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https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl DIY Forum >> Alarms, Phones, Aerials, CCTV & Datacomms >> which netbook https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1293993711 Message started by wozzy on Jan 2^nd, 2011, 6:41pm

Title: which netbook
Post by wozzy on Jan 2^nd, 2011, 6:41pm

Im after a netbook for the van. The laptop ive been using is rather old and is now causing problems i dont want, and to top it all a battery life of less than five minutes which as you can imagine is less than ideal.

So ive decided its time to invest in a new one and some software for word processing invoices ect, ect. I thought a netbook would be best as they appear to be cheaper and I dont need much performance. Ive survived with it being standalone until now and will do for a bit so dont need virus protection.

Im a bit out of touch with whats good or not ( i own a macbook) so dont look at windows stuff is this a ok deal? Ive always thought HP was a fairly hardy brand?

http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/hp-mini...57046-pdt.html

Title: Re: which netbook
Post by perry spanyol on Feb 10^th, 2011, 11:41am

Hi Wozzy,

If all your going to need a laptop for is word processing, invoices and general possible internet browsing etc then anything under £400 from PC World etc is good. They all come with pretty high spec and lots of memory now so would easily be capable of what you need if your not going to be watching HD movies, playing grpahic intensive games etc.

HP have always been a good make, nice and sturdy and good components.

Title: Re: which netbook
Post by plugwash on Feb 11^th, 2011, 1:26am

One thing to watch for is screen resoloution. Most 9-10 inch netbooks have a screen resoloution of 1024x600 which is very cramped to work on and makes some applications unusable.

I have a 10 inch machine with a 1366x768 screen and it's lovely but it was NOT cheap (and it's not suitable for people with poor eyesight either ;) ).

Title: Re: which netbook
Post by Joiner on Feb 11^th, 2011, 5:55am

A mate of mine is going to take me to task for saying this (!!) but the problem with dedicated Mac users is they're restricting their choice for some excellent machines at very keen prices. OK, you get what you pay for, but you can't always get what you want running Mac.

I ran an Asus EeePC and it was a superb machine. Linux OS as standard, but I'd loaded Windows, although only to get access to total mobility with a mobile dongle, otherwise pretty well all the Windows stuff would run on Linux anyway, which had the Mac benefit (much trumpeted by the Mac brigade) of being virus free. And all for under £150 from Staples. And I might be wrong, but I have a sneaking suspicion that if you can load it with Windows then Mac is also available by the same route.

I had that Asus for two years before part-exchanging it because I wanted a full back-up for this PC. I carried the Asus with me on a daily basis in my work because it gave me access to the internet anywhere at any time. Small enough to slip into my work-coat pocket, if I needed to show a customer photographs or something on the local council website, or Planning Portal, whatever. I never had the battery go flat, and anyway had the inverter in the van which meant I could use it all day if I wanted. A 120 Mb portable hard drive gave me access to every piece of software on my main PC (including TurboCAD) and also acted as a back-up for that machine.

You won't fit any Mac into your coat pocket (admittedly a big pocket) and for the price they are you wouldn't want to, whereas at £147 for the Asus it was "expendable", just like any other of the tools on the van that saw a lot of use.

And after years of dealing with PCWorld, I now wouldn't go near them to buy a AAA battery.