Will a netbook drive me nuts?

Leopard

No. The 4213 looks similar at first sight but is a different beast entirely. It isn't a clone of the Wind; it's based on something else (an Asus, I think).

I love the Wind but I don't like the Advent 4213 at all. I wrote of the Wind that I find its keyboard just large enough to use comfortably. The keyboard of the 4213 is a little bit smaller. Not much, but I find the difference crucial: I couldn't work with a 4213. I guess it all depends on the size and thickness of one's fingers but mine are quite small, really, for a man. I've seen women with larger hands than mine. The only way to find out whether you could live with a 4213's keyboard is to go to a shop and try one.

Using a USB mouse means that you lose access to one of the computer's three USB ports, leaving you with only two, whereas Bluetooth is built in. External devices such a bus-powered DVD drive or hard drive often need two USB ports and a Y-lead. So, losing one USB port to a mouse can cause problems. But a USB mouse will work fine.

I like these Bluetooth mice (should that be Blueteeth mice? ). That seller usually has them for sale but you may have to wait a week or so between auctions. I bought just one, originally, but I got on so well with it that both my companion and I now use them with all our Macs, both desktop and laptop. We have seven of them!

The 4213 does not, so far as I'm aware, have a SIM embedded in it. I have always understood that, if you wish, you can insert a SIM of your own into a slot that it provides. I use Bluetooth and my mobile 'phone to connect to the Internet.

Mac-hacking a Wind tends to disable the headphone socket on a netbook (there are ways to solve that but it can be a little complicated) so I just use Bluetooth headphones instead. These are nice when on the move and these are great at home or in hotel rooms.

You're beginning to see why I caution against buying the Medion Akoya clone of the Wind because it has (or, certainly, had) no Bluetooth!

These are really nice to house them in and protect them. (Note the carefully aligned ventilation holes on the underneath.) They were £24 last year, before Gay Gordon's success in demolishing the £.

Jakg

Leopard wrote: »

... if you can live with its horrible, glossy, reflective screen.

That would certainly drive me nuts.

The N110 has a glossy screen, the NC10 is matte.

Leopard

It's glossier than a Wind's on the all the ones that I've seen.

Samsung is big on glossy black in general.

We thought of buying a Samsung 52" LCD television but bought a Sony instead mainly because of the glossiness of the Samsung panel.

Samsung's plasma panels are even glossier.

But it's all a matter of personal taste; some people prefer glossy. I can't live with the reflectiveness.

Jakg

Fixed.

My NC10's screen isn't glossy at all - the white one is matte on the unit and also the screen.

Leopard

I'm happy for you.

What's the NC110 like as a netbook, compared to the NC10 ?

If anything unfortunate happened to your NC10 would you replace it with an NC10 or with an NC110 ?

Or with something else ?

Gordon861

I have a Toshiba NB100 with windows on it and it's great for mobile computing. It runs Office 2000 with no problems.

Only difficulties are with the small keyboard that takes time to get used to. You might also want to get a small laser/led USB mouse as that will also make life a lot easier.

MRSCARNEY

I've just bought an Advent 4214 and I'm pretty impressed. It would never replace my proper laptop but it's great for emails, internet & Skype. Feels well built and the screen size is decent, has 3 usb's and an SD card slot too. Can't fault it for £249 really.

Jakg

Leopard wrote: »

I'm happy for you.

What's the NC110 like as a netbook, compared to the NC10 ?

If anything unfortunate happened to your NC10 would you replace it with an NC10 or with an NC110 ?

Or with something else ?

I dont have an N110, but I've used them at work - it's better but not by a huge amount.

If my NC10 broke I have no idea what i'd replace it with - I bought mine as it was cheap (£239 + quidco from Viking thanks to a misprice) and the idea of all day computing had my sold for School (where my 15.4" was way to heavy and has to be on charge most of the time). I'm no longer at School so i'm not sure it should be such an issue. The N110 is nice, but it's not such a massive improvement. I'd be looking at an NC10 with a built in 3G modem.

inmypocketnottheirs

Jakg wrote: »

I'd be looking at an NC10 with a built in 3G modem.

I just bluetooth my mobile to the NC10 and use my data plan on my mobile contract. Works just as well as a dedicated modem imho.

isplumm

Hi ....

I just bought the "Acer Aspire One D150-1Bw 10-inch Netbook (Intel Atom Processor N280, 1GB RAM, 160GB HDD, Windows XP Home)"

It has the new N280 1.66 Mhz processor .... comes with a 6 cell battery ... bought from Amazon (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Acer-D150-1Bw-10-inch-Netbook-Processor/dp/B001Q3LXDS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1250073516&sr=8-1) make sure you get 6 cell battery version. £272 + free delivery.

Gets good reviews.

Mark