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Netting the best Netbooks

Rohan Naravane, Dec 15, 2008 1417 hrs IST

These little 'bundles of joy' are ready to take over the world. We look at the best ones available today.

EXPERT REVIEW

Acer Aspire One Full review

The Aspire One looks pretty sleek, weighs just over a kilo and delivers good performance. The keyboard is pretty convenient to type on and has got an ample 120 GB storage space. A unique thing about the Aspire One is that it has two memory card readers on-board. For a small-sized machine, the keyboard is surprisingly comfortable to type on.

The Aspire One performed well on the standard benchmarks as well. The only sore part about the Aspire One is that it doesn't have Bluetooth. Also, the default 3-cell battery belts out roughly a 2 hour run-time; which may not be adequate for many. Thankfully, an upgrade to a higher-capacity 6-cell battery costs just Rs. 1,200 extra. Lastly, the pricing is not over-the-top too.

The Linux version sells for Rs. 21,600, while the one with Windows XP Home Edition pre-installed sells for Rs. 2000 more. A 160GB version has recently surfaced for Rs. 24,700. To sum it up, the Acer Aspire One is a good buy for someone who wants a lightweight Netbook that has decent features and performance.

Full review

USER COMMENTS

Do these netbooks support running of photoshop, c compilers,office 07 and other heavy-memory requirement programs with much ease or do they lag ? wat's ur opinion for lg's x110....reply asap

by Vikas, Mumbai, on Mar 11, 2009 01:39 AM, Report abuse Reply

I recently bought an AAO for 14.9K net n 'm lovin' it. I just hate the color I got (Sapphire Blue) because that's the one they had...sigh!

by Prax, Patna, on Jan 21, 2009 08:45 AM, Report abuse Reply

most of the keyboards on these netbooks are crap. only the acer aspire one and msi wind have a perfect keyboard. the lenovo s10 does not have a separate F12 key dell mini 9 does not have separate function keys at all. so before you buy a netbook take a look at the keyboard properly.

by Shyla, NY, on Dec 19, 2008 09:23 AM, Report abuse Reply

Dear Shyla, Just curious as when is F12 required ?

by Prasanna, mumbai, on Jan 16, 2009 08:48 PM, Report abuse

> My take on the Netbook is that it is an extension to > your main computer. You take is wrong! No wonder why PC and Internet penetration is not much happening in India compared to other Asian regions. Let's hope for the best with all these 'Low Price' models. Still am not so convinced because Software side it sucks high in India with steep prices (read as Windows & it's Office products). Penetration doesn't happen until & unless Software prices scale down OR people tune towards Open Source movement as our great man Dr. APJ has once professed very clearly.

by Dr. Sunil, Hyderabad, on Dec 30, 2008 08:22 PM, Report abuse Reply

The article mentions review of new netbooks expected in 2009...was mentioned for week of Dec22nd.. Cannot find it on techtree... a link would be helpful Thabks

by vivek ladha, goa, on Dec 30, 2008 10:31 AM, Report abuse Reply

What happened to the mini 9.So,small that i got lost in the rankings???????

by shadeslayer, Gurgaon, on Dec 25, 2008 02:34 AM, Report abuse Reply

Oops! You just missed out on the Samsung NC10 just recently launched. Looks competitive. May be in a shoot-out next year. Also, the HP Mini 1000 (am I right?) isn't seen. Is it not available in India yet?

by five46, Bengaluru, on Dec 23, 2008 09:32 PM, Report abuse Reply

Quite an unfair comparision...the mother of all netbooks "HP 2133 Mininote" is not considered. I'll tell you the difference...1280x728 resolution, no other netbook offers, Brushed Aluminium casing is the ultimate WOW factor, 2GB of 667 MHz RAM with 800 MHz FSB....... downside...C7M processor, but its not all that bad, it walks vista easily, and zooms with XP/ Ubuntu. Compiz dosent work :( ...but im sure it wont be working on any of them.

by Ashok, New Delhi, on Dec 18, 2008 12:44 PM, Report abuse Reply

The reason the HP mini-Note 2133 was not included was because HP has informed us that they've stopped selling that model, and they're coming up with an upgrade very soon.

by Rohan Naravane, TechTree TechLabs, on Dec 18, 2008 07:17 PM, Report abuse

Any netbook with DVD drive??

by Martin, Bangalore, on Dec 17, 2008 04:28 PM, Report abuse Reply

Where is the Dell Inspiron Mini 9? That's the second best Netbook right now behind Asipre One. If I was in the market I would go like this - 1.Acer 2.Lenovo [White/Red combo has killer looks something diff!.] 3.MSI Wind.

by Samir, Mumbai, on Dec 16, 2008 01:14 AM, Report abuse Reply

Dear Samir, The Inspiron Mini 9 isn't yet widely available in India as of now. I haven't seen it even at official dell retailers like Croma. This guide is about the best Netbooks of 2008. And since 2008 is almost over, the dell inspiron mini 9 would have a chance to compete next year.

by Rohan Naravane, TechTree TechLabs, on Dec 16, 2008 06:49 PM, Report abuse

I like MSI wind becuase of chic looks and match the international standards in quality also Eee 1000H is able to run MAC OS where rest of netbooks s*cks as acer and lenovo are made for gays!

by hello, sd, on Dec 16, 2008 11:42 AM, Report abuse Reply

Oops if you have Inispiron Mini 9 in the list than that is no.2. Lenovo is no.3 then. Wind gets the boot.

by Samir, Mumbai, on Dec 16, 2008 01:15 AM, Report abuse Reply