Some stupid netbook questions

reduceditem

I'm thinking of buying a netbook of the cheap-ish variety. What I want to know is what (if anything) will I NOT be able to do compared with my high-power laptop?

I only use the computer for surfing.....things like email, BBC i-player, youtube, some occassional live sport streaming, Skype (with video). Will I still be able to do all that kind of stuff with ease?

Been looking at this netbook:

http://www.elonex.com/products/marksandspencer/msnb-2009.shtm

It's available for £200 at the moment and there's a 2 year gaurantee.

What do you reckon?

Oscar_The_Grouch

Hi there

The machine you are looking at will be able to do everything you've listed in your request, but it's running Windows XP. If you are used to a machine running 7 or Vista, I'd be tempted to look elsewhere. If, on the other hand, your current laptop runs XP, then it looks fine.

Having said all that, if you don't mind going for a refurb, you can get a Dell Mini for £130 + VAT (clicky) direct from Dell.

motorguy

Oscar_The_Grouch wrote: »

Hi there

The machine you are looking at will be able to do everything you've listed in your request, but it's running Windows XP. If you are used to a machine running 7 or Vista, I'd be tempted to look elsewhere. If, on the other hand, your current laptop runs XP, then it looks fine.

Having said all that, if you don't mind going for a refurb, you can get a Dell Mini for £130 + VAT (clicky) direct from Dell.

The dell works out at £173.29 when you include the vat and delivery. :eek:

terakris

Dont order from the dell outlet - they used to be good but i was waiting for 2 different systems/orders over 3 months. Wasn't until i shouted at some poor customer service rep that i managed to get some straight answers from them and got the order canceled and refunded.

Ordered a little netbook from tesco outlet instead (via ebay) and got it delivered in 2 days. Was cheaper too :cool:

whowants2brich

I'm not so convinced... I've got an Acer Aspire One, 1.6GHz processor, 1.5Gb of RAM, 160Gb of hard drive - practically the same as the laptop in the link. And I can confirm that my netbook struggles with video, even downloaded video, DVDs (external drive) etc. The RAM and processor just can't keep up... For everything that isn't time/processor-critical, eg browsing, email, voice (not video), msn, photos, whatever, then it's great. Just not processor-intense applications...

benjus

whowants2brich wrote: »

I'm not so convinced... I've got an Acer Aspire One, 1.6GHz processor, 1.5Gb of RAM, 160Gb of hard drive - practically the same as the laptop in the link. And I can confirm that my netbook struggles with video, even downloaded video, DVDs (external drive) etc. The RAM and processor just can't keep up... For everything that isn't time/processor-critical, eg browsing, email, voice (not video), msn, photos, whatever, then it's great. Just not processor-intense applications...

Interesting... I have an Acer Aspire one (similar to yours but with only 1Gb RAM). I regularly connect it via VGA to a Full HD television to watch movies I've downloaded (standard resolution downloads, not Full HD) and it works fine. Video calls with Skype and MSN are also fine.

motorguy

whowants2brich wrote: »

I'm not so convinced... I've got an Acer Aspire One, 1.6GHz processor, 1.5Gb of RAM, 160Gb of hard drive - practically the same as the laptop in the link. And I can confirm that my netbook struggles with video, even downloaded video, DVDs (external drive) etc. The RAM and processor just can't keep up... For everything that isn't time/processor-critical, eg browsing, email, voice (not video), msn, photos, whatever, then it's great. Just not processor-intense applications...

Chances are that its one of the earlier type processors.

I've got this one -

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-10-1-inch-Netbook-1-66GHz-Bluetooth/dp/B003R6TOEM/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=computers&qid=1284570478&sr=8-4

with the later N450 processor. A decent difference over the older ones, albeit pricey.