by David Hakala
A netbook is a physically small portable computer that relies on wireless Internet connectivity to access Web-based services that provide much of the functionality found in more powerful desktop machines. Netbooks typically run Windows XP or some flavor of the Linux operating system rather than the more resource-hungry Vista. Netbooks are significantly cheaper than desktop or notebook computers. But are they worth buying at all?
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by David Strom
Prices are coming down and small is once again beautiful in the world of laptops, with a new series of products that are called Netbooks. They have several advantages: they are small and lightweight (around two or three pounds), they boot up in seconds, they cost less than $500–in some cases a lot less–and run Windows XP Home, which is getter harder to find these days. Did I say that they are about the smallest form factor with big enough keyboards for touch typists? OK, now I did.
If you are on a real budget and don’t care about using your laptop for much more than Web surfing, email, and the occasional PowerPoint presentation or document, then these are the right tools for you. If you are tired of lugging your laptop through mile-long airport concourses, or don’t care if one gets lifted from the trunk of your car (that happened to me a few years ago), then the price point of these PCs will have a lot of appeal. And if you are impatient with long boot-up times and the kind of person who likes to have a laptop that can be up and running within a few seconds to answer a quick Web query or look up an email address, then the Netbooks are very appealing. But if you are looking for a desktop replacement, or if you can’t stand to compute with a screen smaller than 15 inches, then look elsewhere.
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