A road warrior's guide to netbooks
Computerworld - The netbook is one of the most interesting categories on the market. These small laptops can do most of the jobs of their big brothers while costing under $500. For some people, such as students, a netbook can be a primary computer. For a business user, it might be a second PC for use when traveling or commuting. Here are five tips to help pick the right one for your needs.
1. Choose your operating system wisely. Depending on the vendor, netbooks are usually offered with Linux variants, Windows XP or Windows Vista. For the most part, I'd ignore the Linux devices. True, they're cheaper (since there's no need to pay for a Windows license), and they're usually loaded with open-source software, so things like an office suite, instant-messaging client and other applications are available from the get-go. But most users will struggle to add new applications to these machines, and the latest and greatest hardware peripherals usually aren't supported.
I'd avoid Vista as well. For the most part, netbook hardware is too slimmed-down to run Vista well. Most users will do best sticking with good old Windows XP. Microsoft recently allowed OEMs to continue to offer XP on netbooks, and that's a good thing. XP brings the breadth of Windows applications and devices, and it's been around long enough to work well on this class of device. The downside: Windows XP netbooks usually come with XP Home or XP Pro, but that's something that's easily fixed.
2. Avoid the SSD. It's cool to have a solid-state drive instead of magnetic media, but I'd avoid SSDs for now. The price/performance benefit isn't there just yet, and that's especially true for machines that cost under $500. At that price, you can expect to max out at perhaps 16GB or 20GB for an SSD, but at 120GB to 160GB for a hard disk drive. Even if your storage needs are modest, you'll want the larger drive. And if you're looking at the netbook as a primary device, it's a no-brainer.
3. Screen size matters. You can find netbooks with 7- or 8-in. screens, but I'd recommend a 10-in. screen. You need a resolution of about 1,024-by-600 to run Windows well, and that just renders too small for most folks on anything tinier than a 10-in. display.
4. Look for six-cell and not three-cell batteries. What's the fun of having a ubiquitous computer if you constantly need to look for a power outlet? Most three-cell batteries will last around three hours, with reasonable screen brightness and wireless use. A six-cell battery extends that to get you through a cross-country flight or most of the day out of the office.



- Excel 2010 Cheat Sheet
- Register for this Computerworld Insider Cheat Sheet and gain access to hundreds of premium content articles, guides, product reviews and more.
- The Laptop Dilemma: How to Maximize Productivity and Lower the Burden on IT
- Download Now
- Overcome Top 7 Admin Challenges of Active Directory
- As Active Directory's role in the enterprise has drastically increased, so has the need to secure the data. Gain insight on creating repeatable,...
- Insiders Can Ruin Your Company. Take Action.
- Did you know that 80 percent of threats to an organization come from the inside? The threat from insiders is often overlooked in...
- Top Solutions and Tools to Prevent Devastating Malware
- Custom malware frequently goes undetected. According to Forrester Research, the best way to reduce risk of breach is to deploy file integrity monitoring...
- Streamline Compliance and Increase ROI
- Streamline, simplify, and automate compliance related activities; especially those that impact multiple business units. This white paper from NetIQ, outlines solutions that will... All Hardware White Papers
- Optimizing Networks for the Cloud
- Join guest speaker, Rohit Mehra, IDC Director of Enterprise Communications Infrastructure, to explore current trends, discuss best practices for optimizing Data Center and...
- Apps QuickStart Series Part 2: Designing and Deploying SQL Server on VMware vSphere
- Download this webcast to learn about the design considerations for virtualizing SQL workloads, performance and scalability information and high-availability options, as well as...
- Apps QuickStart Series Part 1: Designing and Deploying Exchange 2010 on VMware vSphere
- Download this webcast to learn the virtual hardware design considerations for Exchange 2010, deployment using the building block approach, options for high-availability and...
- Customer Spotlight: How IPC The Hospitalist Company Implemented Oracle on VMware
- Have you been looking to hear about customer's experiences with the new VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager product? View this webcast to learn...
- Virtualize Business-Critical Applications with Confidence
- Virtualizing business-critical applications has become a key focus for organizations as they move along their virtualization journey. With the launch of VMware vSphere®... All Hardware Webcasts