 ratio, so Hulu/TV Shows are full screen, no black frames anywhere.
- Even playing video you can get a few hours (yes, hours. I've gotten over five with wifi on the whole time.) out of it, and the little guy is maybe a little warm, but just barely.
- LED screen has excellent contrast. Not MBP quality but better than a lot TFT laptops I've used.
- great for checking IMDb and chatting if you're watching a film on the couch or from afar.
I'm actually having a hard time parting with it. I think it would be enough power for the majority of users when I think about it.
Wow: a refreshingly honest admission from someone who drank the black-turtleneck flavored Kool-Aid.
MacBook Pro (Price) = Netbook + External HDD + 22" Monitor + Keyboard&Mouse + 2.1 Speakers (Price)
I agree with Intel's VP. I could never get use to the idea of using a small screen all day long or day in and day out, i have a blog and i'm planning to buy a netbook but only to make posts when i'm one the streets or for a casual comment aproval or something like that, nothing more.
I use my Wind everyday at school. Autocad, 3d max and photoshop. Never had a problem.
Just out of interest: what kind of complexity are your CAD works of? I've never imagined that netbooks are capable of doing such work! (or that it would be a smooth experience)
I saw a lot of architects using AutoCAD in the Pentium era. Has it really changed that much since then to require more than 1.6 GHz and 1GiB of RAM?
Of course, I know Office worked in the same systems and the latest versions would just laugh at you if you tried, but have professional tools turned as power hungry and user (read: eye-candy) oriented ones? Except for render times and memory requirements (which 1 or 2GiB should fix), I can't see Gimp or AutoCAD requiring anything better than a Pentium 3.
I use autocad architecture 2009 for my class work, the only problem is the screen. Autocad needs 1024 x 768 but it stills runs after the little popup saying so, other than that everything works just like it would anywhere else.
Same here, I've had my wind since the first shipment went out and I rarely use anything else.
I find it hard to believe that a netbook can be used as a CAD station. Besides the massive lack in memory I simply cant imagine working with more then 1 viewport in such a tiny screen. In my office most cad-stations are equiped with dual 20 or 24inch screens with some serious crunching power behind it and all this you do with a netbook?
That said it also kinda hits the essention of the netbook, its nice for looking up some stuff on the internet or kicking out a mail but I really cant imagine typing a lot. Not only is the keyboard simply sized for girl hands but the smallness of the screen is also a pain in the ass if you want to read a lot on it. For myself I worked with it for a short period and pulled out my Lenovo 200S out again, a littlebit bigger, a littlebig heavier but atleast a full keyboard and proper batterypower. I often got the idea that netbooks are the laptops for those who can't afford a normal laptop or simply buy one because its more reachable for those who are normally hooked on their desktop.
The odd thing to me is though why would Intel who is the biggest supplier of the Atom CPU's tell the world that the product which uses their CPU is poor. Intel benefits massively from the netbooks.
Same, I use Catia, AutoCAD, maple with no problems at school. If however the product is complex in catia, i just remote desktop to my pc (Phenom 9950, 790FX, 2x4850 ;-) ) at home. The only thing that I cant do with this combination is play the newest games at school, which i wouldnt do anyways. Oh and San Andreas works on the wind, just for when i travel though. Wind is upgraded to 2 gigs of ram and 320gb hdrive.
I love bringing my Wind to class, the things just so damn portable. Plus I get to have a chuckle at all the people who bought gigantic desktop replacement laptops and bring them to lectures.
While the software may run fine on a netbook, the amount of resources it consumes is directly proportional to the complexity of the project. Loading a 3D file depicting a toothbrush for a class on AutoCAD is very different from working with a million square foot building and the topography of the land it's on.
A professional user of arch/engineering/graphic software will use absolutely as much processing power as is available 'cause it's always advantageous to have just a little bit more detail to work with.
well, there are people out there who just want to check emails and download audio/video for their mobiles/mp3 players..their numbers may be half a billion.. netbook is the best value for the money..will Intel/AMD ignore them, netbook is game changing product and has created new category of customers
I've been using an old IBM ThinkPad X24 as one of my main computers, purely because of the small size. It is a 1.13GHz Pentium III with 384mb of memory, and it runs XP and Office'07 just fine. While I don't know how I'd handle the keyboards on some of the smallest 9-inch netbooks, the AspireOne, Dell mini9 and Dell mini12 all seem like they'd be great little machines, and probably far more capable, in general.
I just need/want the mini12 to start shipping with an XP option, and maybe an SSD. eeePC 1000 also looks nice.
Similar thing here. I got a reconditioned T42 a while back. I was very seriously looking at a netbook, and this is about the same kind of price and spec, but with a full keyboard/screen. Realistically, for surfing and email, it is perfect. no need to switch on my desktop, and I usually have it in sleep mode all day, and hibernate at night. Less power used, more convenience. I still have my desktop for anything requiring some power.
What AMD and Intel are sweating about is the fact that for most home users, and quite a few business users, power doesn't actually matter after a certain level. A 1.6 or whatever processor is just fine for web media, DVDs and casual flash type games. The big dual core 2gig + rigs that they want to sell everybody are just plain overkill. Outside enthusiasts, people have been herded to the upgrade treadmill for years. One computer wears out, they get a bigger faster one for roughly the same price when a cheaper one would have made more sense. They must be really cursing Asus right now.
Could I handle it? Sure.
Would I put up with a small keyboard for that long? Nope!
I think the comments are pretty fair. While netbooks are awesome, I would never give up my Thinkpad. I've been spoiled.
I totally agree! I had a Gateway convertible for two years. It was okay.
Then when it was destroyed so I bought a Lenovo ThinkPad T400...
I had no clue what I was missing out on.
Before I kinda slogged through things.
But now, I have an excellent keyboard, a beautiful screen, stunning battery life, etc. etc.
You don't know what you are missing out on till you've had a really great laptop.
I think it's the same for people who buy Netbooks. They are handy and get the job done. But a really good laptop makes your experience so much better.
A Netbook will never replace a decent Laptop made by Dell, IBM, Apple, etc.
I think consumers will see phones quickly become the replacements for the "Netbook".
I think he's saying that so AMD doesn't make a competitor to the Atom. :)
Really though, I can see myself getting a netbook sometime in the near future, its much nicer than a heavy laptop, and not so expensive that you'd keep two eyes on it every second.
All your netbook are belong to us.
In Soviet Russia, you belong to your netbook! :p
I like a big screen to work on, even if that involves checking emails and surfing. Give me a vga out on a netbook.. and I will last with it.
My main PC crapped out on me way back and I relied purely on my 7" eeepc for about 2 months. I maxed out all the ports with usb keyboard/mouse external monitor, big ass sd card, external speakers, and a usb hard drive. I was able to get all my office work done just fine, no different from my desktop. I only needed to overclock it when I did graphic and video (yes I did that on an eeepc) editing. Overall it worked just fine as a temporary replacement. When I got bored I could even fire up quake3 at a high resolution to kill time. So I think it's totally possible with the new netbooks that have much larger screens.
But can it run Crysis....
Oh God I'm lonely
I think netbook's are something that halts the progress of technology. Things are supposed to be getting bigger,performance wise and smaller,size wise. Instead netbook's are like a side distraction which everyone has fallen in love with,mainly for their mainstream appeal with people who do not require a powerful machine but a sort of "internet terminal" with basic added services.
Althought I so agree with him,this is probably just a fad that will pass,just like webtv or furbies.
This seems like a silly idea. Why should we care about 'technological progress' in this market? Mobile processing is not something that will change the course of events for humankind. If we were talking about supercomputing, I would agree with you. However, the netbook movement is driven primarily by those who want something cheap to use when they're on the couch.
Netbooks have a purpose. They are designed for people that want an ultraportable, but do not want to pay the rediculous prices that decent ultraportables come with. For taking notes in class or at a business meeting, or anytime you just want to do one thing, a netbook is perfect. Also, the technological advances that go into netbooks, are one day going to benefit higher end laptops with the advances in chipset and processor technology that made these possible.
You are forgetting, of course, about low power consumption - yet another thing that we should be innovating towards, and netbooks do have rather low power consumption. (They have low battery life because they also have tiny (cheap) batteries.)
They're also good because they're cheap. It's fine to just chuck in your bag and go off with.
I always keep my MacBook in a polyester sleeve. It's a bit of a pain, but I got some scratches before using it. I wouldn't care about that as much on a cheap netbook.
No DVD drive is a deal breaker for me.
Really? How often do you use your DVD drive? I can't remember the last time I opened mine.
Always. I use it to archive stuff, load recovery CDs when the computer goes haywire, and rip CDs to mp3s in attempt to not use the drive again.
Honestly, I couldn't. It is difficult to do more than one thing at a time. I want to be able to have AIM, iTunes, Word, and Firefox open all at the same time, and without my system slowing down. A vast majority of students would expect at least that. I wouldn't even think about running any serious image editing programs beyond Picasa. However, it is still far better than having no laptop at all if my parents couldn't afford my MacBook Pro.
A 40$ RAM upgrade is all you really need. I tossed 2 gigs of RAM into my EEE 4G running Ubuntu EEE, and now the thing runs like a rocket.
@jellmoo
I could definitely use Ubuntu for what a netbook is intended to do, but it is still not quite ready to be used as my only OS, unlike Windows Vista or Mac OS X. Thanks for your advice, I will definitely try it when I buy a netbook.
Once penguin heads need to learn that everyone cannot give away all their hard earned work for nothing in return, Ubuntu will be good enough to use as your only OS. For people that only browse the web and edit documents, it is there already.
Well, that's what the dual core Atom was designed for. I share your opinion regarding sluggish performance, but if I find multi-core netbooks to be able to deal with my daily tasks properly I'll use my power hungry system just for playing modern stuff and emulating old games like System Shock.
A partially true statement, in as much as I don't spend hours with my netbook. However, it is my more portable than my laptop, and gets more use when I'm on the go.
I'm thinking that a batch of ARM netbooks might change their tune a bit. Intel is getting defensive because they know how bad their architecture is for portable devices.
I owned an EEE PC 701 4G Linux edition as a secondary machine to use 'on the road'. I sold my MacBook Black and in the gap of a month between purchasing a Mac Mini, used the EEE PC as my one and only (primary) computer. When at home, after hacking the Linux, I was able to use the EEE to drive my Philips widescreen monitor at over 1680 x 1050 resolution actually bettering the res available from my prior MacBook's external video port! (On a £250 mini laptop!) I started to use the KDE? based Linux apps to see if I could actually use the EEE as a long term primary computer - with the exception of power user apps such as Photoshop that to be fair would not be able to run on such a machine. However, time would prove that although the EEE PC was great to throw in my backpack to surf the net on the road (3G modem attached), Open Office and the other apps simply lacked the finesse, consistent usability and power of those running on OS X. (I cannot speak for Windows.) An OS that Apple have spent much time developing - from Core Image to QuickTime and more. Therefore, with great reluctance, because it was a lovely machine, I took a reality check, dumped the EEE, got a Nokia E71 and iPod Touch and a Mac Mini. The Mac does the power stuff (yup, the Mini is not so sluggish), and when on the road, the E71 is my laptop (even has editable office apps!) and the Touch is our sales presentation tool. The E71 is so flexible, doing all the things the EEE PC 701 could do in a form factor tha slips into a back pocket. Yes, Netbooks have a market, but until they possess the power of larger laptops, they will be relegated to being backup devices or note taking/social networking machines for students. And even the latter is being replaced by the latest mobile phones that include built in social networking clients, IE, Blackberry, iPhone, Nokia 5800 etc.
Now if Apple make a dockable 7 or 8" iPod Touch with a sliding/fold out mechanical keyboard, we'll be talking. Because that will blend the incredible usability of the i devices with a large enough screen to do some serious business and power user tasks when out and about. Simply dock with your desktop widescreen monitor to continue working back at the office/home.
You know what? I think Apple may just do it too. Or maybe it will come from HP?
Same story here wonderkid (except im not a mac person and i still had my main desktop). Its nice to see some people have common sense. I ditched it in favour of a proper laptop.
I'd rather stick with an ageing laptop for 8h of work than change it for a new netbook!
that was a long comment.
I would never use a netbook as my primary computer. I can't even use a normal laptop as a primary computer. I'm a slave to high resolution displays, which makes almost any portable computer utterly useless for me. Add that to the fact that I like to play games and you've got someone who is unlikely to have a portable computer as anything but a second computer.
No one can deny that Hong Kong users are tending towards the netbook market, and it is quite understandable: we have tiny living and working spaces, and we love watching movies on the go. If anything the netbooks are actually killing the high-end smartphone market.
Asus had done well to launch the Eee PC in Hong Kong. Today people are constantly asking about the availability of different netbooks in HK forums. (the Samsung NC10 seems to be the most-talked model at the moment)
I tried using the Aspire One as my daily driver but I found it slowed down my workflow. I was used to having a Outlook, Firefox, Word, Excel and maybe iTunes all running at once while I worked on a document or spreadsheet. That type of tasking brought the AAO to it's knees. The small screen, single core processor and less than full size keyboard started to lose their appeal after about an hour of working on spreadsheets. I've come to the conclusion that netbooks are great for consuming content just don't expect them to be a productivity powerhouse when it comes to creating it. I really wanted to like the AAO because of it's diminutive size and the amount of travel I do. In the end, I bought a new MacBook and haven't looked back.
I think you just found the perfect way to sum up what netbook are and are not good for.
"I've come to the conclusion that netbooks are great for consuming content just don't expect them to be a productivity powerhouse when it comes to creating it."
That's basically what it comes down to.
I found out a similar thing but not exactly the same. I thought when I got sold something that was "great for the web", it meant that it could do everything on the web for me and my kids.... how WRONG. Examples:
#1: Hulu.com- Has anyone tried to run anything at 480 or 720? Complete FAIL!
#2: ITunes TV- I have one more powerful desktop so I want to rent in HD format. Problem is that it won't run on my netbook.
#3: Movie trailers- try to run a trailer in 480P, not even HD and be prepared to be underwhelmed
#4: Kids sites- popular sites my kids like to visit like lego.com, webkinz, nickjr.com, disney.com run like crud on it. CPU utilization is 100%!!!!
#5: Digital camera video- My kodak digital camera takes 720P videos. It cant run those either.
These devices should have a warning label like "only light websites" and "light content only". Great for MyYahoo or Twitter, but bad for a rich web experience.
On my Eee 1000h:
All websites are fast, try chrome or Firefox 3 out.
480p works great over hulu, although i still put it in super mode, just in case
720p does NOT work on hulu, or youtube (youtube in HQ is great)
1080i in HDV MPEG-2 format plays back great, the files are just huge.
1080p WMV stutters a bit, but is watchable.
I think the probllems you are running into are caused by
A) a slow browser, if you're using IE, then get firefox, if you're using Firefox, get chrome.
B) using quicktime for video playback. It sucks on windows, even on my C2D desktop. Try VLC instead.
C) flash. No real workaround for this one, although it seems pretty ineffcient CPU wise compared to silverlight for video. Keep it in 480p and you should be fine (the screen is how big now?)
I routinely plug mine in to my 720p RPTV to watch netflix movies all the time, the videos themselves aren't hd, but they scale nicely.
My netbook is currently my tertiary machine for when I'm not at home/work and don't want the extra weight of my laptop. I really don't think I could use it as my primary machine at all.
Although I am going to take it on holiday in January, see how it performs as a photo viewer for my digicam & music player. I figure a whole week with it might make me fall in love, but I can't help feeling that I'll be craving more raw power by the time I get back.
I couldn't, because I'm a pro photographers and I need something heavy duty for processing photos. but I know plenty of people who could... people who use the computer on a casual basis for email, word processing, web surfing, facebook, etc. That tiny form factor is especially appealing for a lot of people! Of all the millions of netbooks sold, I'm sure a huge percentage of those were to people who use them as their only computer.
I think he's right - I could only stand one for an hour. It'd be great on campus to check my e-mail on the go over WiFi or to keep me occupied at lunch for an hour, maybe to take notes on, but I wouldn't expect to use it when I was at home with a desktop - there's just too much stuff I want to run at the same time, and too many power-hungry applications that I need.
Unbelievable! You guys just sent me my password as plain text! Stop it!
Okay, here's your password again:
*********
better?
Not unless you want carpal tunnel syndrome. My hands are too big for a 13", let alone a 10". I'll pass.
This is not an example of what Intel really believes -- it is an example of what the company hopes consumers / OEMs believe. Laptops which are more portable, more efficient, and cheaper? Why would people want that? Intel certainly doesn't, though -- lower profit margin.
This is still first generation. 8.9 or 10 inch screens with 1280x800, larger flash drives, and faster, more 'fuel-efficient' chips will drive the netbooks into even more accessible territory. Intel is looking at existing markets and saying "nope, not a real need", failing to point out that a $300 laptop generates an entirely new market. (Low income families, children, and, let's be honest, fashion accessories.)
The argument about halting the progress of technology is important, but not necessarily accurate -- a successful 'cloud computing' environment still relies on servers capable of serving applications to many systems, so their hardware must be reliable, fast, etc. Maybe the newest Intel chips won't be in every laptop, but then again, why are so many people wastefully purchasing more than they actually need?
This is also a wakeup call to hardware and software manufacturers -- stop being so wasteful. Other than bigger games and shinier interfaces, how has our day-to-day web browsing, email checking, and document writing (with 'occasional' media enjoyment :) really changed in the last five years?
Netbooks seem to be the perfect solution for college students these days with the sour economy and the fact of a small and portable note-taker that also browses the internet and lets you work on school projects. A separate desktop in the dorm is where you can store all your videos, pictures, and music. Used mostly for the intense stuff. For on the go, use a portable MP3/PMP (not suggesting any specifics).
I'm (hopefully) going to college next year and trying to figure out what to do for technology.
I was thinking netbook + desktop, but I was concerned if it was practical to bring a desktop if I had to fly to the school I'm going to.
I couldn't because I used to have a 12" iBook G4 and I got so sick of the small screen and cramped position I was in so I could see stuff on the screen that I HAD to get a Macbook Pro.
So a month or two ago I bought a brand new MacBook Pro 15.4" for $1350. Such a great steal. I am never going back to the small screen ultraportables. Seriously a netbook is nice but it can never be a desktop replacement machine. Most people probably use it as a travel machine. Just my $0.02.
you are lucky that you have .02 cents to give, let alone $1300 on a "steal" of a computer. If $300 is all that you can afford, you will make do with a netbook.
If today's netbooks weren't critically hobbled by the greed of Intel and MS, I would not have a second of hesitation!
Intel won't let their Atom come even close to its potential because they know most of us don't need their pricey C2D or even PDC chips to do our daily computing. So they force manufacturers to pair it with ridiculously outdated, energy-hungry, hot-running, underpowered, and under-featured chipsets.
MS wants to kill XP but, since it is the best OS they have produced so far, manufacturers want to use it so MS sets silly limitations on the specs of the gear allowed to run XP.
Sadly, all netbooks end up near-identical and inadequate.
SO...
Give me a 10-12" PC with low weight and a fully usable keyboard and let it run AT LEAST 4 hours in full use.
DO NOT include an optical device!
---Who the hell needs to install software on the go and why can't you plug in a drive when you do?
DO include adequate ports externally and standard connectors internally.
I know this device exists but it costs over $1500. It doesn't need to. It can be done for netbook prices but I want it to last so charge me $1000.
I think I am left waiting for the AMD mobile platform since Intel certainly isn't going to stop fucking the ultra-portable consumer any time soon. Not without competition anyway...
Oops!
10-12" screen with a decent resolution! 1024x600 does not cut it for regular use.
I never got to try HP's original Mini but I suspect they had the resolution right for a 10". For a 12", 1280x800 is the minimum.
What Intel giveth, Microsoft taketh away. When will they start to make their products more lightweight like car firms are realising?
A netbook for my primary machine? Not on your life. There's simply not enough processor power for my everyday needs. I do plan on purchasing a netbook for when I need something ultra-mobile, but that's about it. I can also rip movies and place them on the drive for my kids to watch, too. Overall, I think it will be a nice addition to my gaming laptop.
Keep in mind, most people in Japan don't even own a computer. They do everything from their fully functional cell phones. I still think a large part of America is scared of technology (I'm thinking of the "older than 40" group of people in the workplace who has a heart attack when corporate announces they are switching from fax to email), and if an inexpensive purchase like a netbook will help them take the leap, then more power to them.
Personally, I'm on the computer 24/7 as a developer. I bought the eee900 when it first came out, used it about twice, and haven't touched it since. I think I would use it more if it were a 10". I think for people who already have a current setup, a netbook wouldn't replace it. But a teenager getting his own netbook as his first computer that isn't his parents family computer, I could see him getting addicted to it and constantly upgrading from one netbook to another.
I like that their easily available, and in different flavors. Sometimes, having a real harddrive makes your netbook more realistic as your main computer vs the ssd models. So I'm happy to see some netbooks sticking in actual harddrives.
Hey, I'm looking to buy an old EEE.. you wanna sell your 900?
@Jongscx Sure. Its the 20gb model and I added XP Pro email me at teamlouish (at) gmail
I have two kids, the oldest is 14 and he will soon need a laptop for school. He's going to get a netbook. The market in that age-range is huge, and netbooks are a realistic option.
I am waiting for a dual core atom with hand as well as digital pen touch capability. I will ditch my 5pound tablet and be free. But of course I still have my gaming desktop so I guess he's right.
Funny, this Ideapad S10 is the only computer i own. I have it with me all of the time and use it constantly throughout the day. I'm done with desktops, and 15" laptops just aren't as... elegant.
Hmm most i do on my notebook is just surf the web, chat, listen to music, watch movies... So, yeah, a netbook would be enough.
The only thing holding me back is the resolution they offer, i want 1280 wide minimum.
Battery life could also be improved of course (without bulky battery packs), but they're getting there!
Netbooks' form factor is great. Coupled with a docking station, you get the benefit of true portability and large keyboard and screen on your desk. However, netbooks need far more powerful processors with multi-core design. While on-the-go they should shut down most cores to save energy, and when connected to the socket they should enable full power.
People rarely do heavy computing on-the-go, but they do need a portable machine and most laptops are way too heavy.
Ha ha. Can't wait to see how far these supply-side dinosaurs stumble in this economy, especially in a Democratic administration.
To me, it just doesn't make sense to get a netbook when you can buy a very capable laptop for a couple hundred bucks more. Sure, it won't be as compact and light, but at least it has the battery life and raw capability to actually be a primary machine. I think in a year or so this netbook craze will die down as new developments (Tegra, anyone?) allow MIDs and smartphones to squeeze out netbooks.
The Mrs. got the jump on a wal-mart sale about a month ago and snagged a Compaq 15" laptop with all the bells for 289.00 out the door. The store only had a handful but the sale was real and she scored. A full power laptop, Vista home premium and all the crap bloat ware one comes to expect from Compaq/HP, all for a price better than the cheapest netbook. Go figure.
I have a Dell Inspiron Mini 9 with Ubuntu, and Intel's comments seem about correct. They keyboard is very uncomfortable when a lot of typing must be done, and the small screen makes it very difficult to multitask.
I have an XPS M1530 as well, however, so the netbook is a wonderful second computer.
i know its a little off topic, but after you having it for some time, do you think the m1530 has a justified price after owning it? is it worth over $1k?
I have a Dell Mini 9 and use it all the time.
Small , light , and easy to carry around.
Love it !!
I completely agree. Just got one for my girlfriend. She doesn't use her Vostro 1500 anymore. With so much available online these days (storage, applications, etc) these machines work great for every day use.
I used to have a 13.3" Macbook, and it felt too cramped for me. Right now I'm eyeing the 18.4" Sony Vaios as a portable/desktop replacement.
im typing this on an asus eee 901. i like something small and compact when im reading articles online and can do it in bed. honestly i've switched to a mostly four finger touch typing method which obviously isn't going to be as fast but it more than suffices when im typing notes. the 450 i spent on it was well worth it. this is currently my primary machine while im a bit nomadic. basically it helps that its cheap and light and easy to carry. i have games, movies on it, im not going to be doing much multitasking so running photo editing software while listening to music on itunes while ripping a dvd really doesnt bother me. it would have been a total waste to spend more money on a machine i'd be doing the exact same thing in. the weight and compactness was really what did it for me. if i want a more powerful computer id use it as a desktop, not spend the extra cash on a beast of a laptop.