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Best netbook buy

carlosbutler

carlosbutler

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Feb 24, 2008
691
2
Thinking of buying a netbook, I was not sure which one to buy. I was also planning on installing OS X on it, as i dont really want to have windows, or maybe have dual boot I have not yet decided. But I already have two versions of OS X on a disc (from an iMac and alu MBP), would these be able to be used to install OS X as i dont really want an illegal version. but i would also like a netbook with OS X.

I know their is some talk about Apple selling a netbook, so i shall wait until June but thought i might start looking around now.

Will OS X even be able to run on current netbooks with slower CPUs?
 
the dell mini is probably the best buy, as its easily transformed into a hackintosh and they frequently have deals on that the 9" and it appears they have a deal going right now on one of their models.

From what I've read, working on one of these can be a bit frustrating, because of the keyboard size, especially if you're a touch typist. there's enough blogs and reviews that started out glowing on the mini or other netbooks but after trying to use it for "serious" work, the people found the size too limiting.

I am curious to know how OSX does perform on such a platform. I'm tempted but to be honest, I want it so I can play with ubuntu
 
o right. well as i said ive got a MBP and dont really need it. just a bit of spare money from student loans at uni, and the interest rates are sooooooo low its just a joke.

im not keen on dell though, had a dell computer. broke after 15 months. few friends have dells, and some have stopped working/have massive errors after 13 months (right out of warrenty)
 
Is the dell mini 9 better or the dell mini 10 for running os x. I am thinking that when snow leopard comes out that I may by the family pack and put one on my mbp and use another on a hackintosh:)
 
bigmanathome24 said:
But I already have two versions of OS X on a disc (from an iMac and alu MBP), would these be able to be used to install OS X as i dont really want an illegal version. but i would also like a netbook with OS X.
Click to expand...

FWIW, if being as close to legal as you can is your goal, this really doesn't work... the OS X licenses that come with those Macs belong with those Macs -- those discs aren't even usable for installing OS X on some other genuine Mac besides the model with which it shipped. Plus unless you no longer have them installed on those Macs, you're using the licenses anyway.

The Dell Mini 9 does seem to be the pick right now for hacking OS X onto it... I was really interested to see, however, that C|Net UK did a top ten list of netbooks less than two weeks ago, and, amazingly, the Lenovo S10 wasn't on it at all (unless I missed it?) and Asus bagged all three top spots.... That was very contrary to what I'd been hearing as the general wisdom (outside of installing OS X) that generally made the Lenovo S10 out as the best netbook option on the market. C|Net will be C|Net, but the set of reviews doesn't seem ridiculous overall....
 
For what it's worth (not much), I had OS X 10.5.7 running on an Aspire One. Ran slowish, and the built in card readers were flaky.

Tom
 
mkrishnan said:
Isn't this something like saying a Honda Accord is not a very good Formula race car? Who is trying to do "serious work" on their netbook? And who gets to define "serious work?"
Click to expand...

The person that wrote their article was. Actually, he wasn't even trying to do anything that you wouldn't use a netbook for and still got pissed off at it. Did you read the article? Here's another one with a more in-depth criticism.
 
well serious work for me is programming (Java, php, C etc at uni) and then doing reports and presentations. i sometimes struggle to do that even on a 15" MBP (why i have a 24" imac :D) but as i said it was only to mess around. but its going to suddenly decide to stop working and be lame about it i dont think i will bother.

also what that guy said about the MSI Wind, i thought netbooks were fairly sturdy objects, although the only one that i have used is a samsung one... not sure if that makes a difference to MSI
 
miles01110 said:
The person that wrote their article was. Actually, he wasn't even trying to do anything that you wouldn't use a netbook for and still got pissed off at it. Did you read the article? Here's another one with a more in-depth criticism.
Click to expand...

I did, yes.

In any event, you said previously that netbooks are "pointless for doing any kind of serious work." As for the second one, if NaNoWriMo is now the definition of serious work, I'm sure I've lost interest in the argument. :p But if you're saying that netbooks running OS X are not reliable, as opposed to netbooks in general, then fine.
 
mkrishnan said:
Isn't this something like saying a Honda Accord is not a very good Formula race car? Who is trying to do "serious work" on their netbook? And who gets to define "serious work?"
Click to expand...

what other work can be done other then "serious" work. The articles show that even light writing was a chore. As with everything YMMV and a touch typist is going to have a more difficult time because his fingers are used to having keys in a certain place. Changing the spacing and order will affect those folks more then those who hunt and peck.
 
mkrishnan said:
In any event, you said previously that netbooks are "pointless for doing any kind of serious work." As for the second one, if NaNoWriMo is now the definition of serious work, I'm sure I've lost interest in the argument. :p But if you're saying that netbooks running OS X are not reliable, as opposed to netbooks in general, then fine.
Click to expand...

Well, apparently if "serious work" involves any kind of typing on a netbook's keyboard, using the trackpad, and connecting to wifi, then it's pointless. I don't know, I'll leave the definition of "serious work" to you- since apparently netbooks can't even handle "normal things you use a computer for."
 
miles01110 said:
Well, apparently if "serious work" involves any kind of typing on a netbook's keyboard, using the trackpad, and connecting to wifi, then it's pointless. I don't know, I'll leave the definition of "serious work" to you- since apparently netbooks can't even handle "normal things you use a computer for."
Click to expand...

Well they would be more useful once you upgrade the drive and replace the WiFi with an AirPort card, but then you might as well have bought the fire sale MB laptops that I have seen for ~$650 ( two revs back, but still not shabby compared to the netbooks ).
 
miles01110 said:
Well, apparently if "serious work" involves any kind of typing on a netbook's keyboard, using the trackpad, and connecting to wifi, then it's pointless. I don't know, I'll leave the definition of "serious work" to you- since apparently netbooks can't even handle "normal things you use a computer for."
Click to expand...

All those things work fine on netbooks that haven't been hacked to run OS X....
 
mkrishnan said:
All those things work fine on netbooks that haven't been hacked to run OS X....
Click to expand...

Quite possibly, but an OS won't make the keyboard less cramped, the trackpad bigger, or strengthen the poorly constructed chassis. But yes, that particular aspect was more directed to the OP:

bigmanathome24 said:
Thinking of buying a netbook, I was not sure which one to buy. I was also planning on installing OS X on it, as i dont really want to have windows,...
Click to expand...
 
maflynn said:
what other work can be done other then "serious" work. The articles show that even light writing was a chore. As with everything YMMV and a touch typist is going to have a more difficult time because his fingers are used to having keys in a certain place. Changing the spacing and order will affect those folks more then those who hunt and peck.
Click to expand...

I started learning to touch type on an old Royal manual typewriter when I was about 8. I'm touch typing this response on a keyboard that has about 85% of the letters on the keys worn off due to excessive use. I'm far from being a hunt-n-peck typist.

I've tried several different brands of netbooks in stores and I have yet to find one that I had any problems with using. I can see how people with very large hands/fingers might have problems, but otherwise I've found it's just a matter of just getting used to a keyboard that is about 95% size of the standard keyboards.
 
localoid said:
I've tried several different brands of netbooks in stores and I have yet to find one that I had any problems with using.
Click to expand...

FWIW, my typing speed is somewhat impacted by the netbook keyboard, but it isn't that significant. I think I drop from around 80-85 WPM to about 70, with something like a 95% accuracy. I can type fast enough to do my professional or fiction writing on it without any major impairment related to typing.

As for the trackpad, the Eee I have does have a fairly small trackpad, but I find it pretty usable for all mousing, scrolling, and single click functions. Two finger and three finger taps I find a little bit harder on it, to be honest, but everything else works fine (to me).

Those are issues people should take seriously before getting a netbook. But to suggest that, because a couple of bloggers didn't like their netbooks, that they are universally useless for typing or using a trackpad, is a bit ridiculous. Indeed, I am hardly aware of any notebook computers, even the 17" 10 lb monstrosities, that have keyboards as good for touch typing as the best desktop keyboards. I somehow manage to live on, however. Likewise, there are people who regularly say that a 13" screen is restrictively cramped and others who are quite happy and effective on a 9" or 12" screen. I have a hard time understanding how any of these issues are so universal that one person's experience can be used to decide for another whether they will matter or not.
 
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