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NETbooks! Everywhere !

lugesm

lugesm

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Sep 7, 2007
572
9
I know. I know. This has been mentioned before, but I am seeing NETBOOKS crop up all over the Internet. It seems that almost every technology web site dealing with computers has announced one or more. SADLY, they are all Windows machines.

HP has a NetBook with 8.9" screen for $299! Today I saw an announcement that a 10" HP NetBook has been seen and photographed.

I am beginning to believe there is a market for a small, minimum-cost, limited-functionality, highly-portable computer.


Sure would love to see a Macintosh NetBook in the $400 range.

My guess is that the HackIntosh guys will find a way to load OSX on these new NetBooks if Apple does not respond with a competative product.

Just thinking . . . . . .
 
I'm currently using a MSI Wind which has OS X installed on it. It has some pretty decent features like 3 USB ports, SD Card reader, LED backlit screen, intregated bluetooth, 1.3 MP camera, mic, ethernet port and a VGA port. It performs extremely well and I'm pretty sure I'm going to miss it when/if I get one of these new macbooks. The size is perfect and with a 6-cell battery I can get 5.5 hours in OS X (roughly 4 with wi-fi on).

Best of all it was only $389. Maybe I should keep it. Hmm...
 
aristobrat said:
They're also running OS X on the Dell mini 9.

http://forum.insanelymac.com/index.php?showtopic=124363&st=340#
Click to expand...

i have this running for now. of course hacking leopard has it down sides. not everything works. and the legality of it is questionable as well. so i don't know that i'll be sticking with it. but netbooks certainly have a market. the thing is some people just need the basics on-the-go and not a powerhouse. computer processing has reached the point where a computer that is 'good enough' and not the 'best' is fine for email/web/chat etc.

on my bike, and in my bag, i don't have to worry about the durability or something happening to something so small, light, and cost effective.
 
phobic99 said:
I'm currently using a MSI Wind which has OS X installed on it. . . . . It performs extremely well . . . . .he size is perfect and with a 6-cell battery I can get 5.5 hours in OS X (roughly 4 with wi-fi on).

Best of all it was only $389. Maybe I should keep it. Hmm...
Click to expand...

Of all the NetBooks I have observed on the Internet, I missed this one (MSI Wind). Who is MSI? Who builds this product?
 
Most of the early Netbooks ran Linux, but the market went something like 80% Linux / 20% Windows in the beginning (e.g. around when the Eee 701 came out) to 80% Windows / 20% Linux in only a few months, and has since stayed there.

lugesm said:
My guess is that the HackIntosh guys will find a way to load OSX on these new NetBooks if Apple does not respond with a competative product.
Click to expand...

There have been demonstrations of it on numerous models from several manufacturers already.
 
lugesm said:
Of all the NetBooks I have observed on the Internet, I missed this one (MSI Wind). Who is MSI? Who builds this product?
Click to expand...

I sent you a PM but MSI is primarily a PC component manufacturer (motherboards, video cards, etc). There are several reasons the MSI Wind is popular with the "hackintosh" crowd but I'd say it's a combination of price, looks, and it's ability to run Leopard near perfectly. There's tons of videos on how Leopard performs on the Wind if you go to YouTube.
 
problem with all these netbooks like dell is the limit of how much RAM it supports. Dell maxes out at 1GB which is barely enough for Leopard but no where near enough for normal performance. I was thinking about it too but decided to get glassbook instead.
 
kalex said:
problem with all these netbooks like dell is the limit of how much RAM it supports. Dell maxes out at 1GB which is barely enough for Leopard but no where near enough for normal performance. I was thinking about it too but decided to get glassbook instead.
Click to expand...

I'd figure most people that get these laptops aren't doing anything too performance heavy anyway. Considering Apple still sells notebooks with only 1GB, Leopard must run good enough. Several netbooks do support up to 2GB however.

Regardless, I've backed out on buying a new macbook twice today simply because my netbook runs OS X as good as it does. Decisions, decisions.
 
Yep 1GB is absolute minimum and Leopard runs much much better with 2gb and even better with 4 :)

which netbook do u have?
 
I'm in the market for one

In my line of work and being on the road a fair bit, I could make good use of one of these.

The MacBook without firewire made me abandon my planned purchase. A NetBook could go a long way to me putting my toe into Hackintosh land without blowing the bank.

If that proved successful I'd be better prepared for when Apple updates the current MacBooks. If they come minus firewire I'll probably be getting a PC laptop and slapping OSX onto it.
 
I'll probably get shot down in flames for this, but am I the only person missing the point with these machines?

I see it as a bit of a gimmick and feel they are only selling well because they are small and cute and cheap. I think if I tried to use one for any sustained period I'd get annoyed with the tiny keyboard and staring at the tiny screen.

The vertical resolutions are normally pretty bad, which means they are not so nice for webpage viewing because you have to do a lot of scrolling. I haven't seen one which does automatic scaling/zooming to optimise webpages for the smaller screen.

And if it is only meant to be used for short burst then it just seems like £200-300 wasted that could be put towards buying a proper laptop, like a Sony TT, Voodoo Envy, Lenovo X200 or MacBook Air.

If I want to check the occasional webpage or read my mail on the move then there are plenty of phones which will do that now (not just the iPhone), and they fit in your pocket.

Any bag I have which could carry one of these could also comfortably carry my at least twice as powerful two year old MacBook. I appreciate that might not be the case for everyone.

I'd love to hear someone who is happy with their “NetBook” to defend it and explain to me where the appeal is?
 
phobic99 said:
I'd figure most people that get these laptops aren't doing anything too performance heavy anyway. Considering Apple still sells notebooks with only 1GB, Leopard must run good enough. Several netbooks do support up to 2GB however.

Regardless, I've backed out on buying a new macbook twice today simply because my netbook runs OS X as good as it does. Decisions, decisions.
Click to expand...

Which apple notebook ships with only 1GB now?:confused:
 
kalex said:
problem with all these netbooks like dell is the limit of how much RAM it supports. Dell maxes out at 1GB which is barely enough for Leopard but no where near enough for normal performance. I was thinking about it too but decided to get glassbook instead.
Click to expand...

the dell can run 2gigs of ram just fine. they just don't offer it for some reason. its not like ram is expensive, so far its been just fine with the 1gig and leopard, but i will be putting a new stick in there shortly
 
Why a NetBook is more than a cute toy

elppa,

This is just my case and each person will have their own reasons.

In my line of work I need access to a wide range of websites that specialise in languages. No fancy web formatting just text and some forum access where necessary.

I need files created by me locally available. I need to ability to take quick notes (plain text is enough for me). I need to be able to manage a simple database locally.

That's pretty basic and a real laptop would be overkill for my needs. Of course having things like email access, contacts, calendar etc is also convenient.

If battery life is good and it's around the 300 euro mark it would be perfect.
 
Avon B7 said:
elppa,

This is just my case and each person will have their own reasons.

In my line of work I need access to a wide range of websites that specialise in languages. No fancy web formatting just text and some forum access where necessary.

I need files created by me locally available. I need to ability to take quick notes (plain text is enough for me). I need to be able to manage a simple database locally.

That's pretty basic and a real laptop would be overkill for my needs. Of course having things like email access, contacts, calendar etc is also convenient.

If battery life is good and it's around the 300 euro mark it would be perfect.
Click to expand...

That's cool, I wasn't trying to have a dig at anyone who brought a NetBook, just curious as I couldn't see a use for one myself.

Interesting how everyone's use cases are slightly different.
 
elppa said:
That's cool, I wasn't trying to have a dig at anyone who brought a NetBook, just curious as I couldn't see a use for one myself.

Interesting how everyone's use cases are slightly different.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's how I feel also. I'm running on an year with my Eee, and I still use it preferentially over my iMac. It actually doesn't leave the house that much, although I take it to get online at hotspots and watch movies on trips. I have an iPhone, but surfing websites at the kitchen table or on the sofa from an iPhone isn't nearly as much fun as it is on the Eee. It's perfect for going to forums like this.

I don't know what the ultimate market will be for them, but I do know that I enjoy mine thoroughly.
 
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